TO ACT OR NOT TO ACT (Expository)

out of both assignments, I enjoyed reading the article better than the sililoquy. A difference is that the speech tells anecdotes and the sililoquy lets the readers know that Hamlet is feeling.

DEAR STEVE (Expository)

personally, I really liked the speech. When he talked about connecting the dots, I looked at my life so far and realized that I can't connect them...yet. I don't know if not being able to connect them is a bad thing or not, but I'm sure someday I will be able to. During the second story, I was reminded of the times I have moved schools and as a result loosing some friendships. The anecdote relating to death, I feel like I should life my life like that but I don't know what I would do differently. If today were my last day, I would still go to school, but not because I LOVE school, but because I don't know what else to do. . .

CHARACTER STUDY (III) (AP English)

The first football game of the season was being held there and she was exited. When she was in school, she wasn't the type of girl who would go to the games. Before the game started, she went to the cafeteria and eat a taco that many students claimmed it was the best ones. When she was in the cafeteria, she heard some people heading there. When the unexpected guest entered, she was a bit angry to see that three guys that came in were from the opposite team. . .

THE VALUE OF CHOICE (Expository)

In this unit, I want to focus on the soliloquy because it is something that is alluded to very often. ("to be or not to be.") The way I want to learn it is not by reading it and taking a test on it but by having discussions and other interactive activities about it. By the end of the Unit, I would like to have my own opinion of the value of life in a well-structured way that can be backed up with facts and not only with "I'm entitled to my own opinion."

CHARACTER STUDY (II) (AP English)

All the way, Maria was trying to convince herself that this school had excelent teachers and that if she needed help in her first year as a teacher, her collegues were going to help her through it. The thing she was most exited to do was bond with her students. She wanted to be more than a teacher, she wanted to inspire and generate trust in her students.

CANTERBURY TALES (I) (AP English)

 In a post to your blog entitled CANTERBURY TALES (I), list any observations about the Prologue.  These may include questions, vocabulary, predictions, literary techniques, and quotes/elements that you found especially effective or memorable.  *Which character's story do you most want to read?

*

CHARACTER STUDY (I) (AP English)

As I look around my room to double check I am taking everything I need.. When I reach for my door, I felt a thightening sensation in my through and chest. I don't know if its because I'm scared or because I'm excited that the moment I have been anticipated has come. As I close the door to my apartment, I tell myself that this school year is going to be amazing because I will get to meet new students.

NETVIBES (AP English & Expos)

hmm. . .at first, creating a netvibe was a bit confusing because I did not know what to put in each collum, now I sort of feel a bit better but I still need to play around with it so I can become a bit more confortable with it. I am having trouble adding my yahoo account to it but I have my gmail, so I gues it's ok. So far, I only have my email accounts, the AP and expos blogs, the weather, and the time.

VOCAB #6 (AP English)

accolade: an award or privilege granted as a special honor or as an acknowledgement of merit


acerbity: sharp and forthright style of speaking


attrition: action or process of gradually reducing the strength or effectiveness of something through sustain attack or pressure.


bromide: a trite and unoriginal idea or remark, typically intended to placate


chauvinist: a person displaying excessive or prejudiced loyalty or support for a particular cause, group , or gender.


chronic: persisting for a long time or constantly recurring.


expound: present and explain an idea or theory in detail


factionalism: relating or belonging to a faction (a small organized group within a larger one)


immaculate: a person who is perfectly clean, neat, and tidy. Perfect.


imprecation: a spoken curse


ineluctable:unable to be resisted or avoided


mercurial: person who is subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind.


palliate: allay or moderate; disguise the seriousness  or gravity of an offense.


protocol: an official procedure or system of rules


resplendent: attractive and impressive though being richly colorful or sumptuous


stigmatize: described or t
Regard as worthy of disgrace or great disapproval


sub rosa: happening or done in secret


vainglory: inordinate pride in oneself or one's achievements; excessive vanity.


vestige: a trace of something that is disappearing or no longer exists


volition: the faculty or power of using one's will.

