CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.11-12.2.D

Save the Elephants What should be done with a herd of marauding elephants? This was the problem recently confronting officials at Pilanesberg National Park in South Africa. A number of orphaned male elephants had been transported to the park in order to provide them with a safe and nurturing environment. However, this step to protect the elephant population soon threatened another endangered species. The young elephants had entered musth, like puberty, a state of heightened hormonal activity and increased aggression.

If Only They Knew Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder that I struggled with for the majority of my middle school years and a portion of my high school years. My classmates at Riverview High School were aware of my disorder, and it greatly affected the way they treated me. At the start of my junior year, I transferred to Madison High School. I decided not to tell anyone at that school about my eating disorder since I was mostly recovered by that time.

Adam’s Train of Ghosts Something happens inside of me when I listen to the music of the Counting Crows. Raw, uncensored emotion pours from the mouth of lead singer Adam Duritz.

Diary of Gaspard May 12, 1780 How can I go on living? My one and only child was taken away from me tonight. It started out as a calm and normal night. It never occurred to me that in only a few short hours I would lose my child, my world, my life. I had this feeling in the pit of my stomach. I knew something was going to happen. I do not know why I sent my child outside. But as soon as he left, I heard horses. It sounded as if they had hit something. I ran out of the house as quickly as possible, but I was too late. My child was on the road, bleeding from the head. I ran to my child’s side.

My Interpretation of The Joy Luck Club Children, as they become adults, become more appreciative of their parents. In The Joy Luck Club, the attitudes of four daughters toward their mothers change as the girls mature and come to realize that their mothers aren’t so different after all. As children, the daughters in this book are ashamed of their mothers and don’t take them very seriously, dismissing them as quirky and odd. “I could never tell my father . . . How could I tell him my mother was crazy?” (p. 117).

To: Mr. Marcus Subject: Mid-Project Report on History Paper Here’s an update on my history paper about China. At first I had trouble finding information on my topic, but I’ve made this progress. I went to the library, and Ms. Pate showed me how to use the computer for my search. After I showed you my project proposal, I took your advice to look at either Chinese dating practices or wedding traditions, but not both. After researching both topics, I found several sources on Chinese wedding traditions, but only a few on dating practices.