Letter

To all of my fellow block 4 classmates,

I have not had this much fun in an English class in a long time. This year was filled with a lot of fun that we shared throughout the days and actually made this year bearable. With all of the songs, arguments, and laughter that we shared, we shared a combined group that bonded as the year has come to an end. I have honestly never felt more happy being in an English class and it was all thanks to you guys.
 This year, in the beginning, I did not know what to expect. As I glanced around the room, I took a mental survey on what to expect from all of the new kids, and I must say I was quite surprised. The kids this year were so smart and boosted our classes intellect level a lot. I will miss this class and hope that everyone does well in the future and strives to work their hardest. Thank you Block 4 English!

 This quarter, it seems like my performance started to taper down as we got further into the quarter. I feel like this has to do with my laziness and excitement for the summer to start. So far this quarter, I feel as though I really could have done better had I put in a lot more effort. I really dislike poetry and plays, which is what the quarter was more geared toward, therefore, I feel that that also had a direct impact on my performance in class.

 With general procedures, I really didn't do as well as I probably should have, now let's be fair, I wasn't terrible, but I should've done better. I was good at bringing in materials (most kids should be) but my downfall was not always turning in homework on time.I also checked email daily, and followed up with the teacher when it was needed.Usually I was cooperative, but some days I just had bad days and didn't treat Dr.D right. I think I contributed a lot to the classes discussions in a good way. I came prepared daily with relevant comments or questions that may have arose overnight. I didn't take notes as I am more of a visual or auditory learner. I was also good at listening to my peers and taking things from a perspective other than my own. I'l be honest, I did engage in side conversations a few times, but I was mostly on task.With my individual and group work I think i did excellent. I was very helpful to my groupmates and I worked honestly for myself. I think this was an overall good quarter.

Outside reading recap

This year I have been more welcome to reading anything that comes my way. I have been a lot more interested in Non- Fiction and post-colonial novels. This year I have enjoyed reading recommended books from my peers as many of them know what books are very interesting to read. I especially like the suggestions that I received from Jerry Dunbar and Justin Rogstad. I have progressed a lot as a reader this year and hope that it continues this way. This year I have also enjoyed stepping out of my comfort zone in reading, and Nervous Conditions was an immense help with that

Next year I want to start reading the books that I didn't have time for this year. I wanted to start reading the Hunger Games series this year, however I didn't have enough time for it. My friends Andrew and James McGaugh really enjoy the books and they said I will too, so I will read it. Next year I also hope that my teacher picks difficult books to read. I know we read The Great Gatsby, which is an awesome book. I don't like poetry though, so I want less of that. 

Macbeth

Due to the three witches telling me that fate will make me king, I must either allow fate to do it, or take matters into my own hands. My wife thinks that in order to reach this position I will have to go in a blood bath to the top. My wife and I have now both agreed that the only way for me to reach royalty is for me to kill Duncan to give up his position, however, for me it is not that simple. I am loyal to Duncan and I must not do this. Or maybe I can do it without looking, as if allowing my hands to act on their own. We have finally done the deed, and have been covering up pretty well, I even had to kill the guards in "rage" to cover up for my murder. Finally I have been crowned king.

9th grade writing assesment

 So far, 2011 and 2012 has been one of best years in writing. I have come to learn different techniques and styles of writing that have saved my papers throughout the year. In all of my papers I had some mistakes, but in general they were good. This year we wrote the literacy narrative, literacy analysis, global issues, profile narrative, and WrAP. As far as things go, I think I did fair on them, however it was the simple mistakes I made in every one that led me down.

First, let’s start with the first two that I wrote, the Literacy narrative and the profile narrative, to show how I progressed in just one paper. First off, the minor mistakes I had from my literacy narrative were things such as word duplication, comma splicing, and missing commas. These mistakes could have been easily avoided, so I paid them no mind. When I began to look at things such as ideas and organization, it allowed me to compensate these mistakes with the next paper. Problems that occurred with ideas and organization were paragraphing and easing into foreshadowing entirely too quickly.  I believe that the grade I got on the paper was relatively fair, but more than a good grade, I was able to put my newfound adjustments in the next paper which was the profile narrative. I did a lot better on this paper, besides a few minor mistakes in conventions and those. I had no mistakes as far as Ideas, voice, and organization go. Also, my reflection turned out to be quite accurate as I thought I had done well in those areas.

