I found out a couple of days ago while I was watching E! that Zac Efron did not sing in the first High School Musical. Because his voice was changing (as many young men experience as they grow up), a young man named Drew actually sang many of his songs. However, Efron did sing in subsequent High School Musical sequels after his voice had matured.

Singing and Acting with a Passion

From what I gathered watching E!, Zac really wanted to sing his own songs in the High School Musical series. He believed he could do the singing necessary for the role. I really respect that about him. He is truly a gifted actor. He has been acting for many years, and he puts a lot of passion into his acting.

The Road Ahead

In my personal opinion, Zac Efron, along with many of the High School Musical cast members, look like they are going to have successful careers. They may be young now, but they are very talented. Of course, I cannot predict the future. But, their futures look very bright.

The two things, yes two things! It had in common in high school were the lunch trays and the computers and only because there production was in a real high school and used those props. They added 2 characters I've haven't seen in the other 2 movies that were in the movie for about 5 min each of camera time. One was dark haired kid the other is the British girl apparently they are the lead roles of the next high school musical !

Now you may be saying well you didn't pay attention you don't even know their name.

First, I don't think there names came up. If they did it was really short or I didn't listen. Their screen time was short at best. Even though they didn't even have important roles. They were important.

For instance the British girl was staring in the highly made, not flawed play and steals the show but in the end the girl that got replaced. That is stuck up and but she was as well so we'll go with it. The girl that double stole the show ended up being crowned for her achievement of not being in it half the time and also doing a horrible job acting.

The dark haired kid as were going to call him. In the first 5 mins of the movie he scores the final basket to make his team win. Now you may think he gets rewarded but not The main character gets all the credit and they get a party. (Full of adults really fun). He is nowhere to be seen in the scene. In the other 2 mins he's in the film. The main character tricks him into thinking that some really popular girl likes him a lot and that she cannot admit this. In the next scene about an hour and 20 min he's in he tries to be with this girl. He ends up getting rejected but not caring. This is everything about him! Everything!

Now about the plot. Number one I haven't seen the other high school musicals but I problem know them well enough to write about. As they where about some drama at school and they all had to pitch in! Woo!

To sum the first part up they never show them going into another class other than drama. 1 scene where they do but they leave shortly after. None of them wanted to do this stupid play in the first place but still they manage on holding onto life slipping so fiercely

They also seemed to have no interest in each other because the couple with the main character doesn't interest anybody else for more than one minute.

Their horrible writing makes that all of these kids have this high school play have the production value of a million dollar budget movie and have fireworks and highly choreographed, 50 people all dancing!

One of the songs they sing is talking about the old days as in the days before the musicals were created so that had nothing to do with the plot and was a good waste of 5 good minutes.

Now the only way to end a good essay is to finish it with a quote because someone has said something better before you so you might as well copy them.

“I wouldn't be seen with you if you were the last bucket on earth and my hair was on fire” The dark haired kid from High School Musical.

High School Musical tells the story of an idealized dream high school. This tells you the story of all three parts of the musical. Because all characters are clichés, the stories are as well. You name it you get it. No surprises, but then no bad surprise either. It's definitely a pretty little filmlet with pretty stars that sing prettily pretty little songs. That's it. It all reminded me of the 1970s touring show Up With People, nice songs, nice people, nice show, otherwise utterly not memorable. Even the style of the song material was the same in the show as it is now in the musical.

But then, what can you expect from a film called High School Musical which, like its two prequels, tells the story of a high school musical that should be performed? But now comes the turn-around you didn't expect. I've seen all three of them and I liked them.

The films are utterly enjoyable, because you need absolutely no brains to follow. You even might walk out for 30 minutes and come back and won't be lost in the story, the plot is so predictable. The music doesn't offend or excite, you may read a book with it and never even notice it is playing. The acting is just good enough for high school, so nothing to complain there either. It's a pure Disney product in a fantasy world high school. But time and again I was reminded of my own high school. So all in all, it's good value for the money. Just don't expect any depth in story or acting.

The newest Disney product has been selling millions of DVDs and CDs in the United States and millions more worldwide. No wonder it went movie, the merchandizing potential is enormous. It is just surprising that such nondescript music is selling like that. But probably it's also because of Zac Efron who has become the load stone of many crushes.

