Part a – facts of the matter /
spring 2013 – 10th grade
Hope
fortsetter på neste side 
TErminprøver engelsk1
informasjon
Engelsk terminprøve – forberedelse
Bokmål:
Forberedelse og prøve
Tekstsamlingen er delt inn i to deler: Part A: Facts of the matter og Part B: The stories I have heard.
Begge delene er obligatoriske. På prøvedagen vil du få oppgaver knyttet til både part A og part B.
Forberedelsestiden skal du bruke til å jobbe med tekstsamlingen. Du kan både lese, bearbeide og sortere
ukjent stoff. Du kan ta notater som er knyttet til temaet. Du kan samarbeide med andre elever, snakke
med læreren og bruke lærebøker og andre kilder. Under forberedelsen er alle hjelpemidler tillatt, inkludert
bruk av internett. På prøven kan du ikke bruke internett og andre verktøy som tillater kommunikasjon, eller
oversettelsesprogrammer. Alle kilder du benytter deg av på prøven, direkte eller indirekte, skal oppgis slik
at det går an å finne fram til kilden. Dersom du har med deg utskrifter og sitater fra nettsider, må du oppgi
adresse og nedlastingsdato.
På prøvedagen skal du svare på tre oppgaver, to som krever kortere svar (Task 1 og Task 2) og en
langsvaroppgave (Task 3A, B, C eller D). Du skal svare på engelsk.
Nynorsk:
Førebuingsdel og prøve
Tekstsamlinga er delt inn i to delar: Part A: Facts of the matter og Part B: The stories I have heard.
Begge delane er obligatoriske. På prøvedagen vil du få oppgåver knytt både til part A og til part B.
Førebuingstida skal du bruke til å jobbe med tekstsamlinga. Du kan både lese, studere og sortere ukjent
stoff. Du kan ta notat som er knytte til temaet. Du kan samarbeide med andre elever, snakke med læraren
og bruke lærebøker og andre kjelder. Under førebuinga er alle hjelpemiddel tillatne, inkludert bruk
av internett. På prøven kan du ikkje bruke internett og andre verktøy som tillèt kommunikasjon, eller
omsetjingsprogram. Alle kjelder du brukar på prøven, direkte eller indirekte, skal oppgjevast slik at det går
an å finne fram til kjelda. Dersom du har med deg utskrifter og sitat frå nettsider, skal adresse og dato for
nedlasting oppgjevast.
På prøvedagen skal du svare på tre oppgåver, to som krev kortare svar (Task 1 og Task 2) og ein
langsvaroppgåve (Task 3A, B, C eller D). Du skal svare på engelsk.
2
contents
Perspectives on hope
What does hope mean to you? In this issue of Perspectives
Magazine you will meet people that have hope for their future,
hope for a whole nation and hope for all girls and women in their
country. Hope can manifest itself in many forms, such as learning
to read and write, or as a symbol, like the Statue of Liberty or –
a carrot!
PART A
PART B
an issue
en utgave / ei utgåve
to manifest
å komme til uttrykk
FACTS OF THE MATTER
A family strengthened
by a little girl and her ABCs
4
Yes We Can
7
The Statue of Liberty
9
One Woman’s Journey
From Homeless to Harvard
12
Malala Yousafzai: Portrait
of the girl blogger
15
THE STORIES I HAVE HEARD
The Freedom Writers Diary
18
Once and Then
21
“Hope” is the thing with feathers
25
3
Part a – facts of the matter / a familiy strengthened
All Over Press/Gamma-Rapho/Getty Images
A family strengthened
by a little girl and her ABCs
“I learned the entire alphabet. I can write,” says the Roma girl,
who until last year never thought she would go to school. Her
achievement was brought about by determination, on every front.
The old computer, as it struggles with Windows 95, livens up the dark
damp room. A nine-year-old girl concentrates on a game. She uses
her knee as mouse pad as there is no room on the small table. “I know
all the numbers and the letters in this game,” Emi says, while playing
Solitaire.
determination
besluttsomhet/viljefastleik
Solitaire
kabal
letters
bokstavene/bokstavane
illiterate
analfabeter/analfabetar
to be orphaned
å bli foreldreløs /
å bli foreldrelaus
vulnerable
sårbare
Her parents, both illiterate, never went to school. They don’t have any
identification papers. Emi’s dad, orphaned at an early age, grew up
as a street child. He guesses he could be around 23. Emi’s mum was
born elsewhere where her birth went unregistered. The family lives
in a nine-square-metre room in an old rusty hangar on the outskirts
of Skopje. Their ethnicity is Roma, the most vulnerable group in
Macedonia.
fortsetter på neste side 
4
Part a – facts of the matter / a familiy strengthened
Officially, the Roma community account for less than three per cent
of the population. Those working with them estimate the population to
be three times greater, at around 160,000. Many are not registered as
residents and identity papers are hard to come by. Emi, her parents and
her little sister are among those who officially do not exist.