My next two papers were actually the hardest to write because of the content they expressed and because of the issue of formality in them. Both papers were supposed to be formal and were analytically-based. With my literacy analysis, I had a few major flaws that tore down my paper. My paper overall was average, but a lot of the problems that were prevalent were repeated mistakes that I had made before. I completely agree with Dr.D looking back at the paper that I had, my thesis was good, but I didn’t have much supporting evidence. My other flaw in this paper was citation, which had followed me to my Global issues paper. My main problems with both of these papers were to use citations and sources properly. I felt as though I needed to focus on those main points for the next research or analytical paper I had coming next.

Finally, I had to write the WrAp. I have never liked this paper since I started doing these in 6^th grade. My main reason for the distaste towards this paper was because you only have 2 days to do all of the pre-writing, drafting, and writing the final draft. I function better in writing when I have weeks before an assignment is due because I pre-plan a lot. Overall, I was not enthusiastic with my score for the paper, and I think that I would have done better had I had more time. Overall, I got the average score for most kids my age. I got a 23.5, and a 24 is actually pretty good, so I was close. Because I had only two days to work on it, my score had dropped dramatically. For all of the sections, I got 4’s (except for a 3.5 in support) because I didn’t have enough information to make a good enough essay. I was missing quite a bit of support and backing evidence to help my cause. And like I said, if I had more time, I would probably do a lot better.

Based on the feedback I have received throughout this year, I need to really focus on the simple mistakes that I have consistently been making in writing. Small things are the things that seem to be tearing me down. Also, I seem to have the grasp of the concept of the task at hand; however, the final product sometimes lacks all of these parts working in tandem.

From what I can gather, next year, I need to focus more on paying attention to the assignment as a whole and not picking out details that need to be done. I feel like if I can do that, my papers will sound better and I can finally start the individual pieces of word choice, voice, organization, sentence fluency, and ideas to work in harmony. So doing more prewriting and things of the sort should cover that bit. I also want to get the chance to be graded and checked by my peers. This year, I spent over an hour per person checking their papers to make sure they did a great job, whereas every time we had peer reviewing, my paper got read for maybe 5 minutes maximum. To me this is just messed up, and if I could get more help from peers, I would do better. Next year I also just need to simply try harder to write better. I know if I just try hard, I can make better papers.

English essay list of common mistakes

Comma splicing

Lack of detail in some areas, but a lot in others

Awkward spreading of paragraphs and sentences

Adding in extra and unnecessary sentences

Ambiguous pronouns

Word Choice

Song Analysis: Built to Fall by Trivium

http://www.metrolyrics.com/built-to-fall-lyrics-trivium.html

   The song I chose to analyze is called Built to Fall by Trivium. Trivium is a Metalcore band that had just recently released an album called In Waves. The reason why I chose this song is because the album In Waves was made to give listeners the opportune to interpret songs in their own way. The whole album adds a mix of lyrical and artistic poetic devices throughout every song, which is why I decided to analyze one song from the album called Built to Fall.

  The first line says "you are a cancer spreading it's wings" this line is actually a metaphor in that the person is being described as a cancer growing (hence"spreading it's wings). This next line reads "so selfishly unaware to the things", which contains rhyme with wings and things. Let me also say this before we continue, this poem has a story that it tells, so in this sense it is considered a ballad. The next stanza is also filled with very descriptive metaphorical writhing. " you start as a fissure, a crack in the skin, you become an ulcer permeating" This is once again a metaphor expressing the person "spreading". Actually, I'll just name off all of the parts that contain similes and metaphors in the song. The whole fourth stanza( the chorus) is a metaphor. And the sixth stanza is also a metaphor. I will state this, sometimes the things repeat (chorus) so I will not repeat them. Repetition joins in where the singer says "your built to fall several times and when he says "you've got you war against my head, push that button make it end". This song is an ode to someone that the writers are talking about, and in my interpretation, someone in their life that has passed. This song is filled with enjambment in most of the stanzas. In a nutshell, that is the song.

Free Post: Europe

This week, I have been packing and packing to spend my spring break with the band in Europe. I am going with a lot of my friends and fellow band mates, which I hope allows us to get closer and bond. I heard that's what happened to the kids that went to Rome. I have actually never been this stressed in my life, because packing for nine days is actually quite hard, putting everything you need and nothing you don't.

In going to Europe, I hope to learn a lot about European culture and see things that I would never see in the US. I think traveling might be hard with all of the instruments and all of the large checked luggage we have, but if it was too hard, they wouldn't trust us to go on the trip. The only problem that I have is that this is the last break and I would love to spend it with my family. Hopefully we all have a fun and safe trip together.

