Ender's Game Anticipation Guide

1) "Lying is justifiable if it's for the greater good" I gave this a 3 because at times you may need to lie. It might be needed but over all I think that they backfire. Lies can be hurtful and harmful, and usually if when people tell a lie they have to tell more than one in order for the first lie to make sense. I suppose that the government lying would only make sense for the greater cause. They wouldn't want to cause a panic.

2)" Sometimes violence is the only way to solve a problem." I really don't agree with this. I think violence is one of the last solutions actually so I gave it a 2. When people use violence they not only hurt themselves but they hurt others as well. There's other solutions before violence like acting civil and talking it out. But if people had tried everything I think that it would be okay as a last resort.

3)"It is okay to kill someone in self-defense." I strongly agree with this so I gave it a 4. If someone is attacking you and attempting to kill you I absolutely think it's okay to do what it takes to keep yourself alive. However, if they don't have a deadly weapon and are only trying to hurt you or something then killing is not the answer, I'm sure you'd feel a great deal of guilt afterwards.

4)"Words are stronger than fists." I agree with this 100%. Words can be much more useful. Words can convince and persuade people to get their way. Fists can make people angry and want to attack back. So overall words seem to make a bigger difference that's why I gave it a 5.

5)" Bullies hurt others because of low self esteem." I think this can be true. Bullies can sometimes bully others because they don't have a good life at home, or they've been treated like that so they want to lash back. It might also be the only way they know how to deal with their feelings. But they might just do it for fun and think that picking on others makes you strong and cool. That's why I gave it a 3.

6)" Only the best and brightest students should receive the best education to become a nations leader." This one I was on the fence about because obviously not just the "brightest" students should get a good education. Everyone should have that opportunity to archive greatness. But on the other hand, not everyone could be a nations leader. That's a huge responsibility so maybe only the "brightest" should have the chance because they would understand the consequence of what there training for. I gave this a 3.

7)" Revenge is never justified." I want to disagree with this because I like getting revenge. I think if people do something horrible than they should be held accountable for there actions. I give this a 2.

8)" Crying is evidence of weakness" This I think isn't true. Crying should never be a sign of weakness it should be a sign that you're human and that you actually have feelings. That's why I gave this a 1.

9)" Any action is acceptable in war" I gave this a 4 because if people are already in war it means they weren't getting along to begin with.  They put out hundreds of soldiers out to fight and there fighting to win. So I think that it would be okay to do anything to make sure that they do. Except like explode the whole enemy's country that wouldn't be cool.

10)"Teenagers need discipline and rules because they can't control themselves." I guess I agree with this except I do think we can control ourselves. I just think we don't have as much experience as adults and we sometimes make mistakes. We do need rules and discipline because that way we can learn, that's why I gave it a 3.

11) "Only through personal sacrifice can someone create positive change." This is true but I don't think it's the only way to create positive change. Anyone can make a change in the world you don't need to go through something difficult to do it. I gave this a 2.

12)"Generating compassion for your enemies is the only way to create peace." Yeah to create peace for someone you don't get along with you would have to think about them differently. Imagining being in your enemies shoes would help you understand why they do what they do. So I think that generating compassion for them is a really nice way to create peace. So I gave it a 4.

My Learning Styles.

You Are a Bodily-Kinesthetic Learner

Your mantra: Movement is fun-damental.
Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence means you think in movements. The fundamental ability to use movements for either self-expression or precision to achieve a goal is crucial for surgeons, athletes, mimes, choreographers, and directors.
The best way for you to retain information is to associate it with an activity. Dance, acting, and sports are easy for you to master. Relate what you are trying to learn to one of these activities, and you will retain information and gain understanding.

I agree with this 100%. I love to be active and move around. I feel like when I sit for to long my brain shuts off. Having came from an athletic family it makes sense. My dad was an athlete all the way through college and he's now a personal trainer. I like to learn things through movements. It helps my brain stay active.  So this does not come as a surprise to me



You Are a Logical-Mathematical Learner

Your mantra: Why? Well, because it's logical.

