Subject: Basic Reading (Reading Journal)
In this Reading Journal, I would like to write a reading journal that I take from several short stories along with its graphic organizer.
Reading Journal will train our developing responses and capture the main idea as a reader. Reading journal will also help us really understand to what we read. So, Reading Journal shows how we are improving as a reader. It is the record of our thoughts as we read, and it must be completely unique from anyone’s journal.
Reading Journal – Chosen Short Stories
Here are the famous short stories that I take from several source:
Sad experience is a good teacher
Sad experience is a good teacher. It happened to me several years ago. One day I was invited to a party by my teacher. I stood on the sidewalk, staring at the beautiful home of my teacher. A party was held there.
Through the curtained window, I saw nicely dressed people chatting with one another and enjoying refreshments. In my hand, I held an invitation to the dinner party. I had been invited to attend the party by my teacher who was impressed with my academic abilities.
At that time I carefully held the invitation, looked down at my nice “party dress” that seemed so dull and ordinary in comparison to the gowns I saw through the window. I stood staring the scene in the beautiful house.
Soon after that, with sadness of the soul, I turned and slowly walked away. I was aware that the party was not for me who was from the poor, low class family. In my hand was the unused invitation.
That’s difficult for me at that time to accept the reality that I came from the poor family. But finally it made me struggle for the better life. Now thank God. I’m a scholar, I’m a professor.
(Adapted from Quiet Moments with God, page 52)
The girl in the story has a sad experience where at the end make her struggle more for better life. The story begin when there was a girl invited to a party by her teacher. A party was held in her teacher’s home. After that, she saw a nicely dressed people chatting with one another and enjoying refreshments.
She was invited for her academic abilities. At that time, She felt insecure to her “party dress” that seemed so dull and ordinary in comparison to the gowns she saw through the window. Soon after that, She turned and slowly walked away for she was from low class family. Finally, it made her struggle for the better life. Now thank God. She is a scholar, she is a professor.
This story is so inspirational. I really like the last part where I smiled when I read she is a scholar and she is a professor. The girl plays a good role in the story where she starts from a low class family and can change her life to 180 degrees. We can imitate the girl’s character for it can boost our motivation to the better life.
Alexander Graham Bell
The telephone was invented by a Scottish teacher of the deaf named Alexander Graham Bell. His great invention was really amazing. It is of a very great use for the mankind in the world.
Alexander Graham Bell was born in Edinburg, Scotland, in the nineteenth century. In 1871 he came to the United States. Several members of his family did a great deal to encourage him in the field of science. His father was most instrumental by supervising his work with the deaf.
He began his experiments by trying to invent the harmonic telegraph. Through an accident, he invented the telephone. On March 10, 1876, Thomas A. Watson, Bell’s assistant, became the first person ever to hear words spoken over the telephone. Bell and Watson , at that time were testing a crude telephone transmitter. Watson was waiting for the test message at the end of the wire in another room. Suddenly Bell spilled battery solution on his clothes. He called out his assistant, “Mr. Watson, come here. I want you!”
Then, Watson rushed into the room and shouted: “Mr. Bell, I heard every word you said – distinctly.” The telephoned had worked. The damage to Bell’s clothes was forgotten. The receiver and transmitter of Bell’s first telephone could be used interchangeably.
Afterwards, he exhibited his instrument at the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia in June, 1876. The public at first showed little interest, but scientists greeted it with enthusiasm.
The first money ever paid for the lease of a commercial telephone was paid in May, 1877. By August of that year about 800 telephones were in use.
The first telephone line was installed between Boston and Someville, Mass. in April, 1877. The first commercial telephone exchange was opened by George W. Coy on January 28, 1878, in New Haven, Conn.
Bell’s life was dedicated to science. His very great invention is very useful for the world communication, i.e. telephone.
(Adapted from The World Book Encyclopedia, page 7938)
We have known together that Alexander Graham Bell has a very great invention that is very useful for the world communication, i.e. telephone. He has a very useful invention that is still useful today. Alexander Graham Bell’s family give a very big support and encourage him to be a scientist and It is what I think makes him. Family support plays important role in child’s path.
In the middle of the story, there is the part that I really interested in where he face an accident through his experiment then he created a telephone with his assistant, Thomas A. Watson, as the first person ever to hear words spoken over the telephone. At that time his assistant wait him for the test message at the end of the wire in another room. That’s the beginning where the first telephone was invented.
Enthusiasm for science has resulted in major changes in the world that must be emulated by today’s young generation especially. As we can see, that afterwards he immediately marketed pay phones which at that time there were about 800 users.
Attacked by a Shark
One day I did spear fishing in the sea. I had just dived off my body board when the lights went out. It was completely dark.
Suddenly I heard a loud noise like a garage door slamming. Then I saw very big white things. I thought they were pieces of fiberglass – that a boat had just hit me. When I touched them I realized that they were teeth. They were teeth of a shark.
