Monday, May 23, 2016

8th Grade Speech - "Laughter Blocks Fear"


“Laughter gives us distance. It allows us to step back from an event, deal with it and then move on.” - Bob Newhart. I believe that smiling and laughing can increase the happiness of a person and others around them. Causing others to laugh and have a good time has been a love of mine since a young age. I feel like laughter can make a person feel better even in the worst times. I always try to make the ones around me smile or laugh  because I feel that it can make a person's day brighter. I also feel that having a good laugh can make a person temporarily forget about a problem, worry, or fear they may have at that moment.

I remember when I was two years old and I went trick-or-treating with my dad. I was wearing a devil costume and it was my first time ever going trick-or-treating. I remember being scared of all the creepy decorations and scary costumes. My dad, being the funny man he is, tried to sooth me by making me laugh. I remember him making funny faces, telling silly jokes, and talking in weird voices. After he successfully made me laugh, I soon forgot about the fear I was feeling and began to enjoy my first Halloween.

Remembering this moment makes me realize that you can ease a person's worries by simply causing them to have a good laugh. 

Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Final Reflection Blog

           I learned a lot this year. One important thing I learned this year was what indepepent and dependent variables, phrases, and fragments are, along with what the differences is between all of them. This is important because I use these in my writing, and now I know how to properly use them in sentences. Another thing I learned was the importance of commas and how to use them correctly. This will greatly help my writing in the future. I also learned by improving my skills on writing introductions and conclusions in an essay or paper.

         I think I will always remember the butterfly project. I say this because this was one of the few big projects that I have done in middle school, and it took a lot of time and effort to complete it. I will also remember it because of all the amazing butterflies other people created and shared. I feel this project brought out the artistic ability of everyone and I enjoyed looking at everyone's creations. As well as creating my own.

          One of the nicest things someone did for me this year was help me when I was having difficulties. I remember once I was at a complete blank and I couldn't think of what to do for the work I was doing. My table partner helped me by giving me some ideas to help me push through the mind blank I was having. In the end, this greatly helped me as I was then able to continue and complete my work. 

          Something I, and other classmates, taught our teacher is a new way of looking at Tuesday's with Morrie, along with the other books we read this school year. I remember, during one of the Socratic Seminars, we were talking about our thoughts on Tuesdays with Morrie, and someone said something that made our teacher say how she never thought of the book that way. I know that while reading Tuesday's with Morrie, we showed our teacher different ways of thinking about the book and its meaning.

          I feel that I have made the biggest improvements in my writing skills. I have learned different tips on becoming a better writer, and I have used them in my writing and it shows how much I've learned. I've also improved in my writing by learning new vocabulary words, which has helped me because I use new words while I'm writing, so I don't use the same words over and over again. Instead I can now think of synonyms to words such as "good", "bad", or "sad", and it makes my writing sound more sophisticated, and it makes it more interesting for other people to read.

          For me, the most challenging part of this year was either the butterfly project, or the Morrie aphorism project. The butterfly project was difficult because it took lots of thinking to come up with a design. It also took time and effort to create the butterfly and make it represent the poem it was based off of. The aphorism project was difficult because it also took a lot of thinking to come up with a visual to represent the aphorism it was based on. 

          The piece of writing that I'm most proud of is my Narrative essay. Out of all the things I have done this year, that has been my favorite assignment. I have never enjoyed an assignment so much. Writing it was a lot of fun, which is part of the reason that this is what I'm most proud of. Along with it being an enjoyable experience, I enjoy reading it and thinking back to the moment the essay is referring to. Going into the essay I thought it was going to be very difficult to write, but while writing it, I noticed that it was fairly easy. Looking at the finished essay, then and now, I am very proud of what the end result looks like. The essay might not be the best writing I've ever done, but it's certainly the one I'm most proud of. 

          My biggest accomplishment, and the best piece of writing that I have done all year, was the argumentative essay. A lot of time and work went into writing that essay and I am extremely proud of what came out of it. I believe that all the research and facts that I put into my argumentative essay came together very well, and made the whole thing flow and really show the reader how strongly I feel about the topic. 

