Nonfiction Reading Response

In the magazine Upfront, JFK His Death & Legacy 50 Years Later, there is an article on page 22 named, “Should Boys and Girls Be Taught Separately?” In this article there is a section of why boys and girls should be taught separately, written by Kathy Piechura-Couture. And there is a section of why they shouldn't be taught separately, written by Galen Sherwin. Each section includes arguments of why they are right, and evidence to support it.

In Kathy Pierchura-Couture’s paragraph it states that, “Single sex classrooms have helped close the achievement gap between boys and girls. It’s also changed attitudes: Girls in the single sex class think science is fun, while girls in the co-ed class say they don't like science. In a recent survey, 87 percent of parents said being in single-sex classes increased their child’s self-esteem and motivation.” What I don't like about this sentence is that we don't know if it is true or not. How do we know that the girls in the single sex class like science because they have a good teacher, and the ones in the co-ed class hate science because they have a bad teacher? We don't know if liking science and not liking science relates at all between being in a classroom with girls and boys, and being in a classroom of just girls, and just boys. It might be the teacher, which shows the study might not be accurate. Also in addition each kid is different, this shows that maybe some just don't like science in general and some do, which doesn't connect to being in single sex classes, or classes of different sex. To add on I think instead of showing a bunch of surveys, the perspectives of teachers and principals should be in this text. We only get to hear the authors thoughts, and surveys that she tells us about, but what about the people who watch the children in school with their own eyes? They are the ones teaching the children and know their personalities.

In Galen Sherwin’s paragraph it says, “When it comes to learning, every student is different. Some kids are more outgoing than others. Some like to move around a lot, and others prefer to sit still. This is true whether you’re a boy or a girl. That's why it doesn't make sense to put students into separate classes based on generalizations about boys and girls.” From this I can infer what the author is trying to say is just because some girls and boys don't feel comfortable around the opposite sex, doesn't mean all girls and boys should be in same sex classes, only the ones who feel most comfortable in them. The section also says, “School is where students should learn to work with kids who have different interests and strengths, Boys and girls need the chance to learn from each other too.” What the author is trying to say is making judgments on learning styles based on only gender, limits opportunities for boys and girls. They should have an education that teaches them, not stereotypes.

After reading this article it made me think about my school. I go to a boys and girls school. This benefits me because I get to see the perspectives of many different students. Some girls might agree on some things, and some boys might agree on others, and I get to see what that is like. In addition I have many friends that are guys, and if I were to go to an all girls school I would have never met them. I think same sex schools are fine if that is what the child is comfortable with, but no one should be pushed into a same sex school if they don't feel comfortable there. After reading this article I would like to read more about same sex schools, and see what they are like.

Reading response on critical thinking question

Critical Thinking question: Whose perspective is missing in this text? What would it be like if we put it back?

When reading a book the first thing we get to know is who the narrator is. In the book “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time” by Mark Haddon, 15-year-old Christopher is the narrator. We get to see the world through his eyes. But what if we saw it through someone else’s, like his dad.

Christopher’s mom died, and of course it is hard on him, but what about his dad? If we had the perspective of his dad we would get to know what it is like loosing your wife. In this chapter Christopher is trying to find out who killed his neighbors dog, so he went over to a few peoples houses and asked questions, then went home. When he gets home his dad says he got a call from one of their neighbors saying Christopher was snooping. “Father said, ‘I told you to keep your nose out of other peoples business.’” This shows his father is stressed because if you look back at the text it says ‘I told you’ not I’m telling you, which means Christopher’s dad told him to stop snooping before, but he doesn't listen. If we had the perspective of Christopher’s dad, we would get to see what it is like raising a kid on your own, and why he is stressed all the time, which I think would be very interesting to read.

