wiki 5 20/20 - I agree with you... it was a good presentation. You made several good observations!

11/6/09 entry one- I liked mr. Schlesselmans message today i thought he made very good points and wasnt to boring. His speeking style was pretty good to he had alot of eye contact and some hand gestures. I like how he emphesises his words when hes trying to make a major point and he is always easy to understand because he pronounces his words good and he does it in a tone that is loud so every body can hear it. I thought he could have walked away from his podeum a little bit more and used a little more hand gestures i thought you could tell that his speech was well prepared and he didnt jump around with his sentences he stuck to one topic which made it pretty easy to follow and to understand. I thought his message was good and he had a good presenting style. At points it got a little boring i think he could have used like a video or crowd praticipation to make it more intresting but overall i think he did a good job.

wiki 4 - 20/20 - good post. You made good comments.The crowd involvement was unique.

10/30/09 entry one- I thought that mr.flandemeyers messaage today was good but i thought his presentation style was a little boring. When he was giving his message he didnt look up very many times and he didnt use very many hand gestures. He also stood behind his podeum and didnt move very much. There were some things i did like about his speeking style tho. I liked how he showed us a video it was something diffrent and intresting and it kept me from geting bored like you get most of the time when the speaker just stands up there and reads to us. I also liked how he got the crowd involed in his message. I think he made his message very clear and he kept his message plain and simple and didnt try to throw and twists in it that would make us confused and have no clue what he is talking about. But overall i think he did a good job in given his message this morning.

wiki 3 - 20/20 - Good post. Sam did do a great job and you wrote a good analysis!

10/21/09 entry one- I liked sams speech that he gave in class he had. He made his point clear and he also had statistics to support the facts that he stated. He was enthusiastic with his speech he wasnt just reading and so it didnt put us to sleep he kept us intresting. He picked a topic that related to all of us so it kept us intresting because it might affect us someday. I liked how he sowhed a video it kept it from being boring and it put the situation he was talking about into perspective and made it realize that it really does happen and it can happen to us. He had good eye contact and he made some good hand gestures he also wasnt glued to the podeum. He didnt try to bore us with his topic he made it short and sweet but still made his point and didnt loose our intrest in the process. He made his topic appeal to us and made us really think about the consequences of our actions if we do it.

wiki 2 - 15/20 I agree with you... he did a great job... you need to shoot for 200 words of commentary on these.. okay?

10/16/09 entry one- I liked mr. Kulhmans speaking style in chapel on thursday. I liked the way he got the people involved that where in the crowd it kept us intrested and it wasnt so boring. I like how he used words and examples that we could all understand and it got the point across. He was hardly ever standing behind the podeum and he used good hand motions and got his point across very well by rasing his voice when he was empaszing his main point.

wiki 1 20/20 - great response work!

10/9/09 entry one- I think pastor clausing has a very good public speaking style. He uses good hand gestures and raises his voice when he is focusing on the main point. He steps away from his podeum so he isnt glued to it. He is also very organized with his speeches he doesnt bounce around with his points alot he sticks to one point and gets his point across. He also has good posture when he is presenting he leans on his toes and isnt leaning back to much and he also has great eye contact and uses words that we can understand and pronounces them very clearly. I do think his hand gestures are a little distracting at times.

Short story-                                                             Teenage Nightmare

     The obnoxious blaring of the alarm clock jolted Alex awake.  As he reached over to slam it off, his eyes saw 6:30 a.m.  He quickly searched his brain to remember why he had set an alarm for that ungodly hour of the morning.  It was August; it was summer…suddenly, he remembered.  Today was the first day of school in a new town and a new school.  He flopped his head back on the pillow and closed his eyes for a minute, trying to take it all in.

     It had been a great day.  Alex had played his last school soccer game of the season.  His team had won and he had scored the winning goal.  His coaches and teammates had all given him high fives.  He really felt that life was good.

     He was putting away his soccer gear when his dad came into his room.  Alex’ dad told him about a new job opportunity that was in the works.  His dad wanted to know how Alex would feel about moving to a new town after this school year.  His dad kept talking about the new job, and the new city, but Alex wasn’t hearing a thing.  Even though his dad had said he wanted to know how Alex felt about moving, Alex knew the decision had already been made.  He would be leaving his friends and his soccer team.

     As Alex’ dad stood up to leave, he asked Alex if he was okay with the move.  Alex nodded his head and told his dad that it was fine; it would help his dad’s career.  As

 soon as his dad left, thoughts about the move raced through his mind.  His whole life was going to change and he wasn’t sure he was going to be able to handle the change. He picked up the phone and called his best friend, Joe.  Joe had been Alex’ best friend since first grade.  Joe was basically speechless when Alex told him the news and they both were depressed when Alex hung up.

