January 13

Persuasive Writing Piece

 

Dear Members of the  Prosper School Board,

 

My name is Alex Wells and I am representing the students of the school with the proposal of trying to get a four-day school week instead of having the students going to school for a full week. Having students going to school only four times a week can have many benefits to it.

 

Having students go to school for only four days a week does have many advantages to it. Not only would students go to school one less day. It’ll also help with the school budget when it comes to the maintenance, operation and transportation costs. Statistics show that if students don’t have school on Friday, the costs of the maintenance, operation, and transportation would decrease. This means that we, as a school, will be saving more money than before. With all the money that we saved, we could do more activities around the school and being able to upgrade anything that we wanted to because of the fact that we had the money to do so. We could also fund more trips to places that the student would want to go to as well. By having Friday off, we can have more activities on Friday. The community groups believe that if Friday was off, then they could schedule more activities for students and to be able to attract more volunteers. The ad also being able to use school property for free use with the exception that we all have to use the property with much respect. Another idea would be to extend classes and changing the schedule to be 83 minutes instead of having it to be 65 minutes of class. That way the students get more information in the week so then it makes up for having Friday off.

 

Not having Friday off every week would more learning time for students who need education. A poll was made in order to see who would agree with the four-day week of school and the majority of the parents voted no. the user that goes by the name Kristina Oudet (workalot349) said “ I want my kids in school Mon to Fri when I’m at work, not in front of the tv all day. The thought of unsupervised Fridays off gives me nightmares.” Most parents thinking would be similar to Kristina’s. A lot of parents want their kids to be at school because if they had Friday off, they wouldn’t do anything productive when they could be learning more at school instead of just wasting time. 

 

According to Phillips, a researcher, studies show that adolescents need more sleep in order for them to grow and reach maturity. He also says that when trying to catch up on sleep, it disrupts the sleep cycle even more because then the body doesn’t have a consistent sleeping pattern. This means that kids do indeed need more sleep because without having enough sleep, kids can’t do the best in their ability. They wouldn’t be able to show their skills in school if they aren’t getting enough sleep. That’s why, when having a four-day week, it helps students regulate their sleep and being more active in school activities and paying more attention in school. If students have slept then they are able to work and study there hardest instead of having to fall asleep every hour of the day. Having a lack of sleep can also affect the emotions of a student that could lead them into not being as successful as they could be. Students have a lot of potentials and if they aren’t getting enough sleep then it’s all wasted since they can’t think properly. Another thing is attendance, four-day weeks can result in higher attendance at school and teachers can also have more time planning for what they want to plan for the week of school. It’s a win-win situation.

 

Having the school to have a four-day week has its many advantages financially, socially and academically. It provides more freedom for students to do more activities, getting more work done and especially getting more sleep on the 3 day weekend that students could have. I would urge the members of the school board to accept the proposal and implement it soon enough. If you need any more information, my email is Alex.Wells@gmail.com and if you would like to talk to me my phone number is 123-456-7890.

 

Sincerely,

 

Alex Wells

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January 11

Polished Literary Exploration – Effects on Us

Effects on Us

Many individuals influence us throughout our lives. Though not all individuals have positive effects on us, we always learn something from their actions. Some of them, we forget lifelong bonds with, and some we wish we never knew. Some people have been an influence on us from the day we are born and other arriving only days before we pass. This idea is demonstrated in the short story, I Beat The Odds by Michael Oher. Oher describes the influence his elementary teacher had on him as a child. As well, this is explored in the film, A River Runs Through It, directed by Robert Redford, where Reverend Maclean, who is a Presbyterian minister in Missoula, Montana, influenced his son Norman’s life and his pathway. These two pieces show how a small gesture from one person can change an individual’s life for the better or worse.

