Parallel Structure

Have you ever heard the saying, "The Fools mistakes are known to the world but not to himself, and the Wise Mans mistakes are known to himself but no to the world?" This is called parallel structure. These two sentences are similar in many ways, but slightly different.

Navidad en Spain

The traditional Spanish Christmas food is known as 'Pavo Trufado de Navidad', which means turkey stuffed with truffles (the mushrooms, not chocolates). In a place called Galicia, a region in North-West Spain, surrounded by water, the most popular meal for Christmas is seafood: shellfish, mollusks, lobster, and even small crabs.

Turkey Stuffed with Truffles

Seafood from Galicia

http://www.mujer.info/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Pavo-trufado.jpg
http://www.itrainsinspain.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/mariscada.jpg

Questions

You are buying ice cream for a party at your school, in which 1500 students will attend. 1. What is the population in the above scenario? 2. Give two reasons why you wouldn't survey the entire population? 3. Describe the sample you would survey, and explain why you chose that sample. 4. How would you use the results of your survey to make a generalization about students’ preferred ice cream flavors?

1. The 1500 students attending
2. It would take a really, really, really long time... unless we use Google Survey
3. Perhaps a randomly selected thirty, and to keep the survey from being biased, 15 will be male, 15 will be female, 10 from each side etc.
4. We can say each person questioned counts for 50 people. We can then find

Invictus

Invictus: impossible to defeat, unconquered, in the sense "you can beat someone physically, but you can never break what they think is true."

27 years in a tiny cramped cell, working long hours in hard work every day. How can that not break your spirit? People would go insane, wouldn't they? But then, why didn't Nelson Mandela? There is an obvious answer, he ,quite simply, really wanted to change South Africa. But still, I don't think that anyone could ever survive for 27 years like that. Perhaps it was the poem that he always kept with him, that made everything seem possible. The poem to him, was probably a sign of hope- and a sign that no one could break his spirit. Without the idea that anyone could break his mind, he could continue living normally in a place where everything was hopeless.

So does that mean that your mind is only broken if you think it can be? The key to not giving up is not thinking it is possible to give up? Or is it merely a sense of hope, that your dream might suddenly turn around and go your way? Or does Mandela's poem symbolize something completely different to him?

The Gigantic Explosive Magma-Spewing Murderous Monstrosities that Have Been Benefitting Us All Along

When you think about volcanoes, you probably think of them as a major problem to mankind- massacring tons of people with each explosion. Well, here's a bigger problem: How do we get power without polluting the atmosphere? Water is too inefficient, solar only works in the sun, nuclear can irradiate the landscape with one puncture. That leaves Geothermal Energy- obtaining power from the heat of a volcano. No pollution, no inefficiency, no special timing, no danger of explosions!

So volcanoes are amazing ways to create free power. Also, volcanic ash, which might seem to pollute, actually fertilizes the soil making some of the most nutrient-rich plants on the earth! Massive savannah are created by volcanoes. So for one year, death and destruction, but for the next twenty years, LIFE!

And of course the garden variety benefits- gemstones, natural spas, all sorts of reasonably average benefits.

So volcanoes are actually useful!

The Dog Who Ran Away and The Boy Who Didn't Chase It

Pakistan Creates Island out of Nowhere!

On around October 1, a island of hardened mud sprang out of the ground. Scientist have been working on the case for about a week and they claim that the island is a mud volcano, created when scalding hot water mixes with methane, carbon dioxide, and several other gases and sediments. If this mix finds an opening, such as one opened by an earthquake, the mud will shoot out and generate a tiny island.
Either that, or aliens are messing with us.
The link is here: http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/10/06/new-photos-pakistan-earthquake-island/
But if you're just looking for weird islands coming out of nowhere, try this: http://www.livescience.com/28828-10-strangest-sights-google-earth.html
(IMAGE 2)

Reading and Writing Skills: A Reflection

In my RLA, we have been learning different ways to create topics, or themes, or just ideas, for our memoirs which we have been writing. Like, for example, using an object to create an idea- I really got that and found the idea interesting. I'm also good at gleaning a story from a picture, but creating a good sized story from a song was one of the hardest parts.
Subjects and predicates- easy to understand, and the categories are simple. You can instantly see a Complete Compound from a Simple. But identifying the subject is confusing- why is "The black cat named Jack"a subject and not just "The... Cat"?
Understanding a books tone and mood was a little hard, but interpreting texts, especially the characters and their plans, motivations, fears, goals, flaws (and countless others), was one of my skills. Perhaps this will carry on to our next unit, Themes?

