“Early losses condition you to believe that short-term plans are always smarter. Long-term plans don't see to matter.” If children see the people around them get into trouble or die, they begin to believe that something like this could happen at any time. They think that nothing is certain. This is true: you never know if you might die in a car accident or of a heart attack tomorrow. However, in “The Other Wes Moore”, most of the boys saw bad things happen to their friends and family. They believed that something would inevitably happen to them, as well.
They made bad decisions, believing that it did not matter in the long term, because there might not be a long term. They began to do drugs. They thought, if their family did not care what happened to them, they why should they care?
Society forgot them and closed them off in run-down places, so the children such as both of the Wes Moore’s grew up believing that society did not need them, and did not want them. One of the boys changed his way of thought by going to military school. Through his years there, he began to mature. The other Wes Moore had a period of time where his outlook improved, but that change was not allowed to grow enough to stay when he got back home.
Both of the boys grew up without their fathers. The narrator’s father died, while the other Wes Moore’s father left. This is why he was not a good father to his own four children; he did not know anything different. However, if his own father had been there when he grew up, it is likely that he would do the same for his children.
Both of the boys grew up selling drugs. All of the other boys where they were from did the same. The boys wanted to fit in, as most of us do. They knew that their families needed money. When they made mistakes and got caught, or saw the same things happening to their friends, they learned that they never knew what might happen in their lives. They began to live how they wanted, because they didn’t know when that freedom would be taken away.
Monday, November 24, 2014
Friday, November 21, 2014
The Other Wes Moore - Pre Reading
People usually do what others expect them to do. Most of the time, if teachers and parents expect a student to make good grades, the student will. If teachers or parents says, “Well, you tried. You couldn’t do any better,” or something like that, the student will believe that he is not smart, and will give less effort in their studies, believing they cannot do well. However, if teachers encourage their students, the students will tend to get better grades and feel better about school and themselves.
If people around you act one way, they probably expect you to act the same way as they act. This is why teachers often say, “You need to represent our school well on the field trip”. They know that where the class is going has probably seen some misbehaved classes, and that the curators will see you the same way at first. Your teachers want to break the stereotype. If the curators at the museum you are visiting treat you like toddlers and have low expectations, you might stoop to those expectations.
Also, where you are from influences what people think of you. The region that you are from may lead people to have stereotypes about you. Some people have prejudices towards others because of where they grew up. Certain accents tend to make people think certain things about you: that you are uneducated, or that you are unkind.
People need to worry less about what other people think about them, and more about what they think about themselves. If you like who you are, who cares if other people do? If you strive to be a kind and fair person, does it really matter what others might expect of you? If you have different interests than other people, that makes you special! If everyone did what was expected of them, there would be no diversity. If you have different interests in life or a different way of speaking than people around you, just be yourself. There is no need to change who you really are so that people like you. If someone doesn’t accept you for who you really are, then perhaps there is no need to consider them a friend. If people don’t appreciate your true self, don’t worry. You will find someone who does, and you might get a new friend because of it.
If people around you act one way, they probably expect you to act the same way as they act. This is why teachers often say, “You need to represent our school well on the field trip”. They know that where the class is going has probably seen some misbehaved classes, and that the curators will see you the same way at first. Your teachers want to break the stereotype. If the curators at the museum you are visiting treat you like toddlers and have low expectations, you might stoop to those expectations.
Also, where you are from influences what people think of you. The region that you are from may lead people to have stereotypes about you. Some people have prejudices towards others because of where they grew up. Certain accents tend to make people think certain things about you: that you are uneducated, or that you are unkind.
People need to worry less about what other people think about them, and more about what they think about themselves. If you like who you are, who cares if other people do? If you strive to be a kind and fair person, does it really matter what others might expect of you? If you have different interests than other people, that makes you special! If everyone did what was expected of them, there would be no diversity. If you have different interests in life or a different way of speaking than people around you, just be yourself. There is no need to change who you really are so that people like you. If someone doesn’t accept you for who you really are, then perhaps there is no need to consider them a friend. If people don’t appreciate your true self, don’t worry. You will find someone who does, and you might get a new friend because of it.
Sunday, November 16, 2014
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore - Post Reading
"All you need to do is find the right book at the right time.”
I think that what this quote means is that when you do something, you have to do it at the right time as well. If you are making an important decision, you can’t just wait forever: you will have lost your chance. Both the decision and the timing are important.
In “Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore”, this quote is very prominent. When Clay sneaks the logbook out of the store, he has to time it right or someone will notice. If he did it at the wrong time, it wouldn’t work.
