Asheley123's Blog

Course Evaluation

asheley123 — Mon, 24 May 2010 18:56:19 +0000

Overall I thought this class was good. I liked having English and History together. Being able to combine these two classes was great. They fit together nicely and made class so much easier for me. I thought it was really neat to have assignments that had to do with English and History. When I work on two skills at once it feels like I’m getting so much done and like I’m learning so much more, it just makes things so much more interesting.

Personally, History is not my favorite subject. It was challenging for me and complicating, but I learned a lot this year. I use to think that what happened had happened and there was no point in learning about it now. I was really wrong about that. I now am glad to have studied everything that I did. I learned a lot about so many different things. There were a few things that I disliked, for example, I didn’t like having a lot of projects at a time, I didn’t like how the class seemed to go on and on, and I most definitely did not like writing all those DBQs. But, overall class was great and it was worth doing everything that I did.

English wasn’t my favorite thing to learn about, but writing is really fun to me. I don’t really like to write essays, but I love to write different kinds of poems. My favorite poem we wrote was the sonnets. They were extremely challenging but somehow they came to me as fun. I like to be creative and different and I got to put that into a sonnet. I also liked doing the GWAGS. They were easy enough and made me understand more of the grammar rules. English class was great!

I liked English and History being together but I didn’t like how long they were. But, I learned a lot and all the projects weren’t that bad, they were challenging enough and had their easy parts. Overall English and History class were good classes.

Literary Critique

asheley123 — Mon, 10 May 2010 14:36:58 +0000

Asheley Gonzalez

Bronx Masquerade book critique

Mrs. Scow 5/6

I read the book Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes. In this book there is a young boy by the name Tyrone Bittings who dreams of becoming a hip-hop star. He enjoys spending his time writing his raps and rhymes. However, school never came so easily to him. School never was able to spark his interest and he never seemed interested in most of the other children in his class. Neither did he try to make much of an effort into doing his homework. Yet, that changed when English class gave Tyrone the opportunity to share the words in his mind with his classmates in school. Tyrone used words to express himself, because they were what he was best at, and were the only way that he could “release” (130) his thoughts. My overall opinion of this book was that it was great, I liked how it was written, I liked the length, and I liked how there was a lot of emotion in it.

Grimes wrote this book very well. I really liked how she put things and the way she let you see the character’s point of view. They each have their own way of seeing things and they each have their own opinions. Grimes really showed how they think and the difference between everyone in that school. Tyrone grew up in the Bronx, and to other people they might have thought that he was a regular dangerous boy just looking for some trouble. Yet, Tyrone knows he does not want to cause trouble and that he does not want to do any wrong to anyone else. Grimes really knows how to write, she can explain everything in an exciting way. She makes everything make sense putting excitement and emotion into her characters.

Mentally, Tyrone is tough because he would not let anyone break him down into doing what is wrong. Tyrone puts out to the people listening to him that he is more than a black boy in the hood, but someone that believes in following his dreams. Grimes put a lot into this book and describes how everyone feels and what they want, and yet, this book is still not too long, it is the perfect length. This book was not at all too long and it didn’t drag on and on about things. It gets straight to the point and all falls into place really smoothly.

Grimes put a lot of emotion into this book. Tyrone really believes in his other classmates. Even though it seemed as if he did not talk to his classmates at the beginning of the book, due to this experience in school, he was able to become closer to many of the other children in the class. He grew to like them and he grew to understand them. As an example of this Tyrone writes “Even though the people in our class are all different colors and some of you speak a different language and everything, I feel like we connected” (164). Every character in this book believes and feels differently and as you read it you will begin to understand how everyone feels about themselves and other people.

Overall, this book was great. I would rate this book a 4/5 stars. I really liked how it was written, I liked the length, and I liked how there was a lot of emotion in it. I enjoyed reading it and I really felt that I could relate to the characters. I would recommend it to mainly teenagers because I feel they can relate better to it than anyone else would.

Reflection

asheley123 — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 17:44:39 +0000

The most difficult thing about writing my critique was organizing it because I couldn’t figure out which way sounded better.

The strongest part of my critique probably was my introduction because it was the part that I edited the most and it had better word choice.

As I wrote the critque I did develop new insights about life because I actually had to think about lessons the book was teaching me.

Of the assigned reading I did about 90 percent of it.

I did not read all of the assigned reading because it got boring at some places and it was to long.

I liked the meaning of the book, how Atticus defends Tom, and some of the feelings.

I liked those items because they really show all of this not just tell.

I disliked the points where it confused me and where it was boring and felt to long.

I disliked those parts because i don’t like books that confuse me and books that all of the sudden get boring.

I liked the book but some of the vocabulary was challenging and the way the author makes things happen was kind of confusing.

If I were a teacher I would teach this book again because it is a good way to show how African Americans were treated and it will be challenging enough for your students.

Asheley Gonzalez’s book critique

asheley123 — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 17:44:08 +0000

The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, revolves around a young girl named Jean Louise Finch who goes by the nickname Scout. Scout experiences different events in her life that dramatically changes her life. She and her brother, Jem, are being raised by their father, Atticus Finch who is a lawyer, and their cook, Calpurnia, who is a black women. They live in a small southern town called Maycomb. At this point in time, the South racism and discriminations towards black was a big issue. Scout’s father becomes a defense attorney for a black man, Tom Robinson, who is falsely accused of raping a white woman. This has a big affect on Scout. During this trial she gets teased by friends because her father is helping a black man. Scout begins to see the racism that exists. I enjoyed this book a lot because it was really well written using high quality word choice and this novel also had a great meaning pertaining to real life issues.

