Tag: Writing

LI: to correctly structure and write a narrative.

This week in writing, I wrote a story about a baby owl taking its first flight. I planned my ideas first and then turned them into a full story. I described what the owl could see, hear, and feel while it was sitting on the branch before it jumped. I also tried to add details about the night and the forest so the reader could imagine the scene. I focused on making my story have a clear beginning, middle, and ending. This task helped me practice writing a full story and adding more detail to my ideas. I’m getting better at reading over my work and checking that it sounds right and makes sense.

As the sun slowly slipped behind the hills, the sky faded into deep shades of purple and blue. The cool night air drifted through the bush, making the tall branches creak and sway gently. I balanced carefully on a rough branch high above the ground, my sharp claws gripping tightly onto the bark. Far below me, the bush floor was hidden in the shadows. Tonight was the night of my very first flight, and the thought of leaving the safety of the tree made my stomach twist with nervous excitement.

The urge for me to want to fly made my wings flutter, but hesitation quickly crept in. I could feel the eyes of the other young owls watching from nearby branches. Some had already launched themselves into the air, gliding easily between the trees as if flying were nothing. I would rather not be the only one left sitting there, yet the thought of dropping straight to the ground made my heart pound even faster.

The wind brushed through my feathers as the bush grew darker around me. I watched the other owls glide smoothly through the night sky, their wings barely moving as they floated through the cool air. I tried to picture myself doing the same, but my nerves kept creeping back. Part of me wanted to stay safe on the branch, while another part knew I had to take the leap eventually.

Finally, I gathered my courage and stretched my wings wide. The breeze rustled my feathers as I leaned forward. I pushed off the branch and felt my stomach flip as I dropped through the air. For a moment panic rushed through me, but then the wind caught my wings and lifted me up, turning my fall into a smooth glide above the quiet bush.

As I flew higher into the dark sky, I realised that sometimes the scariest moments lead to the greatest discoveries. Trying something new can feel terrifying, but bravery helps you find what you’re truly capable of.

LI: To write a description of life with the Frank family in the annex in 1942

The annex was quiet except for the clock chiming loudly throughout the area, which made me feel like lightning had struck me because it makes me feel as if they have captured us in our hiding spot. The space was cramped and exotically dull because we had no time to decorate, and our house was made like this because of how foul the smell would be if we painted or if we had brought any liquid because in a few days it would dry up and make it smell like moldy air and would affect our hiding spot. We had to stay silent during the day to avoid being heard by the Germans and also so that our hideouts wouldn’t get discovered. The frustration that ran through my mind, thinking, why on earth would they do that to us? We are here to have peace, not to hide from Germans because they want to rule Jewish people and torture us with the worst punishment on earth.

The air was dusty and cold. It felt suffocating. I spent my own time writing in my diary because that was the only thing that could keep me occupied because if I were to walk around, I would risk my safety, and as a result, I would get caught by the German people because of how the floors creak so loud. We struggled having to sit still for hours, and it felt like our legs were getting numb. I sat there thinking about my family and sister, keeping them safe and sound so that they weren’t harmed or killed. Writing in this diary made me feel less scared and terrified. 

We tried to add a few touches to bring more life into our home with the supplies that we had left. Terrible consequences were awaiting me and my family if they were found in their hiding places, therefore being persecuted or sent to a concentration camp. My life afterwards was silent and secretive because of how the Germans were trying to find us. Looking at the flickering lights made me think as if that was my life because of how it flickers. Knowing that soldiers might find us, we were restless and terrified. We thought that in a few seconds or minutes that passed, we would be found and executed right away because of how we kept on hearing knocks on the door. But a few minutes later they go away knowing that. It shows that there is still a tiny spark of hope in surviving this terrible and horrible place. 

The scent of moldy old books and the heavy dust makes our noses tickle. The narrow, steep stairs leading up to the hiding place would creak under every step you take. You’d feel them wobble slightly, and each step makes your heart race, knowing anyone below could hear us. We sat still making no movement so that the Annex wasn’t discovered. You could scent the damp food from the kitchen, which made us feel sick to our stomachs.  The bookcase from behind the hiding spot is filled with family photographs, old files, and books. Look at it from the inside. It is the only thing standing between you and the outside world. It was challenging while living in a small space and writing about my hopes and dreams, even during such a difficult time.

Reading The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank has been a very fun and meaningful experience for our class. To help us understand what life was really like in the Secret Annex, Mrs. Anderson created Gem that encouraged us to think more deeply about the story and the people in it. I really enjoyed using the Gem because it helped me add more detail to my writing and explain my ideas more clearly. It reminded me to use descriptive language like similes, metaphors, personification, and onomatopoeia to make my story more interesting and realistic. Instead of just saying what happened, I was able to describe how it might have felt to live in hiding.

For Writing, Me and my partner (Cattaleya) created a Google video explaining who Guy Fawkes and why did he start their attack?  Guy Fawkes was Catholic man and he and the other plotters thought that Catholics were being unfairly treated and was determined to blow up the Houses of Parliament during a meeting scheduled for the king, government and a few leaders. To do that, they secretly rented a cellar underneath the Houses of Parliament while hiding 36 barrels of gunpowder.

On the day the meeting was started, one of Guy Fawkes plotters betrayed them by sending a letter to a noble man named William parker mentioning not to come to the meeting therefore something bad will happen there.

William was shocked and alerted the goverment. The goverment demaned a search near the Parliament building. They found Guy fawkes guarding the barrels of gunpowder. They they demanded to reveal where the others were abut he didn’t say anything. They started to torture him over and over until he gave in. A few months later Guy fawkes and the others were hung.

This activity was fun and interesting because it made me learn a part of england’s history and the backstory of Guy Fawkes.

For writing, we learned about idioms, what they are, their meanings, and how to make our own. We explored the difference between literal and figurative meanings and the purpose of idioms in language. Our task was to create an idiom by choosing an object (like an animal, food, or weather), adding a funny or unusual action, and giving it a special meaning.

One example we learned was “it’s raining cats and dogs,” which means it’s raining very heavily. We enjoyed this activity because we got to be creative and combine words in new ways. We also learned that idioms can be hard to translate because their meanings are often unique and sometimes hard to understand.