“The family first came to our attention in March 2011,” says Valentina,
whose job at SOS Children’s Villages involves the strengthening of such
families. “Their living conditions were horrible, they had no income
and, without identification, they could not claim social benefits. This
also prevented them from enrolling Emi in school. Without birth
certificates, and being illiterate, they could not apply for ID.”
Through exhaustive efforts, Valentina persuaded the authorities
to provide Emi with her much-needed birth certificate. After some
convincing, the child’s embarrassed parents signed the school
application form, with an X. By doing so, they gave Emi the start in life
that others take for granted – the chance to learn to read and write.
to account for
å utgjøre / å utgjere
to estimate
å beregne / å berekne
income
inntekt
social benefits
sosialhjelp
exhaustive
uttømmende/uttømmande,
grundig
to persuade
å overtale
unemployed
arbeidsledige
regardless of
uavhengig av
slim
her: små
“I don’t need to know the letters to collect plastic bottles,” says Emi’s
dad with a melancholic tone. He has been rummaging in dumpsters in
search of plastic bottles for many years now. What he collects he sells
to a recycling plant earning about 30 Euros per month. The money is
barely enough for food. “If I knew how to read, you think I could be
hired at the plant. Ah, let’s face it, who would hire me?” he shrugs.
He speaks of a sad reality. Stigmatisation and discrimination of Roma
people is very common in Macedonia. Official data suggests that one
in four men and half of Roma women are illiterate. Over two thirds are
unemployed. Regardless of his age, Emi’s father knows that his chances
of entering gainful employment are slim.
“I am happy that Emi will have a chance,” he smiles. “Ever since she
enrolled to school, she can’t stop talking about it. She loves her teacher
and last month even had a few classmates over to play computer
games.” The old unwanted computer is a donation in kind that Emi
has fallen in love with. “Solitaire helps me to learn the numbers and
some letters. Not all letters are there though and some are just weird,”
says the girl referring to the letter Q, which does not exist in the
Macedonian Cyrillic alphabet.
fortsetter på neste side 
5
Part a – facts of the matter / a familiy strengthened
Romani is not taught in her school due to a lack of teachers fluent in
the language, adding to the many challenges facing Emi and thousands
of other Roma children like her. She appears undaunted. “I’ll stay in
school for as long as the school lets me because it’s so nice and my
teacher is the best in the world!” she says. Her dad is proud. “Her mum
and I will do everything we can to keep her in school. She must not
have a life like ours. Emi must make it better!”
For reasons of privacy the child’s name has been changed.
© SOS Children’s Villages. Used by permission.
Links:
http://www.sos-childrensvillages.org
6
a challenge
ei utfordring
undaunted
uanfektet/upåverka
Part a – facts of the matter / yes we can
All Over Press/Bill Pugliano/Getty Images
Yes, We Can
By Barack Obama
‘Yes, we can’ is the name given to a speech delivered by then
Governor Barack Obama after the 2008 New Hampshire
Primaries, when he was still competing with senator Hillary
Clinton to become the Democrats’ presidential candidate in the
upcoming election. The speech has since become one of the most
famous speeches ever delivered.
Obama’s speech inspired a song and music video produced by
Black Eyed Peas’ frontman, will.i.am. The music video was later
that same year awarded with an Emmy for outstanding new
approaches. These excerpts are the same as used in the song and
the video.
upcoming
forestående/kommande
outstanding new approaches
fremragende nye
tilnærminger / framifrå nye
tilnærmingar
a creed
en trosbekjennelse /
ei truvedkjenning
to declare
å erklære, å slå fast
an abolitionist
en slaverimotstander /
ein slaverimotstandar
to blaze a trail
å bane vei/veg
[…]
It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the
destiny of a nation.
Yes we can.
It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail
toward freedom.
Yes we can.
fortsetter på neste side 
7
Part a – facts of the matter / yes we can
It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores and
pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness.
Yes we can.
It was the call of workers who organized; women who reached for
the ballots; a President who chose the moon as our new frontier; and
a King who took us to the mountaintop and pointed the way to the
Promised Land.
Yes we can to justice and equality.
