FRIMTACULICIOUS

This trimester in science class, we are studying the ecosystem so the seventh grade classes went on a trip to FRIM, Forest Research Institute Malaysia, where we studied some of the relationships, habitats and organisms that people might find in the rainforest of Malaysia. During this trip, we managed to fit in some math activities and a Humanities activity based on the book we are reading, the famous 'Hunger Games' by Suzanne Collins. During this activity, we had to think of the best way to survive in the wild using some things that were provided for us.

My group, James, John H., Solange and Natasha, decided that it would be best if we used Flint, so that we could start a fire to keep us warm and to cook food that we catch. Then we decided that we wanted mosquito spray because there were some mosquitoes that carried diseases and if you don't get a disease, you can definitely survive longer. We also got the first aid kit because if you got an injury, you can treat yourself and you would once again survive longer. We also had camping crockery so the we can eat the food we cooked using the fire. We also wanted the twine so we could make a rope so that we could climb and we could have also made traps so we could trap food and people. Instead of getting the twine, we got a mosquito hammock instead which could have also helped us climb up the tree to avoid floods and attacks.

People have different opinions about different things and my opinion about this activity is that this activity was not my favorite mainly because it was unfair. I understand that the point of this activity was so that we can survive however if we could have just explained our strategy and why we chose our spot to survive, I am sure we would have survived. I also think that if people are going to do an activity like this, then they should give every one an equal chance in order for them to survive. I also think that if my group got to show our skit, which was a war dance from New Zealand called the Haka, we would have had a better chance of surviving because if the other tributes saw that then they would have been scared and they would have left us alone.

I think the point of this activity was so that we could understand what the 'Hunger Games'is kind of like. This activity really showed me that it is very difficult to survive when you don't have the proper materials you need. This also reminds a bit of the poverty cycle that we were studying in Global Issues this trimester.

The FRIM trip was very exciting and educational for me. I loved getting to choose my tent mates, staying up till after midnight whispering and giggling with my best friends and learning new things about nature which I love, I also loved getting my first leech in a creepy kind of way. There aren't many things I didn't like about this trip. The one major thing that bothered me was how unfair the Hunger Games activity was. My advice for the kids next year is DO NOT disturb the teachers while they are sleeping, just listen to them. And to the teachers, kids just want to have fun so let them choose their tent mates and let them hang out with their friends but be just a bit more strict with them.

DomiKnow Profile

1. I learn best when I move. When I move around, I tend to understand things a lot more. I also work well in groups of gestalt learners however, I can sometimes work with more logical people. I process the information that is being given to me by listening to the intention or the emotion of the person and and information and physically oing what is being learned.

2. I need to concentrate more because I do get easily distracted however I do know that I can control whether I want to be focused or unfocused. I also need to work harder at turning in my work on time. I also need to move a lot in order to release stress, that might be why I do so well in p.e. My profile focuses more on the main idea and I usually forget how I got there.

3. The strategies that would help me in my learning I work better when I sit near the back of the room so I can move around without distracting the more focused classmates around me. I could do some brain gym or lazy 8's with my eyes just to keep moving.

4. I would like my teachers to know this about me because depending on where they seat and with who I work, they might get better results out of me.

Theme Notebook 2: Love the way you lie by Eminem featuring Rihanna

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uelHwf8o7_U
Click the link above to listen to the song then read.

This song is about love and how people in a romance should treat each other equally and they should be able to trust each other no matter what happens or what situation they find themselves. I think this says that you should see people as equals instead of making one person the superior. I really like this because I noticed that my parents always treat each other the way they wish to be treated. They are always looking out for each other and it seems as if their every breath is revolved around the other person. I only wish to find love like that when I grow old and croakey.