          Of the books I've read this year my favorite would have to be To Kill a Mockingbird. To Kill a Mockingbird is filled with so many lessons and important values. I believe that it could show a person a different way of thinking. A lot could be learned from that book. This book always kept me interested, and it was a book that I actually enjoyed reading. 

          To the students next year, I would mainly give them the advice to always do their work. I would tell them that If you fail to do what needs to be accomplished, there will be consequences, and there is no getting around those consequences. I would tell the students that as long as you do what needs to be done, all will be fine with Mrs. Larson. I would also tell the future students that there will be some times where it may seem too difficult to continue, but all they have to do is push through and do what needs to be done, because it won't always be like that. Most of all, I would tell the future students "good luck!"


Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Morrie's aphorisms - Final Project

Aphorism: "Life is a series of pulls back and forth. You want to do one thing, but you are bound to do something else." (pg 40)

          When this aphorism was stated, Mitch says he is complaining about what is expected from him versus what he wants for himself. Morrie then tells Mitch about the tension of opposites, and how life is a series of pulls back and forth. An example that Morrie gives is, "You take certain things for granted, even though you know you should never take anything for granted." This aphorism is saying that there will be times where you know you should so one thing, but something else happens out of your control.

          I can relate this aphorism to almost everyone, because we all take things for granted even though we shouldn't. My cousin knows she shouldn't take things for granted, yet she takes for granted that she has two extremely loving parents, and two amazing grandparents who are always there to help her. My grandmother knows she shouldn't take things for granted, yet she takes for granted that she has a beautiful home with air-conditioning. Even I know not to take things for granted, and yet I take almost everything for granted. As Morrie says, "You take certain things for granted, even though you know you should never take anything for granted."

          I agree with this aphorism. I believe that it is true that life is a series of backs and forth. How life has a way making you feel one way, even though you know you shouldn't feel that way. I know this aphorism to be true because I have witnessed it in myself and in others around me. When Morrie is telling Mitch this aphorism, he give the example, "Something hurts you, yet you know it shouldn't." I know many people who would agree with this example, and agree with this aphorism.

Graphic for aphorism:



I think this graphic captures Morrie's aphorism because it shows a person who is reaching out for the thing they want to do, but they are bound to do something else, and therefore can't get to the thing they want to do.

My aphorism: Life is to short to wait to long. 

In other words my aphorisms is saying: if you want to do something, then do it. Don't wait a lifetime to accomplish a goal you've had for a really long time, or a goal you really want to accomplish. Don't make excuses for why you weren't able to do what you wanted to do. Instead do what you can do as soon as you can do it, and don't wait too long or else it will be to late and you will keep regretting what you didn't do. 

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Tuesday's With Morrie Socratic Seminar Reflection - 5/4/16

          The seminars made me think differently about life and Morrie. The seminars helped me realize how Morrie is completely selfless, and how his views on things are different than most. For example, his religious views help him connect with people because he doesn't have just one belief. Morrie's views on death also changed the way I think about life and death. Morrie also helped me see the different way I could live my life. He showed me the different ways I should live my life, because I never know when the end will come. 

          I noticed that for each seminar, I didn't talk much and my goal was always to get into the conversation more. This was my goal because I would say hardly anything during the seminar, and if I did it was short and quiet. Although this was an important goal, I didn't work very hard to accomplish it. The reason might be because I didn't try hard enough to speak out loud and get into the discussion, even though I had thoughts and notes I wanted to share. 

          I noticed that for each seminar, the class focused on Morrie and how unusual he is. Morrie thinks and acts differently than most, and this made him an interesting topic to discuss. Morrie's views on religion, life, people, and death helped each seminar by giving the class something to really think about. The class helped each seminar by giving quotes, specific moments in the book, and thoughts about the subject. This helped the seminar stay on track, and helped guide the discussion.