Tennis BC

4/23/2018

Tennis BC

Today, we started the day off with tennis lesson by Tennis BC. The head instructor is the coach of the UBC tennis team. You learned some basic tennis skills from balancing a ball, bouncing a ball, and proper forehand and backhand grips. Tennis requires a balance of concentration, strength, and agility. We are looking forward to seeing how you improve over the upcoming weeks. Click here to learn more about the different opportunities Tennis BC can offer you.

IMPORTANT: Return your Gr. 7 celebration forms and money ASAP!

1.) MATH (DIV 1): Complete all Translation/Slide worksheets for tomorrow.

To review Translations/Sides, click here.

MATH (DIV 2): Worksheet from Mr. Fisher

2. ART:

Explore the different tools of the PIXLR.COM web app and express launcher.
How do you think some of these digital tools will help you complete your Pencil to Pixel project?

3.) POST A RESPONSE:

THIS PAR WILL BE ASSESSED ON FRESHGRADE
Tomorrow, Mr. Fisher and I will be going over some examples of quality powerful responses, gift of words, and thinking and learning questions with you.
In addition to this, you will be reviewing the criteria/rubrics for your summative work.
Post a paragraph on the big idea of your novel.
Keep in mind everyone will have their own personal spin.
Your paragraph must include a personal connection and a question.
Your paragraph must also include how your thinking changed from the beginning to the end.
Edit/revise for the above items and the givens (spelling, grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary, punctuation, capitals, etc).

VIDEO LINKS:
The Rules of Tennis

Sofia

4/23/2018 03:41:43 pm

First!!

Sofia

4/23/2018 04:13:45 pm

Why are we living our lives? What are we trying to achieve by working so hard each day? Is it about how our life ends? To be honest, I don't know how all of this works at all, but the book "Follow the Elephant" has taught me so much about how our lives are meant to be lived. In the book, the main character (Ben) goes with his grandma on a trip to India, in hopes of finding her long lost pen pal, Shanti. Having lost all information about her from the past 50 years that have gone by, Ben and Gran are completely in the dark. Gran only wants to find Shanti, because she (gran) thinks she may have offended her, ever since Shanti stopped sending her letters. They have no idea where Shanti may be, or even if she's alive or not. In the end, after a grueling journey, they find out that the mailmen had a strike and refused to work, and that was the reason why Gran didn't receive anymore letters. Personally, I think that a mail strike isn't the best ending that readers would look forward to, but I think that the story would teach us how it's really about the journey, and not so much about the ending. Along the way, Ben learns so much through meeting a baby elephant, and Gran getting food poisoning as well as sent to the hospital. At the end of the journey, Ben's whole character has taken a sharp turn, and he's a happy, not-so-irritable boy again.

Sofia

4/23/2018 04:14:24 pm

wow! first and "real first"!!

Mr. Hong

4/23/2018 04:25:45 pm

@ Sofia - <clap> <clap> WELL DONE!!!!

Aaron

4/23/2018 03:51:56 pm

Second!

Amairis

4/23/2018 03:52:27 pm

Third!

4/23/2018 03:57:34 pm

4th

David

4/23/2018 04:01:55 pm

Fifth

4/23/2018 04:08:26 pm

andrew

4/23/2018 04:10:20 pm

k duby

Eknoor

4/23/2018 04:47:57 pm

8th

Eknoor

4/23/2018 04:55:49 pm

@ Mr. Hong (IMPORTANT) - The Magee school tour is tomorrow from 9:30 to 11:15 so I'll probably be back around 11:30-ish.

Awesome Andrew

4/23/2018 04:58:20 pm

The Giver:

I think the big idea is that life is precious and so you shouldn't give away all your memories even if it's painful. Because you don't know anything if you don't have them. What's the point of living if you don't know why your living? It's why we study early humans so much. Know your past.

Mr. Hong

4/23/2018 05:25:20 pm

@ Andrew - The PAR asked you to do the following as well:
- Your paragraph must include a personal connection and a question.
- Your paragraph must also include how your thinking changed from the beginning to the end.

Awesome Andrew

4/23/2018 05:36:57 pm

Revised version:
The Giver:

I think the big idea is that life is precious and so you shouldn't give away all your memories even if it's painful because you don't know anything if you don't have them. What's the point of living if you don't know why your living? It's why we study early humans so much. Know your past. In "The Giver", everyone is dumb and kills people because they know no pain. They think it's okay. Pain is sometimes useful. That's why I'm so nice, I always get hurt. I used to think that they're way isn't that bad. No poverty, no pain. But then I learned how dumb they are and that they kill people.....

Eknoor

4/23/2018 05:54:01 pm

@ Mr. Hong (IMPORTANT!!!!) - The Magee school tour is tomorrow from 9:30 to 11:15 so I'll probably be back around 11:30-ish.

Eknoor

4/23/2018 05:54:30 pm

Please reply so I know you know.

Awesome Andrew

4/24/2018 07:57:15 am

i knoww

Issac

4/23/2018 06:02:48 pm

"If you want to make it, all you have to do is try'. This is the lesson William Kamkwamba Learned in the book "The boy who harnessed the wind". I believe that it is also the big idea of the book. Doing is one thing but trying is a complete different story. What this means is that if you want to succeed in life or make it through life you're gonna have to try. Even if there are waves pushing you back to the beginning just stand back up and keep moving forward. I think what William means by "make it" is that if you just sit there doing nothing and not willing to try, you won't make it anywhere. You'll just be stuck in the same place everyday. When I read this book I was really inspired by what William had done. He'd work so hard everyday using up his free time to complete a project that would save his family. While everyday I'm just using my free time to play video games and do other random stuff that does not contribute to my family at all. William had changed the way I think in my everyday life. Before when my parents would tell me to vacuum the house of just pick up some garbage I would refuse to do it and make my mom really mad. Now when my parents tell me to do something I would listen and help because I thought about what William has gone through, he'd done more work than I have my whole life and all that work he had done wasn't homework it was actual work that would contribute to his family. For example, farming, working for money and building a windmill. All of these things are what he has to do everyday so his family doesn't die.

