Graduation Speech

Today's the day we will look back and realize how fast time has come. We are all gathered here today to celebrate the achievement of the graduating class of 2016. I remember the first day entering Golf the beginning of 6th grade I was terrified since everyone knew each other  from the year before or even longer. That was the year I was trying to figure out who were my friends  and how the teachers were like, towards the end  of 6th grade I finally knew who they were, and next thing I knew the whole 6th grade was leaving that one long hallway headed towards having classes upstairs. In 7th grade we were all ready to enter to where the 8th graders were, realizing that school just keeps on getting harder and  then came the day where we are now the leaders of the school and realizing how much we have ahead of us after we graduate and soon we will be passing them down to the fellow 7th graders.

On behalf of the class of 2016, there are many people here today that we would like to say a big thanks for everything you have done for us starting with our parents, you’ve had to everyday make sure we were awake and not have the covers over us sound asleep so we would be able to go to school and hear our constant complaining about pretty much everything in our lives. Then there's our teachers who’ve everyday for the past couple of years have taught us everything they could to give us a wonderful education, helping us out with homework and even keeping up with our complaining especially towards the mile we had to do in P.E. Without you guys we would have not been where we are today.

Our memories here at Golf we be like no other we’ve all shared some good times and bad times with one another. We’ve also created strong friendships and bonds with one another that we will remember forever. We’ve seen each other practically everyday for the past couple of years counting down the last couple of minutes of each class, to waiting for our Christmas and summer break and now we are counting down the last couple of minutes we have until we graduate together. I hope as we continue on with our lives headed towards high school we will all remember those special memories Golf has brought us and I wish us all the best of luck as we continue on further  in our life. And as Dr. Seuss once said “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.”   

Testing

We all know when that time of year when you are required to take the PARCC test, and of course we all hate it. But here are someways on how to prepare for any test (based on my experiences)

• Get some rest the night before
• Eat breakfast (if you don't have time to eat anything ask a friend for gum or a mint)
• Pace your self (Check how much time you have for a test to manage the time)
• Don't skim the passage (Even if it looks long)
• Go back to the text to answer a question
• If you don't know an answer go with your gut or choose what seems most likely right 
• Be patient
• Cheer cause you finished the test

Endings and Beginnings

    

What this quote means to me is that everyday is a new journey in your life and different experiences. Say your day didn't go well that day when then the next day you have an opportunity to fix it. Or say you wish you did something that day well it will be fine just stay calm and wait for the next day to do what you wanted to do. I like this quote because its a way of saying everyday that past by in your life, you should just stay calm enjoy and wait for the next day to restart again. 

Holocaust Museum

This week in school we went to the Holocaust Museum in Skokie. It was a very informative field trip. We learned about the history of the Holocaust and saw actual artifacts during that time period. My favorite part of the field trip was when we got to actually hear from a survivor. We all gathered into an auditorium, and heard from the survivor. He told us how it was like living during the Holocaust and his journey from going to a couple of concentration camps. I also enjoyed how we were able to freely ask him any questions we wanted and he got to see his numbered tattoo that the Nazis gave him while he was at a concentration camp.

I'm Still Here

During school this week we watched a documentary called I'm Still Here. This documentary was about teenagers diaries during the Holocaust. With me watching this documentary I learned different perspectives about the Holocaust from teenagers my age and even younger. With their diaries they taught me how life was living in concentration camps, leaving their families and to hide from Nazi soldiers. I'm Still Here was an informative documentary not only with the history behind the holocaust but for us to learn how living during WWII from the voices of young teens and not by reading a history book. 

Erika's Quote

“We must live, and when this is all over, we must work to make the world a better place.  And if we die, we will die knowing that it was not our fault, that we did our best, and we can go to our deaths in dignity… I want you both to live…And to remember...You must choose love.  Always choose love.”  

(from Daniel’s Story by Carol Matas, page 70)

This quote reminds me of a loving person in my life who is my Aunt. She always talks about if you choose the right choices in life and do your best you can in this world you will die the best you can, surrounded with people who love you. She also reminds me of the quote because she chose the love of her parents by sticking around with them and living with them because they are very old and ill. She always put others before her especially when it comes to her family and the ones she loves.

Leap Year

My life 4 years ago compared to now has changed drastically. 4 years ago I was 10 yrs. old and now i'm 14. In the past 4 years I've been through many changes in my life, for instance I was not living where i'm living today, and same for the school i'm in. In those 4 years I've grown older, and become a big sister (again). I've met new people and have made great friends and I'll be graduating from 8th grade.

 How I think my life will be in the next Leap year is that I will be graduating from high school, and looking for colleges to go to. Hopefully driving and starting a new chapter in my life as I seek new opportunities for me to experience.