Writing Reflection

photo:http://www.flickr.com/photos/bio_inc/257858772/

Ideas and Content

My writing made sense most of the time, and i had an okay topic sentence. My topic sentences were sometimes off-topic. I think this was because I was confused about the topic of the essay. I explained how my quotations relate to the main idea for the Alchemist essay, but not the Julius Caesar essay because I didn’t have enough time. To improve my writing, I can ask my friends/teachers for help.

Organization

My writing had the correct essay format: introduction, 2~3 paragraphs, conclusion. But my paragraphs didn't have the correct format: topic sentence, evidence, explanation......etc. I can improve my writing's organization by making sure everything is in my writing, and it is in the correct order.

Personal Growth

My growth as a writer doesn't show in my Julius Caesar essay. This was because we only had 80 minutes to finish the Julius Caesar essay, and we had about 2~3 weeks to finish our Alchemist essay. I think my Alchemist essay is better, because I had more time to revise it, and i got help from teachers and friends.

SLR Reflection

One SLR I used while writing my essay was communicate effectively. (alchemist essay) I revised it a lot of times to check if my writing makes sense, and if i'm communicating to the reader well.

Lost Boys of Sudan Collage Reflection

Think Creatively

I used think creatively by putting on meaningful pictures. On the part where the Lost Boys lived in America, I put a phone, with speech bubbles with money and the red cross. The line is connecting Sudan to America. It shows how the people in Sudan wanted help and money from the Lost Boys in America. I also splashed red paint on the war part to show how bloody and horrible the war was. These were the creative elements on my collage.

Reason Critically
The meaningful words I used in my collage describes my understanding of the Lost Boy's situation. I used words like death, destruction and survival to show the situation of the genocide, and I used words like hope, peace and sympathy to show how the Lost Boy's thought America will be like. These words I selected highlights my understanding for the Lost Boy's situation.

Communicate Effectively

I think that my six word memoir creates awareness for the Lost Boy's plight. "Cries of despair, loss, what next?". My six word memoir shows how the Lost Boys were feeling right after the war in their village. People crying because they lost their families and friends, and they're asking what will happen next? This shows how the Lost Boys lost everything, and how they desperately need help. My six word memoir creates awareness for the Lost Boys' plight.

Live Ethically

The pictures I selected demonstrated empathy and evoked emotional response for my viewers. Most of the pictures I chose shows the struggle the Lost Boys' had for the whole journey. Pictures that show racism, war, survival and death. These pictures might encourage my viewers to do something about this problem.

Julius Caesar Essay

“Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more,” (Act 3, Scene 2, Lines 20~21). Brutus explained that he assassinated Caesar, because he believed that Rome would benefit from his death. Filled with honor and patriotism, Brutus joined the conspiracy, supporting the assassination of his beloved Caesar for the good of Rome.

Honor was what Brutus always wanted, and he wanted Rome to love him and respect him. Honor changed made Brutus assassinate his beloved Caesar. In Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 84~88, Brutus explains how much he loves honor, “Set honor in one eye, and death i’ th’ other, And I will look on both differently; For let the gods so speed me as I love the name of honor more than I fear death.” Brutus told Cassius that he would do anything for honor, even if it might kill him. In Act 3 Scene 2 lines 20~21, after Caesar’s assassination, Brutus explained the reason why he chose to kill Caesar. “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more.” This shows how Brutus is willing to do anything for Rome, to be honored, even if the task is brutal and malicious. Brutus’ motivation of honor shaped him into a man who will do anything to be honored by his country.

Understanding that he is honorable, Brutus was also patriotic and thought he could control any situation. The conspirators discussed the assassination of Caesar, and every time Brutus spoke, every one agreed to him. “Cassius: What about Cicero? Brutus: O, name him not; Cassius: leave him out; Casca: Indeed he is not fit” (Act 2, Scene 1, Lines 141~154). The leadership shifted from Cassius to Brutus, and Brutus controlled all the plans for the conspiracy. The people of Rome were terrified when they found out Caesar was assassinated, and Brutus tried to convince a crowd to stay on the conspirator’s side. “Believe me for mine honor, and have respect to mine honor that you may believe me.” (Act 3, Scene 2, Lines 14~15) Brutus showed the crowd that he knows he is honorable, and he expects Rome to listen to him, and to believe him. After Brutus became motivated by patriotism, he became arrogant.

Brutus changed since he started to be motivated by honor and patriotism; he became arrogant and stubborn. It made him join the conspiracy, to kill his friend who was a tyrant. Brutus didn’t achieve his goal of being honored and receiving support from Rome. Antony’s funeral speech convinced Rome to rise against the conspirators, instead of thanking them. Brutus’ goal was not worthy or noble, it is good to love honor, but not so much that he will kill someone.

