Wednesday, March 9, 2016

Of Picture Books and Perspectives...

Today, we are handing in our final drafts of the SYNTHESIS essay. You made it! I really appreciate your hard work on an arduous skill--and I am very proud of each of you writing and revising these essays paragraph by paragraph.

Yes!

Yesterday, after reviewing the proper heading and workshopping engaging titles, we had the chance to channel our inner five-year old selves. We left our seats and gathered on the floor in the center of the room for a reading of the awesome picture book Emmanuel's Dream by Laurie Ann Thomspon. Since we had just finished writing our synthesis essays based on the documentary about Emmanuel Ofosu Yeboah and the novel The Breadwinner, it was a great time to read a fabulous picture book.



WE ARE NEVER TOO OLD FOR PICTURE BOOKS! 

Our word of the day yesterday was ANTIQUITY, which simply means ancient times. An example of the the word in a sentence is One of my favorite people is Socrates, who lived in antiquity, but whose wisdom still resonates today.

Our word of the day for today is DUBIOUS, which means causing doubt or untrustworthy.

Today, we are beginning our new novel, Nothing but the Truth by Avi. We read aloud from the opening pages and for tonight, share a couple of sentences on the class blog with your response to this question: WHAT IS PATRIOTISM, AND HOW IMPORTANT (or unimportant) IS IT?


78 comments:

  1. I think that patriotism means staying true to one's country and loving and respecting one's country. It's important because without it, no one would be proud of their country, and there would be no point of belonging to a country one didn't love or respect.

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  2. I think patriotism means being loyal to one's country or devotion to one's country. Patriotism is important because it's something to believe in. And you should support the people who are running the country because they give you a land to call home.

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  3. I think patriotism is important because it bring a whole nation of people together because we have the same general kind of views on everything. An example of this is the revolutionary war where almost all men and boys were fighting for their country and because of that we gained independence, so that is why patriotism is important

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  4. Patriotism is essentially national pride, which is quite important, but you cannot be forced to have patriotism. So I conclude that it is important to make sure people actually have the intrinsic desire to show patriotism, not be forced to. I feel that it is important to make people love their country by being a better nation, rather than forcing everyone to always agree. Sometimes I'm not particularly proud to be an american, because sometimes americans do things i'm not proud of. A country needs to be a country to be proud of before anyone may even want to be patriotic.

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  5. I think patriotism means being loyal, proud and not leaving your country no matter how hard times can be. It is important because if none of us had patriotism or was loyal or proud of their country, the countries around the globe would all fall apart quickly with no one supporting it its people, culture etc.

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  6. I think patriotism is showing pride and loyalty to the your country maybe Afghans are breaking in to your village you don't leave you have a gun in your hands and fight them for your homeland. It is very very very important because it shows that you are dedicated to one country and not to multiple ones

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  7. Patriotism is important, since it means being loyal and respectful toward your country, but patriotism isn't essential. It's just a good thing to have.

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  8. It means to show support for you country. It is important because otherwise the world would be full of traitors and unloyal citizens.

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  9. it is important because it mean true and honest
    it means that you are royal that is what patriotism is important

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  10. "Patriotism is devotion to one's own country and concern for its defence. Frequently compared or contrasted with nationalism, which is devotion to one's own ethnos" according to wikiquote. This means one is devoted to their country. Recently, I was jokingly thinking how I might have to stop pledging my allegence to the flag of the USA if Trump is elected. Patriotism is important if you respect the country's actions, beliefs, characteristics, civics, cooperation, decisions, desires, diplomatic abilities, efficiency, ethics, fairness, focuses, goals, government, guidelines, history, ideas, laws, measures, methods, officials, organization, party/parties, paths, perspectives, policies, political standing, priorities, protocol, respect of citizens, security, strategies, treatment, and values. Also, the US "patriots" were NOT loyal to Great Britain.

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  11. I think being proud of were you come from, or where you live now is important. Although i do not think that those who are obsessed with their country are very open to new places and things.

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  12. "Patriotism is devotion to one's own country and concern for its defence. Frequently compared or contrasted with nationalism, which is devotion to one's own ethnos." (https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Patriotism) I think that patriotism is important because without patriotism, there would be no self-identification. However, I believe that people that have moved and traveled in the past may still feel patriotism to the country that they were from.

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  13. Patriotism is when someone strongly supports a country that they feel they belong to. People who are patriotic usually agree with their government. I think that in an ideal world, every citizen would have patriotism for their country. It is important for people to live in a country that they want to support, even though many people don't feel this way about where they live.