Obsequious: (adj) obedient; dutiful; fawning


2) Beatitude: (n) exalted happiness


3) Bete Noire: (n) a person or thing that one particularly dislikes or dreads


4) Bode: (v) to be an omen of


5) Dank: (adj) unpleasantly moist or humid; damp and, often, chilly


6) Ecumenical: (adj) general; universal: promoting Christian unity throughout the world


7) Fervid: (adj) heated in spirit, enthusiasm; intensely hot, burning


8) Fetid: (adj) having an offensive odor; stinking


9) Gargantuan: (adj) gigantic, enormous

10) Heyday: (n) the stage or period of greatest vigor, strength, success, etc.; prime


11) Incubus: (n) a nightmare


12) Infrastructure: (n) the basic, underlying framework or features of a system or organisation

13) Inveigle:(v) to entice, lure, or ensnare by flattery or artful talk; to acquire by beguiling talk or methods


14) Kudos: (n) honor, glory, acclaim


15) Lagniappe: (n) tip, bonus, gratuity


16) Prolix: (adj) extended to great, unnecessary, or tedious length; long and wordy


17) Protege: (n) a person under the care of someone interested in his or her career or welfare.


18) Prototype: (n) the original or model on which something is based on for formed; someone who serves to illustrate the typical qualities of something.

19) Sycophant: (n) a self-seeking, servile flatterer; fawning parasite



20) Tautology: (n) needless repetition of an idea


21) Truckle: (v) to submit or yield obsequiously or tamely

VOCAB #6 (EXPOS)

accede: assent or agree to a demand, request, or treaty


 brandish: wave or flourish something as a threat or in anger or excitement


 comprise: an agreement or settlement of a dispute that is reached by each side making concessions


 deft: neatly skillful and quickly in one's movements


 destitute:without the basic necessities of life


 explicit: stated clearly and in detail, leaving no room for confusion or doubt


 extirpate: root out or destroy completely


 inopportune: occurring at an inconvenient moment or inappropriate time


 ironic: happening in the opposite way to what is expected and typically causing wry amusement because of this


 musty: having a stale, or damp smell


 officious: Assertive of authority in an annoyingly domineering way


 ominous: giving the impression that something bad or unpleasant is going to happen


 pinnacle: the most successful point; the culmination


 premeditated: think out or plan beforehand


 rampant: flourishing or spreading unchecked



 solace: comfort or consolation in a time of distress or sadness


 stately: having a dignified, unhurried, and grand manner


 supple: bending and moving easily and gracefully; flexible


 suppress: forcibly put an end to it


 venal: showing or motivated by susceptibility to bribery


Adroit: expert or noble in use of hands or body

Amicable: characterized by goodwill.

Averse: strong feeling of opposition.

Belligerent: warlike.

Benevolent: kindly feelings

Cursory: rapidly over something

Duplicity: deceitfulness in speech or conduct

Extol: to praise highly

Feasible: capable of being done

Grimace: facial expressions

Holocaust: complete devastation or destruction

Impervious: not permitting penetration

Impetus: a moving force

Jeopardy: hazard or risk to exposure to loss

Meticulous: showing extreme care about minute details

Nostalgia: wistful desire to return in thought

Quintessence: pure concentrated essence

Retrogress: go backward to earlier/worse conditions

Scrutinize: examine in detail

Tepid: moderately warm

WHAT A CHARACTER (AP English)

describe a fictional character that made an impression on you.  What was it about this character that made him/her memorable?  Can you distinguish/identify literary techniques that contributed to the overall effect?

A character that is memorable is Katniss Everdeen.  She is memorable to me because she is brave and has a strong bond with her sister, like the one ,my sister and I shared when I was younger. Direct characterization, indirect characterization and dialogue contribute to the overall effect.