A question I had was: Why are the people that struggle more come up with better ideas?
Is it because since they are struggling they are desperate to find a solution or is it that the world is just making them suffer. What I mean by the world is making them suffer is that since they have a good idea the world just keeps on throwing challenges toward you until you either succeed or quit. Maybe the world just hates having smart people with good ideas that could change our lives.

This is what I thought the big idea was but you may have a different thought. At the end of the day at least I tried.

Issac

4/23/2018 08:51:57 pm

Edited Version
"If you want to make it, all you have to do is try'. This is the lesson William Kamkwamba Learned in the book "The boy who harnessed the wind". I believe that it is also the big idea of the book. Doing is one thing but trying is a complete different story. What this means is that if you want to succeed in life or make it through life you're gonna have to try. Even if there are waves pushing you back to the beginning just stand back up and keep moving forward. I think what William means by "make it" is that if you just sit there doing nothing and not willing to try, you won't make it anywhere. You'll just be stuck in the same place everyday. When I read this book I was really inspired by what William had done. He'd work so hard everyday using up his free time to complete a project that would save his family. While everyday I'm just using my free time to play video games and do other random stuff that does not contribute to my family at all. William had changed the way I think in my everyday life. Before when my parents would tell me to vacuum the house of just pick up some garbage I would refuse to do it and make my mom really mad. Now when my parents tell me to do something I would listen and help because I thought about what William has gone through, he'd done more work than I have my whole life and all that work he had done wasn't homework it was actual work that would contribute to his family. For example, farming, working for money and building a windmill. All of these things are what he has to do everyday so his family doesn't die.

A question I had was: Why are the people that struggle more come up with better ideas?
Is it because since they are struggling they are desperate to find a solution or is it that the world is just making them suffer. What I mean by the world is making them suffer is that since they have a good idea the world just keeps on throwing challenges toward you until you either succeed or quit. Maybe the world just hates having smart people with good ideas that could change our lives.

Kento pushed my thinking when he said that another part of the big idea could be to never judge a book by it's cover. I agree with Kento because everyone in William's village thought he was a mad man picking up garbage outside and just bringing it home. Even his mom, but at the end William showed everyone that one mans garbage is another mans treasure.

This is what I thought the big idea was but you may have a different thought. At the end of the day at least I tried.

Aaron

4/23/2018 06:03:11 pm

Wait do we have to do this PAR as well?

Issac

4/23/2018 06:29:35 pm

I don't think so because he didn't mention anything about you guys doing it.

Cassandra

4/23/2018 07:04:50 pm

@-Mr.Hong: I wrote the big idea on my stickey notes in my book and I think I put about 3 big ideas so do I still have to do this par?

Eknoor

4/23/2018 07:47:35 pm

@ Cassandra - I think you should just type in what you wrote because this is being assessed.

Caden

4/23/2018 07:34:15 pm

Hello

Eknoor

4/23/2018 07:46:38 pm

@ Mr. Hong - The tour for Magee is tomorrow so I will be at school around 11:30

k duby

4/23/2018 07:49:45 pm

yes,yes you said so like 3 times

Eknoor

4/23/2018 09:34:58 pm

@ Kevin - Yes I did but Mr. Hong did not reply.

Nicole

4/23/2018 07:51:05 pm

I found this book to be surprisingly deep. At first glance, it might just seem like "Oh, this book has no meaning to it. It's just about some kid and his grandma going to India.", when in reality there's a deeper meaning to it. I think that the big idea is that you should never give up on something/someone. Just look at Ben and Gran, they went all the way to India just to find Gran's long lost pen pal, Shanti. They didn't even have an address or last name to be able to find her. Through all of their obstacles, they persevered. I think that the author was trying to get across the fact that you should never give up on something or someone important to you, no matter how many obstacles you may face. As I'm writing this, I'm making a connection. Recently, my best friend and I got into a fight. We've been all we both had since grade 5. We've been through everything together, including getting bullied. Anyways, we're no longer friends. That fight caused us to lose our friendship. I've given up on trying to work things out with her. This book teaches me to do the exact opposite of what I did. What caused Gran to remember Shanti all this time? I can infer, that Shanti was someone quite special to Gran and she felt that it was her fault that they stopped talking. I feel the same way about my best friend. I blame myself for everything that happened between us happening. I can understand why she would want to find her because if something like that happened to my best friend I would want to find her. So yeah, that's basically what I think the big idea of the book is.

Nicole

4/23/2018 08:40:58 pm

Kind of edited version:

I found this book to be surprisingly deep. At first glance, it might just seem like "Oh, this book has no meaning to it. It's literally just about some kid and his grandma going to India.", when in reality there's a deeper meaning to it. I think that the big idea is that you should never give up on something/someone. Just look at Ben and Gran, they went all the way to India just to find Gran's long lost pen pal, Shanti. They didn't even have an address or last name to be able to find her. Through all of their obstacles, they persevered. I think that the author was trying to get across the fact that you should never give up on something or someone important to you, no matter how many obstacles you may face. As I'm writing this, I'm making a connection. Recently, my best friend and I got into a fight. We've both been all we've had since grade 5. We've been through everything together, including getting bullied. Anyways, the long and the short of it is that we're no longer friends. That fight caused us to lose our friendship. I've given up on trying to work things out with her. This book teaches me to do the exact opposite of what I did. What caused Gran to remember Shanti all this time? I can infer, that Shanti was someone quite special to Gran and she felt that it was her fault they stopped talking. I feel the same way about my best friend. I blame myself for everything that happened between us. I can understand why she would want to find her because if something like that happened to my best friend I would want to find her. So yeah, that's basically what I think the big idea of the book is.

J.H

4/23/2018 07:56:36 pm

Live your life the fullest and never give up.

That was the moral of the story 14th goldfish which is about Melvin that finds a fountain of youth. But after he drank his potion he became young. When he wanted to come back to get the rest of his potion he realized he became young so he can't go back in. But he didn't give up on finding the fountain of youth and not giving up of getting it back.

A personal connection tat I have was when I went on a ferry to go camping and when we came back down to exit my sister tripped and hit her head so she had to go to the hospital for safety concerns. But before the ambulance came they let me see her so when I saw her she was like "I hope you guys be much more happier without me." I was actually pretty shocked when she said that but I thought she was kinda acting. I connected this to when Melvin told Ellie that you have to ok enjoy your young life when you have it. Because when you're old everything is starting to Breck down and become worse.

