I AM HERE

     This first grading period has actually been pretty eye-opening for me.  As soon as Dr. Preston said, "Start your senior masterpiece," with no further explanation I finally realized that we really ARE in control.  There is nothing that is stopping us from going after anything that we set our minds to.  This semester has really shown me that.  Begining the with the King's Speech and ending with all these amazing projects in motion is proof of this senior class's capabilities.

     I currently have a few things in motion that wouldn't be happening if it weren't for this class.  I am currently trying to organize a class trip to Yosemite for my senior project to teach my classmates about the importance of caring for our environment.  I am also working on my application for the Armstrong program which is a scholars program that selects twelve girls to go on a twelve day backpacking trip in the high Sierras.  I also contacted someone to come speak to our class (I'm not sure if I'm supposed to announce who it is yet.) All of these real world experiences wouldn't be happening of it weren't for the encouragement of Dr. Preston and my classmates.

     I'm also apart of a collaborative working group called THE GAME.  As the year progresses, more people will find out what that is.

WELCOME TO THE INTERDISCIPLINARY

     Every little action, object, event or discovery consists of far more than we think.  Just by listening to your favorite song you are adapting your ears to new sounds, recognizing musical patterns, developing an understanding of lyrics and poetic writing, and learning how to memorize lines that have an effect on you.  At this point, a day doesn't go by that I don't hear a random stranger singing "Do you want to build a snowman?" or "Let it Go!"  It's crazy to think that so much more is going on than just harmless singing.

     Our senior projects have no boudaries and are meant to embody our passions.  My goal is to one way or another get my class to Yosemite National Park to teach them about the importance of protecting our environment and living a more sustainable lifestyle.  By taking them on hikes they will not only develop an emotional appreciation for the beauty surrounding them, but they will see the danger and threats that humans pose on nature and wildlife.  They will also learn about geology, botany, forestry, natural selection, and the life cycle.  We will learn about weather patterns, the history of the area, and the strength of running water.  For those who are out of shape, they will learn how the upper respiratory system responds to high elevations and the importance of eating healthy and staying hydrated.  By talking to new people on the trails we will witness how positively fresh air and beautiful surroundings affect someone's mood.  This list is endless and I'm just talking about all the possibilities that going on a hike bring forth.

If we look at every opportunity in this light, time can't be wasted because there is so much more than just the obvious.  Welcome to the interdisciplinary!

Literary Terms List 6

LAUNCH/DRAFT

• What am I passionate about?  What do I want to do?

I am passionate about preservation and sustainability; especially when it comes to nature.  My true passion is Yosemite.  I know that this is very strange answer, but passion is defined as a barely controllable emotion and Yosemite is where my heart lies.  For years I have thought to myself how I could turn this passion into a legitimate lifestyle and I have come up with a very detailed plan.  Hopefully it follows through.  To save you the burden or reading my entire plan I'll just summarize.  In the future, I want to combine the sustainable aspect of environmental engineering with the structural aspect of civil engineering to draw more people to national and state parks by making Earth's natural beauties more accessible to people.  It's impossible for people not to appreciate the sun setting over Half Dome after a long day of exploring Yosemite Valley or powerful waterfalls tumbling over granite cliffs.  If more people, see these places, my hopes are that they will establish a larger respect for the environment.  For this class, I would like to engage willing students in a trip to Yosemite that will be guided by the Nature Bridge program to learn about environmental threats and what we can do to prevent them from getting worse.

• How can I use the tools from last semester (and the Internet in general)?

The main tool that I can use from last semester, and this one, is Dr. Preston's open mindedness.  I can/have also use the Internet to research the program and contact representatives.

• What will I need to do in order to "feel the awesomeness with no regrets" by June?

Yosemite, Yosemite, Yosemite, Yosemite, Yosemite, Yosemite, Yosemite......

Get my point?

• What will impress/convince others (both in my life and in my field)?

All I need to do is draw people in and have some facts to share, nature's beauty will do the rest of the work.

• How will I move beyond 'What If' and take this from idea --> reality?

I'm doing it...

• Who will be the peers, public, and experts in my personal learning network?

