Onward to Music

Hi everyone! It's been a while since I have updated the blog and for that, I apologize. For all you new members, the subjects that we have already covered are lang/lit, social science, and art. Don't worry if you were not there for those lessons. We have resources available online for you to catch up on your own, or you are always free to ask me or anyone in AcaDec for help. Currently, we are focusing on the music section. Over the past few months, I have been posting some of the songs on our Facebook page for the people who could not open the zip file on the resource website.

Here are links to some of them:
1. Preludes, Book 1, No.2 "Voiles" by Claude Debussy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYPvIIdokPc
2. Pierrot Lunaire, Op. 21, No. 8 "Nacht" by Arnold Schoenberg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4v3dPG-hec
3. The Rite of Spring, "Introduction" and "Omens of Spring" by Igor Stravinsky
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LRoIAS_RKM
6. "Maple Leaf Rag" by Scott Joplin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMAtL7n_-rc
7. "St.Louis Blues" (1914) by W.C. Handy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IdfwTEeDR8
8. "Dippermouth Blues" (1923)  by Joe "King" Oliver
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEF9QeHxrYw

(The numbers refer to the number the song is on the track, not the number the song is on this list.)

We have two different places to access resources. The friendlier resources with alpacas on them are on DemiDec. You can access them at http://www.demidec.com/newdemidec/. The username is sghsacadec and the password is a208. The regular resources can be found at this link: https://usad.enlyght.com/tc/Materials.aspx. The distribution code is: EHYPCBRXVKJB. I would suggest taking a look at both and seeing which one works for you.

Anyways, meetings are every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. I hope to see you all there!

Wrapping Up Language/Literature

For those of you who are new or have not been able to attend all the meetings, we have been going over the Language/Literature resource. Though I hope you'll peruse or at least skim the resource, I'll point out some things you should look at. You should probably know about:
- Ernest Hemingway
- Authors who wrote during WWI
- Cultural Movements (Post-impressionist Art, Cubism, Modernism)
- Themes, styles, and influences of The Sun Also Rises
- Shorter (Supplemental) Selections

It would be great if you could all get a copy of the novel to read, but if not, pick up a Spark Notes packet from Mr. Olivos. It should provide you with an adequate amount of information. Please take a look through this resource on your own because we may not revisit this for quite a while.

We are moving on to Social Science this Thursday, so this will likely be review for juniors and seniors and a head start for sophomores and freshmen in world history. However, there will likely be some important points for everyone to learn as well. If you have any questions about the competition or the material, feel free to contact me or comment below. See you all on Thursday!

Meetings

Hi everyone! Meetings are every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday after school for about an hour at A208. See you all there! Feel free to let any of your friends who are interested know! We have been working on the Lang/Lit section, so if you haven't already, take a look at that resource and read The Sun Also Rises, our novel for this year. There are two copies at the school library the last time that I checked. There are also Spark Notes packets available in Mr. Olivos's room.

Resouces are here!

Hi everyone! Our resources have arrived! They can be downloaded at this link:
https://usad.enlyght.com/tc/Materials.aspx
The distribution code is: EHYPCBRXVKJB
Please take a look at the materials. Mr. Olivos says that we're starting with literature, so I hope you guys have all read the book or at least the packet.
Happy Studying!

Summer Meetings

Hi everyone! :b I know that it seems like I abandoned the blog, but it's still alive. Just so everyone stays updated, the next meeting will be on Thursday, June 20. There will be two sessions so that everyone can make it. One will be from 9-10:30 pm and the other is around 1-3 pm (I will update with the exact time when I receive the information). We will most likely be meeting up in the computer lab at the E-building (I will provide the room number when I receive the information) to start working on our speeches. In the meantime, make sure you outline your speeches and go on Sparknotes to read about The Sun Also Rises. If you need some help with your speeches, you can always look at the speech resource on Demidec or ask me for help. Anyways, happy summer and happy studying.