Yes we can to opportunity and prosperity.
Yes we can heal this nation.
Yes we can repair this world.
Yes we can.
[…]
We know the battle ahead will be long, but always remember that no
matter what obstacles stand in our way, nothing can stand in the way of
the power of millions of voices calling for change.
We have been told we cannot do this by a chorus of cynics … they will
only grow louder and more dissonant. We’ve been asked to pause for
a reality check. We’ve been warned against offering the people of this
nation false hope.
But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything
false about hope.
[…]
Now the hopes of the little girl who goes to a crumbling school in Dillon
are the same as the dreams of the boy who learns on the streets of LA;
we will remember that there is something happening in America; that
we are not as divided as our politics suggests; that we are one people;
we are one nation; and together, we will begin the next great chapter in
the American story with three words that will ring from coast to coast;
from sea to shining sea – Yes We Can!
© Barack Obama
Links:
http://rapgenius.com/William-yes-we-can-lyrics
http://youtu.be/jjXyqcx-mYY
8
to strike out from
å legge ut fra / å leggje ut frå
a ballot
en stemmeseddel /
ein stemmesetel
equality
likhet/likskap
prosperity
framgang
obstacles
hindringer/hindringar
a cynic
en kyniker / ein kynikar
dissonant
disharmonisk, skjærende/
skjerande
crumbling
falleferdig
divided
splitta
Part a – facts of the matter / the statue of liberty
Getty Images/iStockphoto
The Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty has been an icon of freedom and hope
welcoming immigrants to the USA for centuries. Read on to learn
more about her!
Fun Facts about The Statue of Liberty
If you have ever visited the Statue of Liberty in person, you already
know she’s an imposing figure, but consider the following fun facts:
• Official dedication ceremonies were held on Thursday, October 28,
1886.
•
•
•
•
•
Total overall height from the base of the pedestal foundation to the
tip of the torch is 305 feet, 6 inches (over 93 metres).
Height of the Statue from her heel to the top of her head is 111 feet,
6 inches (almost 34 metres).
The face on the Statue of Liberty measures more than 8 feet, or 2.44
metres.
There are 154 steps from the pedestal to the head of the Statue of
Liberty.
A tablet held in her left hand measures 23’ 7” tall (7.18m) and 13’
7” wide (4.14m) inscribed with the date JULY IV MDCCLXXVI (July 4,
1776 – the USA’s Independence Day).
9
a century
et århundre / eit hundreår
imposing
ærverdig, imponerende/
imponerande
a dedication ceremony
en overrekkelsesseremoni /
ein overrekkingseremoni
a pedestal
en/ein pidestall
a foundation
et/eit fundament
a torch
en/ein fakkel
a tablet
en/ei tavle
fortsetter på neste side 
Part a – facts of the matter / the statue of liberty
•
•
•
•
•
•
The Statue has a 35-foot waistline.
There are seven rays on her crown, one for each of the seven continents, each measuring up to 9 feet in length and weighing as much
as 150 pounds.
Total weight of the Statue of Liberty is 225 tons (more than 200,000
kilograms).
At the feet of the Statue lie broken shackles of oppression and tyranny.
During the restoration completed in 1986, the new torch was carefully covered with thin sheets of 24k gold.
The exterior copper covering of the Statue of Liberty is 3/32 of an
inch thick, or 2.38 millimetres (less than the thickness of two pennies)
and the light green color (called a patina) is the result of natural
weathering of the copper.
Heel to
top of
head:
111’6”
waistline
midjemål
a ray
en/ein stråle
shackles
lenker/lenkjer
oppression
undertrykkelse/
undertrykking
exterior
her: utvendig
copper
kobber/kopar
Tablet lenght: 2’7”
Tablet width: 13’7”
Thickness of waist: 35’
Base to
torch:
151’11”
Foundation
of the
pedestal to
torch: 305’6”
Total weight of Statue:
450,000 pounds
fortsetter på neste side 
10
Part a – facts of the matter / the statue of liberty
Inscription on the Statue of Liberty
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses, yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless, tempest tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.
Emma Lazarus
© Statueofliberty.org
Links:
http://www.statueofliberty.org/
http://www.statueoflibertytickets.com/
11
huddled masses
hoper/hopar
to yearn
å lengte
wretched
elendige
teeming
myldrende/myldrande
tempest tost
kasta gjennom stormen
Part a – facts of the matter / one womans journey
All Over Press/Mike McGregor/Contour/Getty Images
One Woman’s Journey From
Homeless To Harvard
Liz Murray spent her adolescence on the streets of New York. But
she never gave up hope. Her determination landed her a Harvard
degree and a bright future.
