Semester Reflection Part 2: Thursday, June 17th

Choose at least four (4) of the following and answer them in depth. I will quote from your answers in your report card comments, so please take time to edit & revise your writing, ensuring that it is ready for public consumption. For each answer, be sure to use specific evidence & examples.

• Explain how your thinking about American history and/or culture has developed over the course of the year. Include examples of particular people, places, events and/or ideas that influenced your thinking.

• What is the greatest challenge facing your generation? What will be necessary to address it?

• What is the greatest contribution you and/or your generation are in the process of making to America and/or American culture?

• Describe your vision for yourself in pursuing higher education.

• What in the world do you care about and what are you doing about it?

• What is a quality in a classmate that you would like to develop in yourself?

• What four-year college/s are you interested in and why?

• Beyond grades, what motivates you to work hard at school?

This blog post is due at 11:59:59pm on Friday, June 18. All students will receive up to a possible 20/20 for complete & excellent writing.


My vision for future education is to attend Mesa College and/or Grossmont College, and pick classes that seem interesting. I am not going to hold back my initial interests. I want to see what I am good at and what I am honestly interested in doing for the rest of my life.

I am Not interested in four year colleges. My plan is community college to get my Bachelor's and than decide to follow whatever my major is. If that course needs me to attend further education, than I will do so.

I care about Earth's beauty. I have reduced by carbon footprint by walking and riding bikes or finding other forms of transportation instead of a motor vehicle. I have reduced my plastic use, and if I must, use plastic as many times as I can (while being sanitary) before I discard of it.

I seek knowledge. I seek the information of the past. Grades are important, yes. But I would much rather learn about what ordinary people like me did centuries ago, and the people before them, and so on and so forth. The ideas, and histories of man are much more interesting than a letter grade.

Semester Reflection Part 1: Wednesday, June 16th

Choose at least three (3) of the following and answer them in depth. I will quote from your answers in your report card comments, so please take time to edit & revise your writing, ensuring that it is ready for public consumption. For each answer, be sure to use specific evidence & examples.

• What have you learned about the way you learn, work, and/or collaborate?
• What project was most valuable to you, and what have you gained from it?
• Describe in detail one significant academic challenge you faced this year. Why was it a challenge for you? Go in depth, use specific experiences, and explain how they contrast with a less challenging experience.
• Describe one valuable mistake you made this year.
• What is your greatest strength as a student in a project-based learning environment?
• What challenges do you face as a student in a project-based learning environment?

This blog post is due at 11:59:59pm on Thursday, June 17. all students will receive up to a possible 20/20 for complete & excellent writing.


I have learned that I tend to slack off quite a bit. I tend to let things pile up, become overwhelmed, and don't turn things in. Leading to a lack of confidence and self esteem. Making the matter worse.

I personally think that Ampersand was a huge project improvement for me. I made multiple drafts and changed my article idea almost as many times as I made drafts. It made me realize I need to think of a prompt and stick to it. I also realized that I need to put forth more effort into my drafts and pieces. I tend to slack off and just let things go unrevised. That is something that I realized during this project, and I believe my writing improved because of it.

I face quite a number of challenges as a student in a project-based learning environment. I am not used to it even after 3 years. I was raised and taught on a private school system, and I believe it was embedded into my brain. I am quite good at packets and "normal" school work. I enjoy reading in class and working hard on such tasks, But the social aspect of the project-based learning environment tends to make me slack off more than I normally would. I tend to talk more than I work.

Writing Reflection: Wednesday, June 16th

Please answer both of the following with substantial, thorough, thoughtful, well-revised, multi-paragraph pieces of writing that feature direct evidence, specific examples, and a high degree of honest self-reflection.

• Explain one or more specific aspects of your writing that have improved this year. In this explanation, you must directly refer to at least two specific pieces of writing that you produced for this class. You may use any assignment, project, writing sample, draft, blog entry, etc. You should discuss the writing tips & strategies we studied, the processes & methods we used, the critiques & drafts we employed and the products we created (feel free to use these specific key terms to keep your reflection focused).

• Describe one specific goal for your future writing. Your explanation of your goal(s) must include some or all of the following: writing samples from this year, writing strategies you have used in the past, writing strategies or techniques you would like to develop, examples from authors you respect, etc.

This blog post is due at 11:59:59 pm on Wednesday, June 16. Everyone will get up to 20/20 for thorough, careful writing.



One aspect of my writing that has improved this year would have to be the quality of improvement from draft to draft to the eventual final product. I'm not very good at writing first drafts or drafts at all, but I am learning to use the tip of quantity first and then going back through and revising to improve quality.

My Ampersand article somewhat depicts my improvement towards this new writing style. I typically wrote a first draft to meet the bare minimum, then revised that. But in later drafts, I used the tip to narrow down unnecessary portions.

A goal for my future writing would just to simply create visual language like Kurt Vonnegut. He created visual language in Slaughterhouse Five to his advantage to make you feel as if you were actually there with Billy Pilgrim. I keep thinking about Kurt explaining his trip with his little girls, and the language he used to describe the journey and the things they saw. He used perfect language to make it sound as if a child were narrating. I wish to use this technique if I choose to write as a career.

Historical Reflections: Sunday, June 13th

Of all of the historical figures we have studied this year, including—but definitely not limited to—Presidents, philosophers, politicians, leaders, social movement-ers, and the many everyday people that have contributed to American history & culture, who would you most like to run into in college?