The shark had held of my head. The teeth were like razors. I was hanging out the side of his mouth. The front teeth were buried through my cheekbones and nose. He took me down. Then he took me up. Finally he took me out of the water. I saw we were moving fast.
I thought he would eat me and I would die. I panicked and felt extremely frightened. I didn’t know what to do at that time. But finally I thought I must struggle to save my life.
I tried to pull my head out. I started beating him. I beat him again and again all the time. Perhaps that was what made him release me. If he had finished the bite, I would have no brain. Then I swam back to my board, blood pouring out of my face. I was flown to a hospital.
Now I have got one bad scar near my eye and another across my nose. The experience is really a great lesson for me. I must be careful in diving.
(Adapted from Reader’s Digest of November 2004, page 44)
having a hobby of diving is fun. However, risks are also inevitable. This includes the man in the story who are at risk of being bitten by a shark. What I applaud this man when he was attacked by a shark is that he did not give up on his life and on and on until he finally escaped from the shark bite. Fortunately he was not late to be taken to the hospital and survived which in the end the bite left scars around his eyes and near his nose.
Regret comes in the end
I used to be a bank president, with a good family, a nice home and a terrific future. But that was before the terrible happening on a Friday evening.
One Friday evening I drank alcohol. There was no hiding of my addiction. I drank too much at that time. It made me completely drunk. And under the influence of alcohol, I attacked the people around me wildly. Then the police caught me and sent me to jail.
Unable to tolerate my behavior, my wife left me and took the kids. The bank also fired me. I lost my job and my house. And what made me really hurt was that my kids hated me.
I felt alone and worthless then. I hated myself for what I had done. I really regretted.
Finally I realized that I must struggle to go back on a good track. I went to rehab. It took me several years to overcome my addiction. I tried to get a job afterwards. Although I couldn’t work in a bank again, I was not disappointed. The bank work used to make me very busy.
Now I have enough time for my kids. I always tell them to learn from what I had experienced.
(Adapted from Guideposts of November 2001, page 29)
As it has become a natural law that regret always comes last. A man loses his job and even his house to go to jail because he loses control when he is drunk and injures people around him. This is a dark thing. But that is not the most important thing, because the most important thing is that he has repented of all his actions and corrected all his behavior. He knew he wouldn’t be able to work at the bank again.
However, it didn’t matter to him because working in a bank was wasted so much of his time on family. Now he has successfully changed all his bad habits and has a lot of time for family especially for his children. It is the best part and it is like the part that makes me to read it again and again.
Diana, The Princess of Wales
This is about Diana. The story of a beautiful, generous, and kind princess. It is about her charity and her life.
Diana was born in July 1961. Her parents separated when she was six. She remembered seeing her mother packing and saying “I’ll be back soon!” Week after week, Diana sat in the house sadly imagining her mother’s return.
She met Prince Charles once in November 1977 at Spencer’s home. At that time she said “He is the man on the planet to whom I love.”
Four years after that, they got married. After the ‘wedding of the century’ in 1981, the Prime Minister Tony Blair entrusted her with humanitarian mission because of Diana’s charity commitments.
Colin Tebbutt, an officer retiree from the Royal Squad said “She was a matured, spectacular, modern woman liked doing social work.” Late in November 1995, she was in a hospital comforting ill patients. She did it up to four hours a night three times a week.
In February 1996, Diana went to Pakistan. The purpose of the visit was to raise fund for a hospital.
After fifteen years of marriage, the couple, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, divorced on August 28, 1996. Diana retained her apartment at Kensington Palace and would be forever known as Diana, Princess of Wales.
In the days after the divorce, Diana still did social work and was active in the world stage. On Monday, January 13, 1997, wearing blue jeans and a blazer, Diana went to Luanda, the capital of Angola. There she saw the streets were filled with men, women and children stepping on land mines. Diana was sad by what she saw. She also saw a seven-years old Helena getting accident. Diana, then, talked softly to Helena. Helena asked” Are you an angel?” Little Helena died soon afterwards.
William, her first born son, who knew her mother’s commitment to social work, advised her to auction off her old gowns for the charities. Diana loved her son’s creative notion. And she contributed the money to the charities: National AIDS TRUST and the Royal Marsden Hospital Cancer Campaign.
On August 31, 1997, she went to France and got car accident in Paris. She died in the car crash. The world cried of her death.
Up to the present moment the world remembers the event. People still talk about Diana’s generosity.
(Adapted from Reader’s Digest of August 2007, page 116 – 130)
I do believe that we have heard about this generous and kind princess’ story. A true story where a princess who was part of the British royal family knows as social activist in humanitarian mission. The minister entrusted her because of Diana’s charity commitments. Her life’s story had motivated all youth generation out there to have care among humans.