"America wasn't paradise and it wasn't as easy as they told you in the camps"

Peter is a refugee from Sudan, who currently lives in Kansas. He experienced difficulty while assimilating to the American culture. In the Dinka culture, it’s normal for guys to hold hands and hug, however in the American culture people believed that they were homosexual. In the refugee camp, Peter and his friends ate with their hands. When lunch came out on the plane to America, they weren’t sure how to eat the food, and they had no idea what they were eating. Education was also something Peter struggled with. The refugee camp in Africa couldn’t provide him the best education. When he worked in the factory, he had problems learning how the machines worked. Peter also had difficulties making new friends and showing his affection, because of his different culture. He thought it was okay to catch a random bird and give it to his girlfriend as a gift. His ethnicity caused conflict too. Peter’s boss in Wal-mart told him to work outside, since he is black and used to the heat.

To adjust to this new culture, Peter tried to act like how a normal American does, such as watching TV, using slang words and eating junk food. He also dressed like an American, with baggy jeans, hoodies/jackets and shiny necklaces. Peter hung out with his friends from different cultures by playing basketball with them. By doing what other Americans do, Peter also started to forget his Dinka culture.

KKB countdown: 1 month :D

One important fact about my personality:

- I'm really competitive about sports

2 reasons why I chose KKB:
- My friends said that it was a really good site
- I wanted to do all the fun activities like abseiling down the waterfall

What I hope to gain from Malaysia Week this year

- I want to learn more about teamwork, and how to keep our tent neat

(picture) www.google.com

I chose this picture because I love track and field. I love running 800m

Julius Caesar Performance Assessment

Act 4, Scene 3, Lines: 1-38

Cassius: That you have wrong'd me doth appear in this:

You have condemn'd an notes Lucius Pella

For taking bribes here of the Sardians;

Wherein my letters, praying on his side,

Because I knew the man was slighted off.

Brutus: You have wrong'd yourself to write in such a case.

Cassius: In such a time as this it is not meet

That every nice offence should bear his comment.

Brutus: Let me tell you, Cassius, you yourself

Are much condemn'd to have an itching palm,
To sell and mart your officers for gold
To undeservers.

Cassius: I an itching palm!
You know that you are Brutus that speaks this,
Or, by the gods, this speech will be your last.

Brutus: The name of Cassius honours this corruption,
And chastisement doth therefore hide his head.

Cassius: Chastisement!

Brutus: Remember March, the ides of March remember.
Did not great Julius bleed for justice' sake?
What villian touch'd his body, that did stab,
And not for justice? What, shall one of us,
That struck the foremost man of all this world
But for supporting robbers, shall we now
Contaminate our fingers with base bribes,
And sell the mighty space of our large honours
For so much trash as may be grasped thus?
I had rather be a dog, and bay the moon,
Than such a Roman

Cassius: Brutus, bait not me;
I'll not endure it. You forget yourself,
To hedge me in. I am a soldier, I,
Older in practice, abler than yourself
To make conditions.

Brutus: Go to! you are not, Cassius.

Cassius: I am

Brutus: I say you are not.

Cassius: Urge me no more, I shall forget myself;
Have mind upon your health; tempt me no farther.

Brutus: Away, slight man!

Cassius: Is't possible?

Brutus and Cassius are in Brutus' tent, discussing during the war against Antony and his followers. Cassius sold his soldiers to get money, and Brutus believed that this was a dishonorable act. The two get into an argument, Brutus trying to stay calm, and Cassius yelling at him with anger. This passage shows how they struggled in the war, and how a conflict was starting to form between them.

The Lottery Story - Band

1) The black dot, because it makes the reader ask questions like "what is the black dot? is it something good or bad?"

2)I thought Ms Hutchinsen was going to get kicked out of the village, because she said "it isn't fair", and also in the beginning of the story, it said that there are only 300 people in the village

3)I was really curious what was going to happen, and why was Ms. Hutchinsen shocked

4)I really wanted to know what was inside the paper and I knew that it was the end of the story, because the teachers told us. I was tempted to open it before it was 5:00pm, but I didn't because it was part of the assignment

5) Black and white are 2 contrasting colours, so I thought it was something important in the story

6)I was shocked, because I didn't think that they will stone her to death. I was sort of confused, because why would a village want to kill someone?

7)My prediction was sort of correct. I knew that the black dot was something bad, because when they saw the black dot, the mood suddenly became creepy and silent

8)It would have helped if we the author gave us more details in the story, like more background information of the village

9) The author left these voids in the story, because maybe she or he wanted to create more mood and tension, and catch the reader's attention

10)a. There was no title, so I had no idea what the story was going to be about.

b. It made me curious about what was going to happen at the end

c. It made me try to guess all the possible endings

d. I wanted to open it, because I wanted to know how the author ended the story

e. It made me more curious about the ending

f.

Band - Void

PART 1

The International School of Kuala Lumpur provides (silence)an exceptional education that challenges each student to develop the attitudes,(silence) skills,(silence) knowledge(silence) and understanding to become a highly successful,(silence) spirited, (silence) socially responsible global citizen.

I think that the silence creates a void, because the reader doesn't know what the speaker is about to say (The reader is thinking: what is this person going to say next?) and then we say what it is (the release)

PART 2

1. Describe one way composers can create tension (question) and release (answer) in their music.

They can make the music go quiet, and suddenly become loud again.