In the excerpt from I Beat The Odds by Michael Oher, his elementary teacher, Ms. Verlene Logan, inspired a young boy. He will always remember her kind and courageous words since she has positively impacted and influenced his life. She helped build confidence and courage in her students through her sweet and gentle words, which taught them to not be afraid of being themselves.  Her words, “Can’t never could and ain’t never would” will stick with Michael Oher till his last breath. She did this because she believed that every student is capable of achieving great things in life, therefore, helping them boost their self-esteem and confidence will only leave a positive impact and influence on the lives of her students. Ms. Verlene Logan always encouraged him to improve upon what he is struggling with and never give up on his sports. She believed that he could accomplish anything he wanted to in life and also be the person he wanted to be only if he believed in himself. The influence she had on him, to never look down on himself or others, will always stay with him. Because of her words and gestures, Michael is now someone who never gave up on his dreams, never gave up in trying to be the best version of him, and never gave up on making Ms. Verlene Logan proud. When someone has such a great influence on you from a young age, you remember them during your greatest successes and you imagine how proud you made them feel, but during your greatest downfalls, you remember the things they told you: to keep going until you reach your full potential.

In the film, A River Runs Through It, directed by Robert Redford, Reverend Maclean has a great influence on his children, more on Norman than on Paul. Norman from a young age has sought for his father’s approval in his life. When Norman returns home after six years of studies, he decides he wants to be a forest servicer, but while talking to his father in his office, he has flashbacks to when he was a young child entering into his father’s office with a piece of paper to get his father’s approval; Norman keeps trying until his father is pleased. At that time, Reverend Maclean is correcting Norman’s writing with a red pen and after many years, Reverend Maclean has this red pen in his hand while talking to Norman in his office to correct his “mistakes” and to get him on the right path. When Norman mentions he wants to be in the forest service, he is seeking his father’s approval. When he doesn’t receive the encouragement, he then mentions that he has applied to universities as a professor in Chicago, and suddenly, the environment feels relaxed. Reverend Maclean has great authority over Norman’s life when it comes to his well being and success. The actions of his father overpowering him influences his decisions and it encourages him to be a better person by choosing a career path that is right for him. Norman definitely feels defeated and powerless about the way his father takes the lead in his life, but he is well aware of the positive effect it will have on him and his family in the near future – the one that includes security, prosperity and a decent quality of life.

Many people have influenced my life, in ways that have helped me become a better person but also in ways I wish I could leave behind and forget. But both the positive and negative influences have helped me become who I am as an individual today. The biggest influence on my life is my best friend, and my greatest strength and weakness: my brother, Sushant. We were the ideal siblings in our town, we never fought, and we never had an argument till a year ago. He is the one person I can be honest with about anything happening in my life without having the fear of judgment. Before we came to Canada, my aunties, uncles and grandparents gave me a little pep talk about obeying my parents and respecting them always, and along with that, not forgetting my roots. But the talk I had with my brother is one that I still recall to this day whenever I am in need of him and he is not here with me physically. He told me to forget everything they had told me and to just “follow your heart.” He told me to not be afraid of judgment or ever think about fitting in with the rest of society since I have enough self-respect to not task for other’s approvals. He promised me that he will be there for me when I just need him to tell me who I am and what I am capable of because. He knows me better than anyone and that is why his opinion matters the most. He told me I will face people who are going to do everything in their power to bring me down because they have and still are trying to bring me down. But because of his words, promises and advice, I am still standing tall and not letting others affect me. He inspires me to be myself and be the best version of me. His influence on me has always helped me, is helping me, and will continue to help me through all the obstacles I face in life.

Once someone has influenced you, it will stay with you forever, whether it is in a positive or negative way. Michael Oher will always remember Ms. Verlene Logan’s words and her advice throughout his life, therefore, he will continue to improve on his abilities. Norman will always be thankful and grateful to his father and his encouraging words, even though at times, his words made Norman powerless and defeated. I will always admire my brother’s words, follow them, and remember them when the sky turns starless and the light turns into darkness. Influences are powerful and most of them will last till our last breath because they help us improve our abilities and they help us become better individuals at the end of the day.

November 10

Moving Forward

Grade 12 has been a hectic year for me so far. University applications have been very time consuming and have eaten up my free time. The stress has also been terrible since the only thing I think about these days is university. All this stress has made me rethink my goals and priorities. I am so close to going to university and have realized that I will no longer be a kid and will soon be independent with a lot more responsibilities.