Logical-mathematical intelligence is often what we refer to when we call someone -- such as a mathematician or an engineer -- smart. You possess the ability to understand complex problems, both logical and mathematical. This intelligence asks questions, finds solutions, and reflects on the problem-solving process.   

It only makes sense that I got 25%. I am not a math person what so ever. Math is the hardest subject for me, it takes me longer to understand the concepts. But in the end I still understand it so thats good.

You Are a Musical Learner

Your mantra: That sounds good to me!

You probably sing to yourself while walking down the street. Keep it up! Musical intelligence is associated with enjoying music, singing (vocalists), making music (composers), and playing an instrument (instrumentalists). You are sensitive to sounds and the emotions music conveys. You have a unique ability to know when something is off key.

I was actually surprised I got 63% for music. I mean I love music! I always sing to myself and I love performing, I mean sure I get a little stage fright but once I start I love it. I also played the flute for 3 years. I love everything about music so I was surprised I didn't score higher.

Ender's Game Chapters 1-5

Chapter 1
1) The adults lie to Ender because they think he is capable of great things but they don't want to freak out or scare him away. But even though they lied Ender could tell, but he went with it anyways. 

2) Well in that society it seems that you are only allowed to have two children. But they government sometimes allows families to have three if the first two did not meet there expectations. So for his parents I think it was both positive and negative that they had a third child. Positive because who wouldn't be happy to have another child. Negative because they were/are religious and it went against what they believed. Their piers also thought differently of them. For Peter I believe it was a negative because Ender was just living proof that he didn't meet the expectations to attend Battle School. For Valentine I think Ender being born was a positive because they get along so well. She loves Ender and doesn't care that he is a "third". As for his classmates I don't see why they couldn't look past him being a "third' but obviously they couldn't because they resolved to making fun of him instead. 

Chapter 2
 1) I honestly thought Peter wasn't joking at first. He seemed so serious It was kind of scary. Especially when he said that Valentine wouldn't always be there for him, and that she couldn't forget this conversation because he wouldn't. " You'll think that I forgot. And years will pass and there will be a terrible accident"(pg13) He was referring to Ender "accidentally" dying and it being Valentines fault because she thought he wasn't serious and that he forgot.

2) They entire chapter Peter was a complete bully towards Ender. It really didn't even seem like they were brothers by the way he treated him. But when he said sorry he seemed like a completely different person. He took down his mean big brother facade and sincerely apologized. To say the least I was surprised. I think his attitude changed because he wasn't being watched. He thought that everyone was asleep and he didn't need to keep is act up.

3) Ender seems very smart to be six year old boy and I really like him. The author proves this by when Ender's getting bullied. He thinks that since he doesn't have anything nice to say he should just keep it to himself. " Anything I say will just make it worse. So say nothing.(pg6) 
Valentine seems intelligent and caring. She protects Ender like an older sister should even though her big brother is the one being mean." You're all talk. You don't mean any of it"(pg13)
Now Peter seems like a very sad and cruel person. How he treats his brother and sister is appalling. But for the books purpose I like him. I like him because I can't quite figure him out. He adds mystery and excitement to the story. 

Chapter 3
1) Graff meant that evolution is working against girls because the girls weren't born to be fighters. It seems that their purpose is to birth the children and take care of them. They are meant to be kind and giving people and to take care of others.

2) I think OSC includes this because Ender is just a six year old child. From the way he starts it it could seem as if Ender was a teenager. But this shows he's just a young boy. I also think it shows how Ender has a long way to go before he becomes an officer or any other position.

Chapter 4
1) When Graff says "Individual human beings are tools that others use to help us all survive" I think he means that every person is just a small piece that helps build the final outcome. That everyone needs to have there part and not worry about one thing because everything will fall apart.

2) They think Ender is a genius and creative. But in order to stay creative he has to think outside the box. So they think the best way is to isolate him so he has no friends and won't lose his creativity. But if he were to adapt to the systems then he would start to think like everybody else.