Analyzing a Poem

This week as my poem to analyze, I chose "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke on page 10. This poem, although seems quite simple to read as it looks quite small and straightforward, is actually full of rich character and allows the reader to write an analysis about the small details that pop out to them. So this poem end's up having a lot to it even though it is only four stanzas.

First when looking at the title, you would probably guess that this poem has to do with a father dancing, which is actually quite accurate. When you first read the poem all the way through, it has a certain rhythm to it that makes it sound like the up and downs that go with the steps of dancing. The line breakage allows for this rhythm to happen. Every other line, the last word rhymes. The poem is riddled with different feelings of the father. The narrator is speaking from the point of view that they are the child in the poem. The father seems drunk and and steady, which is how the poem seems to be when you read it...it feels shaky. There is also plenty of enjambment throughout the poem that make it seem awkward in a sense. The last stanza was actually very confusing, I don't know if the dad was beating the child or not...I hope that it is some sort of figurative language. This poem also uses some simile's and metaphor's. Overall, this poem was quite nice, but I loved it's use of language.

Free Post

This week I have started on my project for english about the global issues. I think that it is actually coming along quite well. Sissy and I have decided to make a song about the issue. So far, we have written out and recorded the guitar, which sound great if I do say so myself. This weekend I hope to record drums and vocals with Sissy. The hardest part is coming up with lyrics that are really serious. We have come up with a few lyrics, but they are not good at all. They sound silly and don't fit the guitar parts as well as they should.

Hopefully we can get a few ideas from other songs about human trafficking, or my brother who is a musical genius.This week I aim to finish recording and mixing the song so that it sounds flawless. The hardest part is actually trying to learn how to use garage band. I wish their was an easier way to record, but this seems to be the easiest. Regardless of how the song turns out, I hope that it spreads a message that will stick to the people that hear it.

Reading Grendel and the Book of Not

This week along with The Book of Not, I have decided to read the book Grendel by John Gardner. The book of not is really dark and has a lot of graphic content...I am really considering giving to the next taker. I don't want these thoughts to linger in my head for an extended period of time. Dangeremba spared the readers no explicit content throughout the book. She writes this novel very graphically and it really bothers me. In fact, now I think I will give it up.

Grendel is actually a book that my brother gave me from his AP English class. This book is actually very hard to read because of the difficulty of the language it is written in. Grendel is the story of Beowulf told through the eyes of the antagonist, Grendel. Grendel is a monster in this book who kills people because he is trying to find an inner purpose. Grendel is feared among the eyes of people, which adds to the intricate detailing of the plot. This book, so far, has turned out to be a really good one. I hope to finish it next week. 

Surgery this week

On Wednesday morning around 4:30, I awoke with an unshakable feeling of pain in my stomach. No matter what I did I couldn't shake it off. I went to my dad's study room and asked him about it, and as he ran a few tests on my, he discovered that that I probably had an inflamed appendix. The appendix is a useless organ, and it beats me why we still have it, but anyways, he drove me to the ER and they performed surgery on it to remove it. Once they had removed it, I spent a miserable night in the hospital, and still drugged up on medicine, I didn't know what I was doing or saying. It was a terrible experience.
 Apart from the whole ordeal, I missed 3 days of school. To some people, this may be a blessing, but to me it was not. I missed out on so much work and projects alike, and now I am really behind. I wish I didn't have to get that surgery, because it messed up my school schedule and everything.

Finishing Black Voices and Starting the Book of Not

 I have finally finished Black Voices. This is one of the most difficult but probably one of the best and most well written books that I have read in a long time. On Monday, I received a book from Dr.D which turned out to be the sequel to Nervous Conditions, The Book of Not. So far this book is very interesting and filled with a dark tone. This book contains many of the same characters in Nervous Conditions, but the book is on a whole new level of darkness. It seems like every other page is filled with blood and gore. The book itself is very good, but I'm not sure I want to keep on reading it purely because of the dark and depressing content. It's so bad that even the first page starts out with and amputation.
 If the book continues to be this way, I will probably give it up to Jerry or whoever was next in line to read it. I like how this week we started to read in class (that's what I heard). This way I will be able to work more on homework at home and spend less time reading. I hope that next week will be fun and that we start on our poetry unit. Next week, I also hope that we can get class time to work on our projects.