Zac Efron and his girl friend and co-star Vanessa Hudgens have presented themselves as very likeable and clean young actors in London; as Britney Spears did when she was employed by Disney. They both seem to be mother-in-law's dream matches and as squeaky clean as the movie they just played in. It is to be hoped they remain that way.

Being such inoffensive persons, it beats the imagination why they were attacked during a night out in London. It is quite unutterable, what spite can do to a person. Another unsavoury side link were topless photographs of Zac showering offered on eBay by a user zerimarr. That's just plainly tasteless, and probably Photoshop; and eBay took ages to clean these bids out, as usual. It is time that people started to respect the right to private life again, even if somebody is a star. The film is a good start to instruct your children about that as well.

Let's take for example Walt Disney's movie “Chicken Little”. This classic children's story is redone to fit modern times and is full of modern day issues that we all experienced as kids to one degree or another. Chicken Little is put into the box as a complete dork and feels that there is no way out. He is constantly ridiculed for his beliefs and likes and his only survival tools are the few friends that he has that are also outcasts. Chicken's father is overly critical of him and has made him feel that he can never measure up to his far reaching standard's or his past accomplishments. Daddy is living in the past glory of his High School athletic standouts and is disappointed that Chicken Little is nothing like him. This in turn constantly sets poor Chicken up for failure in his father's eyes. Does any of this sound or feel familure to anyone?

Next we have Foxy Loxy who is the typical “mean girl” of Chicken Little's class. She is the girl who picks at anyone with a weakness just to make herself feel better. Foxy is the ringleader to Goosy Loosy, who in turn is such a follower, so desperate to be liked, and so afraid to be on the receiving end of Foxy's taunts, that she will do the fox's bidding at will. Foxy is the thorn in Chicken's world and the epitome of insecurity. Once again, we all either knew a Foxy or we were Foxy.

Now, Chicken Little breaks out of his constraints and proves that he is “somebody”. The little guy wins the baseball game, saves the town from destruction, finally has approval, but more importantly an apology and affection, from his father, AND gets the girl all in the course of about 60 minutes. Foxy changes her ways and becomes kind and caring from fear of her life. Goosy Loosy doesn't change and is zapped from the planet.

What you may ask do we learn from all of this? Well, if you are a “chicken little” bust open the box you were placed in and be free to be yourself. The first rule of acceptance from others is self acceptance first. So what if you were considered a nerd in school, we are all adults now and should be on a level playing field. Besides, embrace the dorkiness inside of you, for nerds rule the world, jocks reminisce. Leave the parent issues behind if you can. The issues were always theirs in the first place and they pushed them on you, so push them back to the rightful owner and move on. If you were or are a “foxy” then take the quote “today is a changing day” to heart and change! You might be surprised at the happiness that life has in store for you when you change not only your behavior, but your everyday outlook. If changing is not on your agenda, then be prepared to be “zapped” from people's lives as they grow and evolve and don't want your toxic behavior in their lives. Lastly, if you were a victim of a “foxy”, try to forgive and forget and hope that the “mean girl” grew up to be a “nice and kind girl”---if she didn't, just give her a zap!

Always remember that today is indeed a changing day and we can all make the world a better place if we just remember to stop a moment and see through the eyes of our children.

If teenagers do not belong to a group, some may feel like misfits, such as Cady in "Mean Girls". When Cady first arrives she is very different to all the other students at the school. She wears unusual clothes, which are not seen as "cool", has a different attitude and does not know any of the rules, such as where to sit in class. In many ways for Cady this is a brand new way of life, things she did not have to do in Africa, such as to ask for a lavatory pass, are obvious things to do in America.

There are many reasons why teenagers may want to infiltrate a group, such as peer pressure, pressure to fit in with society or simply because they have shared interests and hobbies as other people in the group. In "Mean Girls" ,originally, her so-called friends push Cady into joining the "Plastics" as they tell her it will be "fun" to find out about what they talk about behind closed doors. Cady suffers from peer pressure from Damien and Janice, as at first she does not want to fit in with the plastics and is against the idea, but they pursuade her into thinking it is a good plan. However after the leader of the plastics steals the boy Cady had her eye on, Cady quickly decides to take revenge on her by wedging her way closer into the group. Cadys then realises after a while that she enjoys being in the plastics, everyone knows her name and everyone wants to copy her style.

To fit in with their chosen groups, many people have to change be it their appearance, personality or likes and dislikes. Teenagers may feel pressure to change what they look like to fit in with the others around them, as they think if they are different or unique they will not be acceptable. For example in "Mean Girls" when Cady first arrives she is a misfit and is forced to eat her lunch in a toilet cubicle, as she does not fit in with any of the groups.

