1st Quarter Journal Warm-Ups

Journal 1- [Number each the top] Answer this prompt on a separate sheet of paper or in your spiral notebook. If you could change two things about this past school year(sophomore yr.), what would you change? Why? If you wouldn’t change a thing, why not? ( You do NOT need to write the prompt. Journal Entries must be at LEAST a page long. Write neatly. You can write on the back of the page) If you could change two things about this past school year(sophomore yr.), what would you change? Why? If you wouldn’t change a thing, why not? ( You do NOT need to write the prompt. Journal Entries must be at LEAST a page long. Write neatly. You can write on the back of the page)

Journal 2 Describe the time you felt most American. Explain your answer.

Journal 3 Most people have been profoundly changed by a book. If not a book, possibly a song or movie. Think about the book, song or movie that profoundly changed you. How did it change the way you think, or even the way you live?

Journal 4 Is there one year of your life that stands out as exceptional? Maybe you starred in a play, or you suddenly became very popular, or your mother was in a yearlong fantastic mood. Describe this year.

Journal 5 Freewrite

Journal 6 Why is it important to reflect on experiences of your past? How does this reflection effect choices you make in the present and future? Give at least one example of how reflecting on an event of your past effected a choice you made.

Journal 7 Name the most important invention in history. Explain your answer.

Journal 8 If you had to choose the prize for the best movie in history, what film would win? Why?

Journal 9 What was your experience with Huckleberry Finn? Did you enjoy the novel? What questions do you have about the book?

Journal 10 What do you remember about September 11 th ? Describe where you were and what you were doing when you heard about the terrorist attack. How did it make you feel?

Journal 11 “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” George Santayana How do you feel about this? What are some examples (historical/personal)? “Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” George Santayana How do you feel about this? What are some examples (historical/personal)?

Journal 12 What do you fear? Why? Do you do anything to try and overcome this fear?

Journal 13 If you could live the live of a fictional character (in novels or film), who would you pick? Why?

Journal 14 Write about the greatest television show of all time. What makes it so great?

Journal 15 If you could wake up tomorrow with an ability to do something, what would it be?

Journal 16 Take 5 minutes to write about a prominent event or memory that you still have from childhood. Describe it in as much detail as possible. Try not to leave anything out.

Journal 17 There’s “fun scary” (walking through a haunted house, screaming through a horror movie, riding a roller coaster) and then there’s “scary scary” (being in a car accident, getting caught in the ocean’s riptide). Describe the scariest experience you’ve ever had. Was it fun scary, or was it really terrifying?

Journal 18 Freewrite

Journal 19 Write about one of your most agonizingly embarrassing moments. Don’t forget- Vocab 2 Quiz Friday!

Journal 20 Begin with “I remember.” Write lots of small memories. If you fall into one large memory, write that. Just keep going. Don’t be concerned if the memory happened five seconds ago or five years ago. Everything that isn’t this moment is memory coming alive again as you write. If you get stuck, just repeat the phrase “ I remember” again and keep writing! Don’t forget- Vocabulary 2 Quiz Friday!

Journal 21 What is the most important issue facing teens your age today? How should they deal with it?

Journal 22 In Act I of The Crucible, Miller states that children were expected to “walk straight [with] eyes slightly lowered, arms at sides, and mouths shut.” How were you disciplined as a child? Did you ever defy your parents? When was it you first felt like an adult?