This is your last assignment for your senior year of English.


On the first day of school, you read student letters from the class of 2012.
The purpose of the letters was to provide you with students' perspectives on
what to expect in class and how to successfully meet those expectations. Now it
is your turn to write a letter to advise the incoming seniors how to be
successful in Senior English.


Your final reflection is to be composed as a letter addressed to the students
from the class of 2012. The final reflection is worth 50% of your final exam
grade. Therefore, it is expected to be well-written. For each error, 1 points
will be deducted from your grade. Also, the minimum
word length is 500 words. One point will be
deducted for each word less than 500. 

Be sure to: 

• Follow proper friendly letter format and style (Dear ____, paragraphing,
  & Sincerely,) 5%  
  
• Introduce yourself (What kind of student were you? Why did you take Tech
  Prep? With what activities/sports were you involved?) 10%  
  
• Describe your experience in class (Assignments, Dr. Griffin's webpage, webfolio, class discussions, blogs,
  computers, classmates, Gradebookwizard, Twitter, etc.) 30%  
  
• Explain two life lessons learned and how they were addressed in class
  (responsibility, organization, communication, problem solving,
  time-management, gitterdun, etc.) 35%  
  
• Advise the incoming seniors how to be successful in class (What could
  you have done differently? What would you do the same?) 20%
  

Due 11:59pm
June 10th


                                                                                            June 10, 2013 
Dear the class of 2014.  
  
    You’ve made it, welcome to your senior year! I am James Krafft. By
the time you read this I’ll be graduated. I am the kind of student that likes to
get assignments done  early. This class was definitely a lot more involved than
Tech Prep 11. However, you  are in for an awesome year. Coming into this class,
I felt like it was going to be a breeze and I was going to get a 100 just like I
did in Tech Prep 11. Well, that assumption was  wrong; this class involves a lot
more work and time. However, you will soon find out that this class will teach
you a lot about yourself. I took this class because I was getting real  tired of
regular English class. My freshman and sophomore years in English were so 
boring.   
      Some of the assignments this year were difficult. Honestly, I really
wanted to  punch myself in the face through the dialectical journals for Les
Miserables. I now know  that it really wasn’t that bad and I got through it with
stride. There were also some  assignments which I enjoyed doing like the Moment
of Greatness article and the poem  unit. The Moment of Greatness article really
taught me that I am a good writer, and that  writing a 6 page article can be an
easy task. The poems were really interesting because you would expect to be
ready the generic poem about the sun and love. However, the  poems were far more
than that. We read some happy ones, some sad ones, and  definitely some twisted
ones. The one thing about this class that I feel that is necessary  is the
classroom discussions. We not only get an insight on the lesson, but we also 
learn more about one another. The blogs in this class are a pain. This is the
first class  that I’ve had to do a legit blog every week, and also respond to a
peer’s post. I think  they are useful to get to know the others in our grade,
but doing them every week of the  whole year was annoying. Unlike last year, my
computer went strong throughout the  year and didn’t break down on me. The last
thing that I want to compliment on was Dr.  Griffin’s site. This site was very
useful and actually kept the class on task every week. It  had new assignments
on it, as well as deadlines and help for the assignment.  This class taught me
that I have to stop procrastinating, and trying to take the  easy way out of
everything. Some things in life are going to take time and thinking. In  other
classes it is so easy to just rush through the assignments. I knew I had a 
procrastination problem way before this class, but I actually am trying to do
stuff on time and not be lazy about it. This class also taught me that I have to
be responsible for my work. In other  classes the teacher will let you hand in
work late. Dr. Griffin doesn’t even accept work late. This gives me  the
incentive to get your work in on time and do your work effectively.       
 
     My advice to you would be to come into this class not thinking that
it will be a breeze just like  Tech Prep 11. In that class I barely tried and
got amazing grades. Learn to get over your little senioritis  because that’s not
going to help you in this class. The only real problems that I had this year was
getting  here on time and working effectively.  Just try your best and remember
to enjoy your last year of high  school.  
 
Sincerely, 
James Krafft 





  

Explain 5 lessons you will remember from your
  Senior year in English. These include life lessons, quotes, skills,
experiences,  and projects. Then respond to a peer's post.


This marks the final blog for your senior year.

I have learned many things throughout this year in Tech Prep 12. The first and
  most important lesson that I learned was that I have to stop procrastinating.
  Things always come out better if you take the time before hand to prepare, and
  not rush. I also learned that poetry is not always rainbows and sunshine. There
  is a very dark side that I had not acknowledged until this year. The phrase
“Giter-dun” really hit home for me because my dad always says that, it just
  means that you need get things done regardless of the obstacles that come in
the  way. The phrase also ties into not procrastinating. The fourth thing I
learned  this year is that writing a paper doesn’t have to be so stern and
boring. Make  your writing clear and to the point. The last thing I learned was
how to become  rich in my future. I’m pretty sure I will slip with those
lessons, but atleast I  will know what I am doing wrong. 

Attention: Frances, I feel that what you said about “don’t ask, don’t guess,
  find out” was true. We have to find out things for ourselves. 
 

Is going to the prom worth the amount of money it costs? Why or why not?

James Krafft Dr. Griffin In my opinion prom is very expensive, yet worth
it.  This is the only senior prom that you will get the chance to go to, so
might as  well take advantage. For a guy, prom isn’t as expensive as the ladies,
but it is  time consuming with the planning and all. All in all, prom is
expensive and time  consuming yet worth it because you will always remember your
prom. Prom is going  to be fun, and something that everyone will treasure for
their life. 