 

I am really sad that I will be leaving school and going to post secondary. Now that I think about it, people are right when they say “high school goes by fast” I have made made so many memories with my peers and teachers that I will look back on. School is fun because you’re a kid and you know your parents are going to help you out. In high school you can trust your teachers and know for a fact that they are going to help you achieve excellence. In university the professors aren’t as connected to their students. If you miss a couple lectures they are not willing to help you catch up. This however is a part of growing up and cannot be avoided.  

 

I want to go back to elementary and middle school where I didn’t have much stress. Back then university seemed like a long time away. Now it seems as if time has passed too quickly. The funny thing is that when you are a child you want to grow up so bad and fast, but when you are older you want to go back to being a child.

 

The transition between elementary to middle school and middle school to high school has made me realize that in between I stopped living in the moment. When I was a kid I always dreamed of being older and now that I am, I realize that life starts to get complicated and sometimes things fall out of hand. I couldn’t wait to get over physics 20, and now I can’t wait to complete physics 30. I see myself reaching for more and more and forgetting to enjoy and live in the moment. Now that I’m turning 18 I realize that there is no going back and instead of regretting the bad decisions I have made in the past I regret the opportunities I missed out on.

But as I experience new things in new places I will learn and grow into the man I am becoming. As soon as university begins I will have more responsibilities and I will be accountable to my family who wants me to succeed and most importantly I will be accountable to myself. I am ready to open up a new chapter in my life to expand my potential and grow into the successful man I have always dreamed of becoming.

September 13

Life Philosophies Of Sam

Image result for lemonDo what you can with what you got.

Everyone is in a different situation in life. Whether it’s good or bad; it’s always different, but that doesn’t mean anyone in a difficult spot should stop trying. Whatever life throws at you; you’ve got to do what you can with it. Relating back to the picture; we always hear “When life gives you lemons; make lemonade.” That exemplifies this life philosophy in a really nice way and it can, and should be used in life.

Fake it till you make it!

This philosophy signifies how sometimes in life you just gotta fake it until you make it. As an introverted person I don’t really enjoy being outgoing, or super talkative during conversations; it’s sometimes hard for introverts like me to even raise their hands in class when a teacher asks a question. That’s why I believe you have to fake it till you make it because if you fake having confidence for long enough then you will eventually gain more confidence in yourself.

Remove toxicity.

This philosophy means that you should always be wary of who you are hanging out with. Anyone who keeps you going, who keeps telling you what to work on and tries to help you improve, who doesn’t talk behind your back, and is a person who actually enjoys your company and vice versa are the people you should surround yourself with. It may be difficult for some people to push away the people who are unhealthy in their lives because they may feel like they need them or that they don’t have anyone else. But as I have tried to portray through my picture is that a negative person can slowly affect you and once you reach that threshold then you will burst and then you will have a big mess that could take a long time to clean up. So it is better to fix the issue before it gets out of hand and remove the negative influences.

Image result for free climbing a 240m radio towerFocus on what you enjoy!

Focusing on what you enjoy is a very simple philosophy. If you really enjoy doing it or if you want to do something but are too afraid to try it; do it. You never really know if you’ll enjoy it and you might find out that you’re really good at something. When you do things that you really love to do then dopamine is released in the brain which is what makes you feel happy. Most people I know like being happy, so they always take time to enjoy doing what they love to do.

 

Open Double Door Drawing For Decoration

Always try to be a better you!

Always trying to be a better you is my last philosophy and is also my narrative. I always try to be better than I was the day before because if I was having a bad day then it is not fair to other people in my life to have the bad feelings projected on to them. So I try to always be a positive person to whoever I talk to. Always trying to be a better you is also good for yourself because who wouldn’t want to be the best version of themselves? My narrative is one that is still being written, as high school goes on by I have tried to slowly gain more confidence and I always try to leave nice first impressions on people. I have heard from a few people that they used to think I was intimidating just from how I’d look, but then after they get to know me they say I’m actually a really nice person. Now a days I’m seeing that people are finding it a lot easier to come up and talk to me and that’s because I am always trying to be the best person I can be, for myself and for the people around me. I am projecting more bright feelings and I have changed my general demeanor to a much more positive one by changing who I talk to and hang out with along with what I do for myself.

