Sunday, February 27, 2011
LA test - Compromise(Topic)
The Language Arts test was somewhat difficult for me. The topic was on compromise and the example given was Atticus compromising with Scout. In order to continue reading, Scout made compromise with Atticus and must go to school. The example also included Atticus explanation of compromise. Compromise is an agreement reached by mutual concessions. I do really understand the concessions part so I thought compromise was just an agreement where both parties gain something. I found the definition of concession after the test. I checked my dictionary and it says, "The act of conceding" . The conceding here means giving up something. Lucky for me, the essay I wrote seemed to be correct in the sense that the plot was acceptable. I wrote about a story of 2 kingdoms fighting over some tree. The tree had magical power that could increase anybody's intelligence. By the time I finished planning my plot, I had only 40 minutes left to finish the essay. I knew that I was short of time and removed lots of ideas from the essay as I would not be able to finish the essay on time if I wrote them. I wrote essay as fast as I could and made a few mistakes. One of them was "massager pigeon" where I actually meant "messenger pigeon". After Ms Huang marked the paper, it seemed that the problem with my essay lies mainly on my language skills. I made many mistakes such as tense errors, improper sentence structures and expression problems. This was mainly due to the fact that I did not read often and my foundation in English was weak. Ms Huang recommended that the class read detective books. Detective books describe vividly on the story. The setting, characters and actions must be described with many details so the reader can understand the story and deduce who is the criminal. Therefore, I promised myself that I would start reading books on Sherlock Holmes soon. ( hope I can make myself read :-( )
To Kill a Mocking Bird (Characters)
The character that is my favourite is Scout. Scout is tom-boyish but intelligent child. Even though she may appear rash as a child, her intelligence really amazes me. She has the ability to care and be concerned about various things at her age. She is also able to read before beginning school. Her intelligence come mainly from Atticus, her father. Atticus had taught Scout well and she learns many facts quickly. Her innocence also reminds me of myself when I was young. She believed that she was a type of bird because Jem said so. Scout has the nature to question everything around. Her inquisitive nature lets her know better about the things that are happening. Every time she has doubt, she can just consult Atticus and Atticus would tell her. I really admire her for having such a great parent as well. In short, Scout is a brilliant character which has amazing traits and a amazing parent as well, and this makes her my favourite character from "Kill a Mockingbird".
Mississippi Burning
The movie, Mississippi Burning, gives a strong idea of racism in the South during the 1960s. The blacks were segregated in many ways. The blacks use only a different water cooler from the whites. The blacks had to live in a different area and their houses were very run-down. The blacks had to eat a different places in the restaurant. KKK members threatens the blacks by using violence. They burn the blacks' homes and also lynch the black people. The methods employed by the FBI agents seems to be very harsh but I think, they had to be used. If the FBI agents do not use their aggressive tactic of making KKK members get charged, it would really be difficult to get the KKK members in jail. Overall, this movie is excellent and cause the audience to really feel for the blacks. The treatment they received really makes the viewers pity them and this way, I think the director has successfully brought out the effects of racism.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Responding (To Kill a Mockingbird, Twenty-two through Thirty-one)
Personal Response:
The ending was particularly surprising. I did not think that Tom Robinson would have died in jail. I believed Tom had a chance to appeal and find the way out of his situation. Tom should not have attempted to run out of jail. If I was the author, I might have chosen to end the story differently by saying Tom Robinson managed to appeal and had a fairer trial. The way the story ended, shows how serious the white people who were prejudiced against the Negroes. I would prefer a happier ending where the ending shows that the people of Maycomb realise their mistakes and acquits Tom.
Recall & Interpret
1)The children are worried for Atticus but Atticus is not afraid to Bob Ewell's threats. He believes that Bob Ewell just threatens and will not take any physical action against him.
2)On the way back home from the school pageant, Bob Ewell stalks Scout and Jem and attacks them. At this point of time, Jem tells Scout to run and tried to stall time while Scout runs. Jem injures himself while struggling with Bob and Scout turns back to help him. Bob grabs and squeezed Scout and then, all of a sudden, Bob was pulled away by Boo Radley. Boo Radley took care of Bob Ewell and killed him and brought Jem back to the Finch's house. This incident revealed that Boo Radley was not a monster that they have thought and actually has a sense of justice.
3)Scout tries to treat Boo kindly and walks him back home to the Radley's place. She no longer think that Boo is a ghost or some horrible monster.Scout's image of Boo changed from a monster to normal human being and Scout tries to be friendly to Boo.
4)I believe they made the right decision on how to report Bob Ewell's death. Bob Ewell was the one who attacked and was actually the person who caused all the trouble. Boo was trying to save the children and did no wrong. He did not need any more trouble from killing Bob.