When I read this novel pictures came to me and sometimes I felt like I was actually in the book. I was able to picture almost every scene in my head. Lee does a great job describing each scene and shows them and doesn’t just throw words together. I think Lee uses exemplary words and really thinks of phrases that will draw your attention and help you understand what is going to happen. She also uses great literary devices to help you see more. “Aunt Alexandra fitted into Maycomb like a hand into a glove, but never into a world of Jem and me” (Lee 131). Scout and Jem are different from their aunt and I thought this was an excellent way to show this.

This book really has a great meaning to it, relating to things that occur in our daily life. Before, African Americans were treated horribly and this book really shows a lot about that. Tom Robinson gets disrespected and Atticus steps up and defends him. This teaches a very powerful lesson. Lee also shows a lot of emotion that we feel in our everyday life. Lee expresses a very compassionate feeling between the Finch family and their cook, Calpurnia. “Calpurnia bent down and kissed me” (Lee 29). Calpurnia is not related to Scout or Jem, but, she still loves them like they were her own children. This feeling of compassion with this family is entwined throughout the entire novel and it definitely gives the book more feeling and emotion.

Overall, I think this book is really well written and has a great meaning to it. This book tells a great story that not only you are reading and understanding the words that are written, but you can also picture everything that is going on. I would recommend this book to people on a high reading level who understand what is happening and can have fun reading.

asheley123 — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:46:27 +0000

Because of our writers notebook I’ve improved alot in writing, thinking, and reading. I moved here in september and from then until now I’ve improved alot in these three things by writing in my notebook. I’ve learned to be creative and think about situations. I’ve learned to write alot and express how I feel and show more. I’ve also improved my reading level and mainly because we read different kinds books in class.

Since I started writting in my notebook I’ve learned to think about situations and know what I’m going to write word by word before I actually write it. I’ve improved on thinking about what I’ve learned and how I’m going to make it a reflection rather than jsut a piece of writting. I realized I need to think about different words to use so my writting doesn’t sound like it is repeating itself and so it gets straight to the point and doesn’t just skip around talking about random stuff.

Also, just thinking about what I’m going to write about isn’t all. I need to make sure it comes out right when I’m writing it and I have really improved. Before I used to just make up words and hope they sound right together, but not anymore. I learned to be creative in my writing and how to make it make sense. Now, before I write I make rough drafts and an outlining so that my piece of writing will be perfect, with no mistakes.

I have also been improving on my reading skill, I really have. When I moved here I really didn’t read and I hated books. But, going to school here has really opened that passage up again. I’m starting to read more books, in class, in the library, and at home. I have really been improving. Before I never could keep up with what the book and what it was talking about. Now, I really can read and understand, my reading level has definitely have improved a lot.

Over all I have improved in these three things and hope to keep improving. I now want to keep writing, thinking, and reading.

What I’ve learned

asheley123 — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 23:50:59 +0000

I’ve learned a lot growing up. How to sit, how to stand, how to walk and talk, how to clean my room, and more. i learned all of this from my parents. But what I really remember was the fights I would get into with my friends. I got into at least three bad fights. We would tell each other off, when it really wasn’t one persons fault. What we really didn’t realize was it was all of our fault, but no one could handle the fact that we all need to just be mature and take responsibilities. After all why not solve our problems instead of making them worse? My mother taught me this as well as my sister. I taught it to my friends and they thought it was ridiculous. I felt like the world was coming to an end because my friends wouldn’t listen to me. I felt the sky crashing down on me. I didn’t know what to do, so I went to my sister. She then told me, no worries they’ll just have to get over it. So I didn’t worry, I realized it wasn’t the end of the world, I just needed to relax, so I did. My friends wondered why they never bothered me. It made them more upset that I wasn’t intimidated. Later on they finally decided to talk to me and I explained everything. Soon they understood the lesson and decided to give it a try with their other friends. After this my friends and I rarely would get into fights!

asheley123 — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 19:11:30 +0000

I was finally getting the hang of high school. I’ve been here for one long, tiring month. My first day was the hardest. I went into at least three wrong class rooms. Everyone laughed at me. My face went red and I ran out. Right then and there the bell rang,everyone raced out of their class rooms. Everyone pushing and shoving it was like one million french fries in a small paper bag. I ran trying to find where my next class room was, I was running into all kinds of classes, health, history, math, and finally I reached the right one . . . Spanish. Today was the longest day ever. I had five hours of classes, three hours of off time and it was miserable. Finally it was two fifty, only ten more minutes of school. The clock ticking slower than a turtle does when he takes the first step. nine minutes, eight, seven. Iwas thinking in my head I want to go home! HURRY UP! six, five, four minutes. I can’t take this any longer! Three, two, ONE! The bell is almost going to ring. Ten seconds, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, ONE! RING, RING! Schools over. Day one complete.

My first week of school

asheley123 — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 19:21:27 +0000

I’ve been in school for one week and so far its been great!! The students have been very nice and so have the teachers. It is very hard for me to understand because I came from Mexico and I had done everything in spanish so I don’t really know how to spell and pronounce words. I’ve been having a lot of trouble on the assignments because I’m just not sure what exactly to do, I know what to do I just don’t know how to do it.!!

I moved to Westminster,CO about three weeks ago and I have only been in school a week .

The two weeks I wasn’t in school I would sleep in and just be lazy all day…….so getting up at 5:3o in the morning to go to school really sucks!! It is very tiring and it is not to cool!!

Every day I get up at 5:30 then get on my bus at 6:30. My first class is spanish and it is only one hour. I have my second hour off. Then I go to math which is very fun. My math class is 2 hours and right after this class I have another 2 hour class which is language arts and history. I have 7th and 8th hour off so I either go home or I go to the library and do home work or just read.