Ballet Reflection

Author's Note: I wrote this piece about the hard parts about being a ballerina. My focus is my introduction technique.

Waiting behind the stage. The lights start to dim, the performance is about to start. Like any other sport all actors or dancers get nervous before they perform. As she waits behind the stage for her cue, the dancer tries to relax.  She thinks to herself how many times she has rehearsed the scene and how ready she really is. She hears her cue and gracefully dances onto the stage.  Free of any fear now, the dancer puts her heart into her performance -- smiling as she does it. All dancers and actors should be given credit for all the hard work that they have to do.

Some dancers perform in front of millions of people on huge stages. They go to endless rehearsals to perfect their performance before opening night. With all the rehearsals and classes they have to take, dancers have little time to themselves, especially dancers who have to go to school.  Even with all they do, dancers still don't receive much credit.

People may not consider dancing a sport. This is because dancers don't have to do shoot hoops or kick goals.  Even though dancing doesn't involve a lot of competition, dancing should still be considered a sport.  Dancers still have to train hard to have lower body and core strength in order to perform some of their dances. In David's Heartbeat, two dancers did a sensational dance where they performed flips and handstands. This involves more training and work then most people think.

Michael Jackson was one of the world's most famous dancers and singer. He was famous for doing amazing dance moves, such as the moonwalk. Of course, his dancing skills didn't come overnight. They took hours of practice and hard work. But, it was all worth it. Not only was he in shape most of his life, but he also became famous because of it. Dancers aren't given a lot of credit because people think that dancing isn't hard work.  In the movie The Game Plan, the main character tries to tell the dance teacher what a waste of time dance is, but comes out of the dance class sweating and sore. I feel that dance should be considered a sport, and dancers should be given the credit they deserve. 

Why Mr. Roehl Should be my School Volleyball Coach

Author's Note: I am writing this piece on why I should get Mr. Roehl as a school volleyball coach this year. My focus is only using commas when necessary and my introduction technique.

I got it! Up goes the ball. Another pass, set, spike. The end of tryouts is slowly starting to approach. Have I done enough? The last ball comes over the net and I give a nice pass to the setter, who gives me a perfect set. Left, Right, Left, I say in my head. As I jump in the air, I hit the ball as hard as I can and it lands in the middle of the court on the other side. Was he impressed? Everyone who plays volleyball at Asa Clark should be able to have Mr. Roehl for a coach

If you want to become good at a sport you have to train with a good coach. One that pushes you harder then you think you can be pushed. One that is amazing in the sport. One that enjoys both playing and coaching. To have a good coach is the goal of every athlete around the world. A good coach knows what they are doing and knows the different abilities of all the players on the team, so they can place them properly on the court. A good coach has to be good at the sport and know their team well.

With all the different rotations and the hundreds of different rules, volleyball can be really confusing. That being said the coach of the team needs to be aware of these while their team is playing on the court. If they want to move players around on the court they have to be sure they aren't taking them out of rotation which could give the other team a point. A good coach has to know all the rules of the sport, so they are able to adjust plays if they need to.

Some people may argue that Mr. Roehl's expectations are too high for them. If you are playing volleyball simply for pleasure and the experience maybe Mr. Roehl isn't the right coach. Mr. Roehl likes to push his players to their full potential and if you don't want to be pushed and are just playing volleyball for fun then you might not want him as a coach. Some people think that volleyball is just a fun sport while in reality, it's one of the hardest sports there is. When you play volleyball even if it's just for fun, you still need to be pushed in order to be good at the sport in order to become good.

One of the most famous coaches in United States history was Vince Lombardi. He coached the Green Bay Packers for eight years and led the team to five championships. Vince Lombardi once said, " Coaches who can outline plays on a black board are a dime a dozen. The ones who win get inside their players and motivate." This is a coach who knows all their players strengths and weaknesses and is able to keep them excited and concentrated the whole game. Mr. Roehl is a perfect example of a coach like this. That is why I hope I get to have him as my coach for school volleyball.


