1st grade students!!!!

Hello first grade students!
I’ve been a student at Sandvika VGS for three years now and I got to say that it’s been good and I have not regretted it at all. It’s a great school where people respect each other, and I will guarantee you that you’ll meet new and interesting people. The teachers here are great, and include you in all the activities in class. We use computers which are very nice, students often get caught up in other stuff when they use them, but they work out well. Almost everything you do in class is done on the computers so you have all your school work organized on one place. We have a nice cafeteria and library you can use if you need information or want something to eat.

If you choose to go to Sandvika VGS I’m sure you won’t regret it.

Gangland, USA

Hey! Today we have been looking at different articles from our textbook Access. I chose an article about gangs in USA called “Gangland, USA”. I think gangs and the culture is interesting because you never really know what is right and I’m always surprised by what I read and hear about gangs. That’s why I chose this article.

Gangs have been around since the beginning of the immigration. Ethnic groups with different values and cultures collided together creating gangs and separate areas for different people. When the Europeans came to America they settled and craved work, but some people were willing to do a certain for less so conflicts became present. People stuck to their own groups and a movie called “Gangs of New York” shows this in a very good way.

African American gangs were formed in large cities such as Chicago, NY and LA in the 1960s. These gangs are what formed and shaped the gang culture we have today. By the early 1970s, LA had two huge rival gangs, The Crips (blue) and the Bloods (red). Two very violent gangs in the ghettos of LA, that still remains today. For people living in these gangs, killing, shooting, drugs violence is a part of their everyday challenges and has been turned into a lifestyle.

Drugs started to pave the way for the upcoming drug gangs. America became the number one drug consumer by the early 1990s and drugs were distributed to every corner and every single person who wanted it. Along with the drugs came more violence and as the article states; Violence became a standard procedure for the gangs.

Other non-violent gangs were also formed at this time. African Americans were still oppressed and struggled. They got together and worked their way towards equality. During the civil rights movement, a group called the Black Panthers also worked for equal rights for blacks, but used different methods. They gave the green light for violence and believed they had to win their rights back with elbows and fists.

The 1990s were filled with street gangs and a major expansion of these street gangs. The number of gang members in 2005 was estimated to be around nine million which gives an indicator of what it was and how much the culture has grown.

Northern Ireland

Last week Cecilie gave us a lecture on the conflict in northern-Ireland. She had an interesting power-point, but it lasted a bit too long. I got a little off course, but tried to maintain attention.

The conflict in Ireland is mainly political and ethnic. One of the main reasons for the conflicts is bad treatment and huge differences in living and job opportunities.

Catholics were not treaded equal with the Protestants and a civil war broke out between the IRA and the Unionists.  Maggie Thatcher benefitted from this and became the Prime Minister of the UK, to rule in Northern-Ireland. She captured IRA fighters so they would starve to death because they wanted to be regarded political prisoners when she just saw them as criminals.

Blogger Challenge

What difference has blogging made to your life at school and home e.g. how has it changed how you learn, the challenges of blogging and how teachers might make the process easier?

Blogging has been a new thing for me. I had never used blogger before going into my last year here at Sandvika VGS. Blogging has not made a very significant difference for me at home because I usually blog about assignments given at school or something related to school. I still try to blog about other stuff just to diversify the blog and make it more interesting, if I have something I feel like sharing I sometimes post it on my blog.

When it comes to school, we often get assignments or things we need to write on our blogs. I have three different blogs so there is plenty of blogging. The main difference it has made in school is variety throughout the day.  Instead of just being lectured or what it is the teacher is doing, we get to write independently and post our work on our own personal blogs. I think it is pretty cool and the blog can eventually look very nice!

I would say that it has made us work more independently on some specific tasks. We create something of our own which is fun and in some way rewarding. We can see that we have made something from scratch and are proud of it, and also by getting comments from other people from around the world.

Blogger challenges us to write well written articles because they are viewed by whoever wants to take a look.  I think blogger is a pretty good alternative for us students. Instead of handing in a paper every week, we can publish an article on our blog that eventually will become sort of a collection of all your work. If you need to use something you wrote, they will be right where you left them.

Link to challenge here!: http://theedublogger.edublogs.org/2009/03/27/the-student-blogging-challenge-celebration/#comment-3647

This is England

This is England is a movie displaying the problems, patriotism and racism England was facing during the eighties. The movie is about a young boy who grows up in England in 1983. He is facing bullying everyday at school while struggling with the loss of his dad who died in the Falkland Wars. One day home from school he stumbles into a gang of skinheads that he starts hanging out with. These people become his “family” along with his mother. They take care of him and introduce him to their views on racism, white nationalism etc. He later in the movie becomes best buddies with Combo who is the leader of their gang and a strong British nationalist. The issues in England come through strongly via this movie. 

