Lord of the Flies: Chapter 3 and 4

My Journal Entry for Chapter 3:
Three details of the story

• Jack starts to rebel against Ralph's leadership. He slowly grows more and more in the wrong direction.
• Shelters are made, but as people give up, the shelters become worse.
• They are starting got become more and more scared at the possibility of a beast.

Two events that I found interesting

• I found it interesting when Simon went alone into the forest. Simon is very quiet and mysterious.
• Jack seems like he has something to prove with catching a pig. I wonder if it goes deeper then that. I wonder what happened in his past.

One question that I have for one of the characters

• I would like to ask Simon why he is so quiet and mysterious. What is really going on?

My Journal Entry for Chapter 4:

Three details of the story

• The hunters finally catch a pig. They want to catch more.
• We learn about the mirages on the island that happen in the middle of the day. This adds more of a sense of mystery to the island.
• The boys lose a chance at being rescued because Jack lets the fire burn out.

Two events that I found interesting

• After Ralph smacked off Piggy's glasses, Simon was the one who picked them up. This adds to Simon's mysteriousness.
• While the boys were eating pork by the fire, Simon gave his piece to Piggy. Simon was again the only one showing kindness to Piggy.

One question that I have for one of the characters

• I want to ask Jack what makes him so mean. He seems like he has something to prove. He is mean to everyone, but especially Piggy. Why does he pick on Piggy?

GLCA NEWS February Tenth

This is the second GLCA newscast. Encouragement week is coming next week and the GLCA elementary students are really excited. I interviewed the students and put the footage together. I did not use any green screen technology for this, but I did use iMovie on the computer, which is something I have never done before.

I noticed that iMovie on the computer has so much more to offer then it does on an iPad. I could see that there are endless possibilities with it. While I enjoyed exploring it, it was also starting to annoy me. The app glitches out numerous times and I was unable to use the transitions that I wanted to use. I had to upload it to youtube a handful of times before it actually showed up. I also had trouble downloading the video clips. Hopefully, next time it will be easier to use.

When I was interviewing the students, I made some mental notes for next time. I asked them some questions that could be answered with a simple yes or no. Having one word answers is not very helpful in an interview.  I should have asked more complex questions.Some of the students played with their microphones, and that made the video clip unusable. Next time I need to make sure that there is nothing interfering with the microphones. I also ran out of space on the iPad that I was using to film. It is important to have a backup.

One important tip that I have for anyone making a video is to be ready to film at any moment. I have many shots that I would not have had if I turned the camera off. I figured that I could always delete footage, but I could never get back the moments that I missed.

GLCA News February Second

I have been working very hard on making newscasts for my school. I learned a lot  and I am excited about the results.

This first video is my first official attempt at a green-screen video. We had a special chapel speaker and this video introduced him. We enjoyed listening to him speak, and learning more about him.

As I made the video, I encountered a few problems. I used curtains as the "green screens" in the background. The curtains were supposed to be the same color, but when we took them out of the package, they were different colors. With the app I am using I can only replace one color with chroma key technology. This made one side of the screen have less quality then the other. Another thing that affected the quality of the screen was the smoothness of the curtains. I did not iron the curtains, so you can see the folds. I also need to be careful of the lighting, fair skin, and blonde hair.

I loved discovering how green screens work, and using that knowledge to make my first green screen video. I hope to make more videos like this in the future, but improving the quality, of course!


If you have any questions about the video, please comment below.

4 Tips on Using Green Screen Technology

Since discovering how green screens work, I have been experimenting with them.

I recently purchased the Do ink green screen and animation apps. I watched the introduction videos and played around with the features. I made one of my friends appear as if she was a monkey on the tower of Pisa. I made my sister have an identical twin and the twins high-fived each other. It was a lot of fun.

While I was doing this I made some observations:

1. The technology works a whole lot better if the screen is smooth. So if you are going to use chromo key, then make sure that your material is wrinkle free and pulled tight.

2. Be careful with the clothing you wear. When using this technology do not wear clothing that is the same color (or close to the same color) as the background you are using. Be careful not to wear sparkly clothing or anything that will reflect light. By paying careful attention to the clothes you wear, you are making your videos even better.

3. Do not move! While Do ink does work with motion, the video turns out better if you hold still. If you can, limit the motion of the video without limiting your creative expression.

4. Use the animations to take your video to the next level. Do ink has an app called Do ink Animations , that allows you to create your own animations and drawings. If you use Do ink Green Screen and Do ink Animations together, then you can put one of your amazing animations into your green screen video! There are endless possibilities!

LORD OF THE FLIES : Chapters 1 and 2

Our class has finished reading chapters one and two of Lord of the Flies. Our journaling is all done  and today in class we discussed the details.

My Journal Entry for Chapter 1:
Three details of the story:

- A plane, full of boys crashed onto what we discover is an island.

- On of the boys, Ralph is a boy a bit on the wild side. He becomes the leader of the group. "Piggy" is a chubby boy with asthma. Jack is the leader of a choir of boys.

-In this first chapter they are trying to become aware of their surroundings.

Two events I found interesting:

-I found it interesting how the boys stay calm. They seem not to know the danger that they are in.

-You can tell that they are intelligent. The boys realized their need for a leader and a plan. They took the right first step in going on a scouting mission.

One question I would ask one of the characters:

-I would like to ask all of the boys why they were together, on an airplane, and what caused that plane to crash. I would probably ask Simon, for he seems like he is honest.

My Journal Entry for Chapter 2:

Three details of the story:

-The boys decided to make rules. They decided that while they are on the island, they will have fun and be rescued.

-The boys make a fire, a huge fire.

-That fire burns down some of the island.

Two events I found interesting:

-The boys get out of control when they do not follow the rule of the conch.

-Everyone is ignoring Piggy. He is the one with the common sense. They need to think about their survival before their rescue.

One question I would ask one of the characters:

-I would ask Piggy, "How does it make you feel to have everyone ignore you? What could they be doing differently to have a better chance of survival?"

Class Discussion
As a class we discussed our opinions, questions, and comments of the book.

The majority of the class does not like the book. Some find the book and its dialogue confusing.

Our observations:
The Setting: 1954; atomic bomb;
     -Island- uninhabited; not very big
     -Airplane crash- all boys; varying in ages(5?-11?)
       -Ralf-the leader
       -Piggy
       -Jack
         -choir boys
       -Simeon- the quite one
       -other little boys
       -twins- Sam & Eric
       -Roger
     -forest-tropical?;Pacific Ocean?
       -pigs
       -fruit
       -lagoon
       -conch
     -Pink rocks
       -Mountain
     -Hot climate