Preparing for Tomorrow's 8th Grade Test

First of all, I love October baseball.  I love baseball in October.  I love October for its baseball.  Love it.

Okay, guys, I just realized that I'd forgotten to post the model quote analysis paragraphs.  I'll put them up now, but I apologize for not getting it to you sooner.  I hope you've been able to use many other resources--including your classmates--to help you prepare for the test.

Remember, on the test, you'll see something like this:
Choose two of the three following quotes.  Analyze each of the quotes you choose in a good paragraph.  In your analysis, you must do the following: 

• Identify the speaker or writer of the quote. 
• Identify the source of the quote (e.g. “speech in Washington in 1963,” “book called Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” etc.) 
• Paraphrase the quote—put it into your own words.Explain why the quote is historically important and significant. 
• Include any historical detail that is necessary in order to understand the quote.

Here are the three quotes:
1. “[It is] a work more stupendous, more magnificent, and more beneficial than has hitherto been achieved by the human race.”
2. “Reading books on factory time was against the rules. But we hid books in apron pockets and wastebaskets. Often we tore books apart and read them a page at a time. Sometimes we pasted poems to the windows or on our looms to memorize.”
3. “I…am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away but with blood.”

None of the classes analyzed the first quote, so I've given it a try tonight:
In a report to the New York State Legislature, Governor DeWitt Clinton wrote these words about the Erie Canal.  He claimed that the work of constructing the Erie Canal was the best and most incredible project in the history of humanity.  He was exaggerating, but he was right to say that the Erie Canal was an important project.  The Erie Canal created a route for ships to travel between the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lakes via the Hudson River.  Goods could be easily shipped between the Western United States and the Atlantic Ocean.  Because so many valuable goods passed through New York, the state and the city became extremely rich.  The Erie Canal led New York to become a wealthy state.

Here is Arlenys's and 801's analysis of the second quote:

The person said the second quote was Harriet Robinson, who was a ten-year-old girl when she worked with a power loom.  The quote is from her book published in 1898.  They would do anything to read books in the factory.  They were willing to get in trouble and not follow the rules.  This quote is historically important because Harriet was just a ten-year-old girl working as a Lowell Mill Girl.  It is significant because they were willing to do anything.  This happened in Massachusetts after the creation of the cotton gin.  Because they read, they decided to go on strike and they managed to keep their wages from dropping.  Their organizing eventually led to women demanding—and winning—the right to vote.

Here is Caitly's and 804's analysis of the second quote:

Harriet Robinson was a child laborer in a Lowell textile mill.  This quote was taken from her book published in 1898.  She said that reading materials during factory time was not allowed but that she hid them in pockets and baskets.  She sometimes pasted poems on windows and machines.  This is important because laborers weren’t supposed to know how to read and write because then they would know the Constitution and/or other important documents.  Back then, women were not treated equally.  Once they learned their rights, they protested and went on a successful strike.

Here is Jorge's and 802's analysis of the third quote:

Quote 3, written by John Brown in a note on December 2, 1859, means the crime of slavery will end in violence if we don’t take the matter seriously.  John Brown wants justice in America for everyone because he believes that slavery isn’t right and everyone is equal.  John Brown made a statement that change was on the way and that, if blood had to be drawn, so be it.  Slavery was John Brown’s main reason for the fight that he started.  He led an attack on a weapons arsenal in Harpers Ferry in hopes of starting a slave rebellion.  He just wanted justice for everyone.

Good luck tomorrow, everyone!  Go Yankees!