FREEDOM OF CHOICE ( Expository writtig)

explain the pros and cons of being responsible for your own decision-making.  What opportunities does this present?  How can it make things easier, and how can it make them harder?  Ultimately, what do you prefer-- making choices or having them made for you?  Why?
Having someone make decisions for you might be sometimes be easier that making decisions for yourself. A pro of having someone else decide for you is that you don't have to stress over the outcome of the decision. For  example, even if you think that the decision is bad, there is nothing you can so so might as well just relax. A con is that if someone else decides for you, they might not make the best decision for you.  I personally like to make my choices. For example, if i make a bad decision, I know that it was MY mistake and i dont have the right to blame it on someone else. But if someone else decides for me and the decision is a bad one, I would get upset with the person even if they tried their best.

VOCAB #5 (Expository Composition)

Adroit: expert or noble in use of hands or body

Amicable: characterized by goodwill.

Averse: strong feeling of opposition.

Belligerent: warlike.

Benevolent: kindly feelings

Cursory: rapidly over something

Duplicity: deceitfulness in speech or conduct

Extol: to praise highly

Feasible: capable of being done

Grimace: facial expressions

Holocaust: complete devastation or destruction

Impervious: not permitting penetration

Impetus: a moving force

Jeopardy: hazard or risk to exposure to loss

Meticulous: showing extreme care about minute details

Nostalgia: wistful desire to return in thought

Quintessence: pure concentrated essence

Retrogress: go backward to earlier/worse conditions

Scrutinize: examine in detail

Tepid: moderately warm

VOCAB #5 (AP English)

1) Obsequious: (adj) obedient; dutiful; fawning


2) Beatitude: (n) exalted happiness


3) Bete Noire: (n) a person or thing that one particularly dislikes or dreads


4) Bode: (v) to be an omen of


5) Dank: (adj) unpleasantly moist or humid; damp and, often, chilly


6) Ecumenical: (adj) general; universal: promoting Christian unity throughout the world


7) Fervid: (adj) heated in spirit, enthusiasm; intensely hot, burning


8) Fetid: (adj) having an offensive odor; stinking


9) Gargantuan: (adj) gigantic, enormous

10) Heyday: (n) the stage or period of greatest vigor, strength, success, etc.; prime


11) Incubus: (n) a nightmare


12) Infrastructure: (n) the basic, underlying framework or features of a system or organisation

13) Inveigle:(v) to entice, lure, or ensnare by flattery or artful talk; to acquire by beguiling talk or methods


14) Kudos: (n) honor, glory, acclaim


15) Lagniappe: (n) tip, bonus, gratuity 


16) Prolix: (adj) extended to great, unnecessary, or tedious length; long and wordy


17) Protege: (n) a person under the care of someone interested in his or her career or welfare.


18) Prototype: (n) the original or model on which something is based on for formed; someone who serves to illustrate the typical qualities of something.

19) Sycophant: (n) a self-seeking, servile flatterer; fawning parasite



20) Tautology: (n) needless repetition of an idea


21) Truckle: (v) to submit or yield obsequiously or tamely

DECLARATION OF LEARNING INDEPENDENCE (AP English & Expository Composition)

I sort of copied this entry from my August 27th journal topic. I changed some things but its kind of the same.

My big question is how can world peace be achieved by using language? And  Why can't ALL humans cooperate with each other and make the Earth a better planet to live in? without any violence, corruption, or misery? This year, my goal is to become fluent in ASL or began learning a bit of Korean or Arabic. In order to do that, I am planing on making at least 20 minutes per week to learn a new sign or word. 

NO CHILD LEFT UNTABLETED (Expository Composition)

I think that having technology in the class room is a good idea as long as the students and teachers know how to use it with a purpose. For example, this class is more technological-dependent that other classes but is not as much as other classes in college. In the article, I really liked this quote: "Entrepreneurs sound boldly unconventional when they talk about disrupting an industry, but they also sound as if they’re willing to break something in order to fix it — or just to profit from it." I think that that quote shows the sad reality of business today that don't care about the consumers but only about the numbers. 