"Vince Lombardi Quotes - BrainyQuote." Famous Quotes at BrainyQuote. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2012. <http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/v/vince_lombardi.html>.

Character Analysis: Sky Mackenzie

Author's Note: This is a book response to the book: The Secrets of My Hollywood Life. It is a Character analysis of Sky Mackenzie, the bad girl in the book. I feel like it might be too much of a summary, but let me know what you think. My focuses are sentence fluency and organization.

She's always second to Kaitlin. Even her own boyfriend likes Kaitlin better. Sky was tired of always coming after her co-star. So, she did something drastic. It had to be done though, Kaitlin deserved worse. Everyone liked Kaitlin better, and Sky couldn't put her career in jeopardy. If Sky's plan works, she would finally be better then Kaitlin.

Sky and Kaitlin grew up together, and have been co-starring on "Family Affairs" since they were toddlers. They played sisters on the show, but didn't act like it off set. Kaitlin had the better part in the show; she was the good guy, so Sky was the bad guy. The personalities of the characters they portrayed began a rivalry between them. And, although both of their parents used them for their fame, Sky's were much worse. Her parents didn't care what she did, as long as she provided fame for them.

When Sky found out that Kaitlin was auditioning for the lead role in Hutch Adams' next movie, she knew she had to do something; her career can't afford for Kaitlin to become even more famous. So, Sky stole Kaitlin's sidekick. It was an innocent joke at first; Sky never knew she would find out as much as she did about what Kaitlin had been doing. Things were looking perfect for Sky, she just had to find the perfect time to expose Kaitlin.

She gets a phone call from her agent. Kailtin has turned down an offer to do a charity event at Clark Hall, and you have been asked to do it instead.  It all began to make sense. All of Kaitlin's strange absences, her secrets, and why she was so worried about losing her Sidekick. Kaitlin was on a secret hiatus. She was living a secret life, going to Clark Hall, as a non-existent person. The press would tear Kaitlin apart. Sky now had the perfect chance to expose Kaitlin and ruin her career.


Sky is waiting at Clark Hall when she sees her."You should turn your cameras on now" she whispers to the reporters. "Ladies and Gentleman, I am not the only 'Family Affairs' star in the audience. Please give a warm welcome to Kaitlin Burke!" And with a quick flick of her wrist, Sky pulls of Kaitlin's wig. Satisfied with the shocked looks and whispers of the crowd, she continues. "You've been duped. Rachel is not Rachel at all, she's Kaitlin Burke. She's pretending to be someone she's not - wearing colored contacts, a wig, dopey glasses, using a bogus accent- she's been lying to you for months."

Pleased with the way things turned out, Sky goes home satisfied. Only to be surprised a few mornings later to find Kaitlin along with Rodney and Liz. "I wanted to thank you, Skylar", explained Kaitlin, "Whether you intended to or not, you did me a big favor by pulling those stunts. That tabloid garbage was making me feel like I had to choose between acting and having a life. But you know what? I've realized I don't have to choose, Sky. No matter what you say or do, you can't make me give up my career." she continues to say, "I hope you enjoy your summer. I’m going to reporting to the Hutch Adams set to work on my next blockbuster movie.” Kaitlin turned around on her heels and walked away, leaving Sky staring after her.

It should've worked. In fact, it was a surprise it didn't. Kaitlin was practically telling America and Hutch Adams she'd had enough and wanted nothing to do with Hollywood anymore. So why did everyone still love her? And why did Hutch Adams hire her? It was too much for Sky. And it wasn't fair. Sky Mackenzie was a really misunderstood character. She gets better publicity by cheating, she's mean, and doesn't care what happens to Kaitlin or her career. Even though she seems bad, people just don't know the story behind her. Her parents don't care about her and all the Hollywood directors favored Kaitlin, her enemy and co-star, more. Kaitlin was living the life she wanted, and Sky thought as though she could never be better than her.

Faith

Author's Note: This is a Cinquain poem I wrote on Faith. My focus is voice.