A question I had along the way was Is the fountain of youth real? Does it really work?

In conclusion I think that everyone should enjoy their life when they have it.

Ethan

4/23/2018 08:08:24 pm

How To Steal A Dog

So the Big Idea for the book I got is would you do not good things to help you get something or for your family if you are homeless and your parents don't have enough money to get a house or an apartment? Also if you do that bad thing it will sometimes not work and you will regret it.

A few connections I have to this book is I have a dog like Carmella the person who owned the dog that Georgina stole and another connection is my family have a car like Georgina's mom. A question I have is what was the point of Georgina stealing a dog because that didn't help it was just a waste of time for Georgina and partly Toby.

At first I thought that she will get the money by stealing the dog and that Georgina will not meet anyone else but Georgina did not get the money because she did the right thing and Georgina met Mookie a guy who cares more about other people more then himself who helps her do the right thing sort of.

Overall I think the book is good about 8.5 out of 10 for me because it was mostly good but some parts were not as good and I forgot what parts but there were some.

Caden

4/23/2018 08:20:02 pm

I revised right now because I don't have time later to do it again.
The Giver is the story I chose.
I think that the Big Idea is that everyone needs to remember and keep their memories even if they don't like having it stuck in their mind. Just like if you have something to say, say it. Because they can pop out things in your head.

Eason

4/23/2018 08:29:04 pm

Why do we live only one life?I think life is precious because no matter what we do everyone can only live once. In the story "The Forteenth Goldfish", Ellie's grandfather invented the medicine to be young again. Despite all the efforts of getting the chemical from the lab again, they finally decided not to use it because the consequences can be dangerous. I first believed it was a great invention but I changed my mind as well when read to the end. People can be irresponsible if they know they can be young and live again.

Karman

4/23/2018 08:33:09 pm

Change is simple. Everyone wants change in some way or another, whether it be big or small, positive or negative. However, if that's the case, why does change rarely happen? I assume it's because people don't stick up for their beliefs and make what they believe is right; they don't believe in themselves. For those alike, I want to share you the story of how Jonas made change in the novel "The Giver."

Jonas is a regular kid in his neighborhood. Sure, he might have different tinted eyes, but that doesn't make him less ordinary. When Jonas was selected as a Receiver, he was elected for being superior in every aspect from the normal citizen. His high intelligence and courage made him stand out from his classmates and friends. Skip on later to the story, and he was given memories of the world centuries back. After experiencing countless memories, both pleasant and wicked, Jonas changes. Jonas made a plan in which he leaves the community, leaving all his memories shared throughout the community, exposed and given to all the people in his community. Jonas successfully reached his plan and reached the land of 'Elsewhere.'

Jonas's pride in improving his community for the better is when thoughts of the big idea came racing through my mind. My big idea of the book is fairly compact and simplistic, but has a lot of meaning to it; to hold your beliefs and acknowledge that your opinion matters. If you never share your insights about something, nothing will improve or change. Compare 0 to 1. If you have a chance to change something out of 100, would you choose 0 or 1? You'd certainly chose 1 as it's greater than 0. The 1 represents you sharing your opinion, while the 0 represents you doing the complete opposite.

The development of my big idea is like a fuse on a bomb, it's short. The only time I've particularly thought of another big idea aside from mine is when I was still reading my novel. Oddly enough, I thought a big idea was to achieve and hold good education. In an example, Jonas was a representation of great education and the assignment given to him was posed to be a high-class job. I also added that acquiring a good job would lead to a happier future.

I quick question I had was defying how his community removed color. Removing color is essentially impossible because it isn't a physical object and therefore can't be removed. I would infer that newborns on birth were modified so they can see only white or black. However, I had a question that struck my infer, why did Jonas see color? If the eyes were modified at birth, how would Jonas still be able to see colors?

Opinions matter. Opinions can be like feedback or criticism. Opinions take in many forms.

Karman

4/23/2018 08:39:36 pm

Correction: 4th parahraph, 3rd sentence should be "the big idea" not a big idea.

Karman

4/23/2018 08:43:42 pm

Correction #2: 2nd paragraph, 1st sentence, replace is with was.

Karman

4/24/2018 08:32:48 am

Change is simple. Everyone wants change in some way or another, whether it be big or small, positive or negative. However, if that's the case, why does change rarely happen? I assume it's because people don't stick up for their beliefs and make what they believe is right; they don't believe in themselves. For those alike, I want to share you the story of how Jonas made change in the novel "The Giver."

Jonas is a regular kid in his neighborhood. Sure, he might have different tinted eyes, but that doesn't make him less ordinary. When Jonas was selected as a Receiver, he was elected for being superior in every aspect from the normal citizen. His high intelligence and courage made him stand out from his classmates and friends. Skip on later to the story, and he was given memories of the world centuries back. After experiencing countless memories, both pleasant and wicked, Jonas changes. Jonas made a plan in which he leaves the community, leaving all his memories shared throughout the community, exposed and given to all the people in his community. Jonas successfully reached his plan and reached the land of 'Elsewhere.'

Jonas's pride in improving his community for the better is when thoughts of the big idea came racing through my mind. My big idea of the book is fairly compact and simplistic, but has a lot of meaning to it; to hold your beliefs and acknowledge that your opinion matters. If you never share your insights about something, nothing will improve or change. Compare 0 to 1. If you have a chance to change something out of 100, would you choose 0 or 1? You'd certainly chose 1 as it's greater than 0. The 1 represents you expressing your opinion about something, while the 0 represents you doing the opposite.

The development of my big idea is like a fuse on a bomb, it's short. The only time I've particularly thought of another big idea aside from mine is when I was still reading my novel. Oddly enough, I thought the big idea was to achieve and hold good education. In an example, Jonas was a representation of great education and the assignment given to him was posed to be a high-class job. I also added that acquiring a good job would lead to a happier future. Of course, my belief that big idea didn't last long when I proceeded reading the novel.