Chapter 5
1) I don't really think it's healthy to hold all of those feelings inside of you. Because they'll just keep pilling up and one day you might just explode because you never let anything out. The positive to showing feelings is it lets people know that he is just a child and what he's doing isn't easy. The negative is that some might think he's weak. People will think he's not strong enough for Battle School.
The positive to not showing his feelings is that people will respect him and assume he is a strong child. But not showing feelings as I said before could be bad because keeping things inside for to long isn't healthy.
2) Ender beat Bernard by taking away his respect that the others had for him. He wasn't the leader anymore he was the laughing stock. Ender made jokes and sent them to everybody's desk saying it was from Bernard. It made it so all of his followers didn't take him seriously. This is an unusual solution because usually Ender fixes his problems with violence but this time he used a smarter solution. He used his brain to outsmart Bernard.

3) Three coping mechanisms are
His brain: He uses his brain to get himself out of sticky situations. This is helpful because it helps him think about things and use his creativity to help him.
Violence: He fights to solve his issues. In the end this is harmful to him because it makes him second guess himself and he starts to think he's just like Peter. Also the people he fights will want to fight back
Observing: He uses his patience to watch and learn before doing difficult things. This is helpful. Some people jump into situations to fast and don't have a plan and don't think ahead. But Ender does he observes others like in the game room when he watches the older boys and when Bonzo doesn't let him practice with the others he watches instead. 

The Attackers Awake.

Madison

12/4/12

The Attackers Awake.

    Faster...I had to run faster if we wanted to get away. But I couldn’t do it, I could feel my legs start to weaken and slowly start turning to jell-o. My mind was racing a million miles per hour but I was only thinking one thing, get down the mountain. I started feeling my eyes sting from the tears that were leaking through. But I knew I couldn’t let the pain get the best of me so I put up with it, grabbed her hand and ran faster.

    Maybe I should rewind a bit and tell you who “us” is. My name is Madison Waters and I’m an 8th grader at Trinidad School. It was summer 2012 and me and my best friend ,Noa, were going to summer camp together. It is our favorite place and was where we met for the first time. Lost Coast camp is what I look forward to throughout the year. The idea of sleeping in the cabin and playing capture the flag on the beach brings a smile to my face every time. It was my fifth time as a Lost Coast camper and I could tell this year was going to be just as fun. We had returned from our cabin sleep over early because of a horrendous thunderstorm. Everybody was soaked from head to toe. You could tell how much energy it took out of Noa and I ,because when we got back to camp we didn’t change our clothes but just flopped down on our cots and were ready to go back to sleep. I felt a tap on my shoulder I rolled over to see Noa staring at me.
    “Maddi...I can’t sleep.” she said. She had dark bags under her gorgeous green  turquoise eyes. Her long brown hair was stuck to her face from the rain we had just came out of. I could see why she couldn’t fall asleep, thunder was rumbling every 30 seconds and the dark morning sky would sometimes light up because of the lightning. It was difficult but I was so exhausted I knew I had to rest.
    “ It’s ok Noa just try to sleep it’s still really early in the morning” She just sighed and rolled over on her side. Whatever I thought, I'm going to sleep.
   
    A couple of hours later after a nice long nap everybody woke up in my cabin. Our counselor Helena told us we would be going on a “yonder”. Now a “yonder” is basically like a hike but the directors insisted that it was different. They said it was suppose to be the “journey of a lifetime”.But everybody just started complaining on how we just wanted to stay in the cabin and relax.

“ Come on Helena, I’ve never been on a yonder, and I really don’t feel like going on one now.” Complained my friend Ericka.

    “ Sorry girls the directors insist on getting exercise because we didn’t get to do our camp activities today. So everybody up lets go!”