Growing up in the Bronx in the 1980s and 90s, Liz Murray dealt with the
typical stresses of childhood. But she also had to grapple with being the
daughter of drug addicts – which ultimately meant fending for herself.
When Murray got lice, she had to deal with it alone. She and her sister
went days without food, once eating toothpaste and lip balm to quell
their hunger.
After years of neglect, Murray left home at 15. She spent her
adolescence sleeping on the streets, the subway and the couches of
friends. Murray’s story could have ended tragically. Instead, she won a
scholarship to Harvard University and graduated in 2009.
Murray, now a motivational speaker, shares her story in her memoir,
Breaking Night: A Memoir of Forgiveness, Survival, and My Journey
from Homeless to Harvard.
adolescence
ungdomstid
to grapple with
å håndtere / å handtere,
å kjempe med
to fend for oneself
å klare seg selv/sjølv
lice
lus
to quell
å dempe, å kue
neglect
forsømmelse / omsorgssvikt
a scholarship
et/eit stipend
fortsetter på neste side 
12
Part a – facts of the matter / one womans journey
Excerpt: Breaking Night
by Liz Murray
Prologue
I have just one picture left of my mother. It’s 4x7, black-and-white, and
creased in different places. In it, she is seated slightly hunched, elbows
touching knees, arms carrying the weight of her back. I know very little
about her life when it was taken; my only clue is written in orange
marker on the back. It reads: Me in front of Mike’s on 6th St. 1971.
Counting backward, I know that she was seventeen when it was taken,
a year older than I am now. I know that Sixth Street is in Greenwich
Village, though I have no idea who Mike is.
The picture tells me that she was a stern-looking teenager. Her lips
are pressed together in thought, offering a grimace for the camera.
Framing her face, her hair dangles in beautiful wisps of black, smokelike curls. And her eyes, my favorite part, shine like two dark marbles,
their movements frozen in time forever.
I’ve studied each feature, committing them to memory for my trips to
the mirror, where I let my own wavy hair tumble down. I stand and trace
similarities with the tip of my finger through the curve of each line in my
face, starting with our eyes. Each pair offers the same small, rounded
shape, only instead of my mother’s brown, I have Grandma’s rich yellowgreen. Next, I measure the outline of our lips; thin, curvy, and identical
in every way. Although we share some features, I know I’m not as pretty
as she was at my age.
In my years with nowhere to live, behind the locked bathroom doors
in different friends’ apartments, I’ve secretly played this game in the
mirror throughout all hours of the night. Tucked in by their parents, my
friends sleep while images of my mother’s graceful movements dance
throughout my mind. I spend these hours in front of their bathroom
mirrors, my bare feet cooled by gridded tiles, palms pressed on the
sink’s edge to support my weight.
I stand there fantasizing until the first blue hints of dawn strain
through the frosted bathroom glass and birds announce themselves,
chirping their morning songs. If I’m at Jamie’s house, this is just the
time to slip onto the couch before her mother’s alarm beeps her
awake, sending her to the bathroom. If I’m at Bobby’s, the grinding
noise of the garbage truck tells me it’s time to sneak back to the
foldout cot.
creased
krølla
hunched
bøyd/bøygd
stern-looking
ser alvorlig/alvorleg ut
marbles
klinkekuler
feature
ansiktstrekk
to trace
å spore
gridded tiles
rutenett av fliser
chirping
kvitrende/kvitrande
a foldout cot
en/ei gjesteseng
fortsetter på neste side 
13
Part a – facts of the matter / one womans journey
I travel quietly across their waking apartments to my resting spot. I
never get too comfortable with my accommodations, because I’m not
sure if I will sleep in the same place tomorrow.
Lying on my back, I run my fingertips over my face in the dark, and
I envision my mother. The symmetry of our lives has become clearer
to me lately. She was homeless at sixteen too. Ma also dropped out
of school. Like me, Ma made daily decisions between hallway or park,
subway or rooftop. The Bronx, for Ma, also meant wandering through
dangerous streets, through neighborhoods with lampposts littered with
flyers of police sketches and sirens blaring at all hours of the night.
I wonder if, like me, Ma spent most days afraid of what would
happen to her. I’m afraid all the time lately. I wonder where I will sleep
tomorrow – at another friend’s apartment, on the train, or in some
stairwell?
Tracing my fingertips over my forehead, down to my lips, I long to
feel my mother’s warm body embracing me again. The thought sends
tears streaming from my eyes. I turn to my side, wiping my tears away,
covering myself with my borrowed blanket.