I quick question I had was defying how his community removed color. Removing color is essentially impossible because it isn't a physical object and therefore can't be removed. I would infer that newborns on birth were modified so they can see only white or black. However, I had a question that struck my infer, why did Jonas see color? If the eyes remained modified at birth, how would Jonas still be able to see colors? This too leaves me another question, how can Jonas feel pain through memories? If I think of a painful moment of my life, I can't feel pain, but I can imagine it.

I can relate to the big idea, partially. A year ago, I found that I had an ever-increasing fear of stating what I think about something because it was wrong. This only happened on tests, on questions like "What do you think about it?" or "Why do you think there?". Now that Mr. Hong taught us how to moderate our "Zones Of Regulation", I don't have that excruciating fear anymore.

Everyone has different opinions about something. Opinions can't be wrong, but they also can't be right. If you express your opinion to the world, others can join your opinion and help people notice your opinion. Maybe if the group is large enough, it'll be accepted.

Jerry

4/23/2018 08:34:30 pm

Don't we all wish we had an awesome teacher. Well we do! I won't mention any names. cough cough Mr.Hong, but this book is about fifth graders getting an awesome teacher and losing their awesome teacher and getting him back again. (I didn't spoil anything)The book mainly talks about seven kids in the 202 class and shows us how the develop over time. All because they had a new teacher called Mr. Terupt. Who made everyone change. I think the big idea for the book is to precious all good things you have. Don't start regretting when it is gone. Be grateful that you are living a happy life. Unlike some unlucky people who are starving. I have a very good connection because I also have a magical teacher who is teaching me right now. Not to mention any names. And by having a magical teacher I now how good it feels. And I certainly wan't want my teacher in coma. but I just have a question: can a snowball give you a coma? Because usually snowballs break in midair if you chuck it very hard. So does that mean Mt. Terupt shouldn't be in a coma? But still live a happy life and be grateful.

Kenton

4/23/2018 08:43:46 pm

The boy who harnessed the wind.

Woa! This book is gonna be so cool with boys controlling the wind and stuff! Well nope, you've got the wrong book! You know, remember! Don't judge a book by it's cover and that's basically one of the key points of the big idea of this book. This book, the boy who harnessed the wind basically teaches you a lot about life in many different ways from a actual experienced that occurred to William Kambkwamba.

In the last sentence of the book, it briefly explains the whole big idea of the book. "If you want to make it, all you have to do is try." This explains about William's whole life, which was filled with struggles and amazing ideas. He struggled and suffered during the famine which made him determined to try building a windmill to pump water. He tried to make it, and he made it! I found another lesson in the book was "don't judge a book by it's cover" When others saw garbage in the pile of trash, William saw treasure when he knew what great usage there were to them.

At the beginning of the book or when I haven't even started, I though the book was going to be about a crazy boy who controls the wind or something. But gradually, I started realizing the depth and struggle that William had to face. I thought it was kind of babyish at start but I realized how amazing it is for me to be able to read someone else's actual experience in a more friendly-ier way.

When I was reading the part where William was explaining how he built his windmill out of "garbage" it reminded me about my brother and how he loves to try to make random thing out of trash to create more "trash". A question I had on the way was that why the Malawian government give away the emergency maize during the first famine which could have been stopped. I think that the government was just dishonest that they had any maize but in reality, they did not have any.

The book was very interesting for me so I would like to read it again to get a better idea of the book. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes learning about different cultures and lifestyles.

Stephanie

4/23/2018 08:54:11 pm

"If you want to make it, all you have to do is try". This gift of word and sentence near the end of the book "The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind" sums up the entire novel. In this book, William went through so many things including the harsh and uncontrollable famine to the point where he couldn't go to where he truly wanted- school. His determination to help his family and allow them to live a better life was the fuel of his strength, and became the strong wire that twirled around to send electricity throughout his body. He knew his life couldn't be compared to those living in America. Although he couldn't live the normal happy life, he used his ideas and imagination he obtained from the books in the library to try and create the life he wanted. But first of all, he needed a windmill. That way his family could party all night if they wished to. It could change so much. In the beginning of this story, I thought it would be a heart warming story of a boy finding his interests, and bringing those ideas of his to life. My inference may have been a bit close but it's still far away from what the book described. There were ups and downs in his story, and not everyone thought his ways were 'normal'. Being labeled a 'madman' for digging through the scrapyard hoping to find useful things would've obviously pressured him. He wanted to prove people wrong. He wanted to show them that he could be the key to success. He sure did prove that all in the end! I remember when I was young, I watched TV all the time and tried to create a little machine. It wasn't big at all- just a few cardboard pieces forced together with horribly placed glue. Now that I look back at it, it was a pretty miserable failure for me. But I obviously didn't care much about it. For William, a failure could bring everything down. The anticipation from his parents and himself would decrease by a lot. And he would really be counted as a madman. One small thing for us would mean so much more to them. One thing I want to ask about was if he was comfortable with all of this fame. Did he still see his career his way of helping his family or just to pursue his dreams? I think it would be a little bit of both, but you never know. At the end of the day, the maize that takes the longest to grow will turn into the largest piece of happiness. I bet William is doing great even now.

4/23/2018 10:51:26 pm

Feedback:

1) (8th sentence)
"That way his family could party all night if they wished to."
You need a comma between way & his.
2) (9th sentence)
"In the beginning of this story, I thought it would be a heart warming story of a boy finding his interests, and bringing those ideas of his to life."
You don't need a comma between interests & and.
3) (Last sentence)
"I bet William is doing great even now."
You need a comma between great & even.

Overall:
-Wow did your thinking change? What do you think/know now?
-Great paragraph. I like how you basically included everything from the criteria.
-Read it over again to make sure I didn't miss anything (most likely I did)

Naomi

4/23/2018 09:01:31 pm

A better conclusion coming soon to theatres near you...