In addition it would be interesting to find out why Christopher acts like he does. Christopher is not like many other 15-year-old boys. He has weird things abut him. He only answers to questions, he hates when his food touches, he doesn't understand the English language very well, and he plans out his day by seeing cars, “4 red cars in a row made it a good day, and 3 red cars in a row made it a quite good day, five red cars in a row made it a super good day, 4 yellow cars in a row made it a bad day.” If we had the dads perspective it would be easier to understand the story because he would tell us more about his son. From Christopher’s perspective we are finding things out about his life, not much about him personally.

Overall Christopher’s dads perspective would be an interesting story because we would get to know more about what its like raising a child on his own, and more about who Christopher really is.

Reading Response on Critical Thinking Question

Critical Thinking question: Whose perspective is missing in this text? What would it be like if we put it back?

Christopher John Francis Boone, the fifteen-year-old narrator in the book, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time” finds the body of his neighbor’s poodle, Wellington, on his neighbor’s front lawn one evening. He is dedicated to finding the murderer, even though from his dads perspective it’s just a dog and no one cares. This search is difficult for Christopher because of the fact that he has autism.

In this book we have the perspective of Christopher throughout the story, but what if we had the perspective of his dad? Christopher’s mom died when he was little, so his dad is now the only one taking care of him. Of course the perspective of a boy with autism is interesting because we get to see what he is thinking about, but how does his dad deal with it?

If we had the perspective of Christopher’s dad throughout the book, the story would be a lot different. We would get to hear about how his life changed after his wife died, and the struggle of raising a kid on his own.

This question makes me think about my parents. They both have to deal with me, and my two brothers. Cameron and me are both applying to High School, and my older brother Brandon is applying to College. Applications are hard on us, but they have to take us to all the tours, open houses, interviews, and auditions. How frustrating!

draft two

DRAFT! Argument Essay: Why Banning The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is not a good idea

By Alexi Bonfils

For the last month in ELA we have been focusing on banned books. Sherman Alexie’s best selling, and frequently challenged book, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.” Is a book that I read, and I can’t believe it is being banned This book is about a 14-year-old native kid, Arnold who is funny, sensitive, and a growing artist. Arnold is going through puberty, but also has a disease that leaves him with a big head, a stutter, and lisp. Because of this he is bullied non-stop. The central conflict of this story is when Arnold leaves the Spokane Indian Tribe School, to go to an all white school that is looked down upon by the Indians. People want to ban this book, but they shouldn't because this book gives very good life lessons, and kids can learn from, and relate to this book.   

This book has a great message to go after your dreams. Arnold gets picked on at his reservation, and decides he wants to switch schools. “ ‘I want to go to Reardan,’ I said again. I couldn’t believe I was saying it, for me, it seemed as real as saying, ‘I want to fly to the moon.’ ‘Are you sure?’ my parents asked. ‘You could maybe wait till next semester break or until next year. Get a fresh start.’ ‘No, if I don’t go now, I never will. I have to go now.’ ‘Okay.’ They said.” From this quote we can tell that Arnold really wants to go to this school. This also shows Arnold being brave because he knows that all the Indians hate Reardan since it is filled with rich white kids, but he knows if he goes there he will get a better education. When children read this they will get inspired to be braver and go after what they want.

When Arnold gets to Reardan he doesn’t have any friends.  There is boy there named Gordy who Arnold thinks he could be good friends with. Gordy does not even know who he is, but still Arnold goes up and talks to him, “I looked at Gordy. He was a big kid, actually, strong from bucking bales and driving trucks. He was probably the strongest geek in the world.  ‘I want to be your friend,’ I said. ‘Excuse me?’ he asked ‘I want us to be friends,’ I said.”  This shows Arnold being brave because instead of just waiting for the day to come when Gordy talks to him, Arnold steps up and talks to Gordy, and by the end of the book him and Gordy are good friends. When children read this they will want to make friends, I know this because some kids are shy, and when they find out a way to do something they will try it. If you want to make a friend, but don't know how, then you won’t try. But if you read something that tells a story about someone making a friend, you will want to try that way out.