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  14. Patriotism is one's devotion to that person's country. People that are proud of their home country.. said from wiki quote

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  15. I think that patriotism means being loyal to someone's country. A patriotic country is usually a country where not a lot of fighting happens inside of the country, but against other countries the patriotic country will fight together well. The US is a very patriotic country, which is why it's a great country to live in because there is no fighting usually happening

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  16. Patriotism in my mind means being faithful to one person's nation or country. In a patriotic nation, the people are one with everyone else and they will always do their best to create a nation in which is very patriotic. They will look after the nation and believe that their nation is the best. Because of this, they will always if possible fight for their country

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  17. I think that patriotism is when a person is truly devoted and supports a certain country they belong to. I think that Patriotism is important because it gives citizens a chance to express their opinions and share their feelings about what's going on. ~Jessica DiPietro

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  18. Patriotism is the devotion and passion for a certain country. I think that patriotism is important in most situations because it keeps you devoted to your home town or your current residency, it gives you a reason to be proud to be there and not another part of the world.

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  19. I think Patriotism is the loyalty and the support to a country. This is important thing because it shows that you respect your country and to make sure you can express your feelings about your country. Also if no one was loyal to the country the whole place would be a mess.

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  20. Patriotism is the loyalty and the heart for a community. I think it is important because it shows support and recognition of a country or a community. It tells that you are loyal and trustworthy.

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  21. I think patriotism is when you show support to your country and you are proud to be a citizen in it. It is important because without it your country would appear weak and or without support of the people who live there

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  22. Patriotism, is the love and belief of your country,your school,your family, a sports team, or something and showing it off. I think its relay important for us to have it because if we did not we might not believe in our county and friends and family and turn against them. -Andrea Bradshaw

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  23. Patriotism is when a person is devoted to their country. I think this is very important because you support you country and are proud of it. It shows a closeness that brings the country together.-Kaitlyn Ostrowski

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  24. Matthew Atwell
    Patriotism this the support for ones country or idea. I think that it is important for some people to be patriotic so it will help the country be better; but I don't think everyone has to be patriotic in a sense that everything you do is for the country.

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  25. Patriotism is how loyal someone is to the country. I think that patriotism is only important in the way that it keeps you from taking over or destroying the whole country. Also patriotism is important because it keeps you from hating the country. But you don't have to be really patriotic in order to be a good American. If you are happy with what you have and you follow the laws and policies of the U.S. then that is enough patriotism. Also, too much of it can be bad. If you are so patriotic that you hate anyone who isn't as patriotic as you are that can cause a problem.

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  26. Patriotism is believing in your country, and supporting it at it's worst times, which I think is important. If patriotism is lost, which I'm guessing it might be in the book, the country is divided and people cannot work together. People may struggle for power, as they do in Afghanistan, but patriotism is the belief that holds a community together.

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  27. I think patriotism in d devotion to your country. It is important because it lets people say their opinions on things

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  28. I believe patriotism is very important. Without patriotism a nation would fall. Without patriotism the US may even be under the Taliban rule because we were never grateful with what we have.

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  29. Patriotism is basically love and devotion to one's nation/country. Patriotism is very important to show that you love your nation for who they are, and that you have a meaningful connection to your nation. If patriotism is not present in the citizens of a nation, the people are not proud to be a part of that country, and that is not good for a nation's worldwide reputation.

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  30. I think that patriotism means to be loyal, faithful, and proud of one's country. People in a patriotic country will hopefully not fight a lot (in the big picture), and they will stay and fight for their country, together. Patriotism is important because without it, people within the country will have more arguments, cause more violence, and just cause chaos in the end. Those countries/nations are usually weaker when it comes to fighting (Country vs. Country) because they won't all be fighting TOGETHER and in harmony with one another.

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  31. I think patriotism is when a person or a group of people are devoted to something, in this cause their country. I also think patriotism is important because this shows and also give people a change to expressed themselves for ones country.
    ~Annie

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  32. I think that patriotism is when you stand up for your country in anyway clearly stating that you are happy that you belong to that country. I think it is important because it helps you feel like you belong and have something to fight for. People who don't feel that way sometimes join terrorist groups because those groups make them feel like they belong to something, no matter how bad that something is, so the more patriotism, the more likely people won't join bad groups, because they'll feel like they belong more.

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  33. I think that patriotism means to be devoted, faithful and proud of your country or nation. It is important because if you are not proud of where you live than there is really no point in living there.

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  34. I think patriotism is being proud of you country, and loyal to the members of society. this could go either way, It could be good, because if none of us were patriotic, then we wouldn't have a strong army. This could be bad, because we could go over board with patriotism.

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  35. Patriotism is when someone is truly devoted to his/her country. I do think that patriotism is important because without it we wouldn't have soldiers who are devoted to serving our country. Patriotism should be something that's honored.

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  36. patriotism is when a person feels strongly that their country is united and great, and that they love their country. It is important because it brings people together and holds countries together.

