Area of Weakness on ELA Regents Exam

What is part 1
In part 1 I am asked to Listen to a speech twice and than take notes for important information. I am than asked to write a response to a speech.After that I am asked to do a set of multiple choice questions on key ideas. Finally I have to write a persuasive essay, using a specific guideline which will be given to me.

My weaknesses-
My weakness for this section is mainly the listening part. I have to listen and take notes at the same time. Sometimes I miss out on writing important information.

How to improve
A) I can improve by writing the important information the first time the teacher reads it out loud and than listen very carefully the second time.
B)
C)
D)

Questions on Session One Part B

Objective: Reading and writing for information and understanding, as assessed by:-
a written response to a text and related visual- multiple-choice questions on basic comprehension.

Let's take a look at a past ELA Regents Part 2 exam and do the following: Read the entire text and graph.

Read the instructions and answer the following:

1- What kind of texts do you expect to read?
Before reading the text, I read the task. According to the task, I will reading about the
effective methods that are used to save endangered species, for this essay.

2- What is a graph, and what kind of information does it elicit?
A graph is "a diagram representing a system of connections or interrelations among two or more things by a number of distinctive dots, lines, bars, and etc."

3- How can you compare the two?
You can compare both the text and the graph by discussing each document. Then you can use specific, accurate, and relevant information from the text and the table to support your opinion.

4- What are they asking you to do in this essay?
For this essay, this part mainly wants me to "write a chapter for a guide, or (your) environmental science class in which you explain why the Florida manatee is endangered and discuss effective methods used to save the Florida manatee."

5- Is this a persuasive or informative essay? Why?
I think that this essay is informative because it doesn't provide it's own based opinion in general. It gives a lot of details, which try to describe something to you.

6- What thesis statement can you possibly write for this essay?
Many species are endangered all around the world. For example, Florida's manatee is endangered and there are three effective ways used to save the Florida manatee.

7- What if they wanted you to write a Letter to a senator, then how many paragraphs would you write?
If the regents asked me to write a letter to a senator, then I would write more then four paragraphs.

Plot Pyramid on Fences

Character List

Character's and what role they play:

Troy Maxson: He appears to be the main character and the protagonist for this play. He is 53 years old. He plays a very strong role in this play. He is the father of two sons named Cory and Lyons. He also has a daughter named Raynell. His wife's name is Rose, and his brother's name is Gabriel. Troy works at a sanitation.

Rose Maxson: Rose is the wife of Troy Maxson and the mother of Cory. Rose also takes care of Troy and Alberta's daughter Raynell, after Alberta dies. She is 43 years old and also is a house wife. She wants to build a fence in her backyard so that her family could be "together."

Cory Maxson: He is the son of both Rose an Troy. Throughout this play Cory wants to keep playing football, but his father, Troy refuses to let him.

Lyons Maxson: He is the son of Troy, and the woman who Troy met before he met Rose. He has a hard time finding a job in this play. Troy usually lends money to him. Lyons is a Jazz musician.

Raynell Maxson: The daughter of Troy and Alberta. Alberta is the woman that Troy had an affair with, after Rose. Raynell's mother dies. So Rose decides to take care of her.

Gabriel Maxson: He is the brother of Troy. Troy gets him out of jail, after he finds out that Gabriel was arrested.

Jim Bono: He is Troy's friend. They both met in jail. They are like best friends. Bono considers Troy as his leader. Bono is influenced by Troy.

August Wilson's Biography

August Wilson was born on April 27, 1945 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and he died on October 2, 2005. He was a great playwright and won many awards for his creative work. August Wilson's father was also called Frederick August Kittle. His father was a German immigrant. Wilson, went to school at Pittsburgh Central Catholic High School. He dropped out of school at age 15 and turned to self-education at the Carnegie Library. Wilson's mother also had married another man named David Bedford. They were a white working class family. Wilson's father died in 1965. At the same year Wilson decided to write poetry. Wilson's early work failed to gain much attention. But his third play, "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom" (1982), won him a wide attention as a dramatist and interpreter for the African American experience. His plays won many awards. In the 20th century, August Wilson explored the lives, dreams, triumphs and tragedies of African-American history and culture. August Wilson gained inspiration from African American artists. A famous play that he once wrote is "Fences" in 1957-58 and 1963. "Fences comprimises the 1950's. It relates to a black family who tries to make connections in the slag slippery hills of a middle African Urban industrial city. He tries to tell the story of four generations of black African Americans.

August Wilson's cycle of plays:

"Gem of the Ocean," 1904
"Joe Turner's Come and Gone," 1911
"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," 1927
"The Piano Lesson," 1936
"Seven Guitars," 1948
"Fences," 1957-58 and 1963
"Two Trains Running," 1969
"Jitney," 1977
"King Hedley, II," 1985
"Radio Golf," 1997

Sources:
http://www.sparknotes.com/drama/fences/context.html
http://www.tqnyc.org/NYC00085/nov1ess.htm
http://www.bookrags.com/studyguide-fences/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_Wilson
http://www.commondreams.org/views05/1014-21.htm

Analysis of 2 Critical Lens Quotes

Quote:

“I like flawed characters because somewhere in them I seemore of the truth.”

Author- Nicolas Cage,

Nicolas Cage stated that, "I like flawed characters because somewhere in them I see more of the truth.” This quote is trying to say that the person likes imperfect characters. He can right away tell what type of character they are when they make mistakes. They can't hide the truth, basically. I agree with this quote because flawed characters are characters who make mistakes, so we can tell their way of character very easily. The two novels Of mice and men by john Stienbeck and Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens, are great examples that relate to this quote.




Quote:

“To gain that which is worth having, it may be necessary to lose everything else.”
Author: Bernadette Devlin

INTRODUCTION

Bernadette Devlin once stated that, “to gain that which is worth having, it may be necessary to lose everything else.” Devlin tries to state that if one wants to achieve something in life and would want total control over it, then they would also lose something else in order to achieve what they want. I agree with this quote because to win or gain something you would have to lose something. The two novels, The Pearl by John Steinbeck has a character who faces life time sacarafices inorder to acieve a goal, which is to make a better life for his family,and Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Jacobs is a about a woman who fights for her freedom, are superior examples that relate to this quote.

One of the 2 critical lens quote developed into a complete outline

BODY I :

A. The Pearl, by John Steinbeck talks about a character who fights for his sons life. Inorder to save his childs life, Kino the main character sacrafices many things.

1- Introduce the main characters.
Kino- The main character.
Jauana- Kino's wife.
Coyotito- The son of Kino and Jauana.
2- The setting of this novel is in a brush house near the sea.
3-Coyotito gets bit by a Scorpion. This leads Kino and his family to search for pearls to cure his son, Coyotito.



BODY II :

B. In this novel Kino has a goal which he wants to acomplish and would do anything to achieveit.

1- Many incidents happen in kino's life, but he never gives up.
2- The theme of this novel is never giving up hope.
3- Kino finds a pearl but has trouble selling it. Throughout the novel Kino wants to sell the pearl so he can get enough money to cure his son.



BODY III :

C. Incidents in the life of a slave girl by Harriet Jacobs, talks about a woman who makes many sacrafices in life just to achieve one goal, which is freedom from slavery.

1- The main character Linda Brent fights for freedom throughout this whole novel.
2- Linda Brent almost lost everything while fighting for her freedom.
3- One setting from this novel is the garret. The garret is a small attic at Linda's grandmothers house. Linda hides in that garret for 7 years.

CONCLUSION :

Bernadette Devlin's quote, “to gain that which is worth having..." relates to both novels in many different ways. Both novels have characters who sacrafice things inorder to achieve their goal.