I push the feeling of needing her far out of my mind. I push it beyond
these walls lined with Bobby’s family portraits; past the drunken Latino
men just outside, slamming down winning hands of dominoes, seated
atop milk crates on Fordham Road; away from the orange blinking
lights of the bodegas and over the rooftops of this Bronx neighborhood.
I force my thoughts to fade until the details of her face blur. I need to
push them away if I am ever to get some sleep. I need sleep; it will
be only a few more hours before I’m outside on the street again, with
nowhere to go.
accommodation
innkvartering
to envision
å forestille seg /
å førestelle seg
a stairwell
en/ei trapp
a milk crate
en melkekasse /
ei mjølkekasse
to blur
å bli uskarpe
From Breaking Night by Liz Murray. Copyright 2010 Liz Murray.
Published by Hyperion. All Rights Reserved.
Links:
http://www.youtube-com/watch?v=EtybvFW0ncY
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/26/liz-murray-bronx-harvard
fortsetter på neste side 
14
Part a – facts of the matter / malala yousafzai
All Over Press/Veronique de Viguerie/Getty Images
Malala Yousafzai:
Portrait of the girl blogger
Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai first came to public attention
in 2009 when she wrote a BBC diary about life under the Taliban.
Last year she was the target of a terrorist attack and has spent a
long time recovering from her injuries.
Malala was 11 when she began writing a diary for BBC Urdu. Her blogs
described life under Taliban rule from her home town of Mingora, in
the northwest region of Pakistan she affectionately calls “My Swat”.
a target
et/eit mål
affectionately
kjærlig/kjærleg
a launch
en/ei lansering
to issue an edict
å utstede en kunngjøring /
å sende ut ei kunngjering
to ban
å forby
I am afraid – 3 January 2009
“I had a terrible dream yesterday with military helicopters and the
Taliban. I have had such dreams since the launch of the military
operation in Swat. I was afraid going to school because the Taliban
had issued an edict banning all girls from attending schools. Only
11 students attended the class out of 27. The number decreased
because of Taliban’s edict.
On my way from school to home I heard a man saying ‘I will kill you’.
fortsetter på neste side 
15
Part a – facts of the matter / malala yousafzai
I hastened my pace … to my utter relief he was talking on his mobile
and must have been threatening someone else over the phone.”
By 2009, the Taliban controlled much of the Swat Valley and applied
their austere interpretation of sharia law. “When the Taliban came to
Swat they banned women from going to the market and they banned
shopping,” Malala told the BBC last year. But Malala’s primary objection
was to the Taliban’s prohibition of female education. Militants had
destroyed over 150 schools in 2008 alone.
“Malala Yousufzai was one of the few brave voices who spoke out”,
writes The Daily Telegraph’s Pakistan correspondent Rob Crilly. “She
did it anonymously – to do otherwise would have brought immediate
death. But her blog for the BBC Urdu Service detailing the abuses
meant no one could pretend an accommodation with the terrorists was
anything other than a deal with the devil.”
Halima Mansour in the Guardian heralds Malala as a young “Pakistani
heroine” for her bravery and independence. “Malala doesn’t want to
play to some western-backed or Taliban-loved stereotype. She shows
us that there are voices out there, in Pakistan, that need to be heard,
if only to help the country find democracy that is for and from the
people, all the people.”
to hasten one’s pace
å sette opp tempoet /
å setje opp farten
austere
her: streng
an interpretation
en tolkning / ei tolking
a prohibition
et forbud / eit forbod
independence
uavhengighet/sjølvstende
morning assembly
morgensamling/
morgonsamling
sombre
dyster
imminent
overhengende/overhengande
Do not wear colourful dresses – 5 January 2009
“I was getting ready for school and about to wear my uniform when I
remembered that our principal had told us not to wear uniforms and
come to school wearing normal clothes instead.
So I decided to wear my favourite pink dress. Other girls in school
were also wearing colourful dresses. During the morning assembly we
were told not to wear colourful clothes as the Taliban would object to
it.”
When she wrote her blogs for BBC Urdu, Malala was already able to
speak English and hoped one day to become a doctor. One sombre
entry, titled “I may not go to school again”, details the imminent closure
of her school in January 2009. Other entries express her fear of being
killed by the Taliban.
