Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Outsiders

1. Sometimes violence is justifiable.
Agree.
Self-defense is acceptable if someone was about to harm you or your family however, it can lead to a chain of violent events that may result in a catastrophe.

3. It's easier to make friends with someone who is a lot like you, then someone who is different.
Disagree
I think that no matter how alike or different someone is to you, you can make friends with them if you try hard enough. Also if they are too much like you it can get boring and frustrating and you may have arguments, like brothers and sisters do. It's always good to have a mixture of people as friends.

4. Loosing a loved can have positive outcomes.
Agree, disagree.
It can put the person who died out of their misery, and end their suffering if they have been ill, which is kinder for them. However for the people left behind like friends and family it's incredibly hard to deal with.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

The Knight In Shining Moonlight

The Knight In Shining Moonlight

Setting: Asian building, 29th century, 2886.
Space, moon, 29th century, 2886.

Characters:

Sam Arthberry
Protagonist
Knight
Characteristics- kind, strong, intelligent, tall, dark hair, blue eyes, very pale skin, freckles.
Personality: Adamant, always wanting to do what is it right, means well, stubborn.

Nigel Clown
Antagonist
FBI Secret Agent
Characteristics- devious, sly, cocky, sneaky, short, blond hair, green eyes, tanned skin, spots.
Personality- Will do anything to get what he wants no matter the consequences, keeps himself to himself and doesn’t work in a team.

Helen Gartwright
Boss at Diving for Dolphins
Characteristics- kind, repetitive, fair, short, red hair, brown eyes, glasses, pale skin.
Personality- Paranoid, safety conscious, good manager, tends to drag things on though.

Theme
- Science Fiction

Points of View- third person

Conflict- The knight tries to send vast amounts of water to the moon. Later Noah’s ark is sent too. The Secret Agent works out Sam’s plan and tries to stop him. They argue, get angry and each go out of their way to make the other person unsuccessful.

Climax- When FBI Agent Nigel gets his devious little brain around Sam’s brilliant plan.

Conclusion- The Knight unloads the historical Noah’s ark, packed with animals of various species along with the masses of water he imported from Thailand.




The cold frost suddenly hit young Sam; the winter had really begun to take off in Thailand and due to reverse climate change, at -15 degrees it wasn’t on many people’s list for holiday destinations. The knight and part-time scuba diver was all set for his weekly lesson in the unknown. Sam wasn’t the typical lazy young adult we have today, but a generous and willing man. “Diving for Dolphins” was the centre where Sam had joined, the boss; Miss Helen Gartwright was in the middle of her usual boring, long speeches about Health and Safety. She had repeated the same speech without a single smile for months, and no one and I mean no one was listening.
Finally after what seemed like a good few hours, the group of eager divers were on the road, heading for a different location that was now going to be their new area. The water seemed tranquil and with hardly any people on the beech, it was a perfect spot. With everyone’s gear on, they set off on the 2 boats. 3, 2, 1, the boys dived into the dark blue sea.
Their oxygen supply only lasted 45 minutes so they had to be quick. There was a sudden glimmer that caught Sam’s eye. It was metal, old but shiny still. As he neared, it loomed upon him; a blurry figure was all that could be made out of it. An old ship maybe? Ahh, yes, but not just any old ship, Noah’s Ark!! Sam floated their, shocked to the bone.
He kept this amazing discovery to himself for a while longer. The diver checked it out a few more times, each visit sure it was a miracle. After his fifth trip to the ark, he plucked up the courage to finally tell somebody. The only sensible option was the boss of the diving centre. Miss Gartwright didn’t stop laughing for at least 4 hours.
Sam felt like a complete and utter fool, and was depressed for some time. He eventually got over himself, and decided to hire some workmen to lift the shipwreck out of the deep blue sea, to a place where he could fix it up. It was 6 months before the boat was ready for anything, by then some interest had built up towards to the ark. Sam had a brainwave, “What if I could transport water and animals to the moon, what if?” he thought to himself. It him like a smack on the back, he could achieve this remarkable dream. Water from the sea was gathered, put into containers and shipped to the moon; it was in the newspapers in every town. Sam, who was from a little hut looking over a river, had made it into the papers. Trouble began! FBI Secret Agent Nigel Clown had caught onto his plan, was it all over now? Sam worked faster, trying to ship the animals off before Nigel could do anything about it. Unlucky Sam was devastated. Nigel had ordered a full inspection on the boat, to make sure it was humane for travelling. It would delay the procedure by a month.
Noah’s Ark was declared suitable and the animals were loaded two by two. Within 15 minutes, the animals and Sam were in space, slightly confused, but in one piece. The water seemed to have stayed and looked like it had made a permanent imprint on the moon’s surface. The animals were unloaded off the trailer, all in space suites, and started to roam around, free! More and more water was ordered and it wasn’t long before the moon had become a habitable place for living things. Nigel had been defeated; the authorities had declared the ship safe, so therefore it was out of his hands.
Everyone was happy; Sam earned millions, much to the annoyance of Nigel. The animals enjoyed their new habitat, grass grew and there was a frequent supply of water being delivered to the moon. It was a world record, and no one else has achieved this goal to this day. I hope other planets can be conquered, maybe in the future their might be holiday trips to Mars and Venus. Who knows?