5)I agree that the cause of justice should be advanced through such 'baby steps'. If Atticus takes hasty steps and the community cannot fully condone what he is doing, he might get himself implicated and might die in result. It takes time for the community in Maycomb to slowly realise that their racist feelings towards the Negroes are actually bad.
The ending was particularly surprising. I did not think that Tom Robinson would have died in jail. I believed Tom had a chance to appeal and find the way out of his situation. Tom should not have attempted to run out of jail. If I was the author, I might have chosen to end the story differently by saying Tom Robinson managed to appeal and had a fairer trial. The way the story ended, shows how serious the white people who were prejudiced against the Negroes. I would prefer a happier ending where the ending shows that the people of Maycomb realise their mistakes and acquits Tom.
Recall & Interpret
1)The children are worried for Atticus but Atticus is not afraid to Bob Ewell's threats. He believes that Bob Ewell just threatens and will not take any physical action against him.
2)On the way back home from the school pageant, Bob Ewell stalks Scout and Jem and attacks them. At this point of time, Jem tells Scout to run and tried to stall time while Scout runs. Jem injures himself while struggling with Bob and Scout turns back to help him. Bob grabs and squeezed Scout and then, all of a sudden, Bob was pulled away by Boo Radley. Boo Radley took care of Bob Ewell and killed him and brought Jem back to the Finch's house. This incident revealed that Boo Radley was not a monster that they have thought and actually has a sense of justice.
3)Scout tries to treat Boo kindly and walks him back home to the Radley's place. She no longer think that Boo is a ghost or some horrible monster.Scout's image of Boo changed from a monster to normal human being and Scout tries to be friendly to Boo.
4)I believe they made the right decision on how to report Bob Ewell's death. Bob Ewell was the one who attacked and was actually the person who caused all the trouble. Boo was trying to save the children and did no wrong. He did not need any more trouble from killing Bob.
5)I agree that the cause of justice should be advanced through such 'baby steps'. If Atticus takes hasty steps and the community cannot fully condone what he is doing, he might get himself implicated and might die in result. It takes time for the community in Maycomb to slowly realise that their racist feelings towards the Negroes are actually bad.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Responding (To Kill a Mockingbird, Twelve through Twenty-one)
Personal Response:
I emphatise more with Tom Robinson. As the actions goes on in the courtroom, it becomes obvious that Tom is innocent and that Mayella Ewell is lying. Tom was accused of raping Mayella when he did not.
Recall and interpret:
1)Mr Cunningham and a group of men wants to lynch Tom Robinson. They want Atticus to get out of the way or they might harm him. At this moment, Scout comes and tries to engage in a conversation with Mr Cunningham. Scout talks about entailment while the group of men realises that what they were doing was wrong.
2)Tom Robinson's left arm is crippled and he could not have raped Ms Mayella. Ms. Mayella Ewell had been beaten on the right side of her body and that meant the rapist attacked her with his left hand.
3)According to Atticus, Mayella's motive of accusing Tom is that she did the unspeakable by tempting a Negro and kissed Tom. She later realise she has done the wrong thing and pushes the blame to Tom. Atticus fear that the jury will assume that all Negroes lie ,that all Negroes are basically immoral beings and that all Negro man are not to be trusted around the white women.
4) The author make Mayella Ewell a victim other than Tom Robinson. Mayella lost her mother and only has Mr Ewell as her only parent. Mr Ewell abuses her from time to time and we can tell she is also a victim.
5)A think a jury today, would not have found Tom Robinson guilty. The injuries that Mayella suffered are clearly not by Tom as he cannot have attacked the right side of Mayella's body. This is clear as Tom is crippled and cannot use his left hand. A jury today will also be less racist and should be able to give a fair trial. Therefore, a jury today would not have found Tom Robinson guilty.
I emphatise more with Tom Robinson. As the actions goes on in the courtroom, it becomes obvious that Tom is innocent and that Mayella Ewell is lying. Tom was accused of raping Mayella when he did not.
Recall and interpret:
1)Mr Cunningham and a group of men wants to lynch Tom Robinson. They want Atticus to get out of the way or they might harm him. At this moment, Scout comes and tries to engage in a conversation with Mr Cunningham. Scout talks about entailment while the group of men realises that what they were doing was wrong.
2)Tom Robinson's left arm is crippled and he could not have raped Ms Mayella. Ms. Mayella Ewell had been beaten on the right side of her body and that meant the rapist attacked her with his left hand.