Survival Strategies of the Almost Brave was a pretty deep book. A lot could be learned from it, and I know for a fact there were tons of different big ideas. In my opinion though, the most important big idea was that: It’s okay to get help sometimes. Why do I think this? Well, in the beginning of the book, Liberty is kind of a loner. Her only friend is Antonio, and their relationship seems pretty on and off at that. The full extent of Liberty’s Loner-ism presents itself when she refuses to trust anyone, and ask them for help. And even though she needs to at too, she always puts her sister first, and hides the fact that she’s upset. So yeah, Liberty’s life wasn’t going to well, which I think was because she wasn’t asking for help. The hotel staff could’ve helped her, the lavender lady could’ve helped her, but instead she stole from them. But then, as soon as she indirectly asks for help by crashing the tattoo guy’s car she gets helped, and her luck turns around. Someone she thought would be a potential threat got them help, and didn’t even ask for anything in return. People can’t help you with everything, but I think that this book definitely tells us that it’s okay to ask for help. In the beginning of the book, my thinking was essentially the same as when I finished the book. However, I do remember thinking that Julie didn’t actually care about Liberty and Billie, but closer to the end of the book, I realized that she cared for them practically like a mother. One question I have about the book, is weather Liberty is going to get in trouble for stealing Lavender lady’s money, or if anyone will ever find out if she did. The big idea kind of reminds me of how I used to panic over my homework. I would sit there stressing about something that didn’t make sense at me, until I realized that I could just ask my family for help. And usually, straight after I did, everything started to make sense.

Yeesh though, I spent way more time on this than I planned O_o

Naomi

4/23/2018 09:51:59 pm

Edited (and still super bleh):

Survival Strategies of the Almost Brave was a pretty deep book. A lot could be learned from it, and I know for a fact, that there were a lot of big ideas. In my opinion though, the most important big idea was that: It’s okay to ask for help sometimes. Why do I think that? Well, in the beginning of the book, Liberty is kind of a loner. Her only friend is Antonio, and their relationship seems pretty on and off. The full extent of Liberty’s Loner-ism presents itself when she refuses to trust anyone, and ask them for help. And even though she needs to eat too, she always puts her sister first, and hides the fact that she’s upset, or hungry, or scared. Liberty’s life wasn’t going to well, which I think was partly because she wasn’t asking for help. The hotel staff could’ve helped her, or the lavender lady could’ve helped her, but instead she stole from them. But then, as soon as she indirectly asks for help by crashing the tattoo guy’s car, she gets helped, and her luck turns around. Someone that she thought would be a potential threat helped them, and didn’t even ask for anything in return. People can’t help you with everything, but I think that this book definitely tells us that it’s okay to ask for assistance. In the beginning of the book, my thinking was essentially the same as when I finished the book. However, I do remember thinking that Julie didn’t actually care about Liberty and Billie, but closer to the end of the book, I realized that she cared for them practically like a mother. One question I have about the book, is weather Liberty is going to get in trouble for stealing Lavender lady’s money, or if anyone will ever find out if she did. The big idea kind of reminds me of how I used to panic over my homework. I would sit there stressing about something that didn’t make sense at me, until I realized that I could just ask my family for help. And usually, straight after I did, everything started to make sense. I’m glad I learned to ask for help, and I hope Liberty did too.

May

4/23/2018 09:07:44 pm

Have you ever thought about how a society that has no pain, fear or unhappiness? Well, there is a book called 'The Giver' that takes place in a society with no pain. The story is about a kid named Jonas. That's pretty much all I can tell you if I don't want to spoil anything.

I think the big idea is that the memories that you have, has a lot of powerful thoughts and feelings. Without them, you can't really feel complete. A lot of people really don't know how valuable memories are. They just want to get rid of the bad ones. But you should keep them even if they are bad. They just help you live on as a person.

If you are like me, you must have a lot of questions about the book. Here is mine.
- How did the community take the memories in the first place?
You know everyone has connections.
Here's mine
- Before I started to read this book. I had a talk with my dad about a world that is similar to the giver's.

Marina

4/23/2018 09:13:54 pm

I'll come back and finish this but here,
It's okay to taks risks, this way you can can step forward and reach your goal. In the book "The Giver", Jonas was the one that broke the community's rules and took the risk.

Shermaine

4/23/2018 09:29:04 pm

I’m not sure if I’m going to be able to complete the PAR. I’ll try my best though when I get back home...

Aries

4/23/2018 09:41:57 pm

My book title called 'The Lemonade War'. I think it is really a good book and I really enjoy reading it. I also found the big idea in it and I think it is sometimes working together is more better than just working on your own. From this story, Jessie and Evan have their own thing that they are good at different things. Jessie is good at math and Evan is good at 'sweet talk'. I was thinking to myself,if they actually do the lemonade stand,it gonna be great and their relationship will even be better. I think all of us have something that we are good at,for me I am quite good at math and I can helped others when I was doing it. I think when we are doing teamwork,someone will really want to do it on their own,maybe because they think that they are the best,but they never think of if someone can do it together with you,it gets better and better because you guys can help each other in different things. Did you ever think of that? Or do you really like to work on your own. For me,I think that is really important that to find someone to work together with me. If I am good at drawing and my teammates are really good at thinking different ideas,then I think the project must be great. Also,one thing is that don't always consider in that like I don't need people to help,I can do it on my own even no one help. I think it is wrong because I mean no one is perfect so I think it is important. How I changes my thinking in the story is that I thought they both are really good at something so it doesn't really help if they worked together, then when they are having the war, my think was thinking that Evan is good at this and Jessie is good at this,if they sell it together,they would earn more money than they just sell on their own. I had a connection in it. When I was playing badminton,I really like to play single and not playing doubles because I feel like the teammate can't catch any shots and that made me feel mad. But then,once I realized that I am actually good at badminton but I am not a fast runner so if we are playing doubles,the other person can help to catch instead of only me keep running. So I really think it is important.

Eknoor

4/23/2018 09:44:54 pm

@ Mr. Hong - I'll probably complete the P.A.R. in the morning

Hana

4/23/2018 10:00:21 pm

"The Giver"

My take on the big idea is that memories, no matter painstakingly heartbreaking or full of joy and happiness they are, they shape who you are as an individual. Without them, who are you really?

Memories can be agonising, painful and sad but they are exactly the types of memories that truly shape a person. Looking back at those memories, would you really change them? At the time, of course it was horrible but it just made you a stronger person to be able to get through it. You learn from them and having experiencing them before and seeing the outcome, you won't repeat mistakes. For example WWII and Nazi Germany. Happy and enjoyable memories on the other hand, aids you in time of darkness and helps you keep your chin up. Having these happy memories ignites the life in you and keeps you positive.