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

A Taste of Salt- what really happened!


Djo seemed to be getting better by the day, but all of a sudden he had a stroke and as he was a;ready ill, it really damaged him and his condition. He became a vegetable, alive...just! It was like there was a body lying there but nothing inside of it. The doctors warned Jeremie that this was how Djo was going to be for the rest of his so called "life". For us, the choice would seem easy, but for Jeremie it was a hard and heart-breaking one. Her family was behind her all the way, but of course urged her to leave La Saline and go to France. With some gentle persuasion Jeremie said her final goodbye to Djo, who once used to be her everything! She left, and although some distance away she kept in touch with her family and Sister Claire. Jeremie knew it was never going to happen, but always asked if there was any change in regard to his condition. It was always "stable". Via her weekly telephone calls to home, she found out that Father Aristide had got the post as president, despite what the Tonton Macoutes thought of him. He helped towards making a better life for the Haitians but it did not last for long, does anything...??

Thursday, October 23, 2008

Bravery Is Rewarded


Film: Raise Your Voice
Director: Sean McNamara
Written by: Sam Schreiber
Produced in: 2004
Stars: Hilary Duff, Jason Ritter, Oliver James, Lauren Mayhew, David Keith and Rita Wilson.

Raise Your Voice is an American drama that was first released on 2004 (Wikipedia). The setting is in Flagstaff, Arizona, where Terri Fletcher is from and Los Angeles where the music school is. It tells of a teenage girl named, Terri Fletcher, played by Hilary Duff who wants to go to Los Angeles for the summer to take part in a performing arts school. This movie was written by Sam Schreiber and directed by Sean McNamara.


