I just wanted to write one last post to let you know how much I have enjoyed being your teacher.
I’ve had a great year and have thoroughly enjoyed working with all of you. I can only hope that I have as nice, as bright, and as funny a class again at my next school – although of course there’ll never be another 2B2!
I hope I’ve managed to teach you a thing or two, and I feel I have to thank you for teaching me rather a lot as well.
I wish you all the best of luck in the future (although of course you don’t need it) and I know you’ll all go on to do fantastic things.
I’ll miss you all, very much.
Miss Galbraith x
Wednesday 20 May 2009
Friday 15 May 2009
'The Blackbird of Glanmore'
Mid-Term Break wasn't the only poem that Seamus Heaney wrote about his brother's death.
The Blackbird of Glanmore
On the grass when I arrive,
Filling the stillness with life,
But ready to scare off
At the very first wrong move,
In the ivy when I leave,
It's you, blackbird, I love.
I park, pause, take heed.
Breathe. Just breathe and sit
And lines I once translated
Come back: 'I want away
To the house of death, to my father
Under the low clay roof.'
And I think of one gone to him,
A little stillness dancer -
Haunter-son, lost brother -
Cavorting through the yard,
So glad to see me home,
My homesick first term over.
And think of a neighbour's words
Long after the accident;
'Yon bird on the shed roof,
Up on the ridge for weeks -
I said nothing at the time
But I never liked yon bird'
The automatic lock
Clunks shut, the blackbird's panic
Is shortlived, for a second
I've a bird's eye view of myself,
A shadow on raked gravel
In front of my house of life.
Hedge-hop, I am absolute
For you, your ready talkback,
Your each stand-offish comeback,
Your picky, nervy goldbeak -
On the grass when I arrive,
In the ivy when I leave.
The Blackbird of Glanmore
On the grass when I arrive,
Filling the stillness with life,
But ready to scare off
At the very first wrong move,
In the ivy when I leave,
It's you, blackbird, I love.
I park, pause, take heed.
Breathe. Just breathe and sit
And lines I once translated
Come back: 'I want away
To the house of death, to my father
Under the low clay roof.'
And I think of one gone to him,
A little stillness dancer -
Haunter-son, lost brother -
Cavorting through the yard,
So glad to see me home,
My homesick first term over.
And think of a neighbour's words
Long after the accident;
'Yon bird on the shed roof,
Up on the ridge for weeks -
I said nothing at the time
But I never liked yon bird'
The automatic lock
Clunks shut, the blackbird's panic
Is shortlived, for a second
I've a bird's eye view of myself,
A shadow on raked gravel
In front of my house of life.
Hedge-hop, I am absolute
For you, your ready talkback,
Your each stand-offish comeback,
Your picky, nervy goldbeak -
On the grass when I arrive,
In the ivy when I leave.
Friday 8 May 2009
The F. conspiracy - Thanks Nico! (and Connor)
Since he was born Jim had always hated fish. He hated the way they looked, smelled and tasted. He thought fish shouldn’t be here, he thought that the fish were up to something. Everyone thought he was just being silly, but he had thought how fish could take over the world.
THE PLAN
First he thought the fish were silly being caught by fisherman, but then he thought that the fish that got caught were fake they were just testing the humans to see how strong they were.
They wouldn’t be able to breath on the surface. AND then it came to him! Aquariums. The fish would break the glass in every aquarium in the world. This would flood a lot but not enough. So the fish would put tsunami generators and explosives near the coasts all over the world. When the signal was sent, the glass would break and the bombs would go off with the tsunamis to help them cover more distance. The majority of humans would drown and a lot of the land would be water thus allowing the fish to breath on land so to speak.
While the fish were plotting, the humans would be none the wiser except for Jim. He’d tried to warn the authorities, but his parents would tell them he was just making up rubbish.
Today Jim decided to check his local aquarium for glass cutters or pieces of equipment that could be used to shatter glass. When he arrived everything was normal. He had been here so many times and not found anything. So he just decided to give it up, it wasn’t going to happen. He turned round and headed for the door.
Then the glass cracked.
THE END
First he thought the fish were silly being caught by fisherman, but then he thought that the fish that got caught were fake they were just testing the humans to see how strong they were.
They wouldn’t be able to breath on the surface. AND then it came to him! Aquariums. The fish would break the glass in every aquarium in the world. This would flood a lot but not enough. So the fish would put tsunami generators and explosives near the coasts all over the world. When the signal was sent, the glass would break and the bombs would go off with the tsunamis to help them cover more distance. The majority of humans would drown and a lot of the land would be water thus allowing the fish to breath on land so to speak.
While the fish were plotting, the humans would be none the wiser except for Jim. He’d tried to warn the authorities, but his parents would tell them he was just making up rubbish.
Today Jim decided to check his local aquarium for glass cutters or pieces of equipment that could be used to shatter glass. When he arrived everything was normal. He had been here so many times and not found anything. So he just decided to give it up, it wasn’t going to happen. He turned round and headed for the door.
Wednesday 6 May 2009
National Assessments: Mid-Term Break
Here are a few links to resources for 'Mid-Term Break' on the web. These are all good quality and will help those of you who are revising for your Level F test.
Teachit
mtsn.org
Seamus Heaney on Wikipedia
I also found quite a good video on YouTube to accompany the poem. I find it can be really helpful have visuals as well as the text, and this is a nicely made little video.
Tuesday 31 March 2009
Book Review - 'Animal Farm' by George Orwell. -Thanks Andrew!
A book I have just been reading called 'Animal Farm' by George Orwell is written as a fairy book but deals with politics. This means the book could be enjoyed by children as well as adults too.