    We had walked to the top of JC hill and suddenly I didn’t regret coming. I had never in my life seen such a beautiful site. The view was amazing. The forest went on for miles but came to a stop at the Mattole river. The river bends through the valley as if it was a snake slithering its way through the grass.  The hills seemed to roll on forever. The dark green of the trees and the light blue morning sky contrasted amazingly together. We stayed on the hill for a while and took pictures with the view behind us. We were in the middle of taking a cabin photo when I felt a sharp pain in the back of my leg. I had absolutely no idea what had caused the pain. I rubbed the back of my leg and rolled up my sweatpants. I asked my friend Alyssa if she could see anything.
” Umm...ya there’s a big bump on the back of your thigh.” she replied.
Being the reasonable person I am, I started freaking out and jumping to conclusions.
    “ Oh My God. I’ve been bit. What if I’m going to die!? What if something poisonous bit me!? What if it was a spider?!”
    “Calm down Maddi. I just heard Helena say she was stung by a bee, that’s probably what happened to you too.” she reassured me.
    “ Oh. Right. Of course. I knew that, haha.” I laughed nervously feeling a bit embarrassed of my actions. The camp directors decided we should go because as it turned out a quite a few campers had been stung, including Noa. I went over to her and we started walking back down the hill. We were up front with Bender the counselor and the boys from the Alder cabin. Everything was going fine we were all just laughing and talking having a good time when suddenly Noa cried out in pain. She’d been stung again and was getting agitated.

” Come on Noa don’t worry we’ll be back to camp soon, everything will be alright.” I patted her on the back just to give her reassurance.

    We got a total of five feet when I got stung in the upper thigh. We started running to catch up with the others when we heard screaming and everyone started sprinting along the trail.
    “ AWWW HORNETS RUN!!!”
I could see the black and yellow beasts swarming around Noa and that was my cue to scream like a little girl and run. I looked behind me to find Noa standing there paralyzed.
    “ Noa! Run!!” She wasn’t doing anything so I ran back took her hand and started dragging her behind me. By then Noa was crying while I was pulling her, we had both been stung at least four times. My ears filled with the dissatisfying buzzing of the hornets. It was like a bad dream and I couldn’t escape the grasp of the terrible monster. It was as if I could feel them breathing down my neck. I ran as fast as I could the only thing is we couldn’t really run because we were coming down a hill! The trail was a good three feet in diameter. We couldn’t risk running any faster or we’d go off the edge and fall down the hillside. But that didn’t stop the boys. We saw them ditch the trail and start running down the side, some tripping and falling down. Noa looked at me and I nodded my head in approval.

“ Let’s do it” she said. We ran down the hillside and things were actually going okay. Noa probably thought that I was crazy though. I was laughing and crying at the same time. I knew it wasn’t really the appropriate time to laugh, but hey, I laugh in intense situations. I was thinking about the old cartoons when the stupid humans ruin the bees nest and the bees start chasing them. I never thought I would experience it first hand. Definitely not as amusing in person. Why didn’t we ditch the trail in the first place we're making much better time. But of course I thought too soon. My foot got caught on the root of a tree and I flew forward, I started rolling down the hillside. When I stopped I couldn’t stand up because I was laughing hysterically, I was way beyond the point of crying. I heard Noa running after me calling my name.
    “Oh my gosh Maddi are you ok!?”
    “Ya I’m fine let’s just go” The truth was I wasn’t fine. I was in serious pain now. My legs felt like I was sitting on a hot fire in the summer time. They were throbbing with pain. And to make matters worse I was now covered head to toe with dirt.
    “ I can’t run anymore.” Noa cried.
    “ Noa come on we’re almost to the bottom” Now that was true. I could see the meadow that was just below the hill. Twenty more feet and we’d be out of the forest. Ten...five...three feet. Finally! We had made it. Noa crumbled to the ground but I helped her back up. We made our way over to the boys. Noa was still crying and was yelling at Bender about how we never should have came. And that we should have stayed back at camp with Nico.
    “ Noa just calm down” I pulled her into a hug when the annoying prankster of the camp ,Gabe, came up to us. He was like a mosquito always trying to ruin a fun time.
    “Madison! There’s a bee on your jacket!” I started screaming running around flailing my arms. That’s when I started crying and by that point I was what some people called traumatized.
    “ Get it off! Get it off!” I yelled. I looked over at Gabe and saw him laughing. I walked right up to him and punched him in the arm.
    “ OW! I guess I deserve that though” he said while rubbing his sore shoulder.
    I was still crying, trying to get the images of the monstrous hornets out of my head. I was taking deep breaths when Alyssa walked over to me. She was rubbing my back and saying encouraging things. I started feeling better if I blocked out the pain from the seven hornet stings up and down my legs. We convinced Bender to take us back to camp  then and not wait for the others. When we got back I was too scared to look at my legs. I brushed the backside of them and could feel the welts all over. I winced in pain. Noa and I went outside to wait for the others. We were still trying to wrap our heads around what had just happened. I mean we were attacked by hornets!
    “ Jeez...I knew we shouldn’t have gone on that hike” Noa complained
    “ No Noa. It wasn’t a hike it was a “yonder, the journey of a lifetime.”
`    “ Ya well I’m never going on one of those again.”
    But deep down past the trauma and pain we both knew that it was actually pretty fun and exhilarating.  We had never experienced something so exciting before. At least I knew one good thing came out of that little “yonder”. It would make one heck of a story.