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  37. I think that patriotism is when a person is focused on supporting and protecting a country or thought. I think patriotism is important because without it, the country would have no morale support and the country would be invaded easily and there would be nothing a person could do.

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  38. patriotism:
    love that people feel for their country

    patriotism is very important because without it no one would be willing to join the armed forces, sing the national anthem, celebrate the fourth of July, no one would live in countries really.

    the armed forces of all of the countries are really only strong because of patriotism. so really, armies are only as strong as the country's patriotism, no matter how many nukes, tanks soldiers, if a non-patriotic army, that has way more vehicles and supplies, takes on a patriotic group of people with pellet guns, (wellllllllll........) you see my point.

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  39. Patriotism is an emotional attachment to a nation which an individual recognizes as their homeland. Patriotism is national pride about your country. Patriotism is important because if no one in your country has patriotism then all of that country's culture and ethnicity will crumble and also people wont be happy living in that country if they don't have patriotism. Also, if you aren't patriotic then you don't like the political and historical aspects of your country which can lead to war and even worse...

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  40. William Walling-SotolongoMarch 9, 2016 at 5:42 PM

    i think patriotism is showing or being loyal to your country and/or your cause. I think that it is important because if you are patriotic you will be devoted and do more things to benefit your country and less things that cause it harm.

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  41. Patriotism is being loyal to and proud of your country. I think patriotism is important for every country to have so everyone is willing to stand up and support their home. However, if patriotism goes overboard, countries could get in disagreements about things like what the best country is.

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  42. I think patriotism is being loyal to your country. I think that patriotism is important because being patriotic to your country helps your country by knowin that the country means everything to you. It also helps when there are bad times and every body comes together to support there country knowing that they can't be deafeted just like when the bombings in Paris happened and the guy started playing the national anthem on a piano outside the theater where the bombing was.

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  43. I think patriotism is a revolutionary act against what is wrong. This is important because if no one acts against the wrong things done in this world, then nothing will get solved.

    - * (you probably know who this is Mr. R, but, I ask if you know who it is, just in case (I do want credit for my homework))

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  44. I think patriotism is fighting for your country, and defending your country. I think this is important because if your country is under attack, and no one has patriotism they won't defend the country, but when people do have patriotism they will defend their country at all costs.

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  45. Patriotism is basically the love for the country you live in. Patriotism is very important because without it no one in our country would want to live here and abide by the rules. Patriotism is basically the glue that holds nearly 300 million immigrants of our country together, to be one nation, America.

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  46. Patriotism is showing love for one's country. It is very important without it no one would want to do anything for their country. Their would be no military because no one would want to join.

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  47. Patriotism means sticking with your country even when times are hard and displaying your love fore the country by helping it achieve its goal

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  48. Patriotism is defined as being loyal or devoted to one's country. I believe patriotism is definitely important because if the citizens of a country do not show dedication and love towards their home, there will never be greatness observed by other perspectives viewing that particular area. Without it, the quality of the country may look bad compared to other places.

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  49. Patriotism is an adjective to describe someone who is devoted to their own country and is trying to help defend their country. I think patriotism is important because if a lot of people are devoted to your country, and will defend it, then the country will be protected. Also in places like America, we take pride in our country and a lot of people are patriots (if that is the noun) and the citizens of this country are somewhat happy because of how we run our country. But in other places in the world,there are not a lot of people who take pride in their country because they are unhappy about how their country is run. I guess what I am trying to say is that if we didn't have patriotism in our country, it would show that most of the citizens are unhappy or bewildered on how are country is governed.

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  50. Patriotism is being loyal to ones country. Also, it shows your faith, and spirit of your nation. It creates a big, or small group of similar people with similar ideas. those ideas can become part of the economy! Or they may not. Showing faith and loyalty towards ones country also shows much respect.

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  51. Patriotism is feeling love for your own country. I think that patriotism is good and bad because a country needs patriotism to stay together. But, it is bad because countries like Nazi Germany and North Korea stay together because they were/have been brainwashed to have patriotism.

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  52. Patriotism is being true to your country and being a helping hand to others. This is important because you need this to be able to run a country well, and correctly. It is nothing but the truth!!!

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  53. Patriotism is the love for your country and the desire to protect it. I think that it is important because for a country to survive and thrive, the people have to be in support of their country. For example, a lot of people love America enough so that they volunteer to join the army.

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  54. Patriotism is support of your country or region, however you express it. However, I think that patriotism is an okay concept, but the way by which most countries (specifically the US) force it on you is a horrible violation of our rights. We should be able to have our own opinions about our country and express them however we wish. That criticism is what makes a country grow and get better.