But she received support and encouragement in her activism from
her parents. The idea for the blog was even that of her father Ziauddin,
who runs a local private school. “Of course, it was a risk [to let her
write the blog]”, he told BBC Outlook in January this year. “But I think
16
fortsetter på neste side 
Part a – facts of the matter / malala yousafzai
that not talking was a greater risk than that because then ultimately
we would have given in to the slavery and the subjugation of ruthless
terrorism and extremism.”
I may not go to school again – 14 January 2009
“I was in a bad mood while going to school because winter vacations
are starting from tomorrow. The principal announced the vacations
but did not mention the date the school was to reopen.
The girls were not too excited about vacations because they knew
if the Taliban implemented their edict [banning girls’ education] they
would not be able to come to school again. I am of the view that the
school will one day reopen but while leaving I looked at the building
as if I would not come here again.”
Malala’s father was himself an outspoken education activist who
received death threats from the Taliban. Along with many locals, Malala
and her family went into exile from the Swat Valley when a government
military operation attempted to clear the region of Taliban militants.
“I’m really bored because I have no books to read”, she told Adam
B. Ellick, who made a documentary about her in 2009. Following the
military’s partial success in driving back the Taliban, Malala was able to
return to Mingora later that year.
During 2009, Malala began to appear on television and publically
advocate female education. With her raised public profile, becoming
the “progressive face of Swat”, Waseem Ahmad Shah, of Pakistani
paper The Dawn, finds it inexcusable that Malala was ultimately “left at
the mercy of militants”.
In 2011 she was nominated for the International Children’s Peace
Prize by The KidsRights Foundation.
Later last year the government awarded her the National Peace
Award – subsequently renamed the National Malala Peace Prize – for
those under 18 years old.
Malala’s experiences have had an impact upon her future aspirations.
She told The Dawn earlier this year that she plans to form her own
political party focused on promoting education.
For many Pakistanis, Malala has become a symbol of resistance to the
Taliban.
© BBC News. Used by permission.
Links: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/malala-yousafzai
17
subjugation
undertrykkelse/undertrykking
ruthless
hensynsløs/omsynslaus
to implement
å gjennomføre
to advocate
å forfekte, å forsvare
inexcusable
utilgivelig/utilgiveleg
subsequently
seinere/seinare
an aspiration
en/ein ambisjon
to promote
å fremme/å fremje
resistance
motstand
Part b – The stories i have heard / the freedom writers diary
Getty Images/Francesca Yorke
Excerpts from The Freedom
Writers Diary
With Erin Gruwell
The young and inexperienced teacher Erin Gruwell was given the
class nobody wanted. But her personality and teaching methods
turned the world around for the students in her English class and
gave them hope for a better future.
inexperienced
uerfaren
revenge
hevn /hemn
Freshman year
Diary 6 – “A couple of days ago one of my friends was laid to rest. His
funeral was just like any other. Family members were crying. Someone
said, ‘Not another one,’ while his friends were swearing that they
would get revenge. ‘An eye for an eye … payback’s a bitch.’”
Diary 9 – “I hate my neighborhood. It’s surrounded by gangsters and
drug dealers. There are too many opportunities that seem out of my
reach. What goals do I aim for? I don’t aim, because I don’t have any
goals, instead, I deal with what comes.”
fortsetter på neste side 
18
Part b – The stories i have heard / the freedom writers diary
Sophomore year
Diary 31 – “Ms. Gruwell stood on the desk and began to talk about
‘change.’ I thought, ‘What is this lady trying to do?’ … I guess I was
offered an opportunity that not many people have … I thank God that
he sent an angel to give me that chance to change. I was always known
as the person that was going to be a druggie, or get pregnant before I
turned fourteen and drop out. Now I have the chance to prove them
wrong.”
pregnant
gravid
calmly
rolig/roleg
a purpose
et/eit formål / en/ei hensikt
a conviction
her: en overbevisning /
ei overtyding
a drawl
her: en/ein dialekt
Diary 36 – “At first I asked Ms. G, ‘Why should I read books about
people that don’t look like me? People that I don’t even know and that
I am not going to understand because they don’t understand me?’ …
She looked up and said very calmly, ‘How can you say that? Try it, you
never know. The book may come to life before your eyes.’ So I started
reading this book called Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl because I
wanted to prove Ms. G wrong … To my surprise, I proved myself wrong
… I did find myself within the pages of the book, like she said I would.”
Junior year
Diary 75 – “I feel like I finally have a purpose in this class and in life.
That purpose is to make a difference and stand up for a cause …
somebody suggested that we name ourselves the Freedom Writers, in
honor of the Freedom Riders … so if we’re going to take their name, we
better take their courage and conviction … I am willing to step forward,
unafraid of who or what lies ahead. After all, history tells me that I am
not alone.”