The citizens of Jonas' community got their memories taken away and look where it got them. Yes, they had order, they didn't have war and they seemed to thrive but they had lost their history, culture and heritage. In reality the town was a dull, lifeless town with no memory of what came before them and everyone was indoctrinated to be a certain way.

When I started reading this story I thought of the town as an organised place that was doing just fine, but as I read on, I saw all the cracks and realised that it was a dark place that had forgotten one of the most important things in life.

Like Jonas, I have also felt the bad and good memories, we all have. Especially with moving around a lot. But when I look back at the memories they aren't just tragic times, they are also a learning curve in my life. These memories made me who I am today and that was my take on the big idea of the book" The Giver".

Marina

4/23/2018 10:05:32 pm

Meet Jonas, an twelve-year-old boy who lives in a rigidly controlled community. There’s no pain, hunger, music, or love. Everything is controlled by "the Elders," they decide who you will marry, who you receive as children, and what you will be "assigned" as a job for your lifetime. It’s kind of scary, isn’t it? No one had their own thinking, no one have the ability to see colours, no one is allowed to leave the certain area, and the worst thing is the citizen knew so little but they thought that they understood everything about this world. In short, this would be a terrible place to live in. The community thought that it’s the safest to not let everyone know that the past, so nothing wold have to change. They don’t know the past, doesn’t mean that they don’t want the past. This community has a receiver, which is the most special, honoured and respected job, and Jonas was the selected one. At first Jonas knew nothing, he enjoyed the community, his friends, family, everything. But soon he learned about the past, the pain and the happiness. Jonas was shocked by the memories of “war”, and it left a scar in him.You’ll never know what the other a hundred billion things if you just focus on the one specific thing, it’s okay to take risks and make changes, this way you can step forward and move closer to your goal. Like a quote I remembered, “success is stumbling from failure to failure with no loss of enthusiasm.” If you don’t try, you’ll never know that there is something even better just one step away from you. I remembered a few months ago when I was applying for high school. There was an exam for watercolour. When I searched up all the works that got in to the school. They all looked similar: flowers, bottles, fruits, and the background was all tables and the wall separated with two colours. This got me worried, it seemed like the common way is how the teachers in the high school wanted. But the kind I choose and liked to practice was only flowers to fill the whole paper, and splash like background with light colours. I thought that it look really artistic and really lights up the piece of work. Should I change to the common way how others drew, maybe I’ll have a higher chance to get in? Or should I keep it the way I wanted it to be and to be different? I choose the latter. It turned out that my decision was right. I got the email telling me congratulations that I got in the the high school. I took the risk and finally reached success.

Millie

4/23/2018 10:12:26 pm

The Giver:
connection: Gabriel is a lot like Everett in pretty much every way.
Question: Who gathered all those memories?
Big idea: We need to know pain and misery to understand comfort and joy
Changed thinking: This story was deeply moving and emotional, but my thinking didn't really change - except in incomprehension at the blankness of his world.

I have had a very hard time with this, belive it or not. I didn't excpect such a difficult one and left it to late. Today of all days. But I am exausted and miserable and my mom is telling me I need to go to bed before I hurt myself. So. A little bit exadgerated, but I have had a frustrating day. Zzz...

Jessica L.

4/23/2018 10:15:58 pm

We’ve all thought our trivial problems were really important at some point in our lives. However, in reality they weren’t important at all. We all should really consider how much more the less fortunate people struggle. This is clearly shown in the book “Follow the Elephant”. “Follow the Elephant” is about a boy named Ben who recently lost his father. He finds out that he is going to India with his grandmother to find her penpal Shanti and he isn’t happy about it at all. Over the course of his journey with Gran to find Shanti, Ben slowly changes. He experienced many things, from seeing live elephants to learning about Indian culture to Gran getting sick. All of these experiences changed Ben to be a happier and less irritable Ben. I believe that the big idea of the book is to not run from things we don’t know. If something new comes up, don’t try to avoid it. We can all try and experience new things. We shouldn’t be afraid of trying new things because we don’t want to be stuck doing the same thing all the time. We will also have amazing experiences and we will accomplish more when we try new things. All of us can learn so much more and we can have a lot of fun along the way. This book reminds me of when my uncle went to India for business trips the first time. He went to India in hopes of expanding his business because in India there are a lot of international students who want to learn about media arts. At the beginning, he encountered a lot of obstacles but he didn’t give up. He had to adapt and learn about India and Indian culture in order to have a successful business there. Learning new things and adapting to a new environment takes time. Through these many years of persistent attempts, my uncle has succeeded. Overall, I think “Follow the Elephant” is a book that we can all relate to. It shows us all about how we should care and think of others. I believe that this book is absolutely amazing and that everyone should read it.

These are some questions that I had about the book:
~What is the point of having different shaped wall outlets and plugs in different countries?
~That’s considered 2nd class with air conditioning? Are the trains and hotels in India really that bad?
~My uncle mentioned that you usually don’t get receipts from taxi drivers or some food stores. Why is that?
~What is the yellow liquid poured on the dead person?
~Does the guy actually swallow the nails? Or is there some trick?
~Shanti has dementia? Will Shanti be able to remember Gran?
~Since there are so many different religions in India, is there any conflict because of different beliefs?

Devin .w

4/23/2018 10:28:35 pm

"Sometimes the trail you leave behind is more important than the path ahead of you." that is the big idea of the book. The End. Now I get my extending.....Hey!Whooooooa!!! I'm confused already!? O.k., let me explain this more explicitly.

