By: Madison and Mikyla

Secretary of Commerce:  On 11/21/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that Bill Richardson was to be the Secretary of Commerce. Bill Richardson used to be a staffer on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1977. He was also named Secretary of the Department of Energy in 1998. He also ran, got elected, and got re elected to Governor of Mexico in 2001, 2002, and in 2006.

Secretary of Defense:  On 12/1/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that Robert Gates was to be Secretary of Defense. Robert Gates served as Deputy Director of Central Intelligence from 1986 until 1989. He was also the Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor from 1989 until 1991, for President George H.W. Bush.

Secretary of Health and Human Services:   On 11/19/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that Tom Daschle was to be Secretary of Health and Human Services. Tom used to be both Representative and Senator for South Carolina from 1987 until 2005.

Secretary of Homeland Security:   On 11/20/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that Janet Napolitano was to be Secretary of Homeland Security. Janet Napolitano used to be Governor of Arizona in 2002 and was reelected in 2006. She also was elected to be in the Chair of the National Governors Association.

Secretary of State:    On 11/21/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that Senator Hillary Clinton was to be Secretary of State. In 1992, when Bill Clinton was elected to be President of the U.S, Hillary Clinton became First Lady. In 2000, Hillary Clinton became U.S Senator for New York. In 2007, Hillary Clinton also ran against Barack Obama to go against John McCain for President Elect.

Secretary of Treasury:   On 11/21/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that Timothy Geithner was to be Secretary of Treasury. In 2003 Timothy Geithner became the ninth president and chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. From 2001 until 2003, Timothy Geithner also was director of the Policy Development and Review Department at the International Monetary Fund.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs:   On 12/7/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that General Shinseki was to be the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. In 1999, General Shinseki was assumed duties as the 34th Chief of Staff.  He also served the U.S Military from 1965 until 2003.

Attorney General:   On 11/18/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that Eric Holder was to be the Attorney General. In 1993, Eric Holder joined the ranks of top-level federal prosecutors when he was named U.S attorney for Washington, DC. In 1988, Eric Holder was nominated by President Reagan to become an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

Chief of Staff:   On 11/6/08, President Elect Barack Obama announced that Rahm Emanuel was to be Chief of Staff. In 2007, the new majority elected Emanuel to serve as Democratic Caucus Chair. In 1989, Rahm served as a senior advisor and chief fundraiser for Richard M. Daley.  

To keep track of Obama’s cabinet go to    http://www.npr.org/.

What I Used:  

http://www.npr.org/

http://www.foxnews.com/       

                                   By: Joel and Joe

An introductory prepositional phrase is a prepositional phrase at the beginning of a sentence.

(A prepositional phrase is a group of words that begin with a preposition and end with a noun.)

There is usually a comma between an introductory prepositional phrase and the rest of the sentence. Examples (underlined): When you eat food, be neat. Before breakfast, get your clothes on.

Here is some practice. Pick out the introductory prepositional phrases.

1.      During class, there was a disruption.

2.      After the weekend, people were tired.

3.      Of all the people at school, I have one best friend.

4.      Before bed, you should brush your teeth.

5.      At home, you can play outside.

Work cited:

  “Pattern 8: introductory prepositional phrases.” 02 Dec. 08 http://www.greece.k12.ny.us/instruction/ela/6-12/sentence%20patterns/pattern%208.pdf>.

                                         Firestar’s Quest

                         The plot of the story is about a cat named Firestar.  Firestar goes on a quest to find the lost SkyClan. FourClans of cats live in the forest, ShadowClan, River Clan, Wind Clan, and Thunder Clan. Firestar is the leader of Thunder Clan. He begins to see strange cats in ThunderClan territory. He soon learns that the cats are the spirits of SkyClan. SkyClan is the fifth Clan that was driven out of the forest years ago. Humans built a small town on the SkyClan camp, and poisoned or trapped most of the cats. The dead SkyClan leader is asking Firestar to find and rebuild SkyClan. Firestar takes his mate, Sandstorm, with him to find and rebuild SkyClan.

                                         Citation

           Hunter, Erin. Firestar’s Quest. New York: HarperCollins, 2007