LITERATURE ANALYSIS #1 (AP English)

The book I read for this class is "The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien

1. Briefly summarize the plot of the novel you read according to the elements of plot you've learned in past courses (exposition, inciting incident, etc.). Explain how the narrative fulfills the author's purpose (based on your well-informed interpretation of same).
 Exposition: in the first chapter, the reader knows what each soldier LITERALLY carries in their backpacks. The reader also learns that all of them carry the same things. After the first chapter, the author does not follow a chronological order of events, that's why the reader can say that the climax is not a specific one. I think that the purpose of this book was to show the reader that someone can not TRULY tell a war story because "what is story-real is not always happening-real."

 2. Succinctly describe the theme of the novel. Avoid cliches.
Themes: instincts vs what is thought of right: when the narrator gets drafted, he does not want to go to the war but is also scared of what people are going to say if he DOESN'T go.
Truth: when O'Brien reveals that, the events are not real, he explains that in order for something to be real, they have to feel real. That's why he invented all the extra events that never truly happened.

 3. Describe the author's tone. Include a minimum of three excerpts that illustrate your point(s).
tone: melancholy/reflective. (1) “They carried their reputations. They carried the soldier’s greatest fear, which was the fear of blushing. Men killed, and died, because they were embarrassed not to. It was what had brought them to the war in the first place, nothing positive, no dreams of glory and dishonor, just to avoid the blush of dishonor.” (2) “He wished he could’ve explained some of this. How he had been braver than he ever thought possible, but how he had not been so brave as he wanted to be. The distinction was important.” (Page 153)   (3) “Twenty years. A lot like yesterday, a lot like never. In a way, maybe, I’d gone under with Kiowa, and now after two decades I’d finally worked myself out. A hot afternoon, a bright August sun, and the war was over.” (Page 187)

 4. Describe a minimum of ten literary elements/techniques you observed that strengthened your understanding of the author's purpose, the text's theme and/or your sense of the tone. For each, please include textual support to help illustrate the point for your readers. (Please include edition and page numbers for easy reference.)
1. symbolism:
2. foreshadow
3. symbolism
4. irony
5. diction
6 Juxtaposition
7. Imagery
8. allusions
9. flashback/flash-forward
10. narration

LIT ANALYSIS #1 (EXPOS)

My book for this class is "The Deaf Community" by Jerome D. schein

TOPIC(S) and/or EVENT(S)
1. As we have discussed in class, a book is said to be nonfiction if its content is based on facts or events. What is your book about? [a]. Try writing a paragraph first to capture your thoughts. [b]. Then see if you can boil it down to one clear statement. (Even if you feel like you can just skip to [b], please do both; remember that your reader doesn’t know what you know.

A: The book is about some studies/surveys that have been done to a community of deaf people in the Washington area. B: analyze a deaf community

2. Why did your author choose to write about this topic, person or event?
he wants to understand a minority group better.

3. Why did you choose this book? What about the book appealed to you the first time it came to your attention (and how did it come to your attention)? What about the book made you want to keep reading once you began?

I choose this book because I am interested in becoming a translator and i'm interested in becoming fluent in ASL. I was in the library looking for nonfiction books and I decided to look up books regarding the deaf community.

4. Did you find the book realistic? Did you make any connections between people/events you read about and people/events in your own life? Why or (if you didn’t) why not?
Since the book talked about surveys done to deaf people, I found this book realistic. In reading this book, I was able to make connections between this book and the tv show "switched at birth" because this book talked about some issues that were present in the show as well.

PEOPLE
1. Since this book is nonfiction, the theory goes that the author didn’t create characters. But that’s not entirely true, is it? Doesn’t the author report his/her own interpretations based on personal observations? If we met his/her subjects for ourselves we might see them completely differently. What do the author’s choices say to you? Why did s/he choose to write about this book? What is the author’s tone, and what (if anything) does it say about the author and his/her subjects?

Since this book is mainly about surveys done to people who are deaf, the author did not create characters. However, the author choose what data to publish and how to publish it. In a way, the author could of manipulated the data to get people to sympathize towards the deaf community. The tone of the author is educational.

2. Describe two or three people from the book. What do they look like? How do they act? How would you write them as fictional characters (would you use direct or indirect characterization?

hmm. . .the book did analyze one specific person, but a whole community. It didn't give any names of people.

3. What about these people makes them interesting enough to write about?
I think that the author choose to write about the deaf community because there are people who still don't fully understand it.

 STYLE
1. Did the author use any tools from fiction writing (such as foreshadowing or symbolism), or did the author use a journalistic style? Example(s)?
The author uses a journalistic style throughout the book.

2. Does the author use lengthy descriptions of places and people,or does s/he focus more on action or dialogue? What overall effect do these choices have on the book?
When the author introduces the book, he describes the different connotation of the word deaf and he explain which people who are "deaf" participated in the studies.

 3. What tools does the author use to demonstrate tone and create a mood?

 4. What do you think the author’s attitude was toward the subject, or the characters, or the audience (i.e., you)? Why?

I think that the author wants to educate readers about the deaf communities because he does not present his opinions but facts (studies result)

5. What resources (newspaper articles, interviews, historical documents, e.g.) does the author offer? Did it matter in your thinking? Why/why not?
The authoor presented result to studies and it made him more credible.

 ENDURING MEMORY Write a paragraph in which you describe the one or two ideas from this book that you expect to remember for a long time. Explain your choices and their importance. Share a passage or two that give your reader a taste of the same effect.

An idea that will stay with me that i found in this book is that just because people are deaf, it does not mean that they will not be able to have a job, a career, or a family.

VOCABULARY #4 (Expository writing class)

 accede: assent or agree to a demand, request, or treaty

 brandish: wave or flourish something as a threat or in anger or excitement 

 comprise: an agreement or settlement of a dispute that is reached by each side making concessions 

 deft: neatly skillful and quickly in one's movements

 destitute:without the basic necessities of life

 explicit: stated clearly and in detail, leaving no room for confusion or doubt

 extirpate: root out or destroy completely 

 inopportune: occurring at an inconvenient moment or inappropriate time

 ironic: happening in the opposite way to what is expected and typically causing wry amusement because of this

 musty: having a stale, or damp smell

 officious: Assertive of authority in an annoyingly domineering way

 ominous: giving the impression that something bad or unpleasant is going to happen 

 pinnacle: the most successful point; the culmination 

 premeditated: think out or plan beforehand

 rampant: flourishing or spreading unchecked

 solace: comfort or consolation in a time of distress or sadness 

 stately: having a dignified, unhurried, and grand manner

 supple: bending and moving easily and gracefully; flexible

 suppress: forcibly put an end to it

 venal: showing or motivated by susceptibility to bribery 

VOCABULARY #4 (AP English)

accolade: an award or privilege granted as a special honor or as an acknowledgement of merit

acerbity: sharp and forthright style of speaking 

attrition: action or process of gradually reducing the strength or effectiveness of something through sustain attack or pressure.

bromide: a trite and unoriginal idea or remark, typically intended to placate

chauvinist: a person displaying excessive or prejudiced loyalty or support for a particular cause, group , or gender. 

chronic: persisting for a long time or constantly recurring. 

expound: present and explain an idea or theory in detail

factionalism: relating or belonging to a faction (a small organized group within a larger one)

immaculate: a person who is perfectly clean, neat, and tidy. Perfect. 

imprecation: a spoken curse

ineluctable:unable to be resisted or avoided

mercurial: person who is subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind. 

palliate: allay or moderate; disguise the seriousness  or gravity of an offense. 

protocol: an official procedure or system of rules

resplendent: attractive and impressive though being richly colorful or sumptuous 

stigmatize: described or t

Regard as worthy of disgrace or great disapproval 

sub rosa: happening or done in secret 

vainglory: inordinate pride in oneself or one's achievements; excessive vanity. 

vestige: a trace of something that is disappearing or no longer exists

volition: the faculty or power of using one's will.