The Final Post

This has probably been one of the most busiest classes I have had all semester. However, while there was a lot of work involved, I ended up enjoying a great deal of the class. I have read over 1000 pages this semester, more than any semester of my high school career. Before this class I really wouldn't read anything outside of school unless it was completely necessary. I didn't find reading enjoying at all, it was more like a chore. However after reading again frequently in the class I realized that reading isn't all that boring. It's a great way to pass time when you're bored, and you get a really neat story out of it too. Most of the books I read were literary fiction, as I enjoy this type of genre the best. It wasn't too hard to find books that I'm interested in because I'm always willing to try something new and give it a chance. I usually read in complete silence in my bedroom, away from most other distractions. I don't think I could concentrate enough to read next to the computer or with my phone. I never had the urge to discuss books with anyone though. I always had a feeling they haven't read the book and don't know what I would be talking about. I have found I still like pretty much the same types of novels as I did before this class. I don't think I can change what I have grown up liking. There is a much higher chance of me reading independently during the summer, especially during long road trips with nothing to do. Before this class I hated poetry and I couldn't understand it at all. I really enjoy how the class was taught in way where you could read a poem and analyze it for what you thought it meant, there wasn't a right answer. This freedom let me really embrace poetry. I also learned a lot about how to write effectively about poetry, and I will be sure to use this skill in many future classes.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire pages 75-156

Chapter 7 begins with Harry and the Weasley's arriving at the Quidditch World Cup. To try to hide themselves, many of the wizards are living in tents. Yet these tents have chimneys and purple fires out front. They used magic to create two extremely large and spacious tents which could house the whole family. Harry explores the area and finds many other wizards that are all supporting their own team. The rest of the family soon apparates in and they all enjoy the time. Fred and George bet all of their money on the game hoping that Ireland will win.

In chapter 8, the quidditch game is starting and Harry notices a house elf named Winky. Malfoy and the head of the Ministry of Magic join the Weasleys in the box office seats. The game beings by each team sending out their mascots which entertain the audience. The game is going wildly fast and Harry is amazed. The game ends with Victor Krum getting the snitch, which ends the game with Ireland still winning. Fred and George win their bets.

In Chapter 9, everyone is very hyped about the game. After a few hours everyone goes to bed. Shortly after Harry, Ron, and Hermione are shaken awake as they see men in black cloaks rampaging against mud bloods. The three friends run to the woods, where they meet Malfoy and Harry finds he does not have his wand. A green mark appears in the sky, then suddenly everyone is screaming. The friends all run away only to be questioned by everyone about what has actually happened. They then find Winky with the wand and assume she has conjured the mark. Mr. Weasley explains that the mark was used as a signal by Voldemort to let everyone know someone had died, and that it was probably just a false alarm.

In Chapter 10, the Weasleys all go home. Mrs. Weasley is happy that everyone is safe after the incident. Mr. Weasley spends the rest of the week at the Ministry of Magic to dispel any false rumors that might have come up, while the rest of the children get their materials to prepare for school. As in every other book, Harry feels sorry for the Weasleys' financial status, since he was blessed by his parents leaving him a massive amount of money.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire Pages 1-75

The first chapter in this book is quite suspenseful. There is talk about a Riddle House which the Riddle family lived in. The Riddle family was killed without any bodily harm. The village blamed Frank the gardener, who was found innocent. 50 years later Frank is at the house when he sees a light inside. He goes in and hears a man named Voldemort talking to a man named Wormtail. They discuss plans to kill Harry Potter after the quidditch cup. Then a snake talks to Voldemort, who calls Frank in. In a burst of green light, Frank is dead.

In chapter two we find that Harry wakes up and feels the scar on his head throbbing. He looks around expecting to see Voldemort but he finds he is safe. Unsure about who to ask about this unusual event, he writes a letter to his godfather, Sirius Black. Black was wrongfully imprisoned for killing 13 people, who where actually all killed by Wormtail.

In chapter 3, the chapter starts out with Harry coming down to the Dursleys, who hate Harry. They are all under an extreme diet which is miserable for Harry. A postman then comes and delivers a letter. The letter from Molly Weasley is asking for Harry to attend the Quidditch World Cup and stay with them for the rest of the summer. Harry is aloud to go and feels quite happy about the rest of the summer.

In chapter 4, Harry packs his trunks and is ready to leave. The Weasleys arrive through the fire place using Floo Powder. Then the whole family comes out and introduces themselves to the Dursleys. The Dursleys are simply quiet and walk away. Dudley finds a sweet that Fred and George had dropped, which caused his tongue to grow out of control. Mr. Weasley tries to fix the tongue while trying to keep peace.

In Chapter 5, Harry reaches the Weasleys' house through the Floo Powder method and is very dizzy. Mrs. Weasley arrives shortly after and scolds the older twins for giving Dudley the sweets. All the children then go upstairs to avoid Mrs. Weasley's rage. They all remain in Ron's room for a bit, discussing Percy's job and Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, a line of magical jokes that Fred and George have been perfecting. Harry feels happy and at peace at the Weasley's.

In Chapter 6, Harry is awakened the next morning to find that he is to leave early with the other children to get to the Quidditch Cup. To have everyone quickly reach the destination without cramming trains, a transportation method known as the Portkey was used. They reach the top of a hill where they find Cedric and Amos Diggory. They have found the Porkey, which is a boot. At 5:00 AM they all touch the boot which transports them to the Cup.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Pages 345-end

In chapter 18, Ron is unwilling to believe that his faithful pet rat is really an animagus, a transformed version of a man named Peter Pettigrew. Lupin explains the story that Lupin's good friends, James Potter, Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew, noticed his monthly absence and figured out he was a werewolf. They then worked toward becoming animagi so they could assume animal form and keep Lupin company without placing themselves in danger. The four friends roamed everywhere and learned every part of Hogwarts and Hogsmeade, and they ultimately used this information to create the Marauder's Map. As Lupin finishes explaining this, Snape suddenly appears in the corner of the room, shedding Harry's invisibility cloak. In chapter 19, Snape sneers and says that he found the invisibility cloak where Harry had dropped it, at the base of the Whomping Willow. Harry, Ron and Hermione all disarm him at once, knocking him out. Black then explains that he recognized Scabbers as Peter Pettigrew in a photo in the newspaper Cornelius Fudge gave him during a visit, and he set out to Hogwarts after him. Harry is frightened and skeptical, and so, to clarify things once and for all, Lupin reverses Scabbes' form. Peter finally admits, after much evasion, that he is and was the servant of Lord Voldemort. Lupin and Black prepare to kill Peter, when Harry stops them by saying that his dad probably wouldn't have wanted his two best friends to become murderers. In chapter 20, As the group returns through the tunnels, Black informs Harry of his role as his godfather. He invites Harry to live with him, once his name is cleared. They turn to see Black in human form, cowering at the approach of over a hundred Dementors. Harry and Hermione run to help, but none of Harry's patroni are strong enough. . Suddenly one of the Dementors lowers its hood, revealing gray skin and empty eye sockets and a shapeless sucking hole of a mouth, and the Dementor grasps Harry's head and prepares to administer the soul-sucking kiss to him. Harry feels himself drowning in cold and misery, when all of a sudden a bright shape begins to drive the Dementors away. In chapter 21, the children are back at Hogwarts. They explain their story to Dumbledore, who believes them. He says that they need more time to save two lives and Hermione reveals a watch that can turn back time. They are meant to go save two lives. The first one is Buckbeak's who is about to be executed. The children set him free and then go to find themselves. Harry unleashes a Patronus to save himself, Black, and Hermione from the Dementors kiss. He succeeds and then he flies Buckbeak to the tower where Black is being held. He then releases Black who rides off to freedom. The next day is calm, until Hagrid informs Harry, Ron, and Hermione that Buckbeak escaped, and then that Lupin has resigned from the school. Harry runs to visit him as he is leaving the castle, and he listens as Lupin explains in his usual good-natured manner that after the events of last night, he really shouldn't be allowed near students during his transformations. In the end Harry receives a note from Black saying he is safe and that all is well.