The peers and public will be anyone willing to listen and learn.  My experts would be the Nature Bridge guides and hopefully some Yosemite Rangers!

HAFTA/WANNA

I feel that in high school, there are so many things that you have to do that there is just no time to do what you want do.  For example, for my senior project I want to take the class to Yosemite to engage in a learning program through Nature Bridge, but this will require a lot of time that I'm not sure I have to give.  I also just want to spend my time applying to scholarships, but my class work gets in the way.  To be honest, I think that the first couple of semesters of college will be somewhat similar to high school in the sense that we all HAFTA take our general eds.  Once these are out of the way, things will definitely change because we will be taking classes that we WANNA take that engage us. This is where the HAFTA changes to the WANNA.  We can study abroad, do internships, take classes that interest us, ect.  All of these things that are no longer a chore to get out the way are what should give us all a boost to keep working hard.  

The biggest difference between now, and a year from now for example is that I set my own schedule.  I will be responsible for my own success and won't have anyone pushing me.  This is usually what causes people to fall, but I feel that it will drive me more.  Whenever my parents are out of town I become more responsible in planning so that I can get work done and still cook and clean.  I feel that right now, I am so worried about others.  Will my coach be mad if  I miss practice?  Do I need to make dinner tonight?  Does my friend need a ride to her practice?  Am I volunteering enough?  Does my boss need me to work on Saturday?  Don't get me wrong, most of these questions will still apply, but they will come as a result of me wanting to ask them.  I won't have to worry about what others need, just myself.  Although, knowing me, once I get to know people I'll probably start putting their needs before mine again because I'm really bad at saying no.  I guess what I'm trying to say is, I'll be able to make my own decisions and base them purely on how they will impact me rather than the people around me.

I honestly don't think that people will suddenly change after high school.  Slackers will be slackers, partiers will still be partiers and busy bees will still be busy bees.  We'll just find ourselves through the work that we put out.

As I said earlier, once our general eds are out of the way, there won't be that much of a balance between have to and want to because everything you do from that point should be something that you want to do.  Outside of working because in college that is a have to, but you should be able to choose your classes, your schedule, your friends, and your living arrangements.

In high school, college is kind of a HAFTA and a WANNA.   We want to get into college so we feel that there are so many things that we have to do in order to get there.  All these things that we have to do in high school are worth it becuase we get to do what we want to do once we graduate. The options are endless.  I see myself doing well in college and taking advantage of every opportunity given to me before I graduate and start a life for myself.

The Nose

1. What does Ivan Yakovlevich do for a living? 

Ivan cuts hair for a living, he is a barber.

2. What does Ivan find in a loaf of bread? 

 Ivan finds a nose, and realizes that it belongs to his customer Kovalev.  

3. How does his wife respond to Ivan's discovery?
I don't really think that she likes him very much.  She calls him a great big brute and claims she will call the police to report him.  What kind of wife does that?

4. What does Ivan set out to accomplish?
To get rid of the nose.

5. When Ivan tosses the "package" in the river, for a brief moment he is happy; then he is arrested. What does this scene suggest about the role of happiness in Ivan's life/community/society? 
It suggests that happiness is short lived and hard to come by.

6. Where does the title object belong, and how does it finally get there?
On the face of Major Kovalev, and the police return it.

Literary Terms List 5

Parallelism-  the principle in sentence structure that states elements of equal function should have equal form.
Ex.  This is not only just what I wanted, but also just what I needed.

Parody-  an imitation of mimicking of a composition or of the style of a well-known artist.
Ex.  Weird Al is the king of parodies.

Pathos-  the ability in literature to call forth feelings of pity, compassion, and/or sadness.
Ex.  The SPCA commercials.

Pedantry-  a display of learning for its own sake.
Ex.  Edward answered all the questions on his history test correctly, but because he misspelled Napoleon’s name, his teacher took off points.

Personification-  a figure of speech attributing human qualities to inanimate objects or abstract ideas.
Ex.  The twisted arms of the tree reached out and grabbed her shirt.

Plot-  a plan or scheme to accomplish a purpose.
Ex.  Every story has a plot line.