When Cady begins to join the plastics she changes her whole image; her hair styles, her clothes, her make-up and her whole attitude to life. She almost becomes a clone of the other three plastics. To fit in with others many people find they have to sacrifice their individuality, they feel under pressure to look, talk and behave like the other members. If people are pressured to fit in with others around them, everyone ends up fitting into an exact category, and no one is individual and unique.

There are many messages incorporated into this film, one of the most important is that you should always stay true to yourself and shouldn't have to change for anyone. This is shown throughout the film in many ways, such as Cady being miserable in the plastics and at the end, when she is back to her normal self, she has more friends and is happy, as she feels comfortable as she is. It is once said in the film that " she knew it was better to be in the plastics hating life, than to not be in the plastics at all." This is a perfect example of the pressure teens feel to fit in, they will even be miserable just so they can be liked.

Some other messages in this film are; that infact it doesn't matter what you look like, people like you for the way you are; making fun of someone is pointless, it doesn't make you or them feel better; and that nobody is perfect no matter what clothes they wear or how many friends they have.

In conclusion, there are many ways, in which society forces teenagers to feel the need to fit in with others, but youths should feel confident in them selves and not have to turn into clone-like stereotypes. Everyone should have the right to feel confident in his or her individuality.

After the exam, there was an announcement saying 18 students tried the Advance Placement test and 18 of them passed. A few days later, the school called and assumed the students cheated because they all had the same wrong answers. Jaime Escalante was furious when he heard this. One of his students called in and asked if all 18 students can re-take the Advance Placement Test. The school allowed them to re-take the test but had only one day to study. Jaime Escalante and the students studied all day and night for the test the next day.

The next day, everyone re-took the test. Every single student passed the Advance Placement test with different scores that year in 1982. The amount of people passing from Garfield High School now increased every year from 18 people in 1982 to 87 people passing in 1987.

My favorite part in the movie was when after Jaime had an argument with the people that suspected that the students cheated, he left the building and had found his VW Bug missing. Jaime had to walk all the way home and when he got home; he went upstairs to his room and sat on the bed. A few minutes later, a few of his students came by his house and shouted that they fixed his car up. Jaime's son said, “Hey dad, look at your new car!!” I liked that part because that part was funny.

One definition of a ‘crucible’ is ‘a vessel of heat-resisting material used for high temperature chemical reactions’. John Proctor is (metaphorically) a good example for this definition. There are many ‘chemical reactions’ going on in Salem, Massachusetts during these witch trials, which would be the accusations of witchcraft and the hangings that follow. He, being a heat-resistant vessel, is able to overcome the heat from these reactions and persevere. He is not letting the girls’ lies and deception get to him, and he stands up for what he believes and takes the heat, even though he knows that by doing this he could put himself in danger.

Another definition of the word ‘crucible’ is ‘a test or trial of the most severe and decisive kind’. The whole episode in Salem is a crucible, because the girls are fabricating lies so that they can get attention and get the men they want. This is causing turmoil among the people and the town is in chaos because people are being wrongly executed. John Proctor is the center of this turmoil because this whole incident is led by one girl. This one girl is Abigail Williams, former servant to the Proctors, who wants to have John Proctor’s wife executed for ‘witchcraft’ so she can resume having an affair with John that had started a little while ago until John’s wife cast her out. Abigail starts all this commotion by accusing many of the women (and some of the men too) of practicing witchcraft, then finally she accuses Elizabeth Proctor. This tells John that he now has to get involved and he has to stand up for what he believes and be a crucible (the first definition), although it may mean releasing some information he would rather not (the fact that he had an affair with Abigail).

John Proctor is going through a really big crucible (second def.) and being a crucible (first def.) himself. The witch trials are a severe test that he must endure and see to the end. He is behaving like a crucible by holding on tight to his beliefs and not letting the heat pry them away from him. He is doing this even though he knows that if he stands up against the girls they will accuse him and have him hung. He is persevering through all of this and making sure that they end without more people being executed. He has a choice to make. He has people’s lives in his hands. He is at a final point where he can live and lie, or be honest and die. He knows that if he lies, he will cause more people to die, but he knows that if he is honest he will be executed but in honor, because he knows that he will end the crucible by being a crucible.