3)According to Atticus, Mayella's motive of accusing Tom is that she did the unspeakable by tempting a Negro and kissed Tom. She later realise she has done the wrong thing and pushes the blame to Tom. Atticus fear that the jury will assume that all Negroes lie ,that all Negroes are basically immoral beings and that all Negro man are not to be trusted around the white women.
4) The author make Mayella Ewell a victim other than Tom Robinson. Mayella lost her mother and only has Mr Ewell as her only parent. Mr Ewell abuses her from time to time and we can tell she is also a victim.
5)A think a jury today, would not have found Tom Robinson guilty. The injuries that Mayella suffered are clearly not by Tom as he cannot have attacked the right side of Mayella's body. This is clear as Tom is crippled and cannot use his left hand. A jury today will also be less racist and should be able to give a fair trial. Therefore, a jury today would not have found Tom Robinson guilty.
Responding (To Kill a Mockingbird, One through Eleven)
Personal Response:
After reading about Scout's experiences, I remember about when I was as small as her, I was as naive and always believed what others say. There was this one time,
Recall and interpret:
1)Scout, Jem, and Dill test their courage by acting as Mrs Radley, Mr Radley and Boo Radley respectively. They act near the Radley place to test their courage. They also try to peep in the window with the loose shutter to see if they could get a look at Boo. They think Boo Radley is dead and that his family stuffed him up a chimney.
2)Scout and Jem found a ball of gray twine, a figure of a boy and another one which wore a crude dress, a spelling medal and a pocket watch, on a chain with an aluminum knife. The figures and spelling medal suggest that maybe Boo Radley was a normal, average person. Chewing gum found at the tree also suggest Boo was like a normal person as well.
3) Cecil Jacobs and Francis insult Scout's father, Atticus, being a nigger-lover. Scout is also not mature enough to know that fights will not solve matters. Their comments reveal that Maycomb represents the white people and that the white people are racist towards Negroes. Scout's response reveals that she is very defensive of Atticus and that she feels insulted when anybody insults him.
4)The connection is that both are the right thing to do and that Atticus did it voluntarily.
5) I would describe him as a wise parent. Atticus treats all of him chlidren well. He can openly talk about all kinds of stuff with his children. Being a wise parent, he punishes his children appropriately to teach them a lesson. Atticus always wants his children to think about others at all times and put themselves in their shoes.
After reading about Scout's experiences, I remember about when I was as small as her, I was as naive and always believed what others say. There was this one time,
Recall and interpret:
1)Scout, Jem, and Dill test their courage by acting as Mrs Radley, Mr Radley and Boo Radley respectively. They act near the Radley place to test their courage. They also try to peep in the window with the loose shutter to see if they could get a look at Boo. They think Boo Radley is dead and that his family stuffed him up a chimney.
2)Scout and Jem found a ball of gray twine, a figure of a boy and another one which wore a crude dress, a spelling medal and a pocket watch, on a chain with an aluminum knife. The figures and spelling medal suggest that maybe Boo Radley was a normal, average person. Chewing gum found at the tree also suggest Boo was like a normal person as well.
3) Cecil Jacobs and Francis insult Scout's father, Atticus, being a nigger-lover. Scout is also not mature enough to know that fights will not solve matters. Their comments reveal that Maycomb represents the white people and that the white people are racist towards Negroes. Scout's response reveals that she is very defensive of Atticus and that she feels insulted when anybody insults him.
4)The connection is that both are the right thing to do and that Atticus did it voluntarily.
5) I would describe him as a wise parent. Atticus treats all of him chlidren well. He can openly talk about all kinds of stuff with his children. Being a wise parent, he punishes his children appropriately to teach them a lesson. Atticus always wants his children to think about others at all times and put themselves in their shoes.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Hong Kong trip
DAY 1
I went to Hong Kong for a track and field competition. The whole trip was from Thursday to Monday. On Thursday, I still had to attend lessons as the flight was at night. The whole track and field team gathered at terminal 1 at 4.30pm. We checked-in our luggage, took group photos and got into the boarding gate. We got in the plane and by the time the plane was about to take flight, it was 6.30pm. The whole plane trip was pretty smooth - no turbulence and smooth landings. By the time we landed. We quickly got onto a coach, checked in to our hotels and slept.