Let's start by explaining what this term means. So,the story is about a girl named Georgina who was forced to live in a car. She was experiencing some bad times,and wanted to steal a dog so she devised a plan to steal a dog,and give it back to the owner with a demand of $1/2K so she can get an apartment,no a HOUSE. You might be thinking that this is far fetched and a bad thing to do,but remember, "bad times makes you do bad things,doesn't it?" (a quote from book) So Georgina selfishly puts a plan into action,and captures a dog name Willy. She greedily waits for the owner to offer |$500 but in the middle meets a man named a homeless guy named Mookie. Mookie is a very nice person. When she meets Georgina he helps her out by feeding the dog some food like gravy,and helping him run around. He tells Georgina that he helps people out for free. Georgina says that he is crazy,and presses him. "WHY would a BUM like you do things for FREE???" (she says something like that) she asks him. Mookie then replies "Sometimes the trail you leave behind is more important than the path ahead of you." What does that mean??? I think it means one key word: kindness. Mookie teaches Georgina to appreciate who you are,live a good life and be happy.In the end Georgina returns the dog. For free. If I was to describe Mookie in one word,it would be selflessness. I think the big idea is if you are kind and be yourself,everything will turn out good.

Mr.Hong once asked our group: "If you were in the same situation as Georgina,what would you do???Would you steal the dog? At first I was thinking " Steal the dog DUH???!" but then I changed my mind and said: I would NOT steal the dog. Andrew,who had chosen to steal the dog began to (respectfully) argue with me. "You need the money for ... and ..." When Mr.Hong asked me my say on this, I just flubbed some nonsense. Only now ,a week later did I really reflect on why I suddenly changed my mind. It was that phrase: "Sometimes the trail you leave behind is more important than the path ahead of you." that changed me. So Mookie taught me a lesson

A question: Why did Mookie say I'm Mookie,when he was actually called Malcolm Greenwood?

Overall,I think the book How To Steal A Dog is very deep

4/23/2018 10:33:17 pm

Devin W? I didn't know that we have a student named 'Devin'.

4/23/2018 10:32:14 pm

Life is actually really precious. Sometimes we don’t see how precious it actually is. We are often distracted by trying to fit in and many other things. But once we realize it, it’ll be too late. What I meant by that is when we die, we’ll then see how much of our lives we’ve wasted. In my novel approach book, ‘The Fourteenth Goldfish’, Melvin (Ellie’s grandfather) used up forty years of his life on figuring out a way to reverse aging. When he finally did, he was too excited and blinded by his achievement that he didn’t consider the consequences. Ellie was the first to realize that immortality may not be a great thing. She found out that beginnings are beautiful but endings are sad. If there’s no ending, would life be as precious? I don’t think so. Before this book, I thought that immortality would be amazing. The thought of living forever without facing death sounded very pleasing to me. Now I know that there’s a reason why eventually we’ll have face death which is why we’ll have to live each day as if it’s our last. Make every moment memorable. This book reminds me the picture book I’ve read before called ‘Just A Dream’. In that book, Walter took nature for granted. He didn’t think that it would actually be so precious. Little did he know that it would affect the future greatly. Life is also very precious. We should realize how precious it is before it’s too late. A thing I’m curious about is… Was there someone who found the T. Melvinus before Melvin and experienced the same thing? Is the T. Melvinus actually real but nobody discovered it yet? I feel like ‘The Fourteenth Goldfish’ is a breathtaking book and it helps you think more about life and how precious it is.

Stephanie

4/23/2018 10:40:11 pm

Your paragraph is great, but try to use another word other than precious. It Appears too many times.

4/23/2018 11:01:58 pm

Edited Version:

Life is actually really precious. Sometimes we don’t see how valuable it actually is. We are often distracted by trying to fit in and many other things. Once we realize it, it’ll be too late. What I meant by that is when we die, we’ll then see how much of our lives we’ve wasted. In my novel approach book, ‘The Fourteenth Goldfish’, Melvin (Ellie’s grandfather) used up forty years of his life on figuring out a way to reverse aging. When he finally did, he was too excited and blinded by his achievement that he didn’t consider the consequences. It was like if he had glasses that were fogged up. He need someone to help him clear all of the fog. In this case, it was Ellie. Ellie was the first to realize that immortality may not be a great thing. She found out that beginnings are beautiful but endings are sad. If there’s no ending, would life be as precious? I don’t think so. Before this book, I thought that immortality would be amazing. The thought of living forever without facing death sounded very pleasing to me. Now I know that there’s a reason why eventually we’ll have face death. This is why we’ll have to live each day as if it’s our last. Make every moment memorable. This book reminds me the picture book I’ve read before called ‘Just A Dream’. In that book, Walter took nature for granted. He didn’t think that it would actually be so valuable. Little did he know that it would affect the future greatly. Life is also very precious. We should realize how precious it is before it’s too late. A thing I’m curious about is… Was there someone who found the T. Melvinus before Melvin and experienced the same thing? Is the T. Melvinus actually real but nobody discovered it yet? I feel like ‘The Fourteenth Goldfish’ is a breathtaking book and it helps you think more about life and how valuable it is. You should always live each day as if it's your last.

Vivian

4/23/2018 11:41:13 pm

"Stop arguing over things, make it up to each other go back to the good old times".
Jessie and Evan had a great sibling relationship but it then failed over Jessica being "annoying" when they always used to talk. They would always do something fun together but it just went downhill because of Evans not so Evan attitude. What I think the big idea is that teamwork can be better than working alone. Jessie is a smart young girl and Evans embarrassed because she's skipping a grade and is going to be in his class. He's not a no brainer but isn't as smart as Jessie. I think Evan declared the lemonade war out of jealousy. He wants to prove that he can actually do something better than Jessie for once and maybe even tell his friends how he beat her. Really I don't think it's mature. Although they're still young I think Evan can be mature enough to know that he's still learning and he doesn't have to be embarrassed by being not so intelligent than his sister. Why wouldn't they work together? They would've earned more money and not lose $200 which is quite a big profit but not really because $100 was from Megan to donate to a charity. How would he not think of Scott somehow knowing that Evan had $200 with him and stealing it because he's a selfish type of guy? Why was Evan friends with him in the first place if he didn't like his rude attitude? I had times when I wanted to win games or anything, it's just a game or something that you don't have to fuss about. (unless it's a competition?) If you work hard then you'll get your achievement/goal done. I practiced if it was a sport or dealt with it if it was a game. No one's perfect. In the end Evan just dealt with the fact that Jessie beat him again so everything that they do individually isn't a big deal at all. You still have chances of going at it in the future.

Vivian

4/23/2018 11:42:39 pm

I see mistakes but I have to go so hopefully in the morning I'll be able to revise it.

