Essay #5

Color, Smells, and History

8th Grade Trip to Washington D.C.

Pine Point School

8th Grade

November 30, 2011

Eliza Griffin

When the 8th grade was in Washington D.C., there was many exciting activities to do, and to see. Two place that was extremely interesting was the United States Botanic Gardens, and the Jefferson Memorial.

(T.S) As you enter the United States Botanic Gardens, you see massive amounts of different colors. (S.D) When we entered the rain forest room, it was dull, but because there were bright and exotic flowers on the walls and floors, the room really popped, and you could almost feel the flowers growing and blossoming in front of you. (C.M) Every which way you looked, you would see bright alluring colors. (C.M) The plants inside the enormous greenhouse, looked extremely  luscious because sprinklers go off about every five minutes, to keep the flowers looking their best. (S.D) In addition, in the gardens, each room smelled differently. (C.M.) Depending what room you were in, the scent in the air would change. (C.M.) For example, when I walked into the Desert room the air smelled dry, but when I was in the Medicinal room the smell of the herbs dominated. The United States Botanic Gardens had the best smell of all of the museums we visited while in Washington.
(T.S.) Each night, when we would walk to all the different memorials, there were historic sites to be seen. (S.D) The Jefferson Memorial was so beautifully illuminated , that  you could see it from miles away. (C.M) Everything was so bright at the memorial, that the giant dome looked like a enormous flashlight aiming up at the starry sky. (C.M.) When we were standing inside the dome, there was perfect lighting, that made it perfectly possibly to see all the old passages of Thomas Jefferson’s writings on the walls.(S.D)In addition to being able to read everything, you could also see so many other historical and important sites from this memorial. (C.M.) For example, you had a crystal clear view of the National Monument from the steps just in front of where the bronze statue of Jefferson stands. (C.M.) You could also see the White House, which is where the Thomas Jefferson statue is facing. (C.S.) This bright memorial, which contains so much history, lit up the entire starry sky in Washington D.C., each night we were there.
The D.C. trip was definitely a trip to remember. All these places that we went to including: the Botanic Gardens and the Jefferson Memorial made me realize how much this trip, and the history of America that we learned while there will influence my life. I will never forget being able to stand right next to the giant statue of Thomas Jefferson looking at the White House, the smells and colors of all the plants in the Botanic Garden, and the magical feeling of seeing these things, as well as others over the Veteran's Day Holiday.


Self Assessment


1. A strong point in my writing that I see, is in the 1st body paragraph because I am really descriptive
2. One weak part I see in my writing is in the introduction paragraph, this is because I don't think that i really catch the reader.
3. One thing that I believe I need to work on is making better music in my writing.

Essay #3

A Tragic Act of Love

A Connection Between My Life and Of Mice and Men

8th Grade English

Eliza Griffin

October 27, 2011

You may be wondering how on earth the song “ He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother” written by The Hollies relates to the novella Of Mice and Men, but also to my personal life. This is because there is a special lyric in the song that says “And the load doesn’t weigh me down at all”. These lyrics relate to my life, with my grandfather having some trouble over the last couple of years. This also relates to the famous John Steinbeck novella Of Mice and Men by George helping Lennie through out his life.

        (T.S)The last two years have been extremely difficult for my dad and his sisters. This is because one day, when my grandfather went to the doctor, they found skin cancer near his eye. To make sure that the cancer would not spread into his eye, the doctor removed his eye. (S.D.)Unfortunatly, for the past two years my dad and my three aunts have been taking time out of their own day to help and care for my grandpa. (C.M.) Sometimes they would have to rearrange their schedules to help him. (C.M.) This is inspiring to me because they would just be happy that they were helping a loved one. (S.D) Also, it would be easier for them to hire a nurse. (C.M.) Instead, they want to help their dad themselves. “And the load doesn’t weigh me down at all”. (S.D.) This quote says that they are happy to do whatever it takes to help their father. (C.M.)  It does not annoy them having to drive over to Watch Hill and take my grandpa to doctor’s appointments, because they love him. (C.M.) Whenever and wherever they drive my grandpa, they always have a good attitude. (C.S) This act of love by my relatives, shows my cousins and I  that doing the right thing leaves a  lasting positive impact on my family.
(T.S) Of Mice and Men relates to the lyrics “And the load does not weigh me down at all” in the song “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother” by The Hollies. (S.D) George allows Lennie to always follow him wherever he goes.(C.M.) This says the load of Lennie does not weigh George down at all. (C.M) Lennie says on page 98 “ “You ain’t gonna leave me, are ya, George? I know you ain’t.” George came  and sat down beside him. “No.””, this says to me that George really cares about Lennie. (S.D) George is also happy when Lennie is always with him because Lennie is there for him. (C.M.) On page 14 when George says to Lennie “” Hide in the bush till I come for you. Can you remember that?””. (C.M.) This quote demonstrates how George cares about  Lennie, and how he does not want to lose him. (S.D) Lastly, George shot Lennie for an excellent  reason. (C.M.) This is because George did not want Lennie to have a long, painful, and stressful death, and this is exactly what Curly was going to do if he had the chance.(C.M.) George wanted Lennie to have a peaceful death, and that is why his last words to Lennie were that he was going to “tend the rabbits.” (C.S) Even though it was hard for George to kill Lennie, I think that he was at peace with this final tragic act.

Although this book had a truly sad ending, the meaning of the book was immensely powerful. Whenever I read a book I always feel by the ending that I have learned something new. I think that from this book I learned that friendship means everything. George and Lennie have taught me a lot about friendship and how it is important to have a good friend that you can trust.

Self Assessment:
1. A strong point in my essay I think is when I talk about my grandfather, because sometimes it is hard for me to talk about what happened to him, and by writing this essay I feel confident about talking about it now.
2. One weak point I see in my writing is in my conclusion paragraph because I don’t really say that much about my life and the book
3. One thing that I believe I need to work on is where to make my writing clearer and making better music.