DAY 2
The competition starts tomorrow so we decided to enjoy ourselves before going for the race. We woke up early in the morning, had our buffet breakfast and went to Hong Kong's Ocean Park. We got into groups and went to explore the extremely big Ocean Park. Ocean Park consists of two main areas - the highlands and the lowlands. The lowlands did not have trill rides, so my group went to the highlands. To get there, we took the cable car. The cable car ride was about 15 minutes and we took photos of the scenic view up in the cable car. The first trill ride we took was called "Raging River". After that, we went on to the "Crazy Galleon". It is similar to the viking rides we have in Singapore. I was actually afraid to get on to these trill rides. But all my friends were going on the ride so I took the ride. It was first time on these kinds of ride and I found it pretty fun. Next, was "The Dragon". It was roller coaster ride that had 3 loops. I have never went on a roller coaster and it was my first time. The roller coaster went really fast and I could feel the gravity on me. After the whole ride, I felt relieved that it was finally over. By the time we were done with Ocean Park, it was dinner time. We ate dinner at a small restaurant near our hotel. Food was quite expensive in Hong Kong and my dinner cost roughly 7 SGD. We retired for the day after dinner.
DAY 3
It was finally time for the competition. The weather in Hong Kong was very cold and temperatures were about 10~13 degrees Celsius. It was my first time in such a cold country and I could get use to the weather. We increased our warm-up intensity to make up for the cold weather. During my 800m race, I was very nervous as everybody there looked bulky and fit. Halfway through the race, I was freezing and the cold dry air attacked every part of my lungs. Unable to acclimatise to the weather, I could not surge and go faster. Even though I broke my personal best, I was not really happy with the results as I felt I could have gone faster.
DAY 4
Competition today again, this time instead of being in the morning, my event was in the late evening. I felt groggy in the morning due to a bad night. ( Think I might be having a slight cold) Anyways, I had to quickly eat breakfast before the bus leaves without me. Our team arrived at the stadium at about 7.30am. Since my event was like 9 more hours later, I took a nap and woke up for lunch. Lunch was ramen at the restaurant near the stadium. Another 4 more hours...
And soon it was 3.15pm - time for warm-up. I felt weird during warm-up, it was probably my cold affecting me. Soon, my event was starting and I was called to the start line. The race started and tried to pull up to the front, got behind my senior and ran in the slip-stream to save energy. Within a lap, I started to feel exhausted and wondered if I could even survive another 2 more laps. The pace was so fast and I could not keep up, so I fell back. After finishing another lap, I had 1 last lap. The runner behind me surged past me and I tried to keep the lead but to no avail, he overtook me. I followed closely till the last 200m where I pushed my body to the limit and surged. "CHASE! CHASE! CHASE! CHASE!" My teammates roared as I tried speed up and at least get a 3rd place. The other runner looked around and did not expect me to follow so tightly and charged forward as well. By the time I reached 50m mark, I knew there was no chance I could beat the runner and gave up chasing. I looked up the time and saw a 5.026 timing. I did not hit my target but at least I broke my old personal best(PB) of 5.06. I was pretty relieved after this as that will be all the events I am doing.
DAY 4 (Night)
An all night round of fun. My teammates got to my hotel room and we started to play cards. We play "tai-ti" or Big 2 for 2 whole hours( No gambling don't worry). Another 1 more hour of Indian poker and I felt like sleeping desperately. We played blackjack last, but I fell asleep halfway so I can't remember much.
DAY 5 Last Day
We went to "Dai Yi Shan" today. We went there by Hong Kong's train system, MTR. The train took about 30~40 minutes and we were lucky not to travel during the peak hours. The train carriages were pretty much empty. We reached the base of "Dai Yi Shan" and took the cable car up. The scenic view featured the sea,forest and the hilly terrain. I climbed the famous 100 steps staircase to the big statue of Buddha. After that, I bought some souvenirs and got back to the hotel. It was quite a rush as we had to reach the airport at 4pm. We got back to the hotel, got our luggage and left for the airport. Once we reached the airport, we checked-in and it was free-and-easy till it was airplane boarding time. I got to an internet kiosk and updated my family on my whereabouts and what happened in Hong Kong. Time past quickly and it was soon time to board the plane. The plane was a newer model than the plane I took to Hong Kong. It was much more comfortable on the plane, or not. There were long periods of turbulence during the flight. There seemed to be a storm and I had to hold my pee till the plane got out of the turbulent zone. It was about half past midnight when the plane arrived in Singapore. My parents were waiting to pick me up so I quickly got through customs. My father drove back and I fell asleep during the drive back home.
I went to Hong Kong for a track and field competition. The whole trip was from Thursday to Monday. On Thursday, I still had to attend lessons as the flight was at night. The whole track and field team gathered at terminal 1 at 4.30pm. We checked-in our luggage, took group photos and got into the boarding gate. We got in the plane and by the time the plane was about to take flight, it was 6.30pm. The whole plane trip was pretty smooth - no turbulence and smooth landings. By the time we landed. We quickly got onto a coach, checked in to our hotels and slept.