 

http://caeq.info/open-double-door-drawing/open-double-door-drawing-for-inspiration-ideas-folding-doors-drawing-bi-fold-door-w-k/

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http://www.freepngimg.com/fruits/lemon

October 15

The Black Gates

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I was about five years old and before I knew it, my childhood ended right then and there. One dreaded day my parents woke me up bright and early, but it wasn’t bright at all. I couldn’t spot the morning sun and the bright blue sky which I would wake up to everyday; but when I looked out the window it was nothing but a dark gloomy sky. I saw tears sliding down my mom’s cheeks, gliding in a perfect row. It was a rare event to see my mom cry and I wasn’t much of the questioning type either. She quickly dressed me up and I simply didn’t contain the energy to protest against it.

I saw two large bags in front of my main door, the first thing that came to my mind was: we are leaving for Saudi Arabia. As a Saudi born with roots in Azad Kashmir, occupied by Pakistan, it was a good choice for my dad to send me to a Pakistani boarding school. As a five year old, I had no idea how the world functioned or what “boarding school” really meant.

My dad quickly dragged the two bags in the trunk of his car and kindly told me to get in. We drove along the rising sun but my mom’s tears would not leave my mind. I gently closed my eyes and before I knew it my dad gave me a little nudge to wake up, we had arrived at our destination. I steadily made my way out of the car and stretched my arms wide into the open blue sky.

My bags were dragged towards the entrance of this mysterious building. A man appeared out of the blue and asked for the papers. While he inspected the papers; I couldn’t help but notice his long black beard and his tree like structure. Suddenly something happened which scarred me for the rest of my life: he looked at me. This was no ordinary look, I felt as if I was nothing more than his test subject, blood no longer rushed through my body and bones no longer supported my small structure. I did not comprehend the strength to break to look away, I was being controlled by his tyrannical eyes. It was a battle of a cat and a mouse.

The gates were ordered to be opened and a cold breeze hit me in the face, my first step landed on a rubble of rocks which infiltrated my tiny shoes. My parents were behind me, I could always tell because I felt their warm presence near me.  I wanted to turn around and leave, there was no purpose of me being here, I was terrorized by the idea of taking another step into this mysterious place.

Than rapidly my back was as old as ice, my muscles shivered. As I turned around the bearded man with all his might stood his ground behind me and my parents were a few yards away. I kindly took a step away and proceeded to walk towards my parents assuming everything was fine but a sudden cold object grabbed me, his hand. His skin was rough and heavy as a rock.

I heard my mom burst out a loud scream, my father held her back and guided her towards the car. The man grabbed me by my waist, even though I jerked and yelled, my wimpy form was no match for his colossal structure. The gates were ordered to be shut but this time I was in the inside and my parents were outside. The gates were shut with a loud screech of a sound. I could still hear my mom screaming and shouting and then it was all gone, no sound, no nothing. All I could see was the dust clashing towards the gate and plummeting towards the ground.

The man carried me inside the building and sat me down on a bed along with my bags. I had a hard time breathing and didn’t dare to look up. I could hear the man rumbling through the papers and he finally spoke “As-salamu alaykum Seemab and welcome to Abbottabad boarding school”.

Just like that, I was introduced to a whole new world of pain and suffering. What they taught me was horrific: to ridicule every religion and culture, but to view ours as the most powerful and well established. Their ideology was to see ourselves as superior human beings, as a five year old boy I didn’t know what was right or wrong, thus I had no other option but to accept what they had to say.

When we moved to Canada, I was astounded to see how we were all equal, no matter what religion or ethnic background we held, we all got along. To witness such an experience was the most memorable thing in my life and over time, what that school had taught me washed away. Canada and its people have changed my train of thought and if I held the same ideology as my previous school, I couldn’t imagine what my life would be like.  Even though my previous school had many flaws, it still made me into the man I am today.