Project Poems- Fall Themed

October
By Bobbi Katz

Falling Leaves and Early Snow
By Kenneth Rexroth


For the Chipmunk in My Yard
By Robert Gibb

Darkling Summer, Ominous Dusk, Rumorous Rain - VIDEO
By Delmore Schwartz

October
By Robert Frost

Neighbors in October
By David Baker

Return in Autumn
By Paul Engle

The Heat of Autumn
By Jane Hirshfield

The November Angels
By Jane Hirshfield

My Autumn Leaves
By Bruce Weigl

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban Pages 310-345

Chapter 16 takes place after the Quidditch victory, when final exams come around. verybody is hard at work preparing. The care of magical creatures exam is easy. Harry receives full points on the defense against the dark arts exam, which requires that he combat several of the creatures studied over the term. In Divination, Professor Trelawney asks Harry to find signs of the future inside a crystal ball. Suddenly, Professor Trelawney's voice changes, her eyes look hypnotized, and she predicts that the Dark Lord's servant will rejoin him tonight before midnight. She snaps out of the trance and has no recollection of the prediction. Harry runs out to tell Ron, but before he can say anything, Ron and Hermione tell him that Buckbeak lost the appeal and will be executed at sunset. At Hagrid's cabin, they find Hagrid shaky but not hysterical as he explains that Lucius Malfoy must have threatened the Committee for Disposal of Dangerous Creatures. Hermione discovers Scabbers inside a milk jug in Hagrid's cabin. The executioners come and they hear the axe.

In Chapter 17, As Harry, Ron, and Hermione walk sadly away from Hagrid's cabin, they have difficulties staying hidden under Harry's cloak because Scabbers will not stay still. A black dog then comes and attacks Ron. The dog takes ron away into the forest. The dog pulls Ron under the Whomping Willow. A passage is revealed to the Shrieking Shack in Hogsmeade. . In an upstairs room they find Ron, seated by Crookshanks, and guarded by Sirius Black, who the black dog has transformed into. Black disarms Harry and Hermione through the expelliarmus spell. The kids rush Black to recover their wands while they hold Black in the corner, at their mercy. Before Harry can gather his courage to kill Black, Professor Lupin bursts through the door, disarming Harry. Hermione shrieks at Lupin that he is a traitor, and that she should have exposed him as a werewolf long ago. She says that she thought of him as a werewolf from seeing his Boggart turn into the moon, and from noting that he was out sick during each month's full moon. An exasperated Lupin gives each one of them back their wands, and explains that he was examining the Marauder's Map, watching Ron, Harry and Hermione exit Hagrid's cabin. He saw the name Peter Pettigrew alongside Ron's. At that point, he realized that Peter must alive and disguised as Scabbers.

Behind the Hunt for Bin Laden

Yesterday the New York Times released an article of the operations behind finding and killing Bin Laden, the man on top of the American Most Wanted list for the past decade. The article goes in depth to discuss that the license plate of one of Bin Ladens most trusted men was taken note of. This vehicle was monitored for quite a while and led the US to Bin Ladens hideout, a large compound off a dirt road. The president had the option of either bombing the compound or sending in a team of highly specialized individuals to make sure the deed would be done. He opted for the commandos, who broke into the compound and killed Bin Laden. A picture of Bin Laden was then taken and sent to the CIA where facial recognition was used to confirm his identity. His body was taken and then thrown into the sea. While I agree its all great that Bin Laden has paid for his crimes, the time and effort this one mans life didnt seem worth the trouble. On top of that the body was thrown into the water. This seems very peculiar to me as I would have thought that great pride would have been taken in finally killing Bin Laden. I was not expecting them to get rid of the body so quickly, even though it sounds pretty bad. Overall Im glad the biggest enemy of the country is gone, yet I am disappointed at the measures taken just to kill one man.