Diary 89 – “We gave our book to the United States Secretary of
Education, Richard Riley, tonight … I couldn’t help but notice how
different we were. He is a rich, white, Southern man from South
Carolina with a Southern drawl, and I’m a young, black male trying to
make it in life, living check by check. But I realized we were both there
for the same reasons – we care about the future of kids in America.”
fortsetter på neste side 
19
Part b – The stories i have heard / the freedom writers diary
Senior year
Diary 117 – “Days like this create memories worth living for. My day
began with tears of happiness after receiving the Spirit of Anne Frank
Award, and ended with tears of sadness after watching the play of The
Diary of Anne Frank on Broadway … [this day] made me realize what
Anne meant when she wrote in her diary, ‘I want to go on living even
after my death.’”
Diary 142 – “I remember back in our freshman year, people still didn’t
understand the importance of a pen instead of a gun … but look at us
now, the sure-to-drop-out kids are sure to reach higher education …
these urban kids, however, were never truly given the chance to prove
that if only given the opportunity, we could rise to the occasion; and
rise to the occasion we have.”
© The Tolerance Education Foundation. Published by Broadway Books.
Used by permission.
Links:
http://www.freedomwritersfoundation.org
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MT0L1U-Rdj4
20
to rise to the occasion
å møte utfordringen/
utfordringa
Part b – The stories i have heard / once and then
Getty Images/iStockphoto
Once and Then
By Morris Gleitzman
During World War II, Felix’s parents send him away. As they are
Jewish, the conditions in the city are not safe anymore. To keep up
hope, Felix likes to tell stories. He is certain his parents will come
back for him and one day he receives a sign.
Once I was living in an orphanage in the mountains and I shouldn’t
have been and I almost caused a riot.
It was because of the carrot.
You know how when a nun serves you very hot soup from a big metal pot
and she makes you lean in close so she doesn’t drip and the steam from
the pot makes your glasses go all misty and you can’t wipe them because
you’re holding your dinner bowl and the fog doesn’t clear even when you
pray to God, Jesus, the Virgin Mary, the Pope and Adolf Hitler?
That’s happening to me.
Somehow I find my way towards the table. I use my ears for navigation.
Dodie, who always sits next to me, is a loud slurper because of his
crooked teeth. I hold my bowl above my head so other kids can’t pinch
my soup while I’m fogged up and I use Dodie’s slurping noises to guide
me in.
I feel for the edge of the table and put my bowl down and wipe my
glasses.
21
conditions
forholdene/tilhøva
an orphanage
et barnehjem / ein barneheim
a riot
et/eit opprør
steam
damp
to wipe
å tørke
to pinch
her: å stjele / å stele
fortsetter på neste side 
Part b – The stories i have heard / once and then
That’s when I see the carrot.
It’s floating in my soup, huge among the flecks of cabbage and the tiny
blobs of pork fat and the few lonely lentils and the bits of grey plaster
from the kitchen ceiling.
A whole carrot.
I can’t believe it. Three years and eight months I’ve been in this
orphanage and I haven’t had a whole carrot in my dinner bowl once.
Neither has anyone else. Even the nun’s don’t get whole carrots, and
they get bigger servings than us kids because they need the extra
energy for being holy.
We can’t grow vegetables up here in the mountains. Not even if we
pray a lot. It’s because of the frost. So if a whole carrot turns up in this
place, first it gets admired, then it gets chopped into enough pieces so
that sixty-two kids, eleven nuns and one priest can have a bit.
I stare at the carrot.
At this moment I’m probably the only kid in Poland with a whole carrot
in his dinner bowl. For a few seconds I think it is a miracle. Except it
can’t be because miracles only happened in ancient times and this is
1942.
Then I realise what the carrot means and I have to sit down quick
before my legs give way.
I can’t believe it.
At last. Thank your God, Jesus, Mary, the Pope and Adolf Hitler, I’ve
waited so long for this.
It’s a sign.
This carrot is a sign from Mum and Dad. They’ve sent my favourite
vegetable to let me know their problems are finally over. To let me
know that after three long years and three long months things are
finally improving for Jewish booksellers. To let me know they’re coming
to take me home.