Vocaroo RLA Sentences

Record and upload voice >>

1. What part of your health are you most proud of and why?
Social! 3 laughs a day? I could do 30! Lots of friends, lots of hanging out, lots of chatting, all sorts of stuff! I know almost everyone in my grade, and I'm friends with a third of them.

2. What part would I like to improve the most and why?
Spiritual Wellness- Silence and Solitude isn't really my thing (4 year old sister), and I don't really have enough time to enjoy nature and beauty.

3. How can I start making a change?
Calm down- go on walks, have some breaks and live life a little slower. Maybe even meditate. Take a pause every twenty minutes for a few seconds and look out.

Squid Jet Propulsion: Genius!

Google Science Fair has picked its finalists!

Movement-Enhancing Gloves and Battery-Free Flashlights are cool, but I think the winner of the Science Fair should be Alex Spiride (13) and his squid jet propulsion robot.

It does need a pole above the water to pump in air, but it has the benefits of not disrupting the ecosystem: it's sounds just like a squid swimming in the water, letting scientists approach marine life without causing alarm. It also can't kill marine life with a propeller. It's highly efficient with power and can get up to speeds of 30 Cm./Sec. It easily outperforms any man-made submarine.

I hope scientists begin using this system to power their submarines. If you want to look closer, go to This Website.

Uncool or Cool? You Chose. No-one Else.

A couple years ago, smoking was considered the coolest thing ever. And still, people all over the world are dying from the tar-filled poisonous smoke (or the forest fires caused by cigarettes) puffed out from all those who smoke. No matter what, dying is worse than being uncool. But there are lots of other examples. For example, why does doing the opposite of what people say look "Cool"?

I mean, not doing what people say is an accomplishment in a way, but not in a good way. How did people start believing that to be cool you have to be rebellious?
I once had a friend in Denmark, and he was a skater. One day, a bunch of bullies came by and teased him for wearing safety gear! Two weeks later, one of the bullies were involved in an accident while skating with a concussion. Great timing!
It's really annoying that everyone has weird ideas on how you should act, because lots of people get hurt because of their actions. And the worst part is that they do it on purpose! 

Did you know there are some people who think seat belts are stupid?

People have to stop doing all these stupid things just because “everyone else” (mostly the bullies, I notice) tell them its not cool to be F.X. smart. What? Why is that not cool? If you’re good at something, why do people get to abuse them for that? Why do people think they can call people nerds, or dweebs, or any of the limitless insults there are intended for smart people?
Don’t do what people say without thinking. You’ll just do something stupid if you always do what people think you should do (well, everyone will love you if you do everything they say, but still...).

How To Use Your Computer

Bibliography:

Creating class labels

How to Perform Text-to-Speech

How to use the text-to-speech feature for MacBook Air.
Explained with Shakespeares 18th Sonnet. For no Reason
Also, T-T-S doesn't seem to work in the URL zone. I wonder why...

Credits for the sonnet is here: http://www.shakespeare-online.com/sonnets/18.html

Hygine Prezi

http://prezi.com/jsetzcszsvah/untitled-prezi/?kw=view-jsetzcszsvah&rc=ref-37673313

4 Poems

T- Technical

Yellow like an Aureolin banana of orangine origin

But sweeter, not quite a papaya, not quite a pineapple

But softer, not quite the dark mush of crushed watermelon

But still the same melting feeling of sweetness

Delicious, beautiful and smelling of exotic jungles

Ripening, green, promising, bringing eagerness to form

So perfect

A gift from the heavens

 I- Imagery

Tiny trees of mold and dirt, cancerous leaves, fallen stems, simple, but still easy to see as a tiny green chameleon, darting in and out

Musty, moldy, mucky, mossy, smelling of an ancient city, abandoned so long that its name is already long forgotten deep in the leaves of the forest

Plants, long and lush, clean and green, mask the thousand of innocent baby plants that die needlessly, starved of air and light

Dark, deep, untouched, green, dense moldy...

