Book Review

This Week’s Book Review

Colleen Worger, Grade 10

The book that I have chosen to review is "Love Drugged" written by James Klise. This book is about a 15 year old boy named Jamie. While Jamie is at school he is trying to stay out of the way of everyone and keep to himself, and most importantly protect the fact that he's gay. When someone discovers his secret Jamie does all he can to change who he is. No one thinks twice about him dating the most beautiful girl in school -- Celia Gamez. After stealing a new drug that is supposed to "cure" his attraction to guys, Jamie realizes that lying and using can shatter the world of deception that he has created and hurt the people that are closest to him.

          I found this book very interesting , but I had to read a couple of chapters before I managed to really get into the book, and really start to understand what Jamie was going through. Most of the characters were well developed and easy to understand, by the end of the book it was  a bit easier to fully understand why the characters did what they did. Most of the book explained that after Jamie's secret was discovered he became very insecure and embarrassed of who he was, it also followed Jamie on his journey to understand why he was unique and important to so many people. After reading most of the book I found that it became monotonous and quite predictable. I did like that the message of the story was to appreciate yourself because you are unique and you don't need to change to become what people expect you to be. Two of my favourite quote from the book are: "It sounded like something Thomas Jefferson might have said, or Ben Franklin, or Maya Angelou--one of those people who became famous for saying obvious things in interesting ways." And, "The island was where we'd all be forced to live once our families and friends shut the doors in our faces and told us we disgusted them."

          Overall, I found this book interesting and would give it a 6.5/10.

          ~Colleen Worger

Fluorescent

Fluorescent

Written by: Kelly Cameron, Grade 10

Intriguing how the lack of sight in arms can overcome

Senses combine and strengthen passion, nothing has been done

A silent din will soon erupt, sends shivers up a spine

Ruin love with dull bland shades, it surely is a crime

Drinking in a sinful lust that always speaks of Eden

Gazing out to the dark matter that our voice is feeding

Little sense and psychedelic thoughts like LSD

Facing everything and nothing human eyes can see

Six feet under us, we are six feet above the source

Clawing at my ankles, uncalled for, but it’s the course

Smiling at it all in a swirl of apparitions

Living in a zone of exploding dead transmissions

Freaking out at everything and anything presented

Forgetting about all the things we’ve ever documented

Relish all the moments high above and on the world

Lashing out with ribbons that our memories have unfurled

Try and fail and try again to see the things we see

Try and fail to see the romance in this gorgeous dream

Technicolor everything, perhaps it’s just as well

To let it be, enjoy it while it lasts, pre-light up hell

Not dead again, but alive upon the foreign dark

The unknown, I ask to fill me with those blinding sparks

Destroying silence, massacre the tears and make the vow

'Cause every time we say it, lights light up, and sound turns down

What Makes a Good Teacher?

What Makes a Good Teacher?

                Whether you are a teacher, parent, student, or some other helpful, contributing member of society, I’m sure that you are aware of the fact that there is no guidebook or set of tasks exist for people to follow which will in turn give them the attributes of a good teacher. It comes from within. So who better to ask the opinion of what makes a good teacher than the students who are directly benefiting from the teachings of these noble individuals? Here is the combined answer of two groups of grade ten students when asked exactly that:

Are your students mistaken for an army of sleeping beauties? Is a ravenous shark eating all of the enthusiasm out of your classroom, leaving nothing but a prison-like environment? There are some teachers who are passionate about their work, and really attempt to make each of their lessons interactive, original, and fun. Sadly, this isn’t the case with all of our educators. If it were up to us, the students, this would be the first prerequisite on the list of qualifications when selecting teachers. They need to be able to know their students, and set up their lessons in accordance with the class dynamics. These teachers are faced with the enormous challenge of trying to make their subject matter interesting and enjoyable, while fixing it into the brains of their pupils so that it won’t be washed away by a wave of video games and television in these technological times.

Teachers affect students learning if they have a good personality. When teachers use humour, they create a more interesting class and engage their students more. For example, those who capture the attention of students by making jokes and connections about things in their personal lives are easier to relate to. It makes the students more interested in the subject while keeping them entertained and ensuring that they understand the lesson. It is also important for the teacher to be approachable, enabling their students to feel comfortable asking for help, which is an important part of the learning process.

                To positively affect a student’s learning experience, a good environment is essential. This could include an organized and well maintained classroom, or being mentally and physically active by doing warm ups for the brain and stretches. Studies have shown that the average human brain can only retain a certain amount of information in one sitting, and that it can only work to its full potential for twenty minutes at a time. A solution to this is being able to get out of your seat occasionally to stretch or participate in a physical learning activity. Following this, a classroom that is decorated in an enthusiastic manner results in a positive learning environment. People relax when they are in a setting in which they feel comfortable, which helps them learn better. A good learning atmosphere includes a variety of different activities. For instance, not only taking notes off of an overhead, but also being able to work in groups, with everyone contributing. Finally, if the teacher posts up examples of previous students’ work, it can help other to grasp the idea and know what to do. The environment impacts a student’s ability to learn well, but that’s also where a teacher’s swag kicks in.

                And finally, swag; like the cherry on top of a chocolate sundae, swag (or swagger, for you folk of an older vintage) is what completes the teacher. One who knows the subject they are teaching, while keeping their students engaged and interested in learning it is truly a rare combination. It’s that x-factor, that indefinable quality that nobody can quite put their finger on, but is easy to detect if it is there.

                We believe that a zippy personality, a laid back environment, and a confident swag add up to make a great teacher. Don’t be the punishing, super-strict teacher, be the funny, easy-going one that all the students love. You don’t want your classroom to be nicknamed, ‘The Dungeon’, so ensure that it is a healthy environment that people enjoy coming to. And a teacher without swag is like a PB+J without peanut butter, it’s too plain. So is your classroom the sleeping quarters for an army of well-trained and mindless drones? Or is it a creativity-filled place where learning is fun?

Ms. Dolha’s Grade 10 English Class

Book Review

This Week’s Book Review

Colleen Worger, Grade 10

          The book that I have chosen to review is “Beauty Queens” written by Libba Bray. The story is about fifty American beauty queen contestants who are all on their way to compete in the Miss Teen Dream Pageant. Each girl has a distinct personality, and all are reminiscent of real life. While flying to the pageant however, the plane crashes on a remote island that has been uninhabited for many years. The book follows the survivors of the crash on their journey throughout the mysterious island while they try to find an answer to the strange things that have been happening to them. (Lost vibes anyone?).

            I enjoyed this book quite a lot and found it entertaining and very funny at times. One thing that struck me as odd was that the book didn’t seem to have a main character; it was told from the point of view of all the different characters stranded on the island. It took me a while to connect everyone’s names and remember who was who because there were so many different characters. Once I got past that, I found that one of the main reasons I loved it was there was a lot of humour in it, which was like the cherry on top for me. It really fit well with the story. The author did a great job of putting a large amount of detail and explanations about the setting into the book which made it easier to understand what life was like for the beauty queens. Another other part of the book that I enjoyed was that occasionally there was a page that was set up like a beauty pageant form and you could read it and learn new things about one of the characters. All of the detail, and even the character’s feelings were described so well that I felt like I could have been on the island watching all of the events unfold. Two of my favourite quotes from the book are:

“I don’t want to do the pageant anymore. I want to make another hut. That was fun. And I want some gummi bears.”, and “Your problem is not having any trust. You expect the world to fail you, so it does. And then you get all pouty-pants about it. How’s that workin’ out for you, New Hampshire?”

            I did enjoy this book a lot and would give it a 9/10.