Write a thoughtful, narrative blog entry in which you do all of the following:

1. Describe specifically how you would interact with this person—is he/she a professor at your university? a fellow student? a leader? visiting campus?

2. Include specific quotes from the actual person—you can creatively use these as you wish, though. For example, you might love to have Martin Luther King, Jr. as a professor, and you might use a quote from his famous letter from a Birmingham jail as a quote he might say in class one day.

3. Explain why you have chosen this person.

4. Cite at least three relevant primary sources for your quotes. If you are unsure what a primary source is, please check with me!

This blog entry is due at 11:59:59 pm on Tuesday, June 15. For honors students, this counts as an honors blog.

I would pick two people to run into on my journey through college. One would be earlier in my college experience, and it would be Martin Luther King Jr. himself. He would be my professor for my Speech class.

“Here is the true meaning and value of compassion and non-violence, when it helps us to see the enemy’s point of view, to hear his questions, to know his assessment of ourselves. For from his view we may indeed see the basic weakness of our own condition, and if we are mature,we may learn and grow and profit from the wisdom of the brothers who are called the opposition,”

He would teach us the simple, yet effective ways to make our language penetrate the confides of the human mind.

Martin Luther King Jr., Address at Riverside Church, New York, April

4 1967.

My own Ampersand Article.

Literary Reflections: Sunday June 6th

If you could bring one character from any one book that we have read this year with you when you go to college, who would bring? Why?

This character could be your roommate (or suite-mate or housemate or whomever), a future classmate, a friend on campus, a professor, TA, grad student, or any other person you might regularly see on campus.

In a thoughtful blog entry, explain clearly who you would choose, what role he/she might take, and why you want to bring this particular character. Be sure to include specific evidence from the character, the book/novel, or other relevant sources.

This blog entry is due at 11:59:59 pm on Monday June 14. For honors students, this counts as an honors blog.

If I had to choose one character from a book we've read this year, I would have to choose Gatsby. I believe I could learn a lot on how business works and I also believe our personalities would mesh quite well. He would simply be a friend on campus, maybe a roommate, and we would share an economics class together.

Post Trial Reflection

Please post this entry to your blog no later than 11:59:59pm tonight.

1. Summarize the facts of the case, as presented by the prosecution. Include relevant witnesses and testimony.

2. Summarize the facts of the case, as presented by the defense. Include relevant witnesses and testimony.

3. What was the most significant piece of evidence, in your personal opinion?

4. What was the most significant argument made, in your opinion?

5. What do you personally believe the correct verdict should be? Do you agree with the jury? Why or why not?

1. The prosecution's witnesses were: James Madison, John Adams, and Raul Grijalva.

Evidence consisted of the Boston Massacre, John Adams defending a British soldier,

The Constitution, the Statue of Liberty, and the Declaration of Independence.

2. The defense's witnesses were: Jan Brewer, Robert Watchhorn (Don't remember last name) ((Ellis Island commissioner)), and Senator Russell Pearce.

Evidence consisted of the SB1070.

3. In my personal opinion, the most significant piece of evidence had to be the amendments from the Constitution. In plain English it says right there on the document, that we will accept everyone as a person in this country, not only citizens.

4. I believe that my argument with Ben about the carrying of identification or my wallet while exercising or such activities was pretty significant. I got multiple praises after that, even though I did stray from my point a bit.

5. I do agree with the jury. Even though my side lost, I do personally believe the jury made the right decision. It is written in the Constitution. It's written on the Statue of Liberty. We are all human beings, we need to treat others as such.

I think I deserve a ___ out of 50 points because..... I did the following things very well.... because.... I could have done better at .... by.....

I think I deserve a 45 out of 50 points because I did work very hard, but I did also slack off a bit. Hallie asked a lot of things of me that I did not complete, but I was overworked and the yelling did not help. I believe I researched my witness very well, and I believe I did very good in the overall trial. I could have been in costume on the first day, I misinterpreted the requirements for dress attire, and also I could have helped out my group more.

WW2 Letters

Choose one of the following:

1. You are a soldier at (choose one of the following specific battles): Midway, Normandy, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Battle of the Bulge.

2. You are a soldier in (choose one of the following groups): Tuskeggee Airmen, 442 Regimental Combat Team, Navajo Code Talkers.

3. A woman at work in America.

4. An imigrant in America, such as those from Japan, Germany, Italy or of the Jewish religion.

Write a letter to a friend or family member. Think of what might be in a letter like this: it would be on a specific date & from a specific city. this letter might describe your hopes, feelings, expectations, fears, etc. It might reference current events (or, then-current events), technology, or politicians. It might describe people, places, settings, technology and more. It might include the other person's life, perspective or questions. In fact, the person the letter is written to might be one of the people on that list!

Helpful links:
http://www.teacheroz.com/WWII_Oral_History.htm
http://www.war-letters.com/

Post the basic info for your letter to your blog on Tuesday, 4/27 before 11:59:59 pm. This basic info includes:
1. who you are & how you decided
2. research! including specific links and the major topics, people, & info in your letter.
3. an overview of the tone & ideas of your letter.
4. more???



1. I am Thomas Henderson, 22 years of age and a Sergeant of E Company, of the 101st Airborne Division; Stationed at the intersection of Bastogne outside of Antwerp. I decided on this because I am interested in this battle because it must have been a huge decay of morale for the US Troops.

2.World War II: A Visual Encyclopedia

3. Cold
Missing whoever I am writing to
Losing hope but still valiant
Lost many friends and fellow company members
Seen friends get blown apart and shot to bits
December 23rd, 1944
A week of fighting so far