Theme Notebook 1: The Blokes

AS you know, my themes for my theme Notebook was Equity and Disparity. The short story the Blokes by Alan Gibbons, clearly demonstrates both these themes well. The story is about a boy named Hashim. Hashim is a refugee from Kosovo. He and his family now live in England in order to be protected during the Kosovo war. In his so called protection, Hashim doesn't seem to make many friends because he is different. He has one true friend, a boy named John. Even though Hashim is moved to england for his protection, he soon finds that it becomes very dangerous all because of one boy. The boy is the leader of the Blokes, a group of bullies at Hashim's school. The Blokes believe that they are superior to everyone and that everyone should do what they want. But then when Hashim arrives, I think that they sense a threat. The Blokes wanted to bring Hashim down and they did so by "ruining" his village. The way they got to Hashim was through his best friend was very bad. I also think that this demonstrates my themes well because the Blokes chose to pick on Hashim because he was different and he wasn't a typical Brit. It is also Ironic because Hashim moves to England for a new life when he is faced with this group of people who just want to end him. This makes me feel really bad because all over the world, their are people who are being forced out of their home town for their own protection and then when they arrive in their new home, people treat them unequally. That really upsets me because what is the point of leaving to be safer when you can have the same problems in their new, "safer" home.

Creation Myths

A myth was a way for ancient people to explain the unexplainable. Many creation myths share the same common elements which is very unusual because the people lived so far apart and had barely any way of communicating unless they travelled to each other by foot. the most common elemnts in myths are of supreme beings, darkness and sacrifice.

A great example of myths with supreme beings are basically all of them because in those days, men did not believe that they had the power to create such beauty themselves. They used Gods, or supreme,beings, as an explanation to all of the creations on earth and as an explanation about man themselves. Many tribes believed that gods were created to be worshipped. In many myths, it states that the less the Gods were worshipped, the less power they had. Many tribes also used the Gods as a discipline. In ancient Greece, when children misbehaved, their parents would threaten them by saying that Medusa would come for them. In other parts of Greece, parents would say that zeus would come down from the heavens and punish you himself. Almost every myth in the world is based on a supreme being. As a matter of fact, I don't know a single myth that is not based on a supreme being.

A majority of myths say that our univerese began with darkness and that the Supreme Beings brought us light and food and water. A very common myth that starts with darkness is the Phan Ku myth. Though this myth starts with an egg, the egg was in darkness. Another myth that started in darkness was the Maori myth. Out of the darkness, there usually comes light. This light is created by the Supreme Being that the tribe belives in and is usually the most important Supreme Being.

Sacrifice is a huge part of creation myths. Sacrifice can come in the smallest form. Whether it is giving up you food for the week or taking your own life, people would do ANYTHING for their Gods. A myths that have a lot of sacrifice are usually the Egyptian ones. In every Egyptian myth, there is always some form of sacrifice. You might not notice it at first but it is there. People believed that if you made sacrifices to the Gods, they would protect you from anything bad or evil. In some myths there are sometimes heroes or heroines who sacrifice their lives for others. People believed that the only reason a God would love you is if you give them something that you treasure.

Creation myths are very a like however at the same time very different. Myths are always changing and there are many different forms of myths. Myths are used to explain the unexplainable. For many of the Ancients, myths were their life.