Free Post

It's finally the last quarter! I cannot wait for this summer to come. This year so far has been fairly good except for a couple of events that have happened, but never mind those. I think that next year should be easier because I think that I am finally adjusted to how high school works and how the workload is. Next year I am taking pretty hard classes, which translates into me just having to step up to the plate and work more. I think that being a sophomore will be more fun than being a freshman because of the many privileges and the freedom that we will get. I plan on visiting more and more colleges as this and next year role by so that I will have a wider perspective on what to look for in a college.

I really hope that this last quarter flies by. I only have one break left before summer and it is spring break. Te only thing is that I can't spend it with my family because I am going on the band trip to Europe with the High School band students. I hope that the trip will be a lot of fun. I am not looking forward to exams in the slightest. For this next quarter, I want to try and get all A's and try really hard to pay attention in class.

What I've been reading since after Nervous Conditions

After we read Nervous Conditions, I didn't know what I was going to read, until I stumbled upon the book that I had reading before Nervous Conditions but never finished. The title of this book is Black Voices. When we started reading Nervous Conditions, I was only about halfway through the book, and I still have a long way to go, but it is a very good read that i recommend to anyone.

I am kind of happy that we don't have any more true novels left in this class. I was getting tired of reading the class assigned ones. I want to start reading Macbeth to see how good of a play it is. I hope that next quarter we start to work on our global analysis projects. I am really bored of just taking notes and tests. I feel that we should do more discussion related activities or something more active rather than take a bunch of notes.

Free Post: Track Meet

Saturday morning I woke up and got mentally prepared for my first High School track meet. This week I had to do three events, the javelin, the 100 meter dash and the 200 meter dash. I was so anxious because I din't know how the meet was going to be nor if we would win or how well I would do. As soon as we got there, I discovered that the weather was frigid and there was a down pore of rain, two things that make me a worse athlete. I knew that this wouldn't be a good meet for me at all. 

The meet started out with field events. The weather made everything worse, but I still had to throw. I had four chances and every time I embarrassed myself tremendously. My best throw was 76 feet, which if you don't know anything about javelin, that is a terrible distance to throw. I at least redeemed myself in the 100 and 200 meter dash. I think that I got a ton better at sprinting, and in my heat for the 100, 3 students from our school, including myself tied for first place. I liked the meet, and now I need to focus on throwing more so that I can get better at the meets.

Nervous Conditions Update

We are almost done with Nervous Conditions! That was a really good book that I think taught most of us to not take many of the things that we have in life for granted. I really enjoyed how we used different skills to talk about the book and analyze it. These skills will keep us in shape for the rest of high school. I liked our discussions the most, I felt that we came closer together as a class through them. I hope that next quarter as we move on to poetry, we do the same routine of class discussion and evaluation. Next quarter I also hope that we have some sort of paper to do in the class.

I wonder when we need to do our English project for the Global Analysis Paper. I am really anxious to get that unit over with because I feel like We have focused on it for such a long time. I also have a pretty cool idea for the project that I will work on with Sissy and Mia. I feel that we should make a human trafficking awareness website. The site will focus on facts and preventative ideas for the issue at hand.

Colleges

 Recently I have visited 2 colleges, they are Baylor and Tulane. From what I can see, these are great colleges to go to. Although they are very similar, they have a few differences. Baylor and Tulane both are medium sized colleges in which you must have quite exceptional grades to get into. I love certain aspects of each school, but the one that I would choose first is Baylor. I love Texas and going to college there would be great. Baylor has more positive features than other colleges that I have read about or heard about from family friends. Baylor has an awesome recreational center that even has a 50 foot Rockwall! If I go to Baylor, I plan on going into either medicine to be a cardiologist or engineering to go into firearms manufacturing.

 I have been very intent on looking at colleges earlier so that I get to look at a lot more. I also plan on visiting Rice, Vanderbilt, and Penn State. With me choosing these colleges, I know that I will have to work a lot harder in class and I have to do more extracurricular activities. These colleges all require top-notch students, and I plan on being in them.  

Nervous Conditions Update

  So far in Nervous Conditions, the thing I have started to enjoy more than anything is the discussions that we have in class about the situations that appear in the book. I love the contrasting views that I have as opposed to the majority of the class, because I like to take a stand on certain things I believe in. This book has brought more discussion than we have ever had in the whole class, and that is why I am having more fun in class and I am doing better and enjoying the book more and more.