Instant Forest- Just Add Imagination.

M- Music

There was an old fellow called Zach

Who had an old sore Back

The back had grown Mit

after being repetitively Hit

By another old fellow called Jack

A Bat and a Cat and a Mat

Who sat on a Matte Hat

The Hat wasn’t Made

To hold such a Sade

And collapsed when given a Pat

There was a man named Tope

Who was Slowly Scrubbed in Soap

But Alas and Great Toil

The soap was Toilet Oil

And made him Scream and Mope

In a Dark Churchyard May

A Great many people Lay

The War wasn’t Over

And Neither was Ms. Grover

But Mr. Grover was recently Slay

E- Emotion

Tears running like the insides of a coconut that has finally cracked open

I watch as the trundling truck belching dark fumes rolls past...

...in silence

I stare solemnly back at the old building that held so many memories, of laughter, happiness, crying, shouting, fun...

…in silence

I smile at the waving crowd that has gathered behind me, masks of happiness and smiles shielding sadness behind...

...in silence

I step into the car that will take me to new experiences, opportunities, feelings...

...but still in silence

R-Reflections

1. Riddle of the Mango

I used both repetition (but still..., but still.., but still...) and simile (Yellow like an Aureolin banana of orangine origin) in this poem, and a small alliteration (orangine origin)

P.S. The alliteration WAS intended

2. Forest of Imagination

Musty, moldy, mucky, mossy; Dark, deep, untouched, green, dense moldy... and there are many other imageries. (Note the explicit use of alliteration)

3. Overly Crazed Limericks

Limericks have a very rhythm-like sound to them, making for a great “musical” poem collection. There was originally five poems, but I cut one.

4. Moving... But Still in Silence

Very emotional, represents moving as ripping of an old page, be it good or bad, and replacing with a blank sheet. Also shows the memories of the old house that can never be destroyed by anything but time.







These poems are testament to our last RLA unit, Poetry
For Poetry has taught us of

Line Breaks, and Onomatopoeia
and other weird wordings, wishing they were something other than
Synecdoches.

Oh look! I see and alliteration up there!
And I predict a...
Simile! Like a metaphor using like or as...

Another odd item!
But that's getting repetitive.
It would be cooler if we put them in..

A Haiku
Quatrain
Couplet
Limerick

Christianity Project

Science CSI Evidence (as of May 14)!

Key:

Philip        Rehaan        Leandro        Lukas

Preliminary Evidence	Possible Suspects	Connection to Suspects
Part of a blue ribbon	Mr. Robertacio Mr. Haas Mrs. Guggisberg Mr. Diebley Mr. Pratt Mr. Barber Mrs. Chassagne Mr. Combes Mr. Peterson Mrs. Roy-Felice Mrs. Kuan Sun Mr. Symes Mr. Starker Mr. McDougal	Favorite color is blue. Likes to wear blue jeans Favorite color is blue. Favorite color is blue. Favorite color is blue. Favorite color is aqua marine. Favorite color is blue. Favorite color is blue. Favorite color is blue. Favorite color is blue and likes to wear indigo-blue jeans Favorite color is blue. Favourite color is blue Favorite color is blue. Favorite color is blue.
Unknown red liquid	Mr. Koltutsky	Likes cranberry juice.
Coins	Mr. Starker	Hobby: Coin Collecting
Half-eaten chocolate bar	Ms. Carter Mr. Robertacio	Loves any type of chocolate! Favorite food is Thai and/or chocolate
Fingerprint on mirror comb	There are no suspects yet	There are no connections to suspects as there aren’t any.
Hair on comb	There are no suspects yet	There are no connections to suspects
Note - “Now we have your gerbils we can make more!”	There are no suspects yet	There are no connections to suspects
QR Code taped on back of the table	There are no suspects yet	There are no connections
Potato chips on the ground	Mr. Diebley Mrs. Chassagne Mr. Walker Mr. Emerson	Favorite food is Organically grown corn chips. Likes to eat. Favorite food is potato chips. Favorite food is potato chips.
Prime Suspects	Mr. Starker	Favourite color is blue, Favourite food is tacos, Favourite beverage is tea, Hobby is coin collecting