The End!

My media life is like...

Do It For Love

    “You have to understand that love never keeps a man from pursuing his personal legend. If he abandons that pursuit it’s because it wasn’t true love...the love that speaks the Language of The World” I very much agree with this quote from The Alchemist(pg )

    I believe with what it’s saying. Love should never keep you from pursuing your dreams or personal legends in life. Like for instance, since I love my parents and my parents love me I should be able to pursue my personal legends and dreams. Because if it’s something I really want to achieve then they’ll no and they’ll let me go and achieve it.  I’m sure it would be really hard for my parents since I’ve been with them my whole life, and I’m just there “little girl”. But they love me and want what’s best for me. As the saying goes, “ If you really love someone set them free.”

    Having said that I’m not quite sure I’d be able to do the same. Of course I would want to let someone I love fulfill his/her personal legend, but just the thought of them leaving me is terrifying. It’s hard to imagine not being able to talk to them or just hang out with them. Especially since their personal legend could take months even years to fulfill! l But I wouldn’t want to be a hypocrite and believe that someone that loves me could let me fulfill my dreams and personal legends but I couldn’t do the same. Like the quote says if it’s true love I’ll let them go. I don’t believe there is limitations to this statement because if it’s true love than  its true love. If there was limitations to this statement then it wouldn't be true, or the love just wasn’t true.That’s why I agree with this quote from the Alchemist

A Whole Different Story

 “Making a decision was only the beginning of things.” I agree and disagree with this quote in a couple of different ways.

Making a decision to me isn’t always only the beginning of what you’re deciding to do. Like for instance, if I was debating whether to paint my room blue, or purple and I ended up painting it blue then that’s basically all I need to do. I mean sure I’ll still need to paint it but that was my only real decision I had to make, it was my first and finally choice. That’s what I would have thought before I read the Alchemist. But reading it has made me see that everything has a bigger purpose. Using the same example, if I chose to paint my room blue than it could only be the beginning. Then I would have to find a new bedspread to match the new color, and I would have to pick out new furniture and so forth. So I could use that example to agree that making a decision is and isn’t always the beginning of things.

Kids our age don’t always think about the decisions we make. Maybe some people think that they don’t need to finish their homework or pay attention in class, since we’re only in middle school and it won’t make a difference in the long run. But truth be told it could make a difference. If I decided not to pay attention in class one day or to not turn in an assignment it could make a difference because I would be behind in school work and I wouldn’t know how to do the assignment. Another example that I think can only be argued one way is deciding on something big, like what I want to be when I grow up. Deciding on something like that really is just the beginning. After, I chose what I want to be I still have to make it happen. Like by going to college and getting a degree, then once I graduate college I will have to find a job. Once I find a job I’ll still have to work hard to be good at it. So the whole thing might take a while, but looking back on the decision I made in the beginning I’m sure I’ll be happy because it was something I really wanted and worked hard to get.

    So for me it all depends on what the decision it is you are making. Little things like what shoes you are going to wear for the day isn’t always the start of something big. But deciding something permanent like an occupation could be a whole different story.