  Next week, I will be ready to start my project for the global analysis paper. I hope that we start on our discussion project for Nervous Conditions because I have already decided what I wanted to talk about. Next week I hope that we also get more opportunities to have class discussions like we have been for the past couple of class periods. I really like the option of doing the blogs that I came up with, but right now, I have too much work. For chapter 8 and the rest, I will write the blogs, but for sex and seven, I will just do the questions

Week Before the Break and the Break Week

I don't know if anyone else has been noticing, but I bet you guys would agree that this coming week looks like it will be jam-packed with school-work. I don't understand why teachers are giving us this much work right before the break. I think that it is good that we still have the field trip this week, it gives the freshman something to look forward to. This trip will hopefully bring us closer together as a class, and it will give us a break from the rest of the work coming this week. Monday and Tuesday will especially be difficult because I have two tests, one quiz,  and I have to turn in my research paper for English class.

During the break my family and I will go to Baylor to visit the campus as my brother and cousin are juniors and thinking hard about college. I will also get to hang out with my friends an just relax. I honestly cannot wait for the third quarter as it happens to be the easiest of all of the quarters. I will strive to round up this quarter with good grades, but the amount of work isn't making it any easier.

Nervous Conditions Update

     I'll have to be honest with you, but so far I am not liking Nervous Conditions in the slightest bit. I don't like the way the book is written and I just dislike the whole plot. I especially hate how the narrator, Tambu, always shifts back and forth between the story. I would much rather be reading the Alchemist as I have heard from people in the other classes that it is a really great book, even from my friends who are "allergic" to books.

     In the class, nothing makes me more angry than listening to my classmates rant about how bad and mean Tambu's dad is. They live in a third world country, things happen that don't necessarily need to be happening. If we were in his position, we would be doing the same thing. I don't want to finish this book, but in order to get a good grade, I don't have a choice, so I  will just suck it up and continue on with it.

Why Hunting is Good

    I am tired of hearing people rant and rant about how hunting is bad for the environment and how hunting is just ethically wrong. This is what the uneducated people say about hunting. Everything they say is wrong because I know for a fact, as a hunter, that I am doing the environment a favor. Without hunting, the whole ecosystem would be overflowed with the same species of animal, especially deer. People always tell me "oh don't kill Bambi" fact is that killing a baby deer (with spots) would result in a huge fine, license suspension, the authorities can also take your truck and gun. I also don't understand why people think it is unethical. I shoot deer at 300 or more yards away and they drop like they got run over by a train.
     The truth is that organizations like PETA don't understand what true conservation is. They believe that hunting is a way for people to unleash their rage on animals, but we really help thin out the population of animals. We hunters wan't to continue hunting, so we don't frivolously kill animals till our hearts content. We kill a certain amount, and none of it goes to waste. People need to learn that hunting is a way of life for a group of people. Hunting is a culture.  

Global Issues Project pt.2

     This is just another check in with the global issues project. I have once again failed to add more notecards, but I have plenty of sources. I will do the notecards as I keep working through the project. As far as the writing goes, I feel like I have enough sources and that I should write with quite ease. I am also using my personal experience on this topic as I have seen it in India. Mia and I have already finished are joined project, which ended up being a posterboard instead of the video that we had originally planned so not to offend any group of people. I have spent 120 minutes so far on reading and working on my project, by tomorrow though, I will have reached beyond the 120 minutes.

     Next week, I will read more Nervous Conditions. It seems like one of those books that starts slow, but I think as I move along, i will end up liking it. I still have yet to buy the book American Sniper. I plan on doing it soon, and my drum corps teacher Mr.McCrary has helped me find plenty more books about war. I can't wait till I start reading like I had once done, but as of now, i am overloaded with work. I plan on getting back to my normal reading cycle as soon as we are done with this global issues project and paper.

Who We Are : Machine Head

    If there is one thing I have learned thus far in my life, it's that we are who we are. We are all born and predetermined to everything we do and say. I believe that this is what brings us together and should not differentiate us from one another. Diversity is what drives the culture of being a human, whether it be ethnicity, race, religion, political view, music, or hobbies, and we should be proud. What does the song Who We Are have to do with this? Everything.