Judaism Project

Hinduism Poster

Penney, Sue. Hinduism. Austin, TX: Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1997. Print. "Holi." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 Nov. 2013. Web. 11 Apr. 2013. Dallapiccola, Anna L. Hindu Myths. Austin: University of Texas, 2003. Print. 23dingenvoormusea. "Shiva Nataraja." Flickr. Yahoo!, 30 June 2009. Web. 11 Apr. 2013. "Brahman (cattle)." - Wikimedia Commons. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2013 "Karma." - Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2013. "Dashavatara." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 04 Nov. 2013. Web. 11 Apr. 2013. "Om." Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2013. "Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 10.djvu/28." - Wikisource, the Free Online Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2013. Venâncio, Felipe. "Tibetan Names of God." Flickr. Yahoo!, 05 Sept. 2006. Web. 11 Apr. 2013.

Pets Should Be In Classrooms

                                   Pets Should Be In Classrooms!                           Lukas D-P

                                                                                                                        Blk C,D

                                                                                                                        Mr. Peterson

To Mr.Combes:

I think animals (Especially furred animals like dogs and cats) should be allowed in the classroom to help students learn. Numerous studies show pets are useful in classrooms because of many reasons, but I wish to show you only three of the many reasons that pets are useful. These are: Animals decrease stress, cause increases in self-esteem and decrease chance of sickness.

It has been scientifically proven that stroking any furred animal gets the brain to produce oxytocin, a neural hormone that decreases stress gain and increases stress loss. This effect does not work for any other furred object or person (Without fur, of course). Kids should be allowed to stroke a pet before and after a test, presentation or other stress inducing project.

Being able to raise a pet grants a child a feeling of success and victory to be able to help someone else survive. This helps increase self-esteem and works like a counsellor in itself. Heightened self-esteem makes students work harder at overwhelming projects (Hint Hint Nudge Nudge Wink Wink Water Project), because they think they can do it.

According to studies, households and school with pets have less reports of sickness than schools and households without. Also, pet owners are shown to have heightened immune system and higher resistance to diseases, making the accusation that says pets cause illness sort of redundant.

In conclusion, pets have many uses, and not only as a reward for students (Though that is another good use for them). These three are only examples. I hope you allow pets in our school. They would be really helpful to students in class because they decrease stress, increase self-esteem and lower chances of sickness.

From,

Lukas D-P

6th Grade Student

            Excerpt

           

It has been scientifically proven that stroking any furred animal gets the brain to produce oxytocin, a neural hormone that decreases stress gain and increases stress loss. This effect does not work for any other furred object or person (Without fur, of course). Kids should be allowed to stroke a pet before and after a test, presentation or other stress inducing project.

Water Project

This is a list of everything we have done in the water project:

Week one:
Our plan is made and placed in Google Drive. Our materials are being bought, and I have loaned some stuff from Mr. Diebley

Week two:
Our Plan has been redone once, but not much else. I found a siphon for our project!

Week three
We have begun work on our creation, and made good progress. The bio-sand filter is done

Week four
The machine is done, but I've been sick for two days. We are now creating a prezi to display what we have made.

Our finished Creation:

Filtered water from it:

Stress

My mom avoids stress by doing yoga, while my dad likes to lie down and read a book. My sister also likes to lie down and calm her mind for a moment.

Science Water Facts

1. 780 million people don't have access to purified water (Three times the size of the USA)
2.  Every time you invest $1, you will gain $9 in return
3. Half of the world hospitals are filled with someone suffering from a water related problem


Memo- Show Ms. Hill "http://adoptamicrobe.blogspot.sg"

Science Microbes!

Almost surely paramecium. Paramecium live in both fresh and, well, not-so-fresh water. A paramecium can range from a mere 50 micrometers to a full 330. Paramecium use cilia, tiny hairs, that act like oars, to move around. Did you know there is a groove running from paramecia's bottom to its centre lined with cilia that work to bring food to the parameciums mouth instead of  helping it move?