No Meeting

Hi! No meeting these next two weeks because of CST's, so just make sure to eat, sleep, and study. Good luck, and I'll see you all in a couple of weeks. We'll keep you posted if anything happens to come up. Also, don't forget to pick up your buttons at the art gallery on April 25 and 26, and it's Day of Silence this Friday if any of you guys are interested.

Introduction Meeting

Hi everyone! This is just a reminder to everyone that we will be having an introduction meeting for potential members on Tuesday, April 2 from 3:00 pm - 3:30 pm. I hope that some of you will go and give a warm welcome to our future members and tell them all about how awesome we are. (: Regretfully, I will not be there due to a prior engagement, so I hope you guys will help give them idea of what we are all about. Also, our table will still be out at the quad this Monday and Tuesday, so please bring your friends.

Competition - Day 1

Hi! So it looks like the first day of competition is finally upon us. To all those competing, good luck! Make sure you dress to impress tomorrow as we are doing essay, interview, and speech/impromptu portions. Remember that the bus will be there at 8:00 a.m., so don't be late. Please ready your speeches, get a good night's rest, and eat breakfast in the morning. Don't stress about it. You will all be great because you are just amazing, talented people! ^-^

- Kristy

Study Time!

Hi everyone! So, there are about twenty days till the first day of competition! (I try to keep the sidebar updated with the countdown. :b) I hope you have all been studying. With that in mind, don't forget about the Demidec website. The cram kits are quite useful and easier to read through than the resources (though everyone should have looked at the resources as well). Also, make sure you have your speeches finished (and hopefully memorized).

Anyways, we will be going over literature and the shorter selections this week. I'm hoping that everyone read the novel, but if not, at least understands what is going on in the novel. It's a love and war story! :D

Well, keep studying so we can do even better this year! ^-^

Sign-ups for Echo Mountain!

If you're interested in hiking with Acadec to Echo Mountain! 

Please comment below with your FULL NAME and ID number ASAP! 

The hike will be from 8 AM to 12 PM, Friday December 28th. Spots are limited!
If you know of an ADULT 18+ who can drive, please comment below [We'll help pay for gas !]

PLEASEE! T___T We still need one more driver to make this trip work!
Remember to bring your speeches, plenty of water, sunscreen, and dress in layers! Please wear appropriate close toed shoes as well! ^_^

MEETING DAYS UPDATE

HEY EVERYONE,

THERE'S ONLY ABOUT THREE MORE MONTHS UNTILCOMPETITION.

I hope you're studying well, and we've decided to add in an extra day to our usual meeting days to hopefully give better comprehensive lectures.

We will now be meeting from 3 to 4 after school on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays! ^_^

SEE YOU ALL THERE!

SECOND SCRIMMAGE OF 2012

HEY MY LOVELY DECATHLETES. Sorry this is like a two days before notice, for those who have not been attending the meetings. We will be having our own little scrimmage at SGHS in Mr. Olivos's room, A208 ! I believe we will be testing on all 7 subjects [excluding essay, speech, and impromptu], and hopefully keep breaks on the shorter side compared to last scrimmage so we can be done by 12 ! ^^ Bring money or snacks in case you get hungry! We're planning to split a pizza! :D TIME: 8 AM to 12 PM DATE: SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 10th

FACEBOOK GROUP!

HI NEW MEMBERS! <3

If you still haven't joined our Facebook group, you should! :D

Here is the link to the group.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/176757552374606/

Don't worry! It's not mandatory, so don't go making a Facebook just to join the group. LOL

The blog gets updated regularly just like the Facebook group, but if you have any questions about the material and such, it might get answered on Facebook much quicker than if you asked here. ^_^Y

NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Hi everyone!

YES! There will be a meeting after school on Tuesday. It will be at Vincent Lugo park. We will be starting promptly at 1:00 PM and end at 2:00 PM. (We get out at 12:18 PM) That should be enough time for everyone to eat lunch at school or elsewhere! See you then (:

Missing Resources! CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THEM!

