Year overview

MS51 is an amazing middle school and 8th grade has probably been the best year yet. I've meet the most and the best friends in 8th grade and 7th grade. The Romeo and Juliet unit was pretty fun but the book language was a bit hard. The performance was over all good but the note taking while reading the book was tedious. Overall 8th grade and ms51 has been fun science wasn't boring ela was useful math was also mostly useful social studies was fun but the worksheets quickly becam tedious and mostly boring art was great spanish was good and gym was fun. Lots of people want to be popular but I learned that being popular really dosent matter at all and that all it carries with it is drama and being fake which I don't care for at all. Overall ms51 is an awesome school and I would strongly recommend it to anyone trying to chose a middle school!

poetry project

Theo Russell 812

I think I will dream tonight

I will feel the lush grass on my feet as I walk through paradise

I will feel the clean air touch my face as I walk through paradise

I will hear the humming birds as I sit in paradise

I will hear the wind whistle as I sit in paradise

And when I wake up

I will feel the cold unforgiving ground and I will hear the cruel voices of the people around me.

This is a poem that I wrote as a homework assignment, and Its about a depressed person dreaming about a better life.

I feel so lost without you

When I reach to my side to pat you I feel nothing

When I put my hands over my mouth to call you you don't come

When I pat the side of my bed you don't jump up besides me

When i'm crying and I need you you're not there for me

Where did you go?

This is a poem that I wrote in class, its based on a person whose dog is lost and it's kind of based on my life and how my dog died and the sadness i felt.

I hear gunfire in the background in the background

I hear my fellow soldiers crying in pain

I hear the enemy shouting ahead

I see blood soaked dirt

I see the ground littered with shells

I see explosions ahead

I feel pain all over my body

I feel my head pounding

I feel dread and sorrow and I think

“when will it all end?”

This is the poem I made for the poetry competition and it's about a soldier that was drafted into the war.

My body hurts I fell on ice

My toes are really frozen and are cold

My feet feel weird and funny like fast mice

If I pulled the ice I would make a mold

I think I may have broken my right calf

I feel so hopeless and I start crying

My body is full numb in my south half

I feel no pain my body is lying

I can feel my body slowly sinking

this is the end of the line I know it

I am going to die I am thinking

If I go to heaven I hope it's lit

So I guess I am just going to go

Oh well I hope that I will not die slow

In this sonnet it started out with me learning how to make a sonnet and writing the line "my body hurts I fell on ice" and then I just went from there.

Reading response on heart poem

America McKay feels like an instant classic, it talks about America in such a way that you can relate. I like the word choice and feeling of the poem America.

The word choice in the poem America has a great effect on it. Words like "bitter" and "vigor" really make the poem feel alive. Also they give a personality to America these words make America seem a bit harsh.

The feeling in America is portrayed in a great way. Lines such as "her vigor flows like tides into my body" make you feel like America is a person and is a very lively and intense person. These kind of lines create a persona for America.

In conclusion I like the poem America by Claude McKay because of its word choice and feeling. The word choice makes America in the poem seem a bit harsh and the feeling makes America seem like a lively and intense person and creates a persona for America.

Reading Respanse on Teen angst? Naaah...

Everyone is different some people a little and some people a lot. Teen Angst? Naaah.... by Ned Vizzini is an auto biography about a teen going to high school and growing up. Ned is very different compared to everyone else around him. He is an extremely hard worker and becomes obsessed with studying when he needs to pass something like the SHSAT to get into Stuyvesant high school.

Ned Vizzini is different because he studies much more than he needs to. When he is studying to the SHSAT he buys study books and makes a bunch of flash cards. In the book  his mom says, "you are not allowed to obsess over this test understand?" to which Ned responds "yeah" but in his head he is thinking "but it was too late i was already obsessed." This shows that he is obsessing over the test which is different then what other kids would do.

Another thing Ned does that is different is he forces himself to learn. In the book he makes a bunch of flash cards things like pi equations and things he needs to learn. In the book it says, "I taped the cards to the wall near my bed so they would be the last thing I saw before going to sleep." This shows that he is forcing himself to study every night and make the flash cards on his wall be what he is thinking about when he falls asleep.

Lastly Ned is different because instead of doing things like having fun at the beach he takes his study book with him on vacation when his family goes to lake George. In the book it says, "a flubery old women was reading on the book. The presence of me with a test book annoyed her. She glowered and said, "whaddaya studying for? This shows that even though Ned is at beach he would rather study than enjoy himself.

In conclusion this connects to kids in the world by showing that some kids will become obsessed and work really hard to pass a test which is different than what other kid would do, Ned just studied instead of enjoying himself and his summer. This should show the reader that a lot of kids are different when it comes to to things like studying.

synthesis page: is the story fair?

Critical question: Is this story fair why or why not
synthesis page: book is not fair

1. In the book the main character wade lives in a place called the stacks and his parents both died and his aunt and her abusive boyfriend take care of him now. They take away anything valuable from wade to pay for his rent. He took away his best laptop so that they could pay fr rent. This is unfair for wade because he loved his mom a lot and his aunt is mean to him and her boyfriend uses force to take wades stuff
2. In the oasis which is the mmo that wade and most of the world there are a group of people called the sixers who are trying to win James hallidays competition (the Creator of the oasis) so they can take over the oasis and when they do they will make everyone pay monthly to access the oasis. Also they will put advertising everywhere.
3. Also the sixers (what people call the IOI corporation) placed a bomb on the stack that wade lived on and they said if he didn't give them the location of the first key he would blow up the his stack. He thought that they were bluffing so he said no to them. Then the sixers blew up his stack which killed his aunt and every one that lived there. Wade really didn't deserve this and was unfair.
4. When wade was starting to fall in love with art3mis (how its spelled in the book) they go to a party. While they are at the party art3mis told wade that she would not talk to him again until someone won the competition which left wade heart broken which he really didn't deserve.

argumentitive essay

Theo Russell 812   

You would think that a book that has kids that become violent and try to kill each other would be bad for kids right? Well, actually this book contains a good lesson for kids. In the book lord of the flies a group of schoolboys are the only survivors of a plane crash. They end up on a isolated island. All the boys meet together and choose a leader which is Ralph. Another boy named Jack starts to become jealous of Ralph's leadership which leads to him becomes increasingly violent and savage. Jack creates a tribe of kids which try to hunt down Ralph and his friends. They even kill Ralphs friend piggy. I think lord of the flies should not be banned because it teaches kids important morals. And although the book contains violence and some bad language, the book is a great classic for teenagers and has some good lessons in it.

    The book lord of the flies shouldn't be banned because it can teach important morals. The book can show young people and kids especially that if there are no rules or adults around chaos can start to break out. In the story the kids start to make rules until Jack and Ralph become enemies. After they become enemies the rules are completely ignored and jack and his followers become violent and savage. Ralph tried to keep order and make rules but after jack and kids creates their tribe they overpowered the rules which made everyone chaotic. This teaches kids that without proper rules there will be chaos.

    You might think that lord of the flies is a violent book and is not suitable for kids but I think it teaches kids great lessons. people may think that the intense violence between kids could potentially make kids act violent themselves. I think this is wrong because kids don't usually act violent because of something they read in a book. This book can teach kids that rules can prevent chaos and violence. Also when kids see how the savage kids act they will be shown that if you act that way it can be dangerous and people can get hurt and you can even hurt yourself.

    The book lord of the flies is a great classic for people like teens to read because it teaches good moral lessons about rules and adult supervision. This is a great classic that shows that people and even kids can eventually cause chaos when there are no rules or law.  This book also shows that often without rules kids think they can do whatever they want which eventually leads to people getting hurt and even so far as people getting killed. I think that all teenagers should try to read this book to learn that rules are useful and so are adults in the role of keeping order.

    In conclusion I think that lord of the flies should not be banned because this book teaches kids morals and is a classic book that all teenagers should read. The conflict of book banning is something serious and banning a book is a direct violation of the first amendment. People should have freedom of expression and authors should not have their books banned because they can teach kids important lessons and morals and can overall improve kids tolerance and understanding towards the world.

social issue ELA project

Reading response on please don't take my air Jordan's

In the poem please don't take my air Jordan's it tells about a man who is poor and steals shoes from the mall. But when his shoes are “outdated” and the mall decides to get more cops. He does something extreme to get what he wants.

In the poem the narrator explains that he is poor, but he is into style. So he can't afford the shoes that are very expensive like the ones he wants so he resorts to crime and stealing to get the shoes he wants so he can look “fly” with his crew. All he really wants is to look good. So when he can't afford something he needs to steal it

When his gear begins to become "outdated" he needs to get new gear. But the security in malls have gone up and he can't steal from the mall anymore which means he has to do something extreme. He gets a gun goes to the park to rob someone of their Jordan's. He points the gun at the guy but he runs which caused the narrator to shoot him. The last words he says is please don't take my air Jordan's. This is sad because it seems like everyone just cares about style and wants shoes. But then he takes the guys shoes and says that he doesn't care. Then at the end he says he needs a new jacket which means he is going to try to kill someone again

In conclusion I think this poem shoes the crazy things people will do to get clothes or expensive shoes. People will do anything to get good looking things to impress their friends

Ela poem about bulling

On the sideline I sat there

On the sideline I watched

On the sideline I was frozen

My friend was crying

My friend was bleeding

My friend was bruised

My friend fell to the floor as he was beaten

The next day my friend wasn't there

The next day my friend switched schools

The next day I was silent

The next day I didn't speak

It turns out that my best friend was gay

Interview with dad

1.What kind of social problems do you see when you are out taking photos?

I take pictures in schools a lot and see lots of problems that have to do with segregation and that when you go to schools in poorer areas in New York like Harlem or Washington heights. The schools have kids that are mostly black and Latino and in neighborhoods like Carrol gardens and park slope the students are mostly white but the city is racially mixed unlike the schools and makes me wounded of kids are really getting a public education.

2.What kind of environmental problems do you see when you are out taking photos?

I think the city is cleaner then it is when I was a kid but there is still a lot of wasted energy everything is powered by coal, gas, and nuclear energy. And this causes pollution. I think there should be more solar and wind power on city buildings.

3.What kinds of social issues are present in your photos

I take pictures for guiding eyes and I think there's a lot of problems with service dogs being allowed on buses, trains, and restaurants. And that disabilities are not always easy to tell and people think some people are lying when they say they are blind and that a vision problem doesn't mean you are completely blind.

4.Is there anything you like to photograph that has to do with social issues?

I like to photograph kids and learning and pictures of them with there teachers to illustrate their relationship in my photographs.

5.how do feel about the guiding eyes program?

I think it's amazing and it's my favorite charity and am impressed with everyone I've met who works there and the puppy raisers are amazing and I think it's incredible they give people puppy's to raise for the blind and am endlessly impressed.

nonfiction reading response

In the article "World leaders call for action on climate change" by Sharon Oosthoek it talks about the president of the united states and the president of china get together and talk about action for climate change. In the article it explains how people need to stop using things like fossil fuel to stop CO2 gasses. The author wants me to know that dangerous changes in climate will occur if action is not taken

A claim made by the author is that in the last two centuries the most fossils have been burned and CO2 gasses released than any other time in history. As a result of this has led to melting glaciers and sea ice, to rising sea levels and to more extreme weather events. CO₂ also has begun making ocean water more acidic. These changes have made life hard for various creatures living on land and in sea.

Another claim is that an average rise in global surface temperatures is a prime symptom of climate change. Today global temperatures are about 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit higher than before the industrial revolution. And that was when people first started burning large quantities of fossil fuels in the 1800s. Governments around the world have said that long term temperatures should not rise more than 3.6 degrees more than the industrial revolution times. Scientists say that if temperature is raised above this it could be very dangerous because weather patterns would change and ice melting could change life as we know it.

In conclusion after reading this article I have come to an understanding that climate change could be very dangerous and if action isn't taken it could change life as we know it could change for the worse.

book club blog post

 In the book lord of the flies a group of English school boys are stranded on an island after a plane crash. The boys elected a chief which is Ralph. Jack soon gets jealous and thinks he should become chief so he takes people to make his own tribe. Soon they start hunting for Ralph and his friends and go so far as to brutally. kill Ralph's close companion piggy. Jack is good and friendly in the beginning but then slowly starts to turn evil and savage because of his hunger for power.

At first Jack is good and friendly. In the book it says "the slanting sunlight on the high mountain, was shed that glamour, that strange invisible light of friendship, adventure , adventure and content" This shows how Jack and Ralph are good friends. Also It shows a stage in where they are really getting along. Another part in the book says "Jack and Ralph looked at each other with shy liking." This quote is at begging of the book and shows Jack and Ralph starting to develop as good friends. Also when Ralph is elected chief he lets Jack keep control of his choir which then turns into to the hunters this shows Ralph's generosity towards Jack.

Jack starts to transition into madness when he starts getting jealous of Ralph's title of chief. He comes back from hunting one day asks all the boys to vote Ralph out of chief and nobody votes so he gets mad and says if anyone wants to join him and be a hunter. Then after everyone is asleep the majority of boys leave to join jacks tribe and be savage hunters.

Jack starts to turn evil after he forms his tribe. The first savage act Jack and his tribe do is kill a mother pig and use its severed head as an offering the the Beastie (something the boys on the island think is a beast but in reality is just a dead war pilot). In the book it says "Jack held up the head and jammed the soft throat on the pointed end of the stick" this shows Jack being savage and violent. In addition right after Piggy dies Jack says "see? See? That's what you ll get!" I meant that! There isn't a tribe for you anymore more! The conch is gone-" then he proceeds to throw a spear at Ralph which tears his flesh off before Ralph runs off. This shows how Jack and Ralph have become huge enemies all because of Jacks thirst for power.

In conclusion Jack turns from good and friendly in the beginning to evil and savage because of his hunger for power. In the beginning Jack and Ralph are good friends and are together in one group under Ralph being chief until Jacks thirst for power takes him over and he creates a clan of savage hunters kills Ralph's friends and then hunts down Ralph. This connects to real world problems like dictation and bad leaders to things like countries, companies and just generally people who have been taken over by a thirst for power and do very bad things because of it.

archtype synthesis page

reading response 2

The book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, is a about a world were books are outlawed, people are killed on a daily basis for no reason, firemen start fires instead of putting them out, and finally the world is revolved making people happy. Throughout the story the main character Montag changes the way he thinks about the world and the books that are banned and what knowledge they posses.

One way Montag changes is when he meets a little "peculiar" girl named Clarisse. She talks to him about things he has never really noticed before and things that make him think deeply.
for example on a rainy day she says "i like walking in the rain" and Montag says "I don't think i would like that" then she says "have you ever tried it" and he replies "I don't think I have." another example is when she asks him "did you know that firemen used to put out fires?." When she says this Montag starts to think differently about thinks and starts to question his job as a firemen. Lastly she makes Montag think about people in general and starts to think about the way they act.

Another way Montag's thoughts change is when he takes books while he was burning a library. He starts to read the books and realize things he has never realized before. He is starting to realize the reality of things like war and poverty. Also he is starting to see that maybe there are other people out there in the world and that they are starving while everyone else is happy and well fed. Montag is starting to develop a better understand and common sense of the real world. He is starting to realize that the world in his mind he used to live in was wrong.

In conclusion Montags thoughts really change throughout the story from naive and oblivious to the world to starting to understand things and becoming more thoughtful. I think that hes beginning to to come out of the shell he used to live in.

Summer reading response

In the book Everyday by David Levithan, A the main character changes his body everyday and he falls in love with a girl named Rhiannon. There relationship is very difficult due to the changing of A's body and location everyday. eventually there relationship comes to an end because it is too difficult for Rhiannon. How does having a different body everyday effect A?
One effect it has on the main character is having him always worry about messing up peoples life. For example when A was in Nathan's body and he didn't want to risk messing up Nathan's body by going to a party, but he really needed to see Rhiannon. After the party he forgot what time it was and he ended up falling asleep on the side of the rode leaving Nathan there for the next day. Another effect being in a different body everyday has on A is that he cannot have a family. He mentions that when he was little he thought it was normal to wake up to a new family everyday, but he soon realized that everyone had there own family and he was the only one that woke up to a new one everyday. Finally the effect the effect of changing bodies everyday has on A is that he cannot have a steady good relationship. In the book Rhiannon the girl he loved so much could not have a relationship with him because everyday he was someone else.
In conclusion the effect of having a different body everyday on A is that he always has to worry about messing up somebodies life, also that he cannot have a family, and finally he cannot have a steady or good relationship.