October 15

The Angel That Saved Me.

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When I was a kid I knew nothing about everyday existence. I never knew the challenges or obstacles one had to face in life. All I cared about was what color dress my doll would wear or which Bratz character had the nicest hair. In school, I was just like any other kid. I would have one friend one day and a completely different friend the other day. People would unfriend each other if they didn’t share the same color preference or if they didn’t have the same toy. Everything was as simple as that. No one needed that special ”angel” to look over them. No one pushed each other around or called each other horrible names. Everything was as easy as ”you’re my best friend,” or ”you’re not my friend anymore,” and that would be the end of that. Social networks such as Facebook,Twitter and Myspace were totally foreign to me and to all the kids my age. No one acted tough over the computer screen, face-to-face was the way it was done. No one got bullied over these social sites, heck no one got bullied at all; or so I thought.

India. O’ wonderful India. India was a huge part of my childhood. The beautiful trees would perfectly harmonize themselves against the warm breeze. Everything was so perfect and in place, I felt as if I belonged in such an ideal place. I went to school there for a short period of time and learned new things there. Leaving India to come back to Calgary was a very hard challenge for me, since I would be leaving behind so many wonderful things and people. All I could think about was having to leave behind my beloved oversized toys and my dear friends. I wanted to take everything along with me so my life would be a little less miserable. The departure was the toughest thing for me.

On a regular Monday morning, after I had returned from India, I was awoken from my deep sleep by my grandmas soft, soothing voice. I quickly jumped up excited that it was my first day back to grade 1 and I couldn’t wait to get to there and make new friends. I was dressed and out the door before you could even count to three. Nothing could ruin my day, I thought, nothing at all. Since I had woken everything was going as planned. I was the happiest kid ever because I would get a chance to learn new things, draw, read and write. Those were the only things that were making me forget India.
As I walked into school, I had a big smile on my face. I was ready, ready to go. All of a sudden I heard a loud frightening voice.” Ha-ha!” Look at that fatty dressed like a guy,” the enormous grade 4 boy said in a loud, taunting voice. I kept walking, thinking he was talking to someone else. Without a care in the world, I skipped forward to class. ” Ha-ha! Fatty!,” said the boy shouting and this time he was pointing directly at me. I looked up petrified, trying to grasp what this giant with an echoing voice had said to me. Since it was my very first day in a Canadian elementary school, I didn’t know that this type of behavior was even shown, let alone allowed. I was in for a surprise.

Little me didn’t have a clue about what was going on. I felt so shaken up and afraid. The huge boy kept pointing and laughing. All I could think was ”did I do something wrong?” I just stared blankly at the boy as if he was from outer space. Please don’t ruin my first day I kept mumbling to myself. I was hoping this was a joke.
As I stood there dumbfounded, the boy kept saying harsh words to me. At that point I was only six or seven and I definitely didn’t have the guts to stand up to this huge tower of a boy. I quietly stood there, unable to move as I took in the harsh words of the scary boy, tears streaming down my tiny little cheeks. I heard words like crybaby, loser, fatty, ugly, all of which had never been used with me before.

All of a sudden, I heard another loud voice coming from behind me. ”Cut it out, that’s enough,” said the loud voice. I quickly turned to see who this savior was. As I looked up I saw , what looked like to me, another gigantic girl. She told the boy to stop or there would be consequences. The boy quickly turned and ran off.

Well that looked easy, I thought to myself. She was able to stand up to him, so why wasn’t I? Why had I kept quiet? The only reason he kept bullying me was because I was standing there like a statue tolerating all the verbal abuse. I felt so mentally beaten up with words. This wasn’t the way my first day was supposed to go. Nope, not at all. I thanked the girl from the bottom of my heart because if it weren’t for her, the gigantic boy would have torn me apart.
Being almost 18, I still haven’t forgotten what happened that day with me. To some, that incident wouldn’t matter at all, but to me it meant everything. It was the event that had ruined my whole entire day, a day which was supposed to be one of the happiest days of my life. Something as little as verbal abuse can have a person shaken up and left completely stunned in a matter of minutes, as it did for me. And as for the girl who helped me, I guess you could say she was my special angel, an angel I try to be for others to this very day.