Hi!

If you're new to Acadec this year, you probably haven't realized that we're missing some of the subjects.
But no worries! We're going to use the ones from last year since it's pretty much the same and it saves on costs. It's also more fun to read since they are from DemiDec. ^_^Y

To make things easier I uploaded the resources onto Mediafire for you to download instead of having ya'll try to look for them yourself.

Essay Resource
Prepared Speech Resource
Impromptu Resource
Interview Resource

Happy reading everyone!

Scrimmage of 2012

ARE YOU READY?

The series of tests to determine your skills thus far has arrived!

The subjects will be everything excluding Essay, Interview, and Speech.

And yes we realize we have only covered two of the tested subjects, but nevertheless we will eventually get to all of them!

It's only a preliminary test to see how much you know / have learned so far and for those wondering: Yes, your scores along with your G.P.A will determine if you can compete.

Everyone, just try your best! Study! Make new friends!

Good luck to all!

Oh and it would advisable to bring snacks, water or money because we might order pizza afterwards! ^_^

Hello! ^-^

HEY MY LOVELY DECATHLETES ^_^Just in case you were wondering!Tomorrow is a normal general meeting 3:00-4:00 (:We will discuss future dates for Dr. Zhivago, and continue with Raymond Yang & Kristy Duong's awesome science lectures. Also, we're going to participate in Art Club's button fundraiser this year, so if you're interesting in designing one, here is a download link for the template ^^ It would be awesome if you could design one through an editing program, but if you're the traditional media kind of person, that's alright too! Just print it out and go from there. Keep in mind that the buttons are only going to be one inch in diameter though. :<
Please get the design to me by Tuesday, October 2nd! Thank you (:http://www.mediafire.com/file/ihtws7as4pytfu0/buttontalkd.zip

- Tiffany Duong 

Last Post before heading to College!

Dear my decathletes...
I am going away now, off to a nice place called UCSD. But dont think I will ever forget about Academic Decathlon! For me, it was a good experience, I have to say not because I was a good decathlete, and not because I really liked to study. But it really let me step up and try to become a leader, something I wanted to get better at! It highlighted my ups and downs, and let me interact with a beautiful bunch of wonderful people! And I have to tell you, it's not an easy job, but you learn to mold and manipulate the mind. Adolf Hitler, despite his cruel intentions was a great leader. He manipulated people to kill and subjugate and do things people would never think of doing. Similarly, a leader should be able to manipulate the decathletes into thinking studying is fun, and it's not an easy job. So when a leader rises up, and makes it fun enough and effective enough to win medals at competition, I respect you and I will bow down to you!
As for everyone else who is not a leader, I respect you, but in a different kinda way. I respect that you come to this new foreign club and try to do something not many people like to do. And sometimes you find a hidden gem that's really good at this decathlon stuff, and you could even make money off this kind of talent! And I want to tell you one thing... If you get yourself into decathlon and decide that it's not your thing, no worries, theres nothing stopping you from quitting. And if you do get involved, dont give it half your effort, or quit halfway through. Or even if you've given it a year, and you hate it, don't feel obligated to redeem yourself. Dont do anything your heart isn't interested in doing. Just make good use of the time you have, because you have so little of it. Best wishes to anyone who passes this message! I just wanted to share my feelings :3 Good luck to you all!
-Teddy Tea

No Meeting Tomorrow

Hi everyone! I hope you are all enjoying your second week of school. Just to let you know, there is no meeting tomorrow. So I will see you guys on Thursday. You might even see some new people joining us on Thursday too. (:

Resources

Hi. I hope you all had a great summer and are ready for another wonderful year. Here is the link to this year's resources: https://usad.enlyght.com/tc/OrderReview.aspx?DistributionCode=YCAKKNYJXYBS
Also, we will be having meetings every Tuesday and Thursday afterschool for now, so I will see you guys tomorrow. (: