End of the Year Reflection

NOT FINISHED

I am going to be writing about the assignments I did this year. Overall this year was very fun and I enjoyed it a lot. It was very fun and I learned a lot of new thing. Now back to the assignments. The assignments I am going to be talking about are: Quizzes: Article of the Week & Sentence of the Week, Blogging, Using Google Applications, Reading and Writing Notebook, Read aloud, Realistic Fiction, Book Clubs, Companion Book, Book Review, Social Issues Book, Comparative Essay. Some of these assignments were more like final projects than assignments, while others not really an assignment. 

One of the things that we learned about in sentence of the week

Sentence of the Week and Article of the Week: In the beginning of the year we did quizzes for sentence of the week and article of the week. All that we did in sentence of the week was find the subject, verb, and direct object. We also learned about FANBOYS. Sentence of the week helped me improve my grammar a lot. On the other hand, I don’t think article of the week helped me a lot. I didn’t really like the article of the week a lot. I found it very boring. We had to work at home and at school to finish the article in that week. In article of the week we used to read a article and mark our confusion, show evidence of close reading, and lastly write a 1+ page reflection.  The articles that we did were: The Economic Guide to Pick a Collage Major, Soccer’s Corrupt Soul, and 10 Benefits of Reading. In the reflection we just put down about what we thought about the article.My reflection for: The Economic Guide to Pick a Collage Major, Soccer’s Corrupt Soul, and  10 Benefits of Reading. Basically in the quiz all we had to do was make sentences about we learned in sentence of the week, submit the reflection, and write a reflection about the story that you were currently reading.

Word press!!! The amazing blog that I use

Blogging: We also did Blogging. We either used word press or blogger. I used word press because it was recommended by my teacher; Ms. Gierke. This was my fist time using word press, and I learned quite a lot. We usually posted our work on our blog when we were done. Sometimes we just write reflection about our unit in our blog (like I am doing right now!). The blog entries I did throughout the year were: About My Characters for Realistic Fiction, Picture Entry for Realistic Fiction, My Realistic Fiction Story, My Experience with Historical Fiction, Informational or Explanation Text, Reflecting on Book Club, Book Review- A Girl Named Disaster, and lastly my Argumentative Essay- Poverty Fear. Blogging helped me a lot not just in English class, but also for other subjects. Writing a blog entry was really fun because it was different than what we usually as a class did. I learned a lot and really enjoyed this assignment. I found blogging very easy and fun to use. Blogging was a great experience I am really proud of my myself for having a blog. 

Google Applications we used!!

Using google applications: The next assignment I will be talking about is not really assignment. It is using google applications. We used google application throughout the year. We used google docs for many things like drafting our essay. We used Gmail to communicate with friends and teachers. We used drive to save all our work form this year. We used google classroom to look at the assignments and announcements posted by our teacher. We used many more google applications throughout the year. It was a learning experience and I learned a lot about these google applications just by using them. Google application were very fun and easy to use. I had no difficulty using them.

Reading and Writing Notebook: We used our reading and writing notebook throughout the year. All we did in that notebook was take notes about the story we were reading, write reflections, brainstorm, take notes from the board, etc. Almost all the note taking was done in our reading and writing notebook. Using this notebook was very easy because you could just open it and jot down your ideas. Sometimes it was fun to use this notebook while other times, it was boring because you had to write a lot.

notes using notebook

notes using notebook

 

Read Aloud book Ms. Gierke read

 

Read Aloud:  In Semester one and two, our teacher Ms. Gierke read us a book called “Children of the River”. It was a fun and entertaining book. It was very relaxing and fun. Ms. Gierke usually used to read for 15 minutes to 20 minutes. After the read aloud we used to discuss what happened in the book. The book was really interesting. It was a book about how refugees live in American and try to fit in. Some part s of the book were really funny that the whole class bursted out laughing, while other parts of the story were so boring that i almost fell asleep. I really enjoyed picturing the characters in my mind while Ms. Gierke read the story.

Poverty Fear

The stories “Seventh Grade”, and “The Circuit”, sound very different when you are reading them, but there is something similar about these two stories. Both stories say that poverty is not easy because you always have to give up things and opportunities, because you always have to work hard, and because you cannot always be able to afford material possessions.

The authors mentioned places where it has been stated that because of poverty, you always have to give up many things and many opportunities.  In the story “The Circuit”, Roberto and Panchito are working in the vineyard all morning instead of going to school. They have to work outside in order to earn enough money to survive. Another example of giving up opportunities because of poverty is that when the grape season was over, Panchito could go to school, but Roberto couldn’t. “I knew he was sad. He was not going to school today. He was not going tomorrow, or next week, or next month. He would not go until cotton season was over, and that was sometime in February.” (Page 14, paragraph 2, line 5-7) Roberto had to work outside all day to earn money. He missed a remarkable opportunity of going to school, and learning just because of poverty. One more example of giving up an opportunity was when Panchito realized that he was moving again. “…but when I opened the door to my shack, I saw that everything we owned was neatly packed in cardboard boxes. (Page 15, paragraph 7, line 3-4) Panchito had to give up another great opportunity of learning how to play a trumpet. His excitement had faded into sorrow when he realized that he would not be going to school again since his family had to move again to find somewhere else to work.

In the story “Seventh Grade”, the author has mentioned places where the characters have to give up some things and opportunities because of poverty. For example Victor had to pick grapes just to buy his fall clothes. He had to give up his time picking grapes just to buy clothes. Instead of doing taking ballet lessons like Teresa, he had to be picking grapes. Another reason to prove that you have to give up things and opportunities just because of poverty is that Victor was not good at math because he has other work like picking grapes at home. “I’m not either, but I’m better at it than math, that’s for sure.” (Page 46, paragraph 2 line 4-5) Victor’s parents are uneducated which is why they don’t have a good job, and they don’t make a lot of money. Instead of them helping Victor with his studies, they have to work hard and so does Victor…like picking grapes. Another piece of evidence to prove that you have to give up something or opportunity because of poverty is that in Mr. Bueller’s college years he had picked up his girlfriend in different cars until he was broke. The author put this for a reason. He could have made up any story of Mr. Bueller impressing his girlfriend, but instead the author chose to put poverty in this part of the story. The author put this on purpose because he wants to show that now just kids, but also adults have to give up things and opportunities that are very important to them. Both stories clearly state: Poverty is not easy and you always have to give up some special thing or opportunity.     

The authors of the stories “The Circuit”, and “Seventh Grade”, stated many reasons for working hard especially in circumstances of poverty. In “The Circuit”, Francisco Jimenez has stated many places in which the characters have to work really hard because of poverty. One piece of evidence for working hard was that before Panchito and his family moved, they used to work outside every day, every week. “These are the words I waited for 12 hour a day, seven days a week, week after week.” (Page 11, paragraph 3, line 2-3) The author wants to show us that even before he moved, he still had to work really hard outside instead of going to school, or doing something else. One more piece of evidence that proves that you have to work hard in circumstances of poverty is when Panchito’s family was looking for work. “We got work! Mr. Sullivan said we can stay here the whole season,” she said, gasping pointing at an old garage near the stables.” (Page 12, paragraph 7, line 4-5) The author was to make his audience realize that working is a part of poverty. Instead of staying at their own little shack, they have to move out to find work. The have to work hard to just to afford a living. The last piece of evidence that I will be discussing about is that Panchito, Roberto, and Papa had to work really hard outside in the vineyard. “…the temperature had risen to almost one hundred degrees. I was completely soaked in sweat and my mouth felt as if I had been chewing on a handkerchief.” The author wants to show us that you have to really work hard, especially in circumstances of poverty.

In “Seventh Grade”, Gary Soto also mentions places where the characters really work hard because of poverty. For Instance picking grapes for Victor was working really hard. “Picking grapes was like living in Siberia, except hot and more boring.” (Page 46, paragraph 1, line 3-4) The author shows us that, because of poverty you have to work hard. In this case, Victor was working hard in order to buy his fall clothes. Another example for working hard because of poverty is that when Victor thinks Michael is weird when he scowls. it is not easy to keep up with the new updates when you are busy doing other stuff. The reason why Victor didn’t know about scowling was because he had work to do at home…like picking grapes. It isn’t easy to keep up with the new updates and to work hard at home. Both stories clearly state: Poverty is not easy and you have to work really hard in circumstances of poverty.       

“Seventh Grade”, and “The Circuit”, clearly mentions places where it proves that you are not able to afford material possessions in situations of poverty. “The Circuit” Panchito’s papa is not able to afford brand new car. “He bought it in a used-car lot in Santa Rosa in the winter of 1949.” (Page 11, paragraph 8 line 2-3) The author wants to show us that when you are poor, you can’t afford expensive stuff. You have to save money because of poverty. In the story they explain how papa examined the car every inch before driving it out of the car lot. Papa wanted to make sure that there is nothing wrong with the car. He didn’t want to waste more money.  Another example of not able to afford material possessions in situations of poverty is that Panchito and his family was only able to afford a mattress. They couldn’t afford a bed or even another mattress which is why Roberto, Panchito, and Papa had to sleep outside. “Mama, you and the little ones sleep on the mattress. Roberto, Panchito, and I will sleep outside under the trees.” (Page 1, paragraph 1, line 1-2)  This is a perfect example to prove that you not able to afford material possessions in situations of poverty. Another example that I am willing to discuss is that Panchito’s family couldn’t afford a house. When their work finished, they had t move out. They didn’t have a set house. They had to move to look for work and had to live in what was provided for them…like the worn out garage.

In Seventh Grade the author also states places where you are not able to afford material possessions in situations of poverty. For example Victor can’t but very expensive clothes because isn’t very rich and has to pick grapes to buy his fall clothes. You don’t earn a lot of money picking grapes which is why you won’t get very nice clothes. Another example of not being able to afford material possessions in situations of poverty is that Michael’s big brother had borrowed the GQ magazine from the book mobile because he couldn’t afford to buy the magazine. The author chose the word borrowed to show that even Michael’s brother could afford the magazine because of poverty. Both stories clearly state: Poverty is not easy and you are not able to afford material possessions in situations of poverty.

 As you can see both stories say that poverty is not easy because you always have to give up things and opportunities, because you always have to work hard, and because you cannot always be able to afford material possessions.

Amina Mariam Syed

Grade: 7    

Block: 1

Due: Monday May 30

Book Review — A Girl Named Disaster

I am writing this blog entry because I really liked this book and I recently finished it. I am also writing the book review because everyone has to write a book review about their book. The title of this book is A Girl Named Disaster. (source: Goodreads)The author of this book is Nancy Farmer. The copyright was 1996 but  it was in Puffin books, 1998. The book was first published in the United States of America by Orchard books, 1996.

Synopsis found in the book:

“While fleeing from Mozambique to Zimbabwe to an unwanted marriage, Nhamo, an eleven-year-old Shona girl struggles to escape drowning and starvation and in so doing comes close to the luminous world of the African spirits.” (from the book)

Nancy Farmer (author): Nancy Farmer is an American author of children, and young adult books. She has written 3 Newbery honor books. “She subsequently worked in Mozambique and Rhodesia (source: google maps) (modern Zimbabwe), where she studied biological methods of controlling the tsetse fly (wikipedia) between 1975–1978. She met her future husband, Harold Farmer, at the University of Rhodesia (Wikipedia) (now the University of Zimbabwe).”(Wikipedia)

Picture of book cover.. Source: assests

Nancy Farmer (author)………………..Source: TTLG

The story was mostly about how Nhamo struggled to get to Zimbabwe and escape from her village. It was interesting to read about Nhamo struggling. The main character of this story was Nhamo since the story was mostly about her. Some other important character were: her mother, her father, Crocodile guts, Ambuya, and Dr. Masuku. The characters were believable and at one point I felt like this was a real story. Nhamo’s life was full of problems and adventures. She had no maps to guide her to Zimbabwe. She had to hunt for her own food and of course Long Teats (source: bookrags) was a problem. Once Nhamo  dreamt that she was possessed by the witch-Long Teats. Nhamo carried a panga (source: dictionary.com) with her that she found on the baboon island. She was unaware that Long Teats lived in it and was trying to posses Nhamo.

Crocodile Guts boat out of Mukwa wood…Source: Glogster

Drowning, starvation, and wild animals were a problem for Nhamo. Living with baboons isn’t easy. Baboons are wild animals. If i were in Nhamos place I would probably hide and starve to death if I found out that baboons were living on the same island as I was on. I found Nhamo as a very brave girl. Nhamo survived such disasters that I can’t even picture myself in. “The girl finds her way to a lush, haunted island and lives alongside a troop of baboons. Daily conversations with spirits combat Nhamo’s loneliness and provide her with sage and practical advice. She makes mistakes, loses heart, and nearly dies of starvation.” Wikipedia. I can relate a little bit of this book to “Hatchet” since Brian also had to survive his plane crash, though I think Nhamo had a much harder time… The author had used the perfect words to describe Nhamo’s situation which is why I found this book really interesting.

Nhamo’s Panga.. Source: Weebly

My favorite character in this story was Ambuya (Nhamo’s grandmother). Ambuya was my favorite character because she was very wise. Also she used to tell very interesting stories.I can’t really relate myself to what Nhamo did, because I have never ran way from my house, but if I was commanded by Ambuya to do so, then I would have. I would have ran away like Nhamo did, because I knew that I would have to work all day I also would have listened to Ambuya because she always respected and loved her dearly. I think if I was where Nhamo was (the baboon island), it would have been a very interesting adventure, although food and shelter would be a problem.

I really liked this book and is one of my favorite books. It was really nice and fun to read all the struggles that Nhamo faced during her horrifying journey. The author uses rich and fascinating vocabulary to describe Nhamo’s environment which is why this is one of my favorite books.

My favorite part of the book was when Nhamo finally sees how her real mother looks like, in the picture. The reason why I like this part is because all of the troubles Nhamo faced had ended and she finally found out how her mother looked like. My least favorite part was when Nhamo’s mothers picture got burned in the fire. The reason why this was my least favorie part was because it was very sad. She had always loved her mother and now when she was sure it was her mother’s picture, it got burned. I cannot relate to how she is feeling because I haven’t lost anything really that precious yet.

SPOILER ALERT>> If I could change something, I would change the ending because I didn’t really like it. Nhamo had struggled so much to get to Zimbabwe so she could meet people who loved her, but I feel like she wasn’t really loved by a lot of people. In the end the result was that no one loved her in her village and in Zimbabwe.  Her aunt and her took her in but she wasn’t really wanted. She got a fancy dress and pink plastic shoes (something that she always wanted) but I still feel like this was a happy ending. Even her father wasnt alive which quite surprised me since I was expecting him to be waiting for Nhamo. If I could change the ending I would make it a much happier ending. I would make Nhamo loved as she deserves to be after going through all the disasters.

I would recommend this book to other students of my age because I found it very interesting. This story has a very rich plot I learned a lot about the Shona (source: Guruve) beliefs. I think student 11-15 year old would like and enjoy reading this book, since I enjoyed the book a lot myself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reflecting On Book Club

I am reading the book A Girl Named Disaster, written by Nancy Farmer. In my book group there is Megan, Carina, Aishah, Farah, and Yousra. In my group the norms that I think we are doing well are putting ideas on the table which is sharing ideas with an open mid and being thoughtful in the relationship to the ideas that are being shared. I think we are also good at pausing which is, pausing before responding, thinking and enhancing . Also discussion and discussion making. The norm that are easy to me are Pausing, Putting ideas on the table, and Paraphrasing.

Source for picture

Informational or Explanation Text

I am going to be talking about how to be a good big sister. First of all you should be patient and listen to her even she is very annoying. Also if you just stay calm and not show her how annoyed you are, then she will stop. You should always teach her good manners and never leave her out in anything. It will make her loved and she won’t annoy you a lot. Remember that you are only her sister, and not her parent or teacher. You should not boss her around in everything because if you do, she wont listen to you. Your sister will always annoy you but you should be patient and NOT shout, punch, kick or hit her. Instead you should tell her patiently in a soft voice to stop. You should also give her treats, or candies if she does anything good. Being a big sister is not easy and it is a big responsibility, but always love your sister because you won’t always be with her. At times you might wish you were an only child, or the youngest, but after you leave for your studies, you will miss her and regret that you didn’t spend a lot of time together. She might be the most annoying thing in the world but she is still your sister, and she will always be your sister.

Source: http://es.wikihow.com/ser-una-buena-hermana-mayor

My Expierence with Historical Fiction

Hi, I am writing about my experiences with historical fiction.  To be honest I am not really sure if I like historical fiction. I haven’t really read any historical fiction except that once in grade five, we read the book In The Year of the boar and Jackie Robinson with Mr. Bourn and in grade four I read Sarah Plain and Tall.  In grade five we read a lot of books together as a class, so this was one of them. Why I am not sure if I really like this genre is because I haven’t really read any another historical fiction besides In The Year of the boar and Jackie Robinson and Sarah Plain and Tall. My favorite genre is mostly Realistic Fictions, Adventures, and Mysteries. In The Year of the boar and Jackie Robinson was a interesting book, but it was very confusing to me at that time. Sara Plain and Tall  was an easy and fun book to read. I have no experience writing any historical fiction.  I think I find writing historical fiction a bit difficult since I was never good in history. Another reason why I find writing historical fiction a bit difficult is because  you have to plan the story a lot and you also have to relate it to something that has already happened, which at some times can be very difficult.

This is all that I just think. Maybe historical fiction could be very easy to write, or it could be more difficult than I think it is. I can’t say for sure since  i haven’t really read any historical fiction besides In The Year of the boar and Jackie Robinson and Sarah Plain and Tall ,and I have no experience in writing historical fictions either.

photo credits: Google Images – Link to the site

 photo credits: Google Images – Link to the site

 

My Realistic Fiction

Source: http://ed101.bu.edu/StudentDoc/Archives/ED101fa09/mmcevoy/Index.html

My Writing Process for this Semester:

The writing process this semester was really fun. I liked the writing sneezes that we used to have. I also like the scene test that we did for our characters. I learned that some stories are better to write in first person, while other stories are better to write in third person. I liked how we used to describe our characters by listing out things that the character liked and disliked. I learned that it is important to work on your characters before you start writing the story so then you know all about the character. I also learned that it is important to take out details from your story that are like distracting details, scenes that don’t give important information, or could be easily summarized, descriptions that don’t give important information, and summaries that give background information that the reader doesn’t need. I learned to keep Actions, thoughts, and dialogue that move the story and develop the character, descriptions and moments that highlight the theme(s), images and metaphors that pop out meaning, scenes that are significant, summaries that explain important information. I learned to have a good lead that catches the readers interest. I learned techniques to make the story more interesting like  making it challenging for the character to act, creating a time crunch, raising the character’s motivation, or adding danger. I feel very good about my story because it is finished and it turned out to be a great story. I really like the product of my story.

Now I will give you the synopsis and excerpt and my realistic fiction short story—-

Title: Friendship Disaster

Synopsis:

Katherine just wishes for a friend. Just a friend that she could hangout with. But even she after she finds a best friend, she has many more problems to face. After Violet founds out how Katherine became friends with her, she get mad. Now everyone hates her. Every single student in fifth grade hates her. Even the counselor is mad at her.

Excerpt:

The next day……

During class Ms.  Parker, our counselor came and asked Violet, Cadence, and I to come out of the classroom. She said she wanted to have a talk with us. I knew I was in big trouble. The three of us walked out of the classroom and followed Ms. Parker to her office. No one said a word on the way. The hallway was empty and quiet. The only thing that i could hear was children pointing at us and whispering to their friends, from the classroom window.

When we reached Ms. Parker’s office she told us to sit down on the chairs that surrounded her messy brown table. She told me to sit in the middle. I sat down and stared at the floor. No one said a single word. Ms. Parker took a deep breath. Then she started talking.

My Story:

FRIENDSHIP DISASTER

As I got out of the building the hot sun shined down me. Sweat was rolling down my head as I carried my book and my lunchbox, heading for the lunch room. I was thinking how amazing it would be if I had a friend. I was imagining the two of us walking together to recess. Playing games together, sharing our secrets, talking about things we hate and the things we like, sharing food at lunch time, having parties all the time, having play dates, talking about mean girls at school, talking about family problems, talking about our vacations, sharing ideas with each other in class, talking in class, hanging out everyday at recess together and so much more. But for now, another lonely recess had passed, just like all the others.

I walked in the the stinky, noisy, smelly lunchroom still carrying my book and lunchbox. The lunchroom smelled like rotten bananas, and the tables were all dirty with food on them because the little kids ate before us. This room was the room I hated most in the whole school, but sadly I had to come everyday or the teacher would give me detention if she caught me out of the lunchroom at lunch time. I have never got detention and I am pretty sure I never will because I am really good when it comes to following the rules.  I really don’t know why people hate me so much. I used to have friends when I first came to this school, but now two months have passed, and  everyone has a friend. Everyone except me.

“Sit down everyone” the teacher screamed.

I sat at the corner of the table. I opened a lunch box put my book beside my lunchbox and took out my cheese sandwich.

“Hi Katherine”, Kate said as she started to open her lunchbox.

“Why are you sitting next to me. Go sit next to Eve or somewhere else. Just, don’t sit next to me. P-LEASE.You know I don’t like it when YOU sit next to me, so go somewhere else.” I said in a annoyed voice. Then I smirked at her

Kate got up and walked to the other corner of the table, almost crying. She was a new girl and she never really did not do anything mean to me, but I just didn’t like her. I didn’t care if she was crying. I didn’t know why people were so kind to Kate and not me. I never did anything mean to anyone but no one likes me. Who would want to be kind to Kate? Who would want to be friends with Kate? I thought.

I lived in New York with my mom and my dad. I am an only child. My family was rich and my parents give me anything I want as long as I got good grades. All I used to do all day was study or waste time on the television. I went to a school called Hojin International School. I am in grade five. This was my first year in this school and I wasn’t liking it.

I ate my cheese sandwich in the first five minutes of lunch. The rest of the fifteen minutes I read my book. When it was time to line up I was the first one in line because my homeroom teacher Mrs. Green, made me line leader.

When we reached the classroom Mrs. Green told us that we had assigned seats. I was very disappointed because I liked my seat because I didn’t want to sit in a group. I was actually pleased when I found out who I was sitting with. I was sitting with Violet, the most popular girl in my grade. Everyone loved Violet. I made sure when I was talking to her I was always kind and never even a little mean. I always wanted to be friends with Violet and now she was sitting next to me for 6 months. The better part was that Cadence, Violet’s best friend was not on the same table so now Violet won’t be able to talk to Cadence. I didn’t like Candace a lot either. I hated her as much as I hated every girl in this classroom except for Violet. Bella and Lauryn were also on my table but I didn’t really care because I was so happy that Violet was on in my table group.

“Hi Katherine” Violet said as she moved her desk next to mine and waved to Cadence who waved back

“Hi Violet, I am so excited we are in a table group.’ I said smiling.

Violet smiled back.

“Hi Katherine” said Bella as she moved her desk in front of mine

“Hi Katherine” said Lauryn who shoved her desk next to Bella

Bella and Lauryn were best friends but I don’t think they were so happy to see me in their table group. I didn’t reply both of them but I just smiled back which surprised them. I don’t understand why me smiling at them surprised them, but I didn’t care. I was just so excited Violet was on my table group.

“Okay Class, settle down. Today we are going to read each other’s realistic story and then comment and give suggestions. The person sitting next to you will be your partner for the story revising.” Mrs. Green said

I read Violet’s story while she read mine. Then I wrote some suggestions and comment on a lined piece of paper. We took  the whole class period just reading and talking about our story.  Then I gave her her story, as she handed me back my story and the lined piece of paper with the comments and suggestions on it.

“Class, English has ended. Please put away your books and take out your math textbook and workbook. Also please stay where you are right now because I have made assigned seats for math also. From now on you all will be having assigned seats for all the subjects you have with me. ”

Since I was in elementary school, I didn’t have too move to different classrooms for different subjects. I also didn’t have different teachers for different subjects. Mrs. Green was my English, Math, Science, and Social Studies teacher. My P.E teacher was  Ms. Thomas. My. French Teacher was Ms. Alice. My art teacher was Mrs. Stewart, and my IT teacher was Ms. Edwards.

Mrs. Green opened the seating chart on the smart board. I was on the back table with Eve in front of me. Cadence next to me, and Kate next to Eve. I was the last one to come on the table because I was gone to the bathroom. I was pretty disappointed that I had to sit with Cadence and Kate. Eve wasn’t that bad even though I didn’t really like her, but CADENCE AND KATE!!! I hated both of them. I sighed as I glanced at my table group.

“Class, please do page 135-138” and then questions 7-15 from page 139.”

I finished my work and then it was time to go home.

“Class, there is no homework today.”

At home I brainstormed ideas of how I can be best friends with Violet. I found out that I would go on Cadence’s account and tell Violet that she didn’t want to be friends with her anymore. Then I would be kind to Violet and become her best friend.

The next day……

In IT i asked Violet when was Cadence’s birthday. When she asked me why I wanted to know I just said that I wanted to give her a surprise present. So Violet told me that Cadence’s birthday was August 28. The rest of the period was boring. We were learning how to design stuff so we could print it on the 3D printer.

After that we had snack so I asked Violet if  could hangout with her and so she said yes. I don’t think cadence was happy I was hanging out with them but she didn’t say anything. The break ended quickly and then we had Science. After science we had art. Then we had lunch.

“Hi Violet” I said smiling

“Hi Cadence”

“Hi” they both said as we headed to the soccer field

The three of us played tag for the 20 minutes. I was so happy that I finally had a friend. I didn’t want Cadence to be friends with Violet because all they did in the lunchroom was talk while I was left alone eating my lunch and reading my book.

I had a french test but it wasn’t that hard. After that I had social studies. In social studies Mrs. Green said she didn’t have the assigned seats ready and she will have them ready next class. After class I saw Kate handing out pink envelopes to every girl in the class. She gave it to everyone so when I looked at her she just turned her face away from me. I was so mad at her I wanted to scream at her but I just let it go.

When I went home  went to gmail and wrote this:

username: cadence_albert@ihjs.edu.sa

password: 20050828

I logged into Cadence’s account and went directly to hangouts. I opened the chat with Violet and Cadence and then I wrote:

“Can you PLEASE not hangout with me anymore at lunch or recess. I don’t like you. Actually I hate you. Never ever talk to me again. I don’t know why anyone who even WANT to be your friend. Never ever come close to me you mean fat ugly girl.” and then I pressed logout. I was so pleased with myself, I couldn’t stop smiling and thinking that soon me and Violet will be BFFs.

The next  day……..

We had English first and we worked on our realistic fiction story. Then it was snack time.

“Hey Violet”

“What do you want. I thought you said I should never talk to you again. Go check Hangouts.” Violet said as she walked away

I followed her trying to to laugh.

“So Violet, what happened?” I asked

“Well, I checked my hangouts and Cadence had written all this mean stuff about me like no one wants to be your friend, and never talk to me again.”

“That not true, I want to be your friend.” I said innocently

“Really!”

“Yes”

“Thanks for helping me feel better Katherine. We are now friends. You can hangout with me whenever you want.” Violet said with a smile “And how about you come to my house after school?”

“Really!! I am there!” I said happily

I was so happy we were friends. And better, I will be going to her house after school just to hangout.

Then we had P.E and science. After those blocks we had lunch. This was the first time I was looking forward to lunch. Violet and I talked at recess and in the lunchroom. We walked together to the soccer field, and then to the lunchroom, and then together back to art class since we had art next. I didn’t see Cadence anywhere during recess and lunch,, and now she was late for art, but I didn’t care. I was having so much fun with Violet. I never really had a friend. Violet came 2 minutes late gave Mrs. Stewart a note. After art we had math and then it was time to go home. I went to Violet’s house and we played many games. I had to go home for dinner at 6:00.

The next day……

During class Ms.  Parker, our counselor came and asked Violet, Cadence, and I to come out of the classroom. She said she wanted to have a talk with us. I knew I was in big trouble. The three of us walked out of the classroom and followed Ms. Parker to her office. No one said a word on the way. The hallway was empty and quiet. The only thing that i could hear was children pointing at us and whispering to their friends, from the classroom window.

When we reached Ms. Parker’s office she told us to sit down on the chairs that surrounded her messy brown table. She told me to sit in the middle. I sat down and stared at the floor. No one said a single word. Ms. Parker took a deep breath. Then she started talking. When she was done talking she looked at me.

“Katherine, now what should you saw to Cadence and Violet for breaking their friendship?” Ms. Parker said seriously

I was quiet for some time, looking at the ground,ashamed and embarrassed of myself. I glanced at Ms. Parker but she wasn’t pleased either. Finally I took a deep breath and spoke up

“I am so sorry Cadence.  I promise I will never do this again. And I am sorry Violet for cyber bullying you and making you think it was Cadence. I promise I didn’t mean any of that stuff that I wrote. I promise.” I said ashamed of myself

“Then why did you write all that, and why did you made me think that it was Cadence who did all this.”

“Well I just wanted to have a friend so then  wouldn’t be bored every lunch and recess. I wanted to be your friend because everyone hates me. And I made you think that Cadence cyber bullied you so then you will only be friends with me.”

“Well, the three of us could have been friends if you just wouldn’t have bullied me.” Violet said still mad at me

“I am really sorry and I understand if you never want to be my friend again.” I said almost in tears.

I realized how bad I had been. I realized why everyone hated me. They hated me because I was always mean and annoying to them. I realized I hated my classmates and that’s when they started hating me. I kept my head down. No one said a word. Then Violet broke the silence.

“Katherine, you can be my best friend if you promise to apologize to everyone you were mean.” Violet said smiling

“Really! I asked as  looked at Cadence who was smiling. “Will it be okay if I am your friend?”  I asked cadence

“You already are” she said as she hugged me. “And I forgive you” she said smiling

“Well,  I think you girls should be going back to class. Don’t you think?” Ms. Parker said

When it was time go home I asked Candace and Violet to come over to my house and hangout.

“I am coming” Cadence said excited

“Me too.” Violet said happily

“Yay. I just got the best idea ever. I know you will love it. But let’s go the the bus before they blow the whistle. I will tell you about the plan in my bus.” I said

I had promised Violet I would apologize everyone and now she and Cadence came to help me make the surprise.  I started baking cupcakes. Violet and Cadence helped me bake and put frosting on the cupcakes. When the cupcakes were frosted I wrote sorry on all of them and put two cupcakes away. After that we decorated the cupcakes together. Then I made apology cards for: Kate, Bella, Lauryn, and Eve. After that it was time for Cadence and Violet to go home.

The next day at lunch……

At lunch we all didn’t go to the lunchroom but convinced Mrs.Green if we could stay in the classroom. When she asked why I told her my plan. Violet and Cadence and made sure Kate, Bella, Lauryn, and Eve didn’t go to the lunchroom. I apologized to each of them and then gave them a cupcake with sorry on it. Then I gave the each a card. It said that I was sorry for everything I did. When they all forgave me I handed a cupcake to Violet and Cadence. That cupcake was bigger than the others and it said Thank You on it. They thanked me and hugged me. Then I gave them each a Thank you card which took me 2 hours to make. After lunch I had a lot of friends. Now my friends were Kate, Bella, Lauryn, and Eve. Also my best friends were of course Violet and Cadence.

When it was time to go home Kate came up to me and handed me a pink envelope.

“Hi Katherine. Will you come to my birthday party. Its today.” She said smiling

“Of Course, I will be there. Also happy birthday” I said excitedly

I was so excited I was going to Kate’s party. As soon as I got home I got dressed in my best clothes. I put my favorite expensive jewelry. Then I put five hundred dollars in my purse and waited outside for Violet to come. She said she was going to be picking me and Cadence up so we can all go and buy the gift together. We we reached to the mall I went to the mall and bought her a amazing leopard blouse with a black skirt. Violet got her some expensive jewelry which matched my blouse and skirt, and Cadence got her matching shoes.Altogether it was four hundred dollars. We packed it nicely in a pink and shiny wrapping paper. We made sure it was pink since pink was Kate’s favorite color. After that I then put a fancy card saying: Hope you like your birthday gift. Love you, Katherine, Violet, and Cadence. ❤ I also attached a special birthday saying that I was sorry for being really mean to her and I will never ever do it again. I also wrote some kind things to her and wrote Happy Birthday. After that I signed my name at the bottom.

We all had an amazing time at Kate’s party. Kate specially thanked us for her gift. She came to me and thanked me for the birthday card. I told her that this was the best birthday party I have ever been to, and we soon became close friends.

From then on I was never mean to anyone again. I joined cheer leading group with Violet and was very popular and was loved by everyone in the school. From then on Violet, Cadence used to do everything together. We used to walk together to recess. We used to play games together, share our secrets, talk about things we hate and the things we like, share food at lunch time, have parties all the time, have play dates, talk about mean girls at school, talk about family problems, talk about our vacations, share ideas with each other in class, talk in class, hangout everyday at recess together and so much more. I was now the happiest girl in  Hojin International School. And of course it couldn’t had happened with the help of my amazing best friends:

Violet and Cadence.

Picture Entry for Realistic Fiction

This is my picture my sister took of me writing about my characters.

This is a picture I took of my scene test we did in class.

 

About My Characters for Realistic Fiction

My realistic fiction is going to have a Cinderella story arc.

My Characters

Primary:

Kathrine

1. she gets good grades
2. likes bossing everyone around
3. always into studies (even at recess)
4. doesn’t have any friends
5. wishes to have friends
6. mean and selfish

Secondary:

Cadence

1. has good friend
2. gets good grades
3. is Violet’s best friend
4. kind and nice

Violet

1. is nice
2. popular
3. kind
4. loved by all

What I enjoyed in this writing process was that making up characters and the character’s personality trait. I am still struggling with my characters and their personality traits because I am not sure which personality trait will be best for my characters.

About My Story

Katherine is a mean and bossy girl. She is really good in studies. She doesn’t have any friends because she is mean and bossy to everyone in her class. No one likes Katherine. She wishes she could have good friends.

Cadence and Violet are best friends they do every thing together. One day at recess Katherine asks Cadence and Violet she she can hangout out with them. Cadence and Violet who never are mean to anyone said Katherine could. They both didn’t really want Katherine to be with them but they said yes because they didn’t want to hurt Katherine’s feelings.

Katherine only wanted to be friends with Violet because she was popular and everyone loved her. She realized if she could be really kind to Violet then Violet would start to like her. Then she could do something horrible to Violet and made her think that it was Cadence who did it, Violet wouldn’t want to be friends with Cadence anymore, and then Violet could be beat friends with Katherine. She found out that if she was best friends Violet, she would become popular and everyone would like her.

    this is a picture of Katherine when she was being mean.

Photo Credits: google images –  – http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/villains/images/6/65/Kendall.png/revision/latest?cb=20121119132212