Kohane

4/23/2018 11:45:23 pm

In my opinion I think Survival Strategy of the almost brave was a pretty good book. The thing I liked about reading this book was that I can relate to it quite a bit I find. There were few connections I had and somehow knew how they felt. Anyway, I think the big idea of this novel is that it’s fine to ask for help. No body can live without asking for help or relying on someone. You have to and that’s part of life. Don’t think that you have to go through your life without anyone helping you, whether it’s bad or good. Even I do, and sometimes it something that isn’t a big as a problem or something but it really helps. For example, when I went on a sky train for the first time with only my friend and I, we were kind of lost. We didn’t know which train we had to take in order for us to get to the place, so we asked someone for help, actually we asked like 2-3 people. (By the way this is also a connection I made while reading.) You see even if it’s little, asking someone for help could help you a lot. If we didn’t ask someone for help we would’ve gone onto a different train and would be lost, like really lost. One question I have is did they find out about the money that Liberty stole from Lavender Lady? What happens to Liberty and Billie if they find out that they stole the money from lavender Lady? Overall, this book was better than I thought it would be. It was also quite deep and could probably have different take on the big idea.

Miles

4/24/2018 07:01:29 am

Teachers are important. They have a big role in shaping you as an individual for when you're older. Believe me or not, teachers can impact you life in a really good way, or in a bad way. And in the book I read Mr. Terupt did a good job, slowly changing these kids for the better. In grade 5. I had a teacher who i loved however she became pregnant, and had to leave. And I know that it's not the same on what happend to mr. terupt. however, it effected me. I was sad for a bit, unsure on why. And once the teacher came back. I became happier again. One question had during the story was: Why hasn't Mr. Terupt opened up to anyone? However I assume that we'll figure that out in the sequels. So overall I think it's important to have a good teacher, because they can really make your life better.

Miles

4/24/2018 08:07:42 am

Edited:
"Because of Mr. Terupt" a book I found to be very easy to relate to. The book touches on the idea of, teachers are important. They have a big role in shaping you from what I've read and experienced as an individual for when you're older. Believe me or not, teachers can impact you life in a really good way. And in the book I read Mr. Terupt did a good job, slowly changing these kids for the better. In grade 5. I had a teacher who I loved however she became pregnant, and had to leave. And I know that it's not the same on what happend to Mr. Terupt. however, it effected me. I was sad for a bit, unsure on why. And once the teacher came back. I became happier again. One question had during the story was: Why hasn't Mr. Terupt opened up to anyone? However I assume that we'll figure that out in the sequels. So overall I think it's important to have a good teacher, because they can really make your life better.

Casey

4/24/2018 08:24:08 am

The Lemonade war was interesting book. The book had a good meaning the message is important for all people whether they are big or small. The big idea in the Lemonade Wars is that it does not matter how big or small you are you deserve to have people care about you for your personality. Evan called his little sister Jessie a baby and didn’t want to hang out with her. Megan played a big role in this book, she didn’t care that Jessie was a younger girl she just cared that Jessie was kind and that’s what she wants in a friend. I have a connection, I was in a voice call for the first time with someone from a discord channel (an online chat room) I knew from typed messages, then when I spoke he hung up and unfriended me on discord. I wish people didn’t judge people by the outside, I wish they would take time to see the inside.

Shermaine

4/24/2018 08:53:19 am

04/23/2018

* Post a paragraph on the big idea of your novel.
* Keep in mind everyone will have their own personal spin.
* Your paragraph must include a personal connection and a question.
* Your paragraph must also include how your thinking changed from the beginning to the end.

I’m wondering what the author really trying to say. Why put yourself in a timeline where you have no choice, where you can’t take risks, a place where everything is in order? Maybe the author was trying to say something. Things like to take risks or to be proud of choice, but I think that the author was trying to talk about memories.

How would you feel if memories of snow and sunshine get taken away from you? Maybe the feeling of love? Or colour? Now that you thought about it, how would you think of getting those memories back suddenly? Being able to see differences from people with colour. To feel love. Taking in the bask of sunshine and shiver to the coldness of snow. Then you realize that you aren’t really able to do those things because they don’t exist in the same timeline as you. You only have the memory of it. Jonas, who is the main character, had to go through all of that. To get back these memories from a person called “The Giver”. I can sort of relate to him. Sometimes I get curious about stuff when I was younger, and when my mom would tell me something it’s like I can hold on to the memory. Like I can somewhat recall it but not exactly be in it. Honestly it’s kind of irritating, the way you can remember that memory but at the same time you could lose it in a second and completely forget about it.

At first, I honestly had no idea what it would be about and I didn’t think I would like the book. Maybe my thoughts have changed. I think that maybe I was able to connect to it, and that maybe I think of it as a different way now. Though it was painful to read, the book was actually really good.

Shermaine

4/24/2018 08:53:55 am

Whoops, ignore the top part...

Eknoor

4/24/2018 09:01:46 am

My P.A.R.
Because of Mr. Terupt

Just take a look at the book cover for a second. It shows an apple. Take a look at that apple as a snowball. Can you make any inferences? Well the snowball is responsible for a life altering accident. I think that one of the big ideas is about change and forgiveness because Alexia was mean in the beginning but then she changed and forgave everyone for how she was mean. Also everyone forgave Alexia for how she was acting at the beginning of grade five. Everyone's personalities also changed form bad to good. Mr. Terupt is the best teacher ever. I was happy at the end of the book because Mr. Terupt made it through the brain surgery, he came out of the coma and Mrs. Williams said that Mr. Terupt is their teacher for Grade six too!!!! I'm wondering if they get Mr. Terupt as their Grade seven teacher because on the back of the book it says, "Discover what happens in sixth and seventh grades." I made a lot of personal connections to this book. One of them was that I could relate all the characters to my classmates because in the book everyone's personalities changed. My classmates changed from the beginning of the year a lot in a good way. My thinking changed because in the beginning of he book I thought that oh nothing is going to happen it's all fake but once I actually kept reading it I thought that something like this can actually happen in real life. This is way we are not allowed to through snowballs during recess and lunch if it has snowed. So never pass the limit line and don't ever push anyone to do the wrong thing.

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