     

     Metal, in my opinion, is the truly the only music that every person in the world can share some sort of experience with. The songs aren't crude and don't talk about money, but they rather share tales of true struggles throughout life that we as people will have. Machine wrote this song with the intent of delivering the message that we are all different, and that we should not be shunned or cast away because of this, but we should allow others and ourselves to embrace us because of this. The chorus chants "This is who we are, this is what I am, We have nowhere else to go, divided we will stand." These powerful lyrics impose the thought of diversity is a good thing. This song really hits home, because most people can't understand this idea. I hope to play this song on drums during announcements, and hopefully, that will get my point across as I play the lyrics on the screen behind me. 

Global Analysis Project

So far, my global analysis project has been pretty solid, except for the fact that I don't have enough cards for my research. I believe that I have plenty enough sources and information on the 9 sources that I have as of now, The only problem is that I haven't made many cards at all. I think that this will hold me back, but by the end of this coming week, I will have more than the required amount of cards. I need to get a good grade on this paper, and the cards will probably help a lot with that.

Right now I am working on the intro and first body paragraph and how to integrate my facts that I have into them, and which order to put them in, meanwhile, Mia and I are working on a poster board type project for this assignment. We feel strongly about this issue and why it must be stopped. We plan on putting many photos and statistics of people in the human trafficking and prostitution ring.

Free Write (Track)

     For a couple of weeks now, the track team has been working very hard to do good in our first indoor meet of the yer, which is this weekend. With the loss of many key people from last year, we are basically starting fresh. Are main goal as of now is to qualify in the state meet, which I think we definitely have the ability to do. The only problem is that most of the seniors and key players this year are doing other sports, and unlike most of the other schools, EHS doesn't recruit players to run track. With over 70 registered guys and quite a few girls running this year, we should have a great team.

     This year I am sprinting and throwing the shot-put and discus for the team. My main goal as of this year is to just improve as much as possible. I believe that we have a chance at winning state, because as far as I know, Episcopal has more determination than any other team out there. I really can't wait till outdoor when everyone comes out and we have a JV team. In outdoor, I can finally compete. 

Outside Reading for this Week (2)

     This week I have still been reading Black Voices. Although it is long, I still really like reading it. As far as things go, I have been more interested in books that are very influential and books that can teach you many life lessons. Along with Black Voices, This I Believe also falls under this category. This I Believe is a collection from many different people, some famous, who share their life philosophies. These philosophies range from going to church and praying to being nice to the pizza man. This book is for anyone who would like to hear about life from a different perspective. 

     Next week, I hope I can go and buy the book American Sniper that I was talking about. But if not, I will finish reading Black Voices and This I Believe. I can't wait until we read the book in class. I heard from some people that it was a very good book. I still need to look back at my goals and try not to be lazy with homework. I keep slacking off on reading and annotating, and my grades are suffering because of it. I guess there is no point in making goals unless you do them. Next week I hope I will do better

 

Outside Reading for this Week

     This week I have decided that to better get in the "spirit" of Martin Luther Kind Day", and because Black History month is coming up, I read a book that my brother received from his AP English class. The title of the book is Black Voices: An Anthology of African American Literature. To be honest, at first I didn't feel like reading it, and it is still not the most interesting book, but this book can show the real side of African American Culture in writing. If writing is art, than this book is a Picasso, the overwhelming sense of learning about this culture grabs your body. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about the culture of African American people through their writing

     Later on next week, I plan on reading some other books that are culturally oriented towards other groups as well. I would love to read more books about war, and I plan on purchasing the book called American Sniper by Chris Kyle. Chris Kyle is a retired Navy Seal sniper with over 160 confirmed kills on insurgents, putting him in the record books as the deadliest sniper in US history. This book, from what I have heard is very good, so I can't waint to get my hands on it.

  Although 2011 was a terrific year socially, academically, and family wise, I hope that as far as school goes, I achieve better goals and set higher ones for high school. With the start of the new year, I think that I need to start setting higher goals for myself because, if I become more responsible and set these higher goals, I should be able to make higher grades and achieve a higher GPA. Goal setting is an all around way to gain more self responsibility, because honestly, you have to fight to reach the goals you intend to set.

   This quarter I intend to try and do all of my homework to the best of my ability. Last semester, and especially first quarter i thought that high school would just be another grade, as in middle school I got A's with little to no effort, but I was wrong about high school. This was the first time that I saw F's on papers. With my newly refined experience, I can now strive to work harder. I also intend to take better notes. I strongly believe that if I took notes in class, I would have a 3.5 or higher GPA, but I never take notes. Next, I also need to practice and hone some of my different studying skills and need to practice more math. Finally, I just want to be an overall better person in and outside of the class.