Arnold likes a girl at Reardan named Penelope. Penelope is a popular pretty white girl who doesn’t talk to Arnold at all. Arnold tries talking to her now and then and Penelope talks back, but they aren’t really friends. Arnold tries collecting money for charity with her, he helps her with problems, and by the end of the book they start to date. Not only does this give advice on how to make friends and a girl friend, but also it is another example of being brave, and when boys and girls read this they will also want to try to be braver. To add on it is coming from a boy close to the age of kids who normally read this book, so it is easy to relate to.

People who want to ban this book say it has subjects such as alcoholism so it should be banned. The book does talk about alcoholism, but shows a strong message against it. It explains why no one should ever consider becoming an alcoholic, or drinking and driving. Arnold explains throughout the book about what its like having an alcoholic dad, and even goes through deaths of people close to him because of alcohol induced situations, “I'm fourteen years old and I've been to forty-two funerals. That's really the biggest difference between Indians and white people. A few of my white classmates have been to a grandparent's funeral. And a few have lost an uncle or aunt. And one guy's brother died of leukemia when he was in third grade. But there's nobody who has been to more than five funerals. All my white friends can count their deaths on one hand. I can count my fingers, toes, arms, legs, eyes, ears, nose, penis, butt cheeks, and nipples, and still not get close to my deaths. And you know what the worst part is? The unhappy part? About 90 percent of the deaths are because of alcohol.” Kids who read this book will realize what can happen when you get drunk, and they will learn to make better choices. On http://www.nbcnews.com it says, “Alcohol abuse kills some 75,000 Americans each year and shortens the lives of these people by an average of 30 years, a U.S. government study suggested Thursday. Excessive alcohol consumption is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States after tobacco use and poor eating and exercise habits.” If this book were banned they would not get the chance to learn about how dangerous alcohol can be.

People also say it should be banned because it talks about masturbation. The thing is this is a book about a 14-year-old boy going through puberty. Most kids don’t want to go up to someone and ask questions, they would rather read about it, and keep it to themselves. This book helps kids learn about what’s going to happen to their body, and if this were banned boys and girls wouldn’t know what to do. Also parents get embarrassed about talking about this stuff, so why not give your child a book that he/she can relate to instead?

The book, “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian” By Sherman Alexie should not be banned because it teaches kids to be brave and gives great life lessons. It as well gets kids ready to learn about what’s going to happen to their body. Some people want to ban this book because of it’s mentions of alcoholism and inappropriate words, but it talks how it is bad to drink alcohol, and kids can relate to the terms that Arnold says in this book. So the next time you need a book to read, read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian By Sherman Alexie and think about weather it should be banned or not!

Monday Muses

Monday Muses

Question:Write about something that you recently saw, did, thought or talked about, listened to, or watched that inspired you. It could be a fun activity that you did over the weekend, a sports game you participated in, movie you watched. Describe it.

I just came back from an auditon at Murrow High School for Drama. When we got there we got a worksheet that had a question on it that said, "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

This made me think. I don't have a definite decision but I’m pretty sure I want to be an actress.

Since I was little, I loved to act. I would play family, dress up, vet, house and many other games that involved being a different character. I love acting because it is a bit of an escape from real life. It gives you the ability to make a new person out of yourself.

In MS 51, drama is my talent. I love it because in 6th grade, you start off with a big group of kids your age that you hardly know, and by the end of 8th grade you all become best friends - like family. We worked together two times every week for about an hour and a half (2 class periods) and practice things like rehearsing plays, improv, drama games, memorization. It is so much fun.

Other than in school, I have performed in plays in my summer community. One play I did was, Check Please, where I was a little boy and a mime. It was a really great experience because I got to work with adults instead of students. Also, when I was about 10-years old I wrote a play with my two friends called, Annie’s Parents, about a girl with crazy parents. I was the dad and everyone thought it was hilarious the way I looked in boy clothes.

There are so many famous actors and actresses that it inspires me to become one. I can’t believe I am even thinking of this now when I’m only 13. Overall I don't know what I definitely want to be when I grow up, but seeing a bunch of famous actors makes me want t become one.