Attention: Ashley Barnes, I agree with your statement that if you do not go
  to prom, you will eventually regret it.

List the steps you took to write a properly formatted MLA style research paper.
  You can complete this as a numbered list.

DOUBLE BLOG
 

• Find an Internet article that gives advice about money, finance, saving,
    wealth, investments, or anything else connected to The Richest Man in
    Babylon. Then, summarize the article and paste the link for others to
  read.

Find an Internet article that gives advice to the reader about money,
  finance, saving, wealth, investments, or anything else tied to The Richest Man
  in Babylon. Then, summarize the article and past the link for others to read.
  You cannot use the same article as someone else. The person who references an
  article first will receive credit.

• For the response, click the link to a peer's article and read. Choose a
    quote that could help you become wealthy and explain why you chose
  it.

James Krafft English 12 Dr. Griffin 29 April 2013
  http://financialplan.about.com/od/personalfinancebasics/a/MoneyMistakes.htm
This  article is about the common seven mistakes when saving money for your
future.  When reading this article I realized that is article is goal oriented,
and it is  also about making smart decisions when you are retiring. The first
tip is to not  have a 30 year mortgage, instead make extra payments to have it
lowered by half  over the course of 15 years. This saves you massive amounts of
money. The next  couple of tips go hand in hand. Always be in control of your
money, control your  spending, and always make your payments on your credit
cards to risk going into  debt. This is easy, if you are not in control of your
money then how do you save  it? The next sets of tips also go hand in hand, save
for your retirement, and do  not cash it out early. It will not be making money
if it is not in the bank  gaining interest. This article is basically all of the
things we learned in  economics. It is helpful advice to those who don’t know
about spending and  saving.

Is being rich a choice? Why or why not? Be sure to explain why the other
  opinion is wrong (Concession) as well as why your opinion is correct.


Respond to someone's post whose opinion is opposite of yours.

    In my opinion I think being rich is a choice. Well, aside from being born into a 
 wealthy family, being rich is a life choice. Many people do save money for
their  future to become wealthy, which is a choice. Others still stuck in
middleclass  disease will forever not be wealthy. The people who win the lottery
do not  always end up in debt, many do waste the money, but some actually watch
their  spending. The smart people who win the lottery put it in the bank. The
people  who are born into a wealthy do not know anything else other than being
rich,  which is not their choice. Almost all wealthy people work for what they
have,  which working is a choice

ATTENTION: Lisseth, I agree with you because you basically took the words right
  out of my mouth. I didn't think of how some wealthy people do not have to have
  possessions to show that they are rich.

The following are the 7 rules for economic success according
The Richest man in Babylon by Richard Clason. Which one will be the
  hardest for you to follow? Why? Which will be the easiest? Why?


1. Start thy purse to fattening


2. Control thy expenditures


3. Make thy gold multiply


4. Guard thy treasures from loss


5. Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment


6. Insure a future income


7. Increase thy ability to earn


The hardest rule for me to follow will have to be "Control thy
expenditures,"  because we all like nice things. There are times that I just
want to go out and  buy something. I am good at savings, but sometimes I just
like to go out and  spend some money. The easiest rule for me would have to be
"start thy purse to  fattening," whenever I get money I put it somewhere and
save it for a while. I  like to stash up some twenties and save my money, but
then I end up spending it.

Choose a line from Act I in Hamlet that is particularly fresh, 
engaging, or beautiful. Cite the line properly using MLA format. Identify who 
said it, what it means, and why you think it is particularly fresh, engaging,
or  beautiful.

James Krafft Dr. Griffin English 12 27 February 2013
Hamlet talking to himself “But two months dead: nay, not so much, not two: So
  excellent a king; that was, to this, Hyperion to a satyr;” Hamlet (1.2.139-41). 
 
         In this part of the play the wedding already happened. King Claudius told 
Hamlet to stop acting like a girl and man up. Hamlet stays in the wedding hall 
after the wedding and is thinking to himself. He does not understand why his 
mother would marry his uncle if he only died not even two months ago. He things his father is a better king then his uncle would ever be. People are already hinking he is this great leader when he already is not, at least to Hamlet. I think this line is good to show his resentment towards his new father. I think 
this line is going to foreshadow a lot of conflict between Hamlet and King 
Claudius. I think when he says “Hyperion to a satyr,” he means that his father 
was the better leader (Hyperion) and his uncle is just nothing special (satyr). 
I think it is beautiful because it shows that even royalty can have problems in 
their lifes. Sometimes we think that they are perfect, but in reality they are 
just like us and have real life problems.

Provide instructions on how to read a poem. Be sure to address specific skills
  and lessons learned from what was discussed in class.

    To analyze a poem, you should first start out by reading it aloud. In many 
cases, you won’t know the meaning of every word. Look up the definitions of
those words; also paraphrase all of the lines. Once you understand what the
poem  is about you should be on the right track. To understand it more list who
is the  speaker, the tone of the poem, and the rhyme scheme. One thing that
helps me is  when I notice a change in the tone I make a clear mark that would
indicate a  change in the poem. Knowing the amount of beats in a stanza is
something to look  for too. One more important tip is to know the structure of
the poem.