The stuff that makes up my name

When you go to a cupcake shop you want to buy the cupcake with the most interesting icing or title. When I go to the cupcake shop, I like to buy the cupcake called ‘Royalty’ because it has the most icing and the most intriguing name out of all the cupcakes there. It also has the very unique flavour of candy floss. To me, the icing on a cake is exactly like a name because each person is different in their own way. Just like a cupcake.
My name is my very own batch of icing whipped up especially for me by my mom. My name is the most unique and intriguing icing that I have ever heard of. It has a very special flavour that just lingers on your tongue after you have taken even the smallest taste. My name has the basic ingredients; German, Old French, Latin and Polish. Those ingredients are the small things that give off such an engaging flavour that keeps people asking for more.
The history behind my name is basically that my name came from Angelica, which came from the Latin word Angelicus which means angelic. The root word is angel which came from the Old French word Angele and that word means, messenger of God, which is basically what an angel. The spelling is German and the pronunciation is Polish.
You might be thinking that I have an excessively complicated name but I actually don’t. My name is actually very simple. It’s the origins that are complicated. But that is just my first name now for my middle name.
My middle name is Nicolette. The history behind this name is that m name is the feminine version of Nicholas which means victorious one. The name Nicholas comes from the Greek word Nikholaos which means victory.
My last name must be the most complicated one of all my names. When you look at it you think ‘how can a name this easy be so complicated’. Well here’s how. My last name is of Indian origin. It means graceful. I don’t really know what the origin is and neither does my dad but what I do know is that it is very complicated because it is strongly linked to the Indian Gods and I did some research by asking the people around me and they said if it is linked to the Gods in India, the origin of the name is strongly complicated.
I love all of my names, because they are all mixed into that batter that creates a zesty taste that keeps you satisfied and wanting more. Before, I gave you the HISTORY of my name and now here is the story of all my names.
When my mom was in college, her best friend had a sister whose name was Angelika. My mom was obsessed with that name from the moment she heard it. Of course she had heard of Angelica, but never, in her life had she heard a name as spunky as Angelika. My mom vowed that when she had her first child, that would be her name. But then when she was pregnant, she had a hard time because I was very small and very premature. After she had me, the doctor asked what she was going to name me and without a moment’s hesitation she blurted out a name that danced around the doctor’s head in little circles. Before it was a just name that my mom liked. Now it was a name that meant something to my mother and me. I was her angel through her pregnancy. I was her shining light in a room of darkness. I was her trophy at the end of a marathon. I was her motivation. I was a message sent to her from God and that is what she believed.
My middle name is just because I was born on Saint Nicholas day. And since Nicolette was the female version of Nicholas, my mom said why not. Well that is what she told me but I do believe that there is another reason to that. My middle name means victorious and in a way I was. When I was born, the doctors said I was too premature and that they have very little faith that I would survive. For them it was easy. For me it was different. For me it was a battle. It was as if I was Bart Simpson and I was fighting the battle of doing homework. I was losing my battle and I was slowly beginning to do my homework, in other words, I was dying. But for some reason I pulled through. I won that battle and in the end, homework was diminished and I was victorious. And that is where my middle name comes from, a battle of a boy and homework.
My last name, I don’t know too much about. The only thing I know is that it means graceful and it is from India. Very boring but I also know that it is related to the Gods of India.
So just like a cupcake, my name is made up of some very different ingredients that fit together like the pieces of a puzzle. With a very unique taste, my name is my very own, handmade, cupcake. Mmmmmmmmmm..... delicious 

Angie

My Life in a Bag

What I love!

IN my ‘bag’ there is a violin, an I pod, a dvd, a converse shoe, a Nike shoe, two very different books, an empty tictac box, a ceramic pig ,a swim cap and a pair of glasses. These are a few of the many things in my life that I love.

Maybe to you, a violin is just an instrument but to me it is sooooooo much more. When I was about 8 years old, my family and I was watching a movie about young musicians and there was this one girl who could play the violin like you would not believe. She was amazing. The way she played could make the Gods cry. I fell in love with violins because I loved the way the music moved me. I mean sure I was young but any person, no matter what age, can tell when music is beautiful and to me that violin was the most beautiful thing I had ever heard or saw. A violin is a way for me to connect to my mom because she has a beautiful voice and I don’t and I would love to share her passion for music with her so while she sings I play. We put on shows for my dad and sister and sometimes our neighbors, but lately we haven’t been performing as much because we’ve both been really busy but I would definitely love to play with her again.

An I pod. Why is an I pod so important. Well here’s why. Because it was my very first I pod and it was the first thing I ever bought with my own saved up money. Of course mom and dad helped, a lot, but I did save up a little. I was so excited when I got it. In most families once you get something its cool and then when the newer version comes out you buy that then throw the old one away. NOT in my family. We are the kind of people that will hold on to a million year old necklace that was sucked on by a toothless old lady and thrown in the dumpster twice by accident. Actually we could let that item go. But to us things are very valuable. sometimes I pull out that old piece of trash and listen to the kinds of songs I used to love. It also reminds me of home and the rest of my family.

You know that one movie that you never get tired of watching. Well I have tons but my favorite ones are the Bring it on DVD’s. some people might think they are cheesy which they are but I am like totally in love with them. I am so addicted to those movies because of the adrenaline. Imagine being propelled through the air by some guy and then being caught by a group of people. CRAZY! Anyway I love watching them do their stunts and I practically memorized all of the routines. I know what you’re thinking wow she has no life and you are probably right but I just love watching those stunts.

Converse are my favorite shoes because they look good on almost everyone and there is always a design to match your outfit which I love. No matter what I wear converse always looks good with it. Whether it’s a dress or jeans it always looks great. My converse are just shoes and don’t really have a special meaning like the violin or I pod. But they rock.

Nikes are really awesome and these were a gift from my daddy and he knew that my favorite color was purple and he searched all of Singapore for something purple that he knew I would like and on his last day he found them screaming at him through a shop window downtown. He ran in and bought them and they were a perfect fit with a teeny bit of growing room. I couldn’t believe he got them because the day before he came back I was in pavilion with my mom and I saw those shoes. I didn’t even ask her and she said no. Wow she has great instincts. Anyway the next day when he was giving out presents, and he pulled those shoes out I nearly passed out. I was So HAPPY! I wanted to wear them so badly but I decided to wait until the new school year began.

I love to read. Once there is a book in my hand, I will read obsessively until the end no matter how boring the book is. Honestly there is no boring book in my eyes. Every book has their own story to tell and I say let them tell it. I would re read books over and over again but these two very different books are my all time favorite. The first book is called ‘The Patron saint of Butterflies’. Not many people have heard of this book but it is such an intriguing story. It is about these two girls who grow up on a reserve and believe so strongly in Christ that they allow themselves to be abused but when they venture out into the real world they realize how bad what they are doing to themselves is and they decide to stay forever. However the leader of the reserve, the chief if you may, finds them and drags them back to the reserve. They try to find a way to get out again. That’s all I am going to say because I want you to read it yourself. Anyway this book is important two me because it was the first book I bought in this country and I treasure that very much.

The second book is a Newberry honor book. I am sure at least some of you heard of this book. It is called ‘Walk two moons’ and it is a very sad, beautiful book. This bok shows me how lucky I am to have a mother and shows me that she is a very lucky lady to have me as her child and whenever I read certain chapters in the book I feel empowered but in other chapters, I have a connection with the author. That was a very good read and I think it should be one of the books that we study in 8^th grade because of how dynamically it is written.

While I read I love to eat tic tac’s. My great grandpa would always bring me tic tac’s whenever he visited. Over the years the tic tac boxes became less and less as the visits were less frequent. Eventually I found out that he had cancer. I was devastated. What if he died? Who would buy me tic tac’s? The visits slowed to once a year and that meant one box of tic tac. After a while the visits stopped. My mom told me that he was going to have surgery to remove the cancer and then he could come every month like he used to. Well she lied. He survived the surgery but died a few days later because he had a heart attack. I never even got to say goodbye. I was too busy playing with my friends to go visit him. In loving memory of him I keep the old tic tac boxes that I used under my bed. I love to lie under there and just smell them because when I smell them, I smell him.

My best friend and I love pigs but for different reasons. I like them because they are pink she loves them because of who they are. We were at the mall the other day and we saw these two matching pigs and without saying anything to each other we picked them up and bought them. That is a sign of our friendship and even though I have had mine for two days, it is now one the most important objects in my life because it signifies a friendship that will last forever. I hope.

The way the water brushes off of my skin is amazing. I loved the feeling of water all around me since I grew up on an island. But that is nowhere near the reason why I joined the swim team. I never dreamed of swimming for my school but it happened. Of course there was some bargaining to be done with my parents but now swimming is a part of me. I totally hate training but I love competing and making new friends. When I walk through the halls at school I have a bunch of older kids shouting at me and saying stuff like ‘ hey Angie, what’s up’ or ‘come to training early today we are gonna play a prank on coach Alvin’. The prank thingy never works out because Alvin’s always there like an hour early so we kinda gave up on that idea. I want to say thanks to my mom and dad for making me do that because now I know how it feels to be a part of a team.