The book is timeless and is set in the countryside of England. In 'Manor Farm', an elderly pig, Major, has a dream about the future where the world is an equal place. He tells this to his fellow 'comrades' just before he passes away. Major is meant to represent Karl Marx who had a dream about a world of communism; this idea then failed the same as Major's will.
The farmer - Mr Jones - then is brutally forced out of his home and onto the streets by the farm animals. The animals all do this because they think it is unfair the way he had been treating them, like making them work hard or killing them for meat. Once he has gone the animals look forward to a life of equality.
Two pigs - Napoleon and Snowball - lead the group of animals because they are the most intelligent animals. The two leaders and the rest of the pigs teach the other animals how to read and write. napoleon soon overthrows Snowball and becomes the main leader. After this things become much worse: animals are slaughtered, some die from hunger and some from exhaustion, including Boxer the powerful workhorse who doesn't stop at anything to get work done.
In the end, the pigs betray what's left of the other comrades and treat themselves like humans: the pigs stuff themselves with food while they starve the others, they sleep in proper beds, drink alcohol, wear clothes, gamble, and even associate with humans who are meant to be the animals' enemies! Finally, the pigs start walking about on their hind legs and the others can't tell the different between human and pig.
I found this novel really good and could not put it down. It shows that you can talk about the most serious topic and have it written as a fairy story!
The book is timeless and is set in the countryside of England. In 'Manor Farm', an elderly pig, Major, has a dream about the future where the world is an equal place. He tells this to his fellow 'comrades' just before he passes away. Major is meant to represent Karl Marx who had a dream about a world of communism; this idea then failed the same as Major's will.
The farmer - Mr Jones - then is brutally forced out of his home and onto the streets by the farm animals. The animals all do this because they think it is unfair the way he had been treating them, like making them work hard or killing them for meat. Once he has gone the animals look forward to a life of equality.
Two pigs - Napoleon and Snowball - lead the group of animals because they are the most intelligent animals. The two leaders and the rest of the pigs teach the other animals how to read and write. napoleon soon overthrows Snowball and becomes the main leader. After this things become much worse: animals are slaughtered, some die from hunger and some from exhaustion, including Boxer the powerful workhorse who doesn't stop at anything to get work done.In the end, the pigs betray what's left of the other comrades and treat themselves like humans: the pigs stuff themselves with food while they starve the others, they sleep in proper beds, drink alcohol, wear clothes, gamble, and even associate with humans who are meant to be the animals' enemies! Finally, the pigs start walking about on their hind legs and the others can't tell the different between human and pig.
I found this novel really good and could not put it down. It shows that you can talk about the most serious topic and have it written as a fairy story!
Wednesday 11 March 2009
Reminder
I hope you all behaved yourselves while I was away today!
Had a wee keek at your personal writing pieces and they are shaping up to be really, really good! Keep it up everybody :)
I should have just about everyone's critical essays by now, and remember: first drafts of Lucrezia's Story are due in on Friday.
I'll leave you with a beautiful picture of the late Sam, voted world's ugliest dog. I can't understand why...
Had a wee keek at your personal writing pieces and they are shaping up to be really, really good! Keep it up everybody :)
I should have just about everyone's critical essays by now, and remember: first drafts of Lucrezia's Story are due in on Friday.
I'll leave you with a beautiful picture of the late Sam, voted world's ugliest dog. I can't understand why...
Flash Fiction - Thanks Euan!
Here I am standing in front of the racetrack waiting to break the world record for driving the fastest speed in a car.
I have been waiting for this moment for many years now. I know this task might sound a bit easy, or that all you need to do is drive a really phenomenal car, but there is much more to it. Of course you will need a fast car but to break this record it is all down to the driver's skills.
I have to be really fit so I don't weigh down the car. I also have to be a better driver than Michael Schumacher. I have to know when to change gears and control the car when it reaches over 100mph.
As I stand next to the track waiting to get in my car I start to think: what if I fail? Or what if I crash? And if I succeed will I be admired? Will I be a role model for children?
As my car approaches my heart starts pumping faster than the car can go.
Vrmmmmm Vrmmmmm!!!!!!!
Here I go!!!!!
As I reach 100mph I can feel the power of the car. I'm saying to myself, come on, just a few more.
140, 142, 143, 144. Now I'm so close to beating it.
148, 149, 150, 151, YES!!!
I've done it! I have just become a world record holder. As I come out of the car the crowd go bonkers.
This is an amazing feeling. I cannot believe this has happened. I am speechless as I step up onto the podium and get congratulated by my trainer and the chief of Ferrari.
This is my story.
I have been waiting for this moment for many years now. I know this task might sound a bit easy, or that all you need to do is drive a really phenomenal car, but there is much more to it. Of course you will need a fast car but to break this record it is all down to the driver's skills.
I have to be really fit so I don't weigh down the car. I also have to be a better driver than Michael Schumacher. I have to know when to change gears and control the car when it reaches over 100mph.
As I stand next to the track waiting to get in my car I start to think: what if I fail? Or what if I crash? And if I succeed will I be admired? Will I be a role model for children?
As my car approaches my heart starts pumping faster than the car can go.
Vrmmmmm Vrmmmmm!!!!!!!Here I go!!!!!
As I reach 100mph I can feel the power of the car. I'm saying to myself, come on, just a few more.
140, 142, 143, 144. Now I'm so close to beating it.
148, 149, 150, 151, YES!!!
I've done it! I have just become a world record holder. As I come out of the car the crowd go bonkers.
This is an amazing feeling. I cannot believe this has happened. I am speechless as I step up onto the podium and get congratulated by my trainer and the chief of Ferrari.
This is my story.
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