     The winter months flew by and Alex felt like he was falling through a black hole.  He became very depressed and his grades started to slip.  Even encouragement from his friends didn’t help Alex.  His mother was worried about him, too.  She had spent lots of time trying to talk with him over the past two months.  Alex told his mom not to worry; he would try harder in school.  However, she had not seen any improvement in his grades, or his mood. 

     Alex wasn’t even interested in soccer anymore.  He had always loved playing soccer and being on a travel team had been his dream.  But this season was different.  He didn’t want to even practice anymore and his mom had to force him to go the three days during the week.  Alex just couldn’t face the fact that everything he knew was going to change.  He found it easier and easier to withdraw and not think about having to move.

     It was during third hour on that May day that Alex experienced a break in his “nightmare”; the term he had started using to describe his life.  His English teacher told him that he was to report to Student Services.  Mr. Brown, the intervention counselor, wanted to talk with him.  As Alex walked down the hallway, he wondered what he had done to deserve a visit to the counselor.  The Student Services secretary

 pointed him toward a conference room and told him he was to see Mr. Brown there.  As he entered the room, he saw many familiar faces around the table.  His mom, Joe, his soccer coaches, and several of his teachers were all there.  Mr. Brown asked Alex to join them at the table and the clouds started to lift.

     Alex listened to each person as they told him of their concerns, and how they had watched him withdraw more and more each day.  His teachers were concerned about his grades but also about his lack of interest.  They each told him about the strengths they had seen earlier in the school year.  They encouraged him and told him that he could build on those strengths in his new school.  His soccer coaches expressed how his leadership skills, on and off the field, had always impressed them.  They reminded him that his hard work had paid off in his excellent soccer skills.  The coaches told him that they had already contacted the coaches at his new school and had arranged for tryouts for a new travel team.

     Alex’ mom reminded him that he had made it through a difficult change to a new school as a fourth grader.  She told Alex he had the internal strength and faith to face a new challenge.  Alex turned to Joe and knew that his friend had arranged this meeting.  Joe had been there for him throughout the entire year.  He had listened to Alex’ frustrations, and fears, about the move. He had studied with him and helped him with his homework.  Joe told Alex that he had faith in him; that he could not only survive the move, but that it would make him stronger,. 

     From that day, Alex started to change his attitude.  He managed to bring all of his grades up and enjoyed his soccer season with his club team.  The summer flew by.

 He spent time with his soccer team at tournaments and he scheduled his tryout with the team in his new town.  He and Joe spent lots of time together; enjoying swimming, playing video games and going to the beach. 

     August first, moving day, was tough.  If Alex had thought of returning to his “nightmare”, it would have been then.  However, his friends sent him off with a “Good Luck” breakfast and a note that each one had signed.  He held onto the good memories as he travelled to his new home.  Alex kept busy settling into his new house and getting ready for the school year.  He talked to his old friends everyday and they encouraged him.  He went to his new school orientation and started working out with the school soccer team.  Time was flying by…

     Alex opened his eyes, again, and his heart was pounding.  Had he overslept on the first day of school?  The clock said 6:40 a.m.; only ten minutes had passed but it seemed like an eternity.  He reached under his pillow, pulled out the note, and read: “You are strong, a leader, passionate, smart…” Alex jumped out of bed.  It was time to start a new dream.

wiki 5 - Great job on your posts both this week and last. You have a lot of interesting ideas and I enjoy hearing them. Good list... lots of travel and adventure!

Week five 9/18/09 entry one- Ten things i want to do before i die are 1. graduate college 2.Go to europe 3.Go sky diving 4. Ride a horse 5. Go surfing 6. Get married 7. Have kids 8.Go bungie jumping. 9. Meet a movie star. 10. Meet a professional athlete. I also would like to do a ton of other stuff and i would like to visit just about all places in the world and see all the different cultures that are out there i also think it would be cool to live in another country just to see how different it is and how good we have it here in america.

Week five 9/18/09 entry two- I have started on my short story and it is about a teenage boy having to make a big life adjustment. He faces a move to a new city and new school and has to work through his feeling and struggles to deal with the change and he misses his old town school and friends. At his new school he is having trouble adjusting to the new surroundings and is having trouble making new friends and this upsets him very much because he just wants to fit in and he just wishes that he had never moved because he liked his old town and had many friends and liked the school he went to but now he has to start all over he has no friends and isnt sure if he likes his new school or not yet.

 wow... your story sounds a little like it could be the "New Kid" grown up...