[…]
cabbage
kål
pork fat
svinefett/svinefeitt
lentils
linser
plaster
gips
ancient
eldgammel/eldgammal
Felix runs away from the orphanage and into the city in search of his
parents. On the way he befriends Zelda, a Jewish girl whose parents
have been shot by the Nazis. In the city they hook up with Barney,
a dentist and leader of a group of orphaned Jewish children who
hide from the Nazis in empty buildings. But when Zelda gets a fever,
someone must dare to walk the streets in search of the medicine she
needs.
fortsetter på neste side 
22
Part b – The stories i have heard / once and then
“I don’t like you going out alone,” says Barney.
I can see he doesn’t. I’ve never seen him look so worried. All day when
we took it in turns to wipe Zelda’s hot skin with wet rags, Barney was
telling us she was going to be alright. But ever since the other kids got
exhausted and went to bed, he’s been looking more and more worried.
“Chaya can’t run with her bad arm,” he says. “Jacob and Ruth and
Moshe get too scared outside, and the others are too young.”
“I’ll be all right on my own,” I say.
“I can’t leave Zelda like this,” says Barney, dipping the rag into the
bucket of water and pressing it gently to her face. “But she needs
aspirin. If we can’t get her temperature down in the next few hours …”
He stops because Zelda’s eyes flutter open.
“I’m hot,” she croaks.
I lift her cup to her white lips and she swallows a little.
“There’ll be aspirin in the dental surgery we were in last night,” says
Barney.
I don’t say anything.
I try not to think of what is in the kitchen of that apartment.
“But if you don’t want to go back there,” Barney says, “you’ll find empty
apartments in most of the buildings. And you’ll almost certainly find
aspirin in one of them. In a bathroom, or kitchen or bedside drawer.”
I nod. I know about aspirin. Mother Minka used to get headaches from
praying too much.
“Are you sure you can do this?” asks Barney.
“Yes,” I say.
I know what Barney was going to say before Zelda opened her eyes. If
we can’t get her temperature down in the next few hours, she’ll die.
I must find her some aspirin.
And there is something else I must bring back for her as well.
to flutter
å flagre
to croak
å skrike (hest/håst)
a dental surgery
et/eit tannlegekontor
a drawer
en/ein skuff
to nod
å nikke
deserted
forlatt/aude
a jar
en/ei krukke
I slip quietly out of our building without anybody seeing me.
The ghetto streets are different tonight.
They’re just as dark and scary and full of litter as always, but not so
deserted. Nazi trucks are zooming around. German soldiers are running
in and out of apartment blocks. In the distance I can hear shooting.
I creep into an empty apartment.
No aspirin.
I try next door.
Yes. A whole jar.
fortsetter på neste side 
23
Part b – The stories i have heard / once and then
But I haven’t finished yet. There is something else I need to find.
All the apartments in this block seem to be empty. I can hear Nazis
down the street but I haven’t seen a single Jewish person.
I creep down yet another apartment hallway, holding the candle out
in front of me so I don’t trip over any of the toys or ornaments or
smashed photos on the floor.
More gunshots in the distance.
This will have to be the last apartment. If I don’t find it here, I’ll have to
give up.
I close my eyes as I step into the kitchen. After last night I’ll never be
able to go into a kitchen with my eyes open again.
This one’s alright, except for a stain on the floor that could be just
gravy.
I ignore it and start opening cupboards.
Nothing in the top ones.
I bend down and start opening the bottom ones. Zelda’s locket chain
keeps getting caught on the cupboard doors. I toss it over my shoulder
so it hangs down my back.
Two cupboards left.
Please God, Jesus, Mary and the Pope, if you’re still on our side please
let this be the one.
Yes.
There, lying next to a mouldy potato, something that will help Zelda
just as much as the aspirin.
A carrot.
© Penguin Books, Australia. Used by permission.
Links:
http://www.morrisgleitzman.com/
24
an ornament
en/ein pyntegjenstand
a stain
en/ein flekk
a cupboard
et skap
a locket chain
kjede til en/ein medaljong
to toss
å slenge / å slengje
mouldy
muggen
Part b – The stories i have heard / «hope» is the thing with feathers
Getty Images/iStockphoto
“Hope” is the thing
with feathers
By Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson (1830–1886) was an American poet who received
much acclaim, especially after her death. In this poem she
attempts to capture the essence of hope.
“Hope” is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops – at all –
And sweetest – in the Gale – is heard –
And sore must be the storm –
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm –
I’ve heard it in the chillest land –
And on the strangest Sea –
Yet, never, in Extremity,
It asked a crumb – of Me.
Links: http://www.emilydickinson.org
25
acclaim
anerkjennelse/lovord
to capture
å fange
perches
her: sitter/sit
a tune
en/ein melodi
gale
kuling
to abash
å gjøre/gjere skamfull
crumb
smule