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  55. I think patriotism is being loyal to something you believe in. It should be a loyalty that even in the darkest of times, and the greatest of hardships, you stand by what you believe. Patriotism is so important because if there was none of it there would be no love, or peace, or even a country. Countries and nations are built of the trust and loyalty of their citizens. Without it there would be nothing. Patriotism is the base of friendships and alliances.

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  56. Patriotism is an emotional attatchment to a nation or homeland. Patriotism is important, because without it, there would be no support or care for your home and your safe haven would fall apart.

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  57. Ziyad Ali (⌐■_■)March 9, 2016 at 8:13 PM

    I think patriotism is being loyal to a thing but, according to Merriam Webster the actual definition is having or showing great love and support for your country. It is important to have patriotism in a country because the country knows that they have support.

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  58. Patriotism is showing loyalty to your country. I think it's important because it's important to be loyal to people/things.

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  59. Patriotism is showing love or loyalty towards your country. I think its important to feel passionate about your country, it shows that the society and gov. are good enough for you to enjoy your life there. Also, if all (or most) people in a country are patriotic, the country will probably be stronger.

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  60. Patriotism is a sense of pride, love, and emotional connection to one's country or homeland. I think patriotism isn't entirely essential, but a country does run better if its citizens are patriotic. Patriotic people wouldn't want to leave or even turn aggressive towards their country; they would be happy staying there. There are many cases of countries where citizens want nothing more to leave, but however unhappy they are, the country had managed to stay together (for at least a little while). Patriotism isn't absolutely necessary, but many patriotic people are probably happier.

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  61. In my opinion, Patriotism is being proud of one's country, having unconditional love for it and being willing to defend and protect it under any circumstances. Patriotism is important because it gives a person a sense of belonging and brings people together for the betterment of the country or homeland.

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  62. patriotism is devotion of one's country. It depends on who you ask on whether or not it's important.

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  63. In my eyes, patriiotism is being faithful and loyal towards your home country, honoring your home land, doing what ever it takes to keep it alive and standing tall. I think patriotism is important because it gives the people who founded the country,put the country together and evryone in it a bond and respect that they deserve. With out Patriotism there would be no loyalty and honor for the historical heroes of the centuries past that made the U.S.A great!

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  64. I think patriotism is important because its what soldiers fight for. If there was no patriotism then our country would just be a vast wasteland without anyone to care for it.

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  65. I think patriotism is having faith and showing loyalty toward your country. It is important because it shows how trustworthy you are and can be.

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  66. I think patriotism as having faith and loyalty with your country. Often people in the army are patriotic, which is very true because they are serving their country. So as you can see, patriotism is very important because it shows how you trust your country to make wise decisions.

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  67. Thank you all for reading my book. I hope you enjoyed it! I love the image of a class of 7th graders sitting on the floor enjoying a picture book. I agree that we're never too old for picture books. I have quite the collection in just about every room of my house! When I started writing, I wanted to write longer nonfiction books, but someone suggested I write Emmanuel's Dream as a picture book. I didn't know how to write a picture book, so I started by reading hundreds and hundreds of them. (Literally! I was often at my 100-book limit at the library during that year, and may have used my husbands and kids' library cards as well. Shhh!) By the time I felt like I had figured out what made a good picture book, I had fallen in love with the form. (Unfortunately, that doesn't mean it's easy to write them, though!) Keep reading whatever you feel like, as well as things you don't YET know you love.
    xoxo,
    Laurie

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  68. I think patriotism is believing in our country and showing loyalty to it. It is important because then you can show the country that you are a good citizen.

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  69. I think patriotism is being loyal to your country, and standing by it's side in times of hardship. This is very important because without patriotism there would be no one to have passion to fight in battles like our soldiers do. Or have respect from the people who honor the soldiers!

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  70. I think patriotism is showing faith and loyalty for/to your country. It's important because if you have a country full of people who have no desire to help, fight, or even vote for president, obviously you can't control their feelings. So, if you have faith and loyalty your country will be always working/ having trust with one another.

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  71. Patriotism is being loyal to you country. Partiotism is very important because to be a good citizen you have to have trust and being loyal to your country.

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  72. patriotism is when you stay loyal to your country. It is important because if you were not loyal we wouldn't stand up for our country

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  73. Patriotism is being loyal to your country. It is important because it makes the country strong. jake

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  74. A patriotism is one who stays loyal to your country. It is important because it's the country your living in and you should at least give a little respect and stand up for what's right in that country your living in

    Elizabeth Cohen

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  75. Patriotism is the act of being loyal to your country. It is very important you have to stand up for your country.

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  76. having faith and loyalty with your country and for what u do

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  77. Patriotism is important it shows your support for your country, community and so on. I think it's a way of letting other people know you care about your country.

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  78. patriotism is being proud of your country and with out it the country would not work as well

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