Also, Mr. Penumbra had many different ideas on how to crack the coded codex vitae of Manutius. Because Corvina is the First Reader, Penumbra could get in trouble for his ideas. In this case, the only “right time” would be if Corvina wasn’t in charge, which was unlikely to happen. Again, if Clay had not had the idea to get Neel as a patron at the right time, Neel might have refused. Clay and Kat wouldn’t have been able to go to New York, and they wouldn’t have seen Penumbra. Furthermore, if Kat hadn’t come into the shop when Clay had the 3D model on his computer, they wouldn’t have gotten into a relationship, and Kat wouldn’t have helped Clay with the other problems. I think what this quote is saying is, “You have to know what to do, but it still won’t work if you’re not doing it at the right time.”
I think that what this quote means is that when you do something, you have to do it at the right time as well. If you are making an important decision, you can’t just wait forever: you will have lost your chance. Both the decision and the timing are important.
In “Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore”, this quote is very prominent. When Clay sneaks the logbook out of the store, he has to time it right or someone will notice. If he did it at the wrong time, it wouldn’t work.
Also, Mr. Penumbra had many different ideas on how to crack the coded codex vitae of Manutius. Because Corvina is the First Reader, Penumbra could get in trouble for his ideas. In this case, the only “right time” would be if Corvina wasn’t in charge, which was unlikely to happen. Again, if Clay had not had the idea to get Neel as a patron at the right time, Neel might have refused. Clay and Kat wouldn’t have been able to go to New York, and they wouldn’t have seen Penumbra. Furthermore, if Kat hadn’t come into the shop when Clay had the 3D model on his computer, they wouldn’t have gotten into a relationship, and Kat wouldn’t have helped Clay with the other problems. I think what this quote is saying is, “You have to know what to do, but it still won’t work if you’re not doing it at the right time.”
Thursday, November 6, 2014
Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Book Store - Pre Reading
Books can do a lot for people, but only if they enjoy reading them. If you take the time to get interested in a book, you can forget the things around you. If you are stressed, a good book can be a way to forget what made you stressed in the first place. It is an escape, in a way. Books can inspire people to do good things as well. If a character in a book can be a good influence on other characters, chances are, they might be a good influence on you. The reverse can also be true. If a character in a book you are reading is a bad influence, they will probably influence you in a negative way, too.
Books also improve language. Writers use interesting words and make us think differently. If people read, they remember some of those interesting words, and go on to use them in conversations, broadening their vocabulary. Books take us to places that we would never go to otherwise. If you read a book that takes place in another time or place, it gives you ideas of what might have happened there.
Books make people want to write. I know this to be true. As a child, I was made to read a lot of books. I now love both reading and writing. Reading books has allowed me to learn to write in different styles, and to write about different characters.
Sometimes when I am really enjoying a book, I will write a spinoff when I finish it. I usually keep the same story, but from a different character’s view. I do this for practice: it is surprisingly difficult to weave another character into a plot that is already established.
Also, the more people read, the better they become at reading. Last summer, I was in a program that required me to read at 600 words per minute and pass a reading comprehension test. At first, they started me at 100 words per minute. A few weeks later, I was at 600 words per minute. I had hardly noticed that the speed had gotten faster. If you practice reading, you will get better.
Books make people more confident, because they make you feel smarter. If people are more confident in who they are, there will be less bullying and other school problems. You can never read too much.
Books also improve language. Writers use interesting words and make us think differently. If people read, they remember some of those interesting words, and go on to use them in conversations, broadening their vocabulary. Books take us to places that we would never go to otherwise. If you read a book that takes place in another time or place, it gives you ideas of what might have happened there.
Books make people want to write. I know this to be true. As a child, I was made to read a lot of books. I now love both reading and writing. Reading books has allowed me to learn to write in different styles, and to write about different characters.
Sometimes when I am really enjoying a book, I will write a spinoff when I finish it. I usually keep the same story, but from a different character’s view. I do this for practice: it is surprisingly difficult to weave another character into a plot that is already established.
Also, the more people read, the better they become at reading. Last summer, I was in a program that required me to read at 600 words per minute and pass a reading comprehension test. At first, they started me at 100 words per minute. A few weeks later, I was at 600 words per minute. I had hardly noticed that the speed had gotten faster. If you practice reading, you will get better.
Books make people more confident, because they make you feel smarter. If people are more confident in who they are, there will be less bullying and other school problems. You can never read too much.
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