Obama & Jay Leno

1.    What are the advantages for the president to be on this show?

President Obama became the first president to have ever been on a late show. There are many different opinions whether he should have done it or not. By going on the show Barak Obama can gain new and different listeners and viewers. Jay Leno’s Tonight show also has a huge audience and people love the show which is positive for Obama because it brings him attention.

 

2.    What are the downsides?

The downside of going on the show with Jay Leno is that it can bring him negative attention because some people believe he should be sitting in the White House discussing the economic crisis. It is a rough time for America and he should maybe use time on lifting the country back to normal rather than going on a game show.

3.    How are these students using the media to get their points across; who is listening?

These students are using the media to emphasize how much the economic crisis is affecting the children and not only businessmen and other adults. They are using the media in a way that they reach out to everybody. Youtube is a worldwide phenomenon that attracts many people and is very effective to spread thoughts or whatever it may be. They managed to reach out to the people and better yet the president. This shows that the nation cares and that the president is working on the problem. 

The King Wins The Nobel Peace Price

I have just read the article about Martin Luther King and when he was awarded the majestic Nobel Peace Prize. He was awarded the prize on Oct. 14, 1964 and was the youngest to have ever received the price.

After receiving the price the King stated that he was glad other people were concerned with the problems the African Americans were facing at the time. I think Martin Luther King was a very understanding person and I love all his responses to questions given after receiving the award.  An example of his words that I enjoy reading is “I regard the prize as a sign that world public opinion was on the side of those struggling for freedom and dignity”.

He was the right man to receive the award at the time because he was fighting for oppressed people and showing the world that everybody is equal and deserve the same rights. 

Onenote = Hallelujah

We have recently started to use onenote to take notes in class and as a way to keep all our documents organized and easy to find. I have to say that I love onenote, it is the best program I have ever used in school and makes everything easier. After I started using onenote I have noticed that I feel that I got control over all the documents on my computer. It is very functional and easy to learn which makes it great for students.
ONENOTE IS AWESOME!

Senior Project

We are having a senior project where we get to choose what we want to write about from this year’s curriculum. Some of the topics we get to choose from are politics (US, British, Irish), social and economic conditions, history and events, etc. I have chosen to write about American politics and probably focus on the new American president or write about the difference between American and Norwegian schools. We might get politics as a subject on our final exam this year so that would be a smart choice. To compare Norwegian and American schools would also be a good choice because I have lived in America and gone to an American school.

What will it be??????=)

The Falkland war

1) European settlers and explorers were the people who lived on the Falkland Islands. The islands were not inhabited before the European nations started their colonization.

2) It was important for the UK to maintain control over the Islands because they wanted to protect their territory and not let Argentina reoccupy the islands after they had already managed to take control. Nationalism and patriotism were key factors as well. They already had British settlers on the islands which they wanted to “protect” and keep the islands under British rule.

3) Argentina wanted the islands because it’s located right next to their country, and they did not want Britain there to rule over the islands and have them close to them.

4) The war ended with British victory. General Menéndez ignoring orders from Buenos Aires to gather all the remaining forces and go into a suicidal counter-attack, surrendered unconditionally to Major General Moore, bringing the conflict to an end.

5) About 650 Argentines and 260 British casualties.

6) The Falklands campaign was considered a great victory for the United Kingdom. The Tory government of Margaret Thatcher was reelected the following year by a landslide. Even though the national economy was by then starting to recover from the recession, this change in the public opinion became known as the Falklands factor. The war was a victory to the people as well.

On October 23. 1993 a bomb killed ten people in a local fish-shop at the protestant Shankill road in Belfast. Amongst the victims of the attack was the bomber Thomas Begley, a member of the IRA along with the parents of Michelle Williamson (a protestant).
Now 16 years later there have been proposed suggestions and an active effort to solve and get an end to all the violent actions between Protestants and Catholics. Terrorist attacks between these two groups have been a major problem and caused many innocent lives. In a conference in Belfast Michelle Williamson is furiously talking about the problem and saying that the commissions’ plans are unacceptable. Along with other victims like herself they are pounding down the proposals with fury and awful language.

The report was meant to “compensate” for the loss of victims family member(s) or work as conciliation, but instead it caused more trouble and disagreements. The report stated that all the families of the victims killed by terror attacks would be given 120 000kr including the families of the IRA terrorists. This is what caused the problems and huge fights between the victims’ families and the commission. The commission had to eventually withdraw their plan that was meant to stabilize the relationship between Protestants and Catholics.

I think the commissions’ plan to give a sum of money to all the families was a good idea initially, but as I got to the part where it said the families of the IRA terrorists would also receive money, I drastically changed my mind. I agree that it would be the same as giving money to the terrorists of the 9/11 attack. I don't understand how someone would give money in compensation to a family where another family member had actively tried and succeeded in killing others. I can understand how their families feel, and think theyshould be given a helping hand and support to deal with the situation because they didn't have anything to do with the attacks.