Cell Webquest Reflection

I got the question- Which organelle is the storage center for food and water!- wrong; I answered "Golgi" where the answer should have been the "Vacuole". Also I missed a few descriptions in the venn diagram including "Regular" and "Irregular" shaped and "Small Vacuole" and "Large Vacuole".

Water-Use Reflection

My family's average monthly water use for the past six months is 14.48 cubic meters per month. We live in an apartment, and the national average for apartments in Singapore is 17.2 cubic meters per month. That means my family is 3.28 cubic meters under the average, which computes to 19% lower than the average household uses.

There are five people living in my house. After I worked out the calculations, I found that each member of the house uses about 96.5 liters of water every day. Again, this is much lower than the national average. The average Singaporean uses about 114 liters of water per day. My 96.5 liters is only what I use at home. I also use water at school and when I'm out of my house other places in Singapore. I might need to look at ways to reduce my consumption and have a smaller water footprint on our planet.

If I could convince my family to help me, I think we could reduce our water use by at least 25%. This would put us at 10.86 cubic meters, even lower below the national average. My ultimate goal is to reduce our usage by 10% the first month, an additional 10% the second month and another 5% in the third month. After that we will try to make small reductions or simply stay at that level.  The graph below shows my family's water usage for the past six months (blue), our average (green) and my "targets" for the next three months (red).

I've identified a five-point plan for my family. Every time we reach our target we will have a eat out somewhere. Here's the plan:

1. Don't run water while brushing teeth, shaving, washing dishes.
2. Collect unused water to water house plants.
3. Only do full loads of laundry.
4. Install water-efficient shower heads in showers.
5. Install flow restrictors in faucets.

R.L.A. Mood Music

I think this song symbolises the mood in "When My Nam Was Keoko", a sad and dark song. "When My Name Was Keoko" Is about a girl named Sun-Hee and her brother Tae-Yul who live in Korea under the rule of the Japanese. The book isn't slavery at all, but it's nearly worse. Sun-Hee is renamed Keoko and her brother is now called Nobuo. They may never hang the Korean flag up. They must plant cherry trees in their garden. They must burn all Sharon trees, the tree of Korea. It seems like everything Korea has made was destroyed. Therefore, I picked this song to symbolise the shattered soul of Korea that the Japanese are trying to destroy.

Friendship Bumper Stickers

Friendships arre easy to make- just TALK!

Ending a friendship isn't always bad. Fun has a limit.

As a friend, be loyal, forgiving, helpful and empathic.

Climbing Reflection

I think I did did bouldering moderately okay, but my height isn't that good and my top distance is the red line. I can get across 8 panels without falling off but that does take me quite a while to traverse.

RLA Fakebook for Hades

http://www.classtools.net/fb/22/EKKcKa

Animal Speeds

Sushi

My favourite food is sushi. It's a great source of protein and fish oil. Homemade sushi is best because you can use wholegrain rice, which is a good source of grain. Vinegar, the main ingredient in making "sushi" rice, lowers your cholesterol, triacylglycerol, and makes you less likely to eat more fatty foods, so it decreases your obesity.

Water Polo Reflection

I think I played by the rules okay. I have to work on passing. I moved into space and caught okay. I did okay in defence, but my offence didn't quite work out.

Flag Football Reflection

I think I worked as an okay team player, although my catching skill needs work. I made no real plans, but I followed my teams plans pretty distinctly. We all followed the rules. I was a lot better at moving on and off the ball. I think I could throw a spiral pass a good distance and still quite accurately but I still have to improve my ability to run with the ball.

pH Scales!

The pH scale is numbered from 0 (or -5 in the case of super acids) to 14, 0-7 being acidic and 7-14 being basic, or alkaline. 7 is neutral (like water) and is neither acidic nor basic. pH is the amount of activity of solvated hydrogen ion in an object. This value is determined by adding the object to universal indicator paper that changes colour according to the pH value of the chemical. It is made of water, propan-1-ol, phenolphthalein sodium salt, sodium hydroxide, methyl red, bromothymol blue, monosodium salt, and thymol blue monosodium salt. The pH scale is logarithmic, and works in powers of ten. For example, an acid with a pH value of 2 will be 10 to the power of 2 times more acidic than one with a pH value of 4.