Faith

Always believe,

Even when you can't see.

You have complete trust in someone.

Believe.

What is the Best Time of Day to Take Tests?

Author's Note: I haven't written a real essay in a long time, so I decided to try it again. This piece is on my opinion on what is the best time of day to learn. My focus is word choice.


Beep, Beep. It's 5:30 AM, and your alarm is blaring. Time to get up, and start the day. My bus arrives at school, and I head to my first hour class. As the teacher gives announcements I struggle to stay awake. I'm closing my eyes when I here the word test. As my teacher gives me the paper, I examine the problems. At least I try to examine them. I am so tired,  I can't contemplate the problems on the page. Taking tests in the first few hours of the day are bad because you just woke up, and most kids are still tired.

Most students prefer to stay up late and sleep in late. School starts at 7:30 in the morning which makes some kids wake up at 6:00 or earlier to get ready. Most kids stay up past 10:00 an with that being said, they can't get the 8.5-9 hours they need. This means that since the students are so tired, their test scores will go down.

Although, testing early may not be the best for some students, there are some plus sides to it. Taking tests first thing in the morning allows students to "get it over with". If we take tests right away the students can take them and be able to relax for the rest of the day. This seems like a good idea, because, then students can concentrate the rest of the day on the rest of their classes.

I think that the best time to take test would be second or third hour. This is because first hour, students are to tired to concentrate, fifth hour, students are distracted and ready to go home, and fourth hour is right before lunch so students are hungry. Second or third hour is right in the middle, so it gives students a chance to wake up, but not so much that they can't concentrate.

Over the weekends, most teenagers stay up late and don't get up until mid-afternoon. During the school week, students often still stay up late, but are forced to get up early. Schools shouldn't make students test right away in the morning, because they are still waking up. In reality testing at a later time is and advantage to the school because the better test scores students get, the better the school looks.

"Adolescent Sleep." Research. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2012. <nysut.org/research/bulletins/981202adolescentsleep.html>.

"Top 10 Weirdest Clocks | Top 10 Hell." Top 10 Hell. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Jan. 2012. <http://top10hell.com/top-10-weirdest-clocks/>.

Runaway

Author's Note: In a meeting with Mr. Johnson we talked about how most entertainment books we read don't follow one of the four modes of literature. I decided to make that the topic of this book response. My focus is sentence fluency.

Everyone likes to read a good book, and lets face it, what we have to read for school aren't always what teenagers consider to be "good books." The books we want to read typically are filled with adventure or romance. These book normally don't follow one of the four modes of literature. For instance, Runaway, by Meg Cabot. This book is filled with with romance and action but doesn't adhere to any of the four modes of literature.

The book starts off with the main character, Nicki being kidnapped to an island in the middle of nowhere. She's clearly not in control. hat be said, the only mode it could be is irony. Shortly after she is kidnapped, she is rescued, and returned back to civilization. At this point of the book tragedy, because she had a rise to power. It goes back and fourth between modes before ending in romance.

Although books like these are entertaining, that is the only purpose of them, to entertain. Runaway was an eye-opening book, but in reality had no real purpose to it. Purposeful books are made to teach a lesson. And although what we have to read isn't always fun, we can learn something valuable from it.

"First Novels Club: Ten new mini-reviews!." First Novels Club. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2012. <http://www.firstnovelsclub.com/2011/06/ten-new-mini-reviews.html>.

Winter

Author's Note: I decided to go on National Geographic to find a picture to write a poem about. I thought this was beautiful and reminded me of winter... My focus is word choice.

Silence,

The quiet waters,

and reticent trees.

Stillness,

Everything is motionless,

very calm and idle.

Serenity,  

The peace is comforting,

you feel at ease.

"Photo of the Day: Best Pictures of November 2011, Gallery - National Geographic." Photography and Photos of the Day - National Geographic. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2012. <http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photos/best-pod-november-2011/#/blue-pond-japan_42696_600x450.jpg>.