Nonfiction Reading Response 3rd marking period

In the article, " New Dinosaur Fossil challenges Bird Evvolution", the co-author, Dr. Gareth Dyke

explains about a new bird dinosaur called the Eosinopteryx. The discovery interrupts the theory that

the famous fossil Archaeopteryx or "the first bird". He feels that their findings suggest that the origin

of flight is more difficult to figure out. The fossil was found in north -eastern China,also the bird was

flightless because of its little wingspan.

I believe that there are many more discoveries to be found, and we don't exactly have a clue to how

the origin of flight became to be,we just need to do a little bit more research on these dinosaurs and

test them. I remember reading a Scholastic Kids Article and it said that paleotoligists found a frozen

baby mammoth in a huge block of ice and scientist were going to figure out a way to clone the baby

mammoth and restart the population.

It is said that birds evolved from a group of dinosaurs called theroods from early Cretaceous period of

the Earth's history. When ever new discoveries of birds are found the theory have beeen changed.

This wasn't a flying bird , so it could not have anything do with  flight,but it has long skinny legs and

fewer feathers to make it have more agiltiy. So, it is going to take a lot more facts and research on

this bird to determine if it helps the theory or not.


"New Dinosaur Fossil challenges Bird Evvolution", Dr. Gareth Dyke, Science daily, Jan.24.2013

Creative Reading Response- The Old Man and the sea

The Old Man and The Sea, by: Ernest Hemingway, tells a story about an old man who wants too live out

the rest of his days on a boat in the ocean. There was a kid who was coming to visit him sometimes,

because he thought the old man was strange and a little interesting, since he was not getting a lot of attention

at home. The Old man's name is Santiago and for right now he has spent a total of 84 days in the gulf of

Mexico without catching any fish. His main problem comes when he finds this really large marlin and then

when it gets away he decides to go after it. Since the boy didn't decide to runoff with the old man he stuck

with his family,but visited the old man shack's everyday, looking for new things to discover. They used to

talk about baseball all the time and their favorite player was Joe DiMaggio. Santiago is really frustrated when

he spends even more time in the water and there is no signs of the marlin or any fish for that matter. I feel

that Mr. Santiago is a really lonely old and he doesn't have people really to talk to him, except the young

little boy. I feel like I could relate to him in some certain ways, because sometimes I'm independent and I

prefer to do things alone, sometimes I sometimes feel like I  need time for myself and there are times when

I feel like I need friends with me. Santiago has a hobby that he likes to do and there is nothing wrong with

that, but I think if he was given the choice to bring the boy he might or might not, because he cares for the

boys safety and he probably would like time for himself.  Santiago becomes a lot more wise and even though

he becomes a little anti-social since he has been away from people that long, at times the water could be a 

little rough  he still tries to manage  and pull through and at last he gets the reward he was looking for. I think

this is really good book because it is really descriptive and uses many details to make you actually believe

you were at sea with this guy. I think the author had a great connection with the main character and

envisioned him really well.

Reading Response/ Critical thinking question 2

In the book, Slob,by : Ellen Potter, Owen faces many problems at his school because he is overweight and likes to eat oreo cookies. When the gym teacher asked him to demonstrate a gymnastics move, he did it, but when he turned over his shorts lowered and his classmates called him fat. I feel really sorry for Owen, it's extremely hard for some people to lose weight no matter how much we try with diets and weight loss programs , it still is hard. I dont think people should really be judged on how they look on the outside, but in the inside. At least Owen has determination, but that all changes when Owen goes to the cafeteria for lunch. He doesn't like the school lunch and begs his mom to put three oreos in his lunch box everyday.When someone takes the oreos out of his lunch box constantly, it is time for him for him to figure out this mess.

Bullying is a huge social issue that involves so many people in it. Bullies want to make the victims to feel smaller than them and the bullies want to have more pride and selfconfidence. Owen packed on the pounds because of all the stress that has been happening in his life, with school work and trying to find his place in middle school, his sister is kind of being bullied to because she is a group called " Girls Who Are Boys ". Jeremy, as they call her, dresses like a boy and lot of the girls make fun of her about her style.  Owen is one of the smartest kids in school, he loves participating in the Science Fair, where he gets to show his inventions that took months to build. Owen should not be teased based off his weight and how he looks, it dosen't really matter. He does so much good things, but why do people have do focus on the bad things , but when you have so much good in you that's all that hey look at.
That would be my question, why is the good things in life not as appreciated as the bad things? I know that the media and papparazzi like to put bad news about people in the magazines and such, because a lot of people would read it and sometimes believe it, but with out any doubt bullying is a major issue in this book and takes over a lot of people's actions.

Readers's Response: Bronx Masquerade, by: Nikki Gr

In the book, Bronx Masquerade, by:Nikkie Grimes, the author goes with a poetry theme . A bunch of 18 year-old students go to Mr. Ward's class to express their feelings through poems they wrote. since most of these kids are in college in time for them to come out and show who they are are. One black thinks he will not have a career in the future because he is surrounded by guns and violence, but the way how he talks will probably get him pretty far in life. When poetry from the heart is read, no one looks at you from the outside, but they admire your strong heart.

This teenage girl has been dealing with weight issues all her life, and she is pretty chubby. Her poetry is making her become more noticeable and her friends are paying more attention to her poetry instead of her weight. Its called "open mike Friday'', everyone usually enjoys it. They stand in front of the class and read their poem to the people who listen.

