812 Reading Responses discussion

Answer the following:

Choose an important moment in the text & explain why it is significant.

Remember to make sure that your topic sentence:
-includes important text info
-restates the key words of the question
-contains your specific answer to the question

Please consult your rubric and models to ensure that you are doing your best work!

For a “4”: Did I….
• Write a topic sentence that provided the claim and important text information, such as the title, author, and genre of my text?
• Provide background of what is happening in the text so my reader understands what I’m talking about? Did I say what was happening at the time of the quote/evidence?
• Find evidence from the text that proves that the change was important?
• Paraphrase and then analyze how my quote proves my claim ("This proves that _______________ was important because.../This was a significant moment because....)?
• Write a conclusion sentence that restates your claim in a different way?

Trapped, by R.L. Stine, is a horror fiction novel that tells the story of Elaine Butler, a fourteen-year-old girl, who explores a tunnel underneath Shadyside High School with her friends during Saturday detention. Elaine and her friends become trapped and realized there was no way out until someone unexpectedly came to their rescue.

Mr. Savage, their detention teacher, came down suddenly in the tunnel to find Elaine and her friend, Bo Kendall. They both wanted to know if Mr. Savage had anything to do with the abandoned tunnel. It turns out that he did. He knew every secret and everything about the tunnel. He was invited to a party in that same tunnel back in the sixties. He was also in danger of becoming trapped there, until he escaped. Mr. Savage explained that he was the only one who can free anybody from it. “I’m the only one who can get you out, Bo. And I will. But I’ve been carrying this secret around for thirty years. It’s time I tell it.” (135). This quote proves that this moment was important because Elaine and Bo were struggling to get out, their torches lit out, it was dark, and there were a lot of rats crawling around them, but Mr. Savage saved them from their troubles. They were confused because they did not know that a teacher would know anything about a dark tunnel.

Overall, Elaine and Bo were caught in a sticky situation where they were trying to escape from a tunnel. There was no way out of the nightmare they were in, until their detention teacher, Mr. Savage, came down to free them. Elaine and Bo would have never gotten out if Mr. Savage decided to keep this secret to himself.

In Blumemthals realistic fiction novel the lifeguard the character has an important moment. Sirena is a teenage girl who was sent to stay with her aunt for the summer while her parents have so,stile to think there relationship. The important moment that she has is when she met this boy named pilot. At first she didn't really like it but now she's happy because she met someone then Sirena says "There he is, straddling with Harley, his face serene and composed, his yellow, sun-streaked hair blown back off his face (79). This proves that this is a very important moment for her because she didn't expect to meet someone like pilot but it's also bad because she even has a boyfriend where she lives she's only at her aunts for the summer. This shows that she's happy and thinking about how he looks and what she thinks of him because she can't believe what just happened. Therefore because Sirena has an important moment shows, that maybe towards the end something will happen for her.

In Suzanne Collins adventure novel Hunger Games MockingJay, an important moment is when Peeta is turned into a weapon and he doesn't want to go back to Snow, the president, and be tormented and tortured. Then Katniss remembers the last stanza to a story. Peeta was turned into a weapon and killed a person and wants to be killed because he's a monster and was turned into a weapon. The others won't kill Peeta and Peeta tells them that it won't be good for him to be returned back to Snow, and be tormented, and it shows that Peeta would rather die then go back to such a horrible place and if he didn't want to die then he wouldn't care for going back to Snow. Katniss then think about a stanza which says. "Are you, are you. Coming to the tree. Wear a necklace of rope, side by side with me. Strange things did happen here. No stranger would it be. If we met up at midnight in the hanging tree." (298) This shows that when Katniss thought about this as Peeta said he didn't want to go back to Snow, it shows he'd rather die alone. This proves that it's important since Peeta is saying he wants to die and he isn't really like this, but since he's now dangerous he wants to die.

In Ben Mikaelsen's fiction novel Touching Spirit Bear, an important moment that the character experienced was when Cole changed from when he was aggressive and self centered to when he cared about nature after he touched the spirit bear. Cole Matthews is a teenager who was arrested and sent to an unknown island off the coast of Alaska where he was forced to join a group who call themselves the Native American Circle Justice. He tried to escape the island by swimming to the mainland, but then the tides pushes Cole back to the shore where he encounters a spirit bear. Cole threatens the bear. "If I ever see you again, you're dead. I'll teach you to be afraid of me." (45) But after Cole touches the spirit bear he says, "The world is beautiful! Even the wet moss and crushed grass near his hand was beautiful." (97) This shows that the change Cole had was important because before, all Cole wanted to do was damage or insult nature but now he realizes how he acted before and not to be self centered and agressive to nature. This proves that Cole made an important change and probably wants to do important things to nature. Therefore, an important moment in my book is that Cole had changed from being agressive and self centered to when he starts to care more about nature after he touched the spirit bear.

In Rachel Renee Russell's realistic fiction novel Dork Diaries: Tales From a Not So Graceful Ice Princess, an important moment that the character experienced was when Mackenzie locked Nikki and her best friends in a room so that they wont be able to perform. Nikki Maxwell is a teenager that describes her self as a dork because she isn't one of the rich popular kids at her school. She lives with her annoying sister Brianna and her not normal parents. Nikki's best friends although always stick by her side when she's in trouble. Brandon, her crush on the other hand helps her bad day turn into a good day because she always has to deal with the most likely to be wicked popular witch but Brandon finds a way to fix that problem by being so generous and engaging. Nikki states " I felt terrible for him. But I was powerless. Signing up for this stupid show was a HUGE mistake" (pg 117). This shows that she's feeling some regret and that she wouldn't be in this mess if she didn't sign up but its the thought that counted because she volunteered to raise money even though she cant really skate. This proves Nicki is blaming everything on her even though she doesn't realize she didn't do anything wrong except give up and let Mackenzie win. Nicki is the type of person to just things be said and not do anything about it but throughout each book, she learns that there's no reason of why Mackenzie should be getting what she wants. Therefore, Nikki experienced an important moment.