It is the last day of school and the excitement is creeping into everyone. Terri and her family are putting on a celebratory BBQ for her older brother, Paul Fletcher, played by Jason Ritter, before he leaves for college. The tension is high, when Paul is slightly late and Terri kicks off about wanting to take part in the summer music school. Paul and his dad, played by David Keith, have their usual difference in opinion and it ends with Paul being grounded.
Terri felt slightly bad about this whole scenario and later follows him up the stairs. Meanwhile Paul has snuck out to the garden to post a DVD of Terri singing, in an attempt to get her accepted into the music school. When Paul comes back he finds Terri in his room, and has he shock of his life when his sister breaks the news that she has bought tickets for Three Days Grace, their favourite band! Paul honestly admits that he can't go because he has been grounded and the concert is that night. However with the slightest persuasion Terr changes his mind and they sneak out of the side window and into the car. Their Aunt Nina, played by Rebecca De Mornay is watching them and chuckles to herself, as it reminds her of what it was like to be a teenager again.
The siblings arrive at the concert after the talk they'd had in the car, Paul warned Terri that it was now or never to escape from their dad and do want she wanted to do for a change. They start to get into the spirit of things and open up, singing and cheering along with the band.
After the concert is over the pair set off home and are still singing and talking about the thrill of meeting their favourite band. Then, suddenly, BAM!! A car had come out of the blue with their headlights on full beam, Paul stared in panic. I thought this was very original and unexpected because the tragic events normally happens towards the middle or end not right at the beginning. Terri wakes up to find that she is in hospital and Paul is dead!
She blames herself for his death, forcing him to come out that night and torches and bright lights bring everything back.
Terri’s mum, played by Rita Wilson wants to do what is right for her child and sets up a plan where it looks like Terri is going to go and stay with her Aunt Nina, but is really going to Los Angeles to the music school. This fools her dad, and she is soon on her way.
When she arrives in her new destination she isn’t given the warmest welcome by Jay, English actor Oliver James but nevertheless gets on with things. She tries to settle in to her new room and get to know her roommate, but it doesn’t go to plan when her roommate simply states that she doesn’t want to get close to anyone in this fierce competition as she needs the money the most. The winner gets a $10,000 sponsorship.
The tutors are surprised with the depressed and quiet teenager they have on their hands and shows Terri the DVD Paul had sent in of her being her usual cheerful self. This turns out to be all too much for the girl and she storms out, finding a shoulder to cry on in Jay, who is with Robin, played by Lauren Mayhew. He supposedly dumps her but Robin doesn’t seem to quite understand it. Terri catches them out whilst she was about to practice for the final night along with Jay, as a team. However she isn’t pleased with what she finds and feels betrayed. When Terri finds Jay at her door, in a bad state she spends all night with him on the roof, making sure he doesn’t do anything stupid. He wins back her trust and they continue practicing for the final night. The pair attempt to try out their music in front of an audience at a local bar, but the bright lights are all too much for Terri.
Will she be able to pull it together for the final night? Will her dad smell a rat? Watch the film to find out, and trust me, it is worth it!!

This movie went to the top of my list because it was so emotional and the chemistry between the characters was remarkable, it seemed so real!! I cried in some parts, like when Paul died, aged 18. Also the music was so well timed into the scenes, like when Johnny Maglone, played by Nick Wald, plays Amazing Grace in the opening sequence in perfect rhythm on the recorder. It is simple things like these that really make a difference to whether you watch the movie or not, I personally think that it is a MUST to go and watch it!!

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed reading it!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raise_Your_Voice






Thursday, October 9, 2008

Mr.Frog rules!

The Hopper Times


Breaking News:

Mr.Frog jumps to victory

The votes for the post of London Mayor have been counted and by a clear mile, Mr.Frog has dominated the election.
It has been this young frog's dream for many years to become a powerful politician, and now it's become reality. Members of the public have been saying that, with all due respect Mr.Frog had no competition, but a few critics and other politicians have been accusing the government of corrupting the vote, but this has yet to be proven.

Written By: Charlie


Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Robert Kazinsy's Biography

Robert Kazinsky was born on 18th November 1983 in Haywards Heath, which is in West Sussex, England. However he grew up in Brighton. He was born Robert John Appleby but later took his grandfather's middle name, Kazinsky, as his stage name. Robert is a British actor, who supports Brighton and Hove Albion FC, and is a very strong fan.

Robert's parents are Phyliss and Paul Appleby and has an older brother called Michael. Robert, although British, has Polish and Russian bloodlines, hence the name Kazinsky.

Robert attended Hove Park School in Hove during the years 1995-2000 but was expelled from that school and his future college. However Rob admitted to begin bullied at school, saying "When I was younger I was the ginger, pale one who got bullied", a quote from Wikipedia. It wasn't the best start for Robert Kazinsky, but despite the disappointing records, he made his way to the top as an actor with a grade B in his drama GCSE in the year 2000.

To start his career off, he starred in his former school and college productions. They were Bugsy Malone and Midsummer Night's Dream. He then attended the Guildford School of Acting from 2002 to July 2005. He appeared in a few Israeli television commercials, but really made his mark in the acting industry as a guest star for an episode of the CBBC's children's programme, the Basil Brush Show.

His character was called Sven Garley. However, the role he is most famous for is that of Casper Rose in the Sky One television football drama The Dream Team from late 2005 until 2006. Kazinsky announced his decision to leave the show towards the end of the 9th series and was then killed off. He is good friends with many co-stars from Dream Team to this day. Some of them are: Jamie Lomas-Hollyoaks, Kara Tointon-EastEnders and Ricky Whittle-Hollyoaks.

On 18th May 2006, it was made public that Robert Kazinsky had gotten the role of Sean Slater in the British Soap Opera, EastEnders. His first appearance was on 22nd August 2006. Rob confirmed in an interview, being good friends with Matt Di Angelo, despite playing enemies in EastEnders. However on 18th January 2008 it was announced that Robert was going to leave the show to become a Hollywood actor, and would carry on filming until November and will stay on our screens until the end of 2008/beginning of 2009. However, during an interview with This Morning on 31st July 2008 Robert Kazinsky said that he would not be going to Hollywood, but would instead be fulfilling a life time dream of his and begin an apprenticeship as a mechanic. He quoted on This Morning "I pay my mechanics very well, as my car is in there every other week, so they have agreed to let me fulfill a dream of mine to do an apprenticeship to become a car mechanic."

On Youtube, Robert Kazinsky was shown as the presenter in the EastEnders launch video after they had set up a new video channel on Youtube.

On 29th September 2008 Rob won two awards at the Inside Soap Awards, these were the Best Actor and Best Looking Actor. These were his first awards during his time in EastEnders and he put stars like Robert James Collier, Coronation Street to shame.



Robert Kazinsky (2008). Wikipedia. Retrieved October 1, 2008.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Kazinsky

This video is to show how good he became as an actor during his time in EastEnders:

Anticipation Guide Response- Taste of Salt

1.) Politics and political problems are a subject for adults to deal with.
I agree because children shouldn't be expected to understand or get involved in issues like that, which won't concern them for many years. Yes I think that children should be aware of what is going on because that makes them more knowledgeable. However, adults have studied politics and political problems for years, that's what they wanted to become a part of. A child doesn't know what they want to study or become yet, and asking them to understand and express their opinions on a subject that not even some adults understand is just not very fair!

2.) All stories can have a happy ending if those involved work towards it
I disagree because not all situations have a happy ending. Yes, you can try and make light of it in certain circumstances but in many cases you can't make the situation happy. For instance, if someone dies, how can you make a happy ending out of that? Unless you were extremely mean and wanted them to die, it's just impossible to be happy about it. It is possible to make the situation better by maybe comforting each other and looking back on good times, but a happy ending, no way!

3.) Literacy (being able to read) is a form of freedom
I agree because if you read and write, you are able to voice your opinions and say what you feel or want to. It is an even bigger form of freedom in a situation like if you moved country, for example. Let's say I moved to France, if I can speak French and write it then it would really benefit me in terms of being able to say what I needed to or wanted to in a situation like in a supermarket and being able to write down what was necessary. In terms of reading, well that would be very important because I would be able to read signs on the motorway or even a menu in a restaurant. So, yes I think literacy is a form of freedom.

4.) Civilizations without a written language cannot document history
I disagree because in the past civilizations have used cave paintings to document history, which we have discovered and been able to learn about their civilization from them. Cave paintings were first started during the Upper Palaeolithic period , which was 40,000 to 10,000 BC. From these cave paintings archaeologists have found out when they were first started and during what period. In modern times we do use written languages to record things, but it is possible to record history in other ways!

Monday, September 15, 2008

Mr. Papapetrou's Magical Mayhem







The summer of 2008 was an eventful one for Mr. Papapetrou. The majority of it was spent in Wizard School-Summer Camp, where he learnt how to make things appear, disappear, fly the magic carpet and learn different spells. He really enjoyed it and passed his finals to graduate out of the Wizard School- Summer Camp. This called for a celebration and Mr.P couldn't think of a better way to spend it than in England. He was going to visit his brother called Robert Kazinsky, aged 25 . Robert stars in the British soap opera called EastEnders and has done so since August of 2006. Mr. P hadn't seen him for 5 years and decided it was about time to change that!

The flight from Cyprus to England was a bumpy ride and seemed to drag on forever. After 5 long hours the aeroplane reached it's destination. When Mr.P got off the plane, it was cold and raining, so different to the sunshine and humidity of Cyprus. After another 2 hours that were filled with ques and traffic, he finally reached the hotel called the Dorchester. His first day in London was spent at Elstree studios watching his brother, Robert, film the Christmas episode of EastEnders. Apparently it's very dramatic and exciting! Mr.P was treated like royalty and was even given a full tour of the set and got to meet the entire cast!!

After that the two brothers left the studios and headed for a cafe nearby to get something to eat, and have a good catching up session. They talked about the past 5 years during which Robert joined EastEnders and Mr.P was teaching P.E at a school in Cyprus.

Well, the two brothers only had a week to catch up and as if in a flash it was over. But, before Mr.P left he managed to get me an autograph of Robert Kazinsky which I was very grateful for. Mr.P and Robert said their goodbyes and Mr.P boarded the plane to Cyprus. However, the pilot was only 4 degrees off course and the plane landed in Thailand!! However that wasn't all, about 60 elephants came charging towards them and then came to an abrupt halt. No one had fed the elephants all day and they were starving. All of a sudden there was a deffening clatter and an astonishing sight. The elephants were eating the plane, not just the one plane several other back up planes!! All the passengers stood there, dazed. Now, this is where Mr.P could use his magic to help people. He had been waiting all summer for an excuse to finally use it but nothing had come up, until now! He thought over the spell again and again and then took a deep breath and began to say "abra cadabra, abra cadee, turn these elephants into a flea," and there appeared a flea in their place. Mr.P had saved everyone from the mighty elephants, but there was one dilema left. How would the passengers get back to Cyprus?? Well again Mr.P thought the spell through and through and said "abra cadabra, abra cadoo, let me summon a plane for you," and before their eyes a plane appeared. None of the passengers could believe it, they had no idea where it came from but clapped and cheered anyway. Mr.Papapetrou had done it; he had succesfully carried out his first spells in the outside world!!

After just over 1 week of holidays abroad, Mr.Papapetrou returned to Cyprus safe and sound and I got my autograph of Robert Kazinsky!! Well, that was Mr.P's adventurous holiday! I hope you enjoyed reading it! Thanks to Mr.Papapetrou for letting me write about him and letting me borrow a picture.


Thursday, September 11, 2008

" The Tell Tale Heart"

Hello again!

I prefer media clip number 1 because in my opinion it gives the best explanation of the story, and as I haven't read the story it gives me a pretty good idea in my head of what the story is about and what the book would be like. It also has some of the actual text in the video too, so this really helps me to get an even better understanding of what the author would be saying in his book, which would intrigue me to read the book or not read the book.
I think that again clip number 1 would be the best clip to help a reader understand the story because it is the most accurate and also, as I said before, has a reading from the actual text. So that in itself would help someone understand the story. Whereas with clip number 3 it is a puppet version and is more for entertainment (I found it funny!) than explanation and accuracy! The first clip also has quite a weird narrator that thinks he is normal, which always adds to the drama and suspence of stories because you enver know what they are going to do next. I think that this would suggest that in the book the author wants to give you the impression that he is quite wierd and not normal! For example he didn't want to kill an old man because he was rich but becasue he had a scary eye that whenever he looked at it, it made his blood run cold! Well, that's about it now.

My favourite band

My favourite band is Take That, they are an English pop group that was formed in 1990. There were 5 members in the band origanally, but Robbie Williams left so there are now 4 members in the group. They are: Gary Barlow, Jason Orange, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. I think that Take That are an oustanding group because they have come back from some very rough times in their career and are still going, they have released so many albums and are truely respected people in the U.K. and other countries. Their songs are all really catchy and the type that you can't help but sing to. This group has proved that no matter how bad things get, they can only get better!


Gary Barlow is the lead singer and song writer for Take That and was born on January 20th 1971. Just aged 14 he was playing in Ken Nodd's band. Gary's first song was called "Let's Pray for Christmas" and took him to the final of the Christmas song competition called Pebble Mill. A few years later he got to know Mark Owen and Robbie Williams. Mark Owen was born on January 27th 1974 and Robbie Williams was born on February 13th 1974. Mark Owen had trialed for a position in the British football team, Manchester United. Robbie's father was a comedian and his mother was a singer. In previous years before Take That was first formed, Robbie appeared in a British soap opera called Brookside. The three of them made a band called the "Cutest Rush", which didn't last very long! Record producer/manager, Nigel Martin Smith had an idea of making a British pop group and Gary Barlow, Mark Owen, Robbie Williams, Jason Orange who was born on July 10th 1970 and Howard Donald who was born on April 28th 1968, who were both two former members of the group Street Beat. The 5 then became Take That in 1990. But, after only 5 years the group faced a dilema, Robbie Williams was becoming known as the "wild child" of the group and in the summer of 1995 he confirmed that he was infact going to leave the group.



Here is a discography of all 8 of Take That's albums:



1. Album: Take That and Party
Released in: 1992
Songs: I Found Heaven, Once You've tasted Love, It Only Takes A Minute, A Million Love Songs, Satisfied I Can Make It, Do What You Like, Promises, Why Can't I Wake Up With You, Never Want To Let You Go, Give Good Feeling, Could It Be Magic, Take That And Party.



2. Album: Everything Changes
Released in: 1993
Songs: Everything Changes, Pray, Wasting My Time, Relight My Fire, Love Ain't Here Anymore, If This IS Love, Whatever You Do To Me, Meaning of Love, Why Can't I Wake Up With You, You Are the One, Another Crack In My Heart, Broken Your Heart, Babe.



3. Album: Nobody Else
Released In: 1995
Songs: Sure, Back for Good, Every Guy, Sunday to Saturday, Nobody Else, Never Forget, Hangign onto Your Love, Holding Back the Tears, Hate It, Lady Tonight, The Day After Tomorrow.



4. Album: Greatest Hits
Released In: 1996



5. Album: Forever....Greatest Hits
Realesed In: 2002



6. Album: The Ultimate Collection
Released In: 2005



7. Album: Beautiful World
Released In: 2006



8. Album: Beautiful World Tour Edition
Released In: 2007



The most recent awards that Take That has got was on 21st February 2008 at the Brit Awards, they picked up the trophy for best British live act and British single.



Well that sums up about everything, thanks for reading!



Sunday, September 7, 2008

About me :)


Hi, I'm 12 years old and was born in London, England. I lived there for most of my life but I now live in Cyprus with my parents and Cyprus poodle called George. I have friends from all over Cyprus, from Larnaca to Episkopi and they are all brilliant! My favorite bands are Scouting for Girl's and OneRepublic at the moment. I think that She's So Lovely by Scouting for Girl's and Stop and Stare by OneRepublic are really good songs because they have a catchy beat and lovely lyrics. I'm in 8th grade at the moment and am the youngest student. I have two ponies that I have on loan meaning I don't own them but have a right to ride them whenever I want to. The first pony is 14 hh and called Mowena, she's 36 years old and was born in England but transported to Cyprus when she was very young, she is bay or brown and is abosulutely brilliant!! My other pony is 14.2 hh and called Archie, he is 6 years old and was born in Cyprus, he is chestnut or ginger and I am training him at the moment! My other hobbies are hurdling and swimming. I hurdle whenever I can and I really enjoy it along with track and field, I also really enjoy swimming because I have done so since I was about 5 years old. Sometimes I like to watch some television, my favorite actor is Robert Kazinsky. I think that he is great, he is going to Hollywood next year and I'm hoping he will do well but eventually come back to EastEnders. I can't wait until 2012 where the Olympics are in London. Hopefully Great Britain will do even better on their own turf. Well, that's about it for now, I will be speaking to you soon!