Week four 9/11/09 entry two-

I think the presidents speech was good and i dont understand why some parents didnt want there kids to see it. Kids need to realize at an early age that working hard and doing good in school will help you be succesful in the long run. And that education is important for the success of our country. If you try your hardest in school you will most likley succeed and get a good education which will help you with what you want to do with your life and it will help our country also because every job is important in someway. And if you try hard in school your job later in life will be alot easier because you will have the education that will help you succeed but if you drop out you dont have that education or knowledge that a high school or college graduate will have and you wont get the job over a high school or college graduate because you didnt even finish high school. I thought his speech was kind of motivational and it made me realize that we are the future of america and we need to work and be successful so america can also be successful and remain a great country. 

Week four 9/11/09 entry one-

Can a 14 yr old school dropout reasonably expect success much less the respect of those around him?

No because they have no education and people judge eachother on how smart they are and how much education they have gotten and if you dont even have a high school diploma people will thing your dumb and lazy and not a good worker. And for most jobs you have to have a high school diploma and if you want a job that will pay you good. If you are a high school dropout most people get the impression that your a bad kid and get in alot of trouble. If you want to have a bright future and want to have a good job when you get older stay in school. An education is most of the time a key to success and if you graduate high school you will make more money than a kid who didnt graduate high school. 

Great job on wiki 3!

Week three 9/4/09 entry two-

I  like how you had us write a poem on the fall of the house of usher i thought that was kinda fun and intresting. It was a little difficult at first but once you picked your theme or person and got started it was kinda intresting. I also liked how you put up the poems in the hall because it gave me a chance to see what everybody else wrote and the diffrent types of poems there were.I liked how you let us create our own paper that we put it on and it was intresting to see all the diffrent designs.I also like how you give us time in class to read the stories because this gives me a chance to ask you questions if i have any or i dont understand the story.

week three 9/4/09 entry one-

What did you find yourself thinking about as you read this story????

I found myself thinking how bad and sometimes wrong war is and i started to think about if that was me in his position and if one of my brothers was shot dead by me. I  also started to think how wrong it is to be fighting over catholic or protestant because you shouldnt be fighting over it you should be able to be free and be what ever religon you want to be. I also found myself thinking that what if you lived and ireland and you were not catholic or protestant you would be stuck in the middle of a war for no reason and you would have to run for your life.

week two 8/27/09 entry one-

Your thoughts? Is it right or wrong for Mike to do what he does to (for?) his grandma?

I think that what mike did was right because he didnt really do anything wrong he just went along with what his grandma was doing.I also think it was good what he did because it made his grandma happy but on the other hand i do think it was wrong for a couple reason because he did get his grandma happy but she was actually wrong with what she was thinking and she got her hopes up for nothing but his grandma wont ever find out or rember what happend so i dont think it was bad or did damage to his grandma.

week two 8/27/09

entry two-

I liked the little quiz thing we did on Wenesday on the Moustache i thought it was kinda easy and it was a good chance for us to get extra credit. I also like how you give us time in class to read because it gives me less homework and it also gives me time to read the story because i usually dont read it at home. I also like the activity we did about hoover moms because it was kinda intresting to compare my mom to a hoover mom. I liked the websites you showed us that will help us with the short stories and help us with our literature  and the google docs app you told us about.

Good work on wiki 2! Have you chosen your project for #4 yet? I am curious which one you've decided to do.

week one 8/21/09

entry one-

What would YOU have done in Pablo's situation? Would his situation even happen in 2007?

If i was put in Pablo's situation i would have done the same thing because it is always good to stand up for yourself and your beliefs and its wrong to not accept somebody just because of your race that you have no control over. If this situation were to happen in 2007 you would be in deep trouble with the law and situations like this happen everyday racism is still a problem even in today's society. All though in today's society the bar would have had to serve him and couldnt tell him to leave just because of his race that restraunt would be shut down by the local law enforcement. If a business did this in todays society it would be considered a hate crime and the person who comitted the hate would be put in jail instead of the person who was the victim of this horrible crime.

8/21/09  entry two-

I liked the talk show activity we did in class this week because it was fun and it taught us some things. I also liked the fact the we got to interact with eachother. This activity taught me that there is almost always something the author doesnt tell you about the charecter and that they like to leave the audience guessing about the charecter in some type of way. It also helped us learn about our classmates and what they like.  I also like in class how we discuss the stories because alot of the stories dont make sense at first but after you discuss it with other people and get their view point on it sometimes it starts to make more sense.     

Good job on wk.1 - I shrunk the size of your type... so that way your wiki doesn't take up quite so much space! :-)