DAY 2
The competition starts tomorrow so we decided to enjoy ourselves before going for the race. We woke up early in the morning, had our buffet breakfast and went to Hong Kong's Ocean Park. We got into groups and went to explore the extremely big Ocean Park. Ocean Park consists of two main areas - the highlands and the lowlands. The lowlands did not have trill rides, so my group went to the highlands. To get there, we took the cable car. The cable car ride was about 15 minutes and we took photos of the scenic view up in the cable car. The first trill ride we took was called "Raging River". After that, we went on to the "Crazy Galleon". It is similar to the viking rides we have in Singapore. I was actually afraid to get on to these trill rides. But all my friends were going on the ride so I took the ride. It was first time on these kinds of ride and I found it pretty fun. Next, was "The Dragon". It was roller coaster ride that had 3 loops. I have never went on a roller coaster and it was my first time. The roller coaster went really fast and I could feel the gravity on me. After the whole ride, I felt relieved that it was finally over. By the time we were done with Ocean Park, it was dinner time. We ate dinner at a small restaurant near our hotel. Food was quite expensive in Hong Kong and my dinner cost roughly 7 SGD. We retired for the day after dinner.
DAY 3
It was finally time for the competition. The weather in Hong Kong was very cold and temperatures were about 10~13 degrees Celsius. It was my first time in such a cold country and I could get use to the weather. We increased our warm-up intensity to make up for the cold weather. During my 800m race, I was very nervous as everybody there looked bulky and fit. Halfway through the race, I was freezing and the cold dry air attacked every part of my lungs. Unable to acclimatise to the weather, I could not surge and go faster. Even though I broke my personal best, I was not really happy with the results as I felt I could have gone faster.
DAY 4
Competition today again, this time instead of being in the morning, my event was in the late evening. I felt groggy in the morning due to a bad night. ( Think I might be having a slight cold) Anyways, I had to quickly eat breakfast before the bus leaves without me. Our team arrived at the stadium at about 7.30am. Since my event was like 9 more hours later, I took a nap and woke up for lunch. Lunch was ramen at the restaurant near the stadium. Another 4 more hours...
And soon it was 3.15pm - time for warm-up. I felt weird during warm-up, it was probably my cold affecting me. Soon, my event was starting and I was called to the start line. The race started and tried to pull up to the front, got behind my senior and ran in the slip-stream to save energy. Within a lap, I started to feel exhausted and wondered if I could even survive another 2 more laps. The pace was so fast and I could not keep up, so I fell back. After finishing another lap, I had 1 last lap. The runner behind me surged past me and I tried to keep the lead but to no avail, he overtook me. I followed closely till the last 200m where I pushed my body to the limit and surged. "CHASE! CHASE! CHASE! CHASE!" My teammates roared as I tried speed up and at least get a 3rd place. The other runner looked around and did not expect me to follow so tightly and charged forward as well. By the time I reached 50m mark, I knew there was no chance I could beat the runner and gave up chasing. I looked up the time and saw a 5.026 timing. I did not hit my target but at least I broke my old personal best(PB) of 5.06. I was pretty relieved after this as that will be all the events I am doing.
DAY 4 (Night)
An all night round of fun. My teammates got to my hotel room and we started to play cards. We play "tai-ti" or Big 2 for 2 whole hours( No gambling don't worry). Another 1 more hour of Indian poker and I felt like sleeping desperately. We played blackjack last, but I fell asleep halfway so I can't remember much.
DAY 5 Last Day
We went to "Dai Yi Shan" today. We went there by Hong Kong's train system, MTR. The train took about 30~40 minutes and we were lucky not to travel during the peak hours. The train carriages were pretty much empty. We reached the base of "Dai Yi Shan" and took the cable car up. The scenic view featured the sea,forest and the hilly terrain. I climbed the famous 100 steps staircase to the big statue of Buddha. After that, I bought some souvenirs and got back to the hotel. It was quite a rush as we had to reach the airport at 4pm. We got back to the hotel, got our luggage and left for the airport. Once we reached the airport, we checked-in and it was free-and-easy till it was airplane boarding time. I got to an internet kiosk and updated my family on my whereabouts and what happened in Hong Kong. Time past quickly and it was soon time to board the plane. The plane was a newer model than the plane I took to Hong Kong. It was much more comfortable on the plane, or not. There were long periods of turbulence during the flight. There seemed to be a storm and I had to hold my pee till the plane got out of the turbulent zone. It was about half past midnight when the plane arrived in Singapore. My parents were waiting to pick me up so I quickly got through customs. My father drove back and I fell asleep during the drive back home.
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