My Hometown

Hi people
I’m going to tell you all about my hometown. First of I should tell you what country I come from, that would be Norway. Norway is a highly stretched country and a part of what is called Scandinavia. My hometown is to be found south east in Norway and is called Bærum, not far away from our capital Oslo.

Norway is a much diversified country with many different dialects, people, and beautiful nature. Our nature is probably what attracts most people from other countries and is what they associate with Norway. Our fjords and many mountains are beautiful and are filled with opportunities for visitors or whoever wants to experience them.

My hometown has a little bit of everything that Norway has to offer, it is a great place to live, perfect for kids, it has a huge variety of sports and after school activities, great schools, shopping malls, and can cover pretty much any desire. It has coastline which is awesome because of everything that offers such as boats, swimming in the water, jumping off cliffs and having a good time.

The fact that it is so close to Oslo is a huge bonus considering all the shopping, work, club, etc opportunities it has.

This is my home town.. Worth checking out!

David Cameron speech – Union of Scotland and England

David Cameron is addressing his ideas and views on the Union of Scotland and England. The core of his speech is about maintaining the union between Scotland and England and not become one independent nation separate from England. He strongly believes in the union as he states himself “I strongly believe in the union and its future” and is very passionate in his speech. He is opposing himself to the laborers thoughts and desires of separatism which in this speech is the opposing side. David Cameron gives examples and reasons why Scotland and England should maintain a union; he also explains the benefits of the union. Some of Cameron’s main arguments are how much the little offshore nation has accomplished since the early days, the power the countries have standing together, and a richer economy together, great health service.

Cameron also emphasizes that the reasons why people in England are failing mortgages, experiences increase in the cost of living and higher taxes compared to Scotland is because of the government. He believes the government is the one to blame. If the government is strong, the nation will be strong.

Cameron closes his speech up by giving his Scottish audience a few strong words “stronger together, weaker apart”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5C5WMyalek&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oV9UjjpmG10&eurl=http://wibe7.tv/

INTO THE WILD

The book "Into the wild" written by Krakauer is a very moving and inspiring book about the young adventurer Alex/Chris McCandless who seeks a place where he can find happiness and overcome an ultimate challenge that will define him as a person. This challenge proves fatal and only his highly decomposed body and belongings such as a diary and back pack is found. Born into quite a wealthy family Chris doesn't get the feeling of belonging and evolves to a very independent person with own strong thoughts. His father, a quite protective character has a huge impact on Chris and can seem to reflect the opposite of his independent son. Chris graduates high school with impressive grades and takes on college which is where his adventure begins. With no notice Chris takes off in his car driving across the united states ending up in the Alaskan wilderness. On his trip he comes across people who eventually helped put together the book about his adventure and his last years. Chris made his way through many states hitchhiking and finding shelter wherever he was welcomed.
The book explains his relationships to his family, the people he met and himself. It gives a picture of an independent soul trying to find something unknown that will give sense to his existence. Chris didn't underestimate mother nature and the Alaskan wilderness, but simply equipped himself with less than needed to make his challenge greater. Unfortunately he didn't live to tell the tale.

"into the wild" theme

Theme:
Page ix, Authors noteIn April 1992, a young man from a well-to-do East Coast family hitchhiked to Alaska and walked alone into the wilderness north of Mt. McKinley. Four months later his decomposed body was found by a party of moose hunters.


This paragraph explains the theme of independence and the pursuit of happiness. The main character Alex is searching for the one place where he can find peace for himself and overcome the ultimate challenge. He believed that a challenge without great risk is not considered a challenge. By taking on a challenge like he did, he felt he would find his place and become who he wanted to be.

"Into the wild" relationships

Relationships:
Page 16
McCandless was smallish with the hard, stringy physique itinerant laborer. There was something arresting about the youngster’s eyes. Dark and emotive, they suggested a trace of exotic blood in his heritage – Greek, maybe, or Chippewa- and conveyed a vulnerability that made Westerberg want to take the kid under his wing. He had the kind of sensitive good looks that women made big fuss over, Westerberg imagined.
Page 17McCandless stayed with Westerberg for three days, riding out with his crew each morning as the workers piloted their lumbering machines across the ocean of ripe and grain. Before McCandless and Westerberg went their separate ways, Westerberg told the young man to look him up in Carthage if he ever needed a job.


These two paragraphs show the connection and relationship between Alex and Westerberg. Alex is immediately drawn into the open arms of Westerberg because of his personality and interesting character. Alex’s determination and will to finish whatever he had started got to Westerberg and Westerberg’s kindness is well recognized by Alex. Their relationship seems very strong even though they didn’t spend a huge amount of time together.