I really like how the poems are actually written in the book which makes it so creative , because your not just told how the poem is,but you actually get to read and understand the poem. They mostly write about their lives and the difficult times they go through in life, whether it is bullying, sexual orientation, they each have a story to be told and they go all through the main problems. The poems become a solution for it.

If the perspective of the book was missing, a way we could add it in would be..
I think that  everybody has a story to be told and that's what these teenagers are doing in Mr. Ward's class they write and read poetry to express their lives and the experiences they have had.

social awareness project

Malala Yousufzai, the 14 –year old schoolgirl was shot in the head by a Taliban. British Doctors said on Monday as she arrived that she is going to be treated for severe wounds. Yousufzai, was shot for standing up for education for girls, she was from Pakistan, but was flown down to receive special treatment at a unit at Birmingham’s Queens Elizabeth Hospital. Doctors believe that she could make a full recovery. Ms. Yousufzai did not receive fair treatment, she was not afraid to stand up for something she believed in and she gets shot for it.

Malala stood up for rights that every child should have an opportunity for. This was something that she probably wanted to pursue as she gets older. Yoususfzai only wanted to be educated, that’s how we interact with each other and make a living, but instead she got something much bigger. Women need an education too. Everyone deserves to learn, because education is a right, not a privilege.

To learn

Education

a right

not a privilege

eveyone deserves to learn

It's used in every day life

A way to intereact with others

Let's you know about the world we live in

Without education , what would we talk about ?

How would we make a living?, how to make things better?

Education

A right

Not a privilege

Blog #2 Eon Reading Response

Eon is a girl with many difficulties, her life is being changed around and she now decides to defend

her village. Since women are not allowed to fight she disguises herself as a man and searches off into

the night to help and keep her family safe. Along her journey she has many elders and men with

experience give her advice and words of wisdom. She then learns from her master how teaches her

well lessons on how to succeed in a fight and how to use objects around her.



Eona is her real name ,but she shortened it so it could sound boyish. Her great master has taught her

how to take down an enemy and how to climb trees. Eon is now facing new challenges,since she is a

female and usually during their teenage years there bodies start to change, Eon is now having her

period,and she smells like blood. Females are forbidden to use dragon magic; the penalty is death. she

has been training very hard in order to win the name "The dragoneye".

She is now drinking this tea ,which could help with bleeding and minimize the smell.  She has to

battle those who threaten to take her magic. She and her allies are plunged into grave danger and a

struggle for the imperial throne as her secret comes out a little.

It is hard for women to fight back then, and now she has to fight in order to keep her magic. I dont

think that is right for women not alllowed to do things men do. The book reflects on women rights ,

and how here they dont have it. The men sometimes dont even care for the women , they let them

survive on their own. People have stood up for human rights in the past , and so now Eon is defending her

friends and the power of the fire dragon within her.

Hurricane Sandy: Non-Fiction Article Response

Jeff Franks, the author of "Hurricance Sandy menaces U.S after slamming Cuba", wants us to know that a strong storm hit and a whole lot of buildings, resturants and shops have been destroyed. Many people have lost their lives and some people don't have power. "The president's concern about this storm is to make sure that citizens in potentially affected areas are aware of this and taking necessary precaution,"said Jay Carney, white house spokesmen. Images on Cuban television showed downed trees, damaged buildings and debris clogged-streets. "Everything is destroyed in Santiago. People are going to have to work really hard to recover from all the damages. " says Alex Malduley, a resident of the 498- year old city.

Forecasters warned that much of the U.S East Coast could get swiped by Sandy, with flooding, heavy rains and high winds beginning Thursday in Florida. Many people want to stay in there house, but becasuse of that many suffer injuries or even death caused by the floooding. When they say to evacuate, they mean for you to leave to go to a safer place or higher ground. Many people lost lots of things including pets, clothes , food and  antiques. These people will have to start over and get thier lives back to normal.  I feel that we should do the best we can to help the ones that lost the most and comfort the ones who lost relatives .

Hurricane Sandy took the name of  "Frankenstorm" because of the Halloween celebrations that were coming up. High winds , rains and pounding surf are expected across parts of Florida's Atlantic coast, with the biggest impact lasting through friday. " In this scenario , Sandy would be able to bring sustained winds near hurricane force over a wide stretch heavily populated coast," Jeff Master says,  hurricane specialist. On a saturday, my family and I went out to Red Hook, near Fairways to check all the damage that happened over there. Items were removed from houses, the ground was really damp and the people had lined up for food from a near by cookout spot , that was feeding the hungry. I felt that it was good for the community coming together in this rough time to help each other out.

"It was stronger than we expected. The eyes seem to have passed over a good portion of Long Island from south to north . We had winds of 100 mph from the east until the eyes passed." Jeff Masters said. The winds were really rough ,things were blown out of order and heavy crates tipped over. I know some people whose house were really destroyed and now that they have to start all the way from the begining. Now these people have to check into shelters or hotels and some even go to a friend's house.

Now that the storm has passed, We are going to have to work our way back to what we used to be, and since people have lost learning time at school, we will have to work our hardest now that we are back. It makes you think about life, what your goals were and what are they now. Many people lost family and don't seem very comfortable. All I can say is that we have to move on , but our prayers are with those who lost and hope they regain as much as they had. We must overcome Sandy.