22nd Blog: (Ethical Giving or If I Had $100)

Yo bloggers! My next assignment that I had to do was made by Miss Crosbie, the teacher of our Oshawa buddies. We're given 100 imaginary dollars and with that imaginary $100, we have to think of what charity and what kind of gifts that we will give using that imaginary $100. Click here for more assignment information.  You can also click here.  Think, if you had $100, what would you do with it? Would you spend it on yourself, or for someone in need?

If I had $100, I would give all my money to World Vision, because World Vision is one of the biggest charitable organizations in the world, and its focus is to help children and families overcome the obstacles they face during poverty in many different countries around the world. I always hated seeing commercials of different families struggling to cope with their own lives, and I always wanted to help with different charities, and World Vision was a charity that interested me, so I would choose to give money to World Vision if I had $100. I would purchase two hens and a rooster to someone in need. The reason why I would choose this gift, because when you receive two hens and a rooster, they can lay up to 150 eggs combined. With those eggs, it can provide food for you and you can also sell them for money. Also, some particular countries do not allow hens or roosters, so instead World Vision would give people in those particular countries other poultry animals, such as turkeys or ducks, etc. and that can be raised, bred or eaten. It would be such a great gift to give, and it's World Vision's most popular gift every single year. Another gift that I would like to purchase would be some musical instruments and art supplies for children. The reason why I would also choose this gift is because I have a huge passion in the arts especially music, and for a child to have never expressed their self in that way is unimaginable. With art and music, you can escape from rough patches and express yourself. It can change a child's life momentarily, and a child will burst into creativity. The arts needs to be shared with the world, and you can always rely on the the arts, it will always be there when you need to express yourself. I would be distributing my funds by spending $50 on two hens and a rooster and $50 on art and music supplies. That's what I would do if I had $100, how about you? 

There you have it, there's my assignment, please feel free to comment. My friend Tara <- (Click here for her story) has gave some money to World Vision and has definitely inspired people including me to follow in her footsteps. I attended the "Make it Happen" conference along with Tara and 16 other grade eights in my school, and I learned a lot about different kinds of charities and how I could help. This year, I want to try to be more generous to people and to give more to people in need. Please show some empathy and make a change for people around the world who have less than what you have. Instead of recieving gifts for Birthdays or Christmases, etc., ask your family or friends to give you money so you can give gifts to people who have less than what you have, it'll be very appreciative.  Thank you, and have a good snowy day.

14th Blog (Holocaust Poem With My Buddy)

Bloggers bloggers bloggers! In the class of R8A, we're paired up with grade 5 buddies who we see once a week, and we do fun stuff together. Today, me and my buddy, Livia were in the computer lab, and we had to create a poem about the Holocaust that expressed freedom. Click here for the assignment info. Before I show you me and Livia's poem, I will show you a poem that helped  my class with this assignment. It's called "The Butterfly" and it's by Pavel Friedmann.

The last, the very last,
So richly, brightly, dazzlingly yellow.
Perhaps if the sun’s tears would sing
against a white stone. . . .

Such, such a yellow
Is carried lightly ‘way up high.
It went away I’m sure because it wished to
kiss the world good-bye.

For seven weeks I’ve lived in here,
Penned up inside this ghetto.
But I have found what I love here.
The dandelions call to me
And the white chestnut branches in the court.
Only I never saw another butterfly.

That butterfly was the last one.
Butterflies don’t live in here,
in the ghetto.

Now onto me and Livia's poem. Now since the poem shown above is called "The Butterfly", we thought that since it was titled a creature that symbolized the poem, and the poem that we had to do had to express freedom, we should title our poem a creature that symbolizes freedom. So, we titled it "The Bird", because birds fly away and are free. Also, when you read the first line, it meant that the people during the Holocaust would have to go to the ghetto, and the ghetto was packed full of people. It's short and sweet, so here it is. "The Bird" by Me and Livia.

Crowded, crowded,
I only have a little space.
I want to be a bird and fly away,
To a place,
Where there's freedom and peace.

There you have it. I hope you bloggers were empathic reading both of these poems. Take the time to think about the devastating things that went on in the world. For example, the Holocaust, segregation or wars. Please feel free to comment. Thank you, and have a good day!

8th Blog (Purple Day or It Gets Better Part 2)

Aloha my fellow bloggers! Tomorrow on October 20th, lots of people around the world will be supporting the LGBTQ youth (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans-Gendered and Questioning) by wearing purple. Click here for more information! It's really important that we all make a difference to the world and show people that it's not okay that people are bullying other people because they are different from us. Like I said before on my first part of the blog, it's not just gays or lesbians who are facing this terrible crisis, people with disabilities, for example someone who rides a wheelchair or someone with an artificial leg are facing this terrible crisis. Think of Terry Fox or Rick Hansen, they are one of many notable Canadians, and people go around bullying people with the exact same disabilities and differences, not knowing that they could make a change in the world. Even gay people, like actor Neil Patrick Harris, comedienne Ellen DeGeneres and singer Adam Lambert are notable American celebrities. Being different is good, I guess some people don't really see that, because people are bullying every single day. We can start making that change tomorrow. Please, if you have a shirt, pair of pants, hat, scarf, shoes, etc. anything that's purple, please have the courage and make a stand for the LGBTQ youth and all the other people that are facing this terrible teasing and bullying. If you go to Hannah's blog, you can help support The Trevor Project for free! Remember, for people who feel like committing suicide DON'T DO IT! There are people who love and care about you and happiness is just around the corner. Trust me, it gets better!  PLEASE wear purple tomorrow! PLEASE show that you care! Have a great day!

4th Blog (It Gets Better)

Hi Bloggers! Yesterday, my class had a very important discussion about people from the United States being bullied and committing suicide, because they were gay. How terrible and devastating is that? Please be careful of the words you say to other people. They may seem like a joke to you, but it really hurts and is mean. And it's not just gays that are in this crisis, people who have disabilities also are facing this terrible bullying, being called lame, because they can't walk or dumb, because they can't speak, etc. I'm here to talk to you about Autism, because I know about Autism and it came up in the class discussion today. Autism is a disorder a person has that causes issues with non-verbal communication and social skills, which means that they process the information slower than other people. Even though they get the information slower, they still know it in their brains and they're very intelligent, just like everyone else. So please, my message for everyone is to treat others the way you want to be treated. If you see someone that's different from you, be kind to that person. Besides, being different is good, we don't want everyone to be the same, that would make this world boring. Keep this message in mind everywhere you go, and for the people who are having trouble and want to take their lives, DON'T DO IT! There are people who love and care about you. You're not alone, and trust me, it gets better. Thank you, and Happy Thanksgiving this Monday. 

P.S. If you have any time to see another example, please visit my friend Hannah's powerful and meaningful blog about "It Gets Better". She definately makes a point about this terrible cause, and also wrote two raps of her own about it. She is really standing up for herself about this, and I truly recommend that you check it out. <- (Click on this to get to blog.)                                  

3rd Blog (Empathy Post)

We meet again, fellow bloggers! As you already may know, my class did my school's first Student of the Month presentation this year, and the theme that we worked with was empathy. For those who may not know, empathy means that you understand how someone feels without being judgemental. Some people refer it to taking a walk in someone else's shoes. I created a story that was used in the Student of the Month presentation. Spot the use of empathy as you read. I hope you guys like it!

One day, there was a Dog happily leaping along the motionless street, until an Ostrich came blubbering with a shedded tear in his eye. "What's wrong Ostrich?" Dog asked. "My goldfish died today." Ostrich sadly responded. "Oh no!" Dog shouted, then said, "I'm so sorry". "He was such a good and honest friend, I can't believe he's gone!" Ostrich sobbed. Before Ostrich said anything else, Dog stated, "I remember when my pet canary died". Dog took a deep breath, then continued, "I was seven, he was very ill. I still remember the day when he lost his breath, I couldn't stop crying. Now I cry once in a while." Ostrich felt his pain, Dog then said, "No matter what happens, we're here for each other and it's going to be okay.". "Thank you." said Ostrich, still devastated. "Let's go play some catch to get our minds off of it." Dog said. "Okay, that might help me feel better." Ostrich said, and they slowly walked to the park, not knowing if they will have a bad or a fun time, but they were always there for each other whatever the weather.

The End

Well, there you have it! Thank you for reading my story. If you have any comments or questions, please feel free to type in what you have to say. Thank you, have an awesome day!

2nd Blog (Empathy Student of the Month Presentation)

Hello again, my fellow bloggers! Great to see you guys again! Yesterday, my class performed the first Student of the Month presentation of the year, the theme for this month being empathy. The presentation included a story, a skit, a poem, a rap, etc., and everyone did an excellent job! Now, my class has to do a reflection on what we liked and what we can do in the future! Here's my response using the 3,2,1 created by my brilliant teacher, enjoy!

10/07/10                                                                           Melissa R8A

Empathy Student of the Month Presentation

3 Things that I think would have helped to improve our presentation.

One thing that I thought would have helped to improve our presentation would be to have everyone with their eyes closed. I know everyone wanted to see the final production in the large gym, but the few people with their eyes closed was kind of a distraction to the different skits that were going on as well as the audience, and this was about the kids sleeping and dreaming about things involving empathy, so they could have acted like they were sleeping and had their eyes closed.

     The second thing that I thought would have helped to improve our presentation would have been having more time to practice and get everything down. We had to finish presenting those Reader's Theatre stories and doing other schoolwork, leaving us with not many days to prepare for this presentation.

     The final thing that I thought would have helped to improve our presentation would have been to get everything memorized for the presentation. Again, we didn't have that many days to prepare for this, but I saw a few people with their Free Write books and that was a bit of a distraction to the different skits that were going on as well as the audience. Having no Free Write books on the stage would have been less distracting for everyone.

2 Things that I think went really well.

One thing that I thought went really well was when the rap group (Mateen, Will, Walid and Haneen) had instrumental music to their skit. That really helped keep the beat for them. Without music, the worst- case scenario would have been that they would've been lost and they didn't know where they were. The lyrics were as well great, so great job you guys, great job to the whole class!

     The other thing that I thought went really well was when The Dog and the Ostrich group (Sara, Tara, Amy) got the skit together in just one day. The narrating was great and the lip-syncing done by the two characters was also great.

     The other groups that I didn't mention also did a great job. Switch (Qavi, Jatinder, Jeffrey, Tyler as well credited even though he was absent) had great transitions while switching and the script was as well great. Also the poem (Hannah, Sara, Charlotte) was divided evenly, the script was also great and it was great when they said, "empathy" in unison. Thirdly the Dream People (Claire, Jumanh) did a great job acting it out and I loved the thought bubble that they were holding. Fourthly the Cameraman (Connor) did a great job filming and it was at a good angle. Fifthly, the rest of the cast and crew just dozing away, great job! Finally, Miss Pollock for making all of this possible, great job! Awesome job you guys, it's too bad that I missed out on this.

(The Ostrich and the Dog is a story written by me, which you will see on my next blog, so keep on visiting)

1 Piece of advice I have for students who will be performing in the future.

The piece of advice that I have for students who will be performing in the future is to always do your best in anything that you're doing and to give it your all, no matter what happens. If you stumble or make a mistake, just keep on going, the show must go on!

The End

Well, there you have it. That's my Empathy Student of the Month Presentation Reflection. I hope you guys enjoyed it! If you have any comments or questions for me, please feel free to type what you have to say. Thank you and have a fantastic day!