 

September 30

School?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_ZmM7zPLyI

Why do we go to school? We got to school to receive an education an education which we put forth into a future career perhaps. Do we really need to go to school for education because many famous people like Bill Gates know for Microsoft, Steve Jobs Apple, and Thomas Edison inventor of the light bulb never went to college or university to finish a degree?  These men created great revolutionary products yet they have no degrees. These men were inspired and that’s what school should be about inspiring individual minds not grades.

Many of us got to school by memorizing most of it and yes we pass and are successful. Our society is built on this idea that we need to go to school in order to be successful so what most of us do is focus on getting those high grades in order to pass that many of us have lost the main purpose of school. We let grades and marks decide who we are as a person. When we are better than these marks and grades. The best education we receive is through the life encountering the many hardships and learning a thing or two and discovering our interests. “Education is about inspiring one’s mind not just filling their head”.  Many people graduate school without being inspired so they have all this knowledge from school but have no clue what to do with it. I myself am I grade 12 yet I have no clue what to do next with my life. I am not saying this is the case for everyone there are many students who know what they are going to do in life and you can say have been inspired, but there many of us who haven’t. School although has been successful at inspiring some students, it does not seem this is their main goal. They teach us about 4 core subjects Math, Ela, Social, and Science but many of us struggle to apply them to our everyday lives because we are so stuck up on these grades. The reason schools may fail at inspiring us is that these grades mean everything it’s what decides the one who succeeds and the one who doesn’t.

I am lucky that I go to a great school where teachers stress on these applications but many other schools teachers can careless. These applications of knowledge to our everyday lives help inspire us and we are able to find our interests.  I believe we all should reassess what we are doing in school and look at it as an opportunity to be inspired. We shouldn’t be stuck up on grades because if we can get past these numbers we can discover or create or learn something new or even solves problems we already have and that I believe is someone who has been successful  an “educated man. ““ If you don’t build your dreams someone else will hire you to help build theirs. “

September 28

Every morning…

My name is Troy I am twenty-one and I’m the only one left in my whole family. I’ve been alone for as long as I can remember and this is the story of how everything changed. Every morning before work I would go to the river just outside of town, which is walking distance from my apartment, and see the sunrise just glistening off and the peaceful bliss of the river makes my life bearable. Suddenly I hear the sound of rice crispies; snap, crackle, pop. Then people whispering getting louder and louder, I got startled so I ran down the river. Then I thought to myself; why did I run? Do I really despise human connection that I’m actually running away from them? Or is it because I don’t want to get too close to people so I don’t have to have that feeling of losing them.  As I was running I tripped and fell face first in front of a this beautiful women, who seems very familiar, with a  surprisingly short skirt, pink t-shirt and gorgeous brunette hair flowing with the wind. I get up dust myself off keep my head down and then continue walking along the river.

As I past her I hear, “wait!” She hollered. I slowly turn around to see her beautiful face soiled by the tears running down her face. She wipes the tears off her face and asks.

“Do you know where the nearest waterfall is?” I look at her with that blank look on my face and I start to take of my shoes and socks as I reply.

“There are no waterfalls around here.” After my shoes and socks were off I dipped my feet into the water and let the current gently whisk away my feet.

“Oh so since there isn’t a waterfall around here I guess I could just sit here with you, if you don’t mind?” She asked.

“Well… I guess you could but I would think you would have better stuff to do?.” I awkwardly replied. Our eyes met and she turned away, as if nothing happened, and SHE started to take off her shoes and socks and started to dip her feet into the water right beside me. I slowly get comfortable and lay back, close my eyes and fall into peaceful bliss. I open one eye to take a peek at what she’s doing and all I see is her laid back looking up at the sky. Then she asked.

“I know I don’t know you that well but if u don’t mind me asking,” I opened my mouth ready to answer but as I’m about to say something she says.

“Don’t you ever wonder what’s the point of living if no one wants you?”