Friday, September 30, 2011

Memorable project
My science fair project in fifth grade was the most memorable project I have ever done. My
project was about how momentum can be thrown upward with oxygen. I showed that through
blowing a balloon up and putting it on a string attached to a straw and letting it go upward. It
was not very hard getting the material I needed for that project. All I had to do was go to the
store and get some stuff that was very common. Putting together the project was not very hard.
This project was my very first science fair project ever. All the other years I was there I never
did a science project because our class did not have to. I remember thinking that the project was
going to be the funnest thing I ever did in school. I really enjoyed reading this. You do a good
job of including your emotions into the story. You give good description; perhaps you may
consider listing the materials you used instead oI saying 'stuII.

I put in lots of hard work with that project, but all of that work finally paid off because it was
the day of my very first science fair. By the day of the science fair I made sure that I knew
everything and anything about the project that I was doing. Finally the science fair came and I
was so excited to show off the project that I had spent a long time completing. Our school
science fair was not a contest, we just had people come in and look at the projects for the fun of
it. It felt like everyone in the whole gym came up and asking me about my project and I could
not have been happier. I had one of the best day of my life on that day.
Friday, September 23, 2011
Cost of college
Now a days college expenses are getting out of hand and are going to end up being to hard to
handle for the average person. The college I want to get into costs on average about twenty five
thousand dollars each year the attend which is Illinois state. If you are lucky enough you can
receive some financial aid and scholarships that will help you cover some of your tuition costs. I
heard some guy on TV say that college is getting so expensive That it is breaking kids and they
are in so deep of debt there is no way that they can get out of it. I know by the time I am done
with college I will be in debt up to my eye balls and I am not looking forward to those days. I
think that college is going to end up breaking me but I hope not. Excellent use of hyperbole!

On the other hand college is an investment and usually ends up paying off for lots of people
in the long run. Like people say you gottta spend money to make money, and I think that is so
true and applies to a lot of things. If you don't invest the money to go to college they say that a
person with a college degree will make a million dollars more than a person without a college
degree. To me it is worth spending the money to get the education and earning the money would
not if you do not go to college.




Learning
My definition of learning is probably similar to other peoples definition of learning. Learning
is taking in information by using any way possible to consume any information. If you pay
attention to anything you can learn anything from just the littlest thing like how to play a game,
how to get somewhere, or even something in your house you never knew before. The world is
full of information and we just have to go out and look for it and absorb all the information we
can. Learning can mean several different things but to me it means getting all the information
possible by any means possible. Learning can happen at anytime of the day no matter what the
circumstances are. Knowing the definition of learning only helps your cause to learn even more.

My definition of learning isn't necessarily right but its also not wrong. People all over the
world will have different views on what learning is and how to use it. Someone may think that
you can only learn through reading books while others think that you can't learn at all reading
books. To me it does not what what your definition of learning is as long as you get the point
across. People while always have different views than others have. It does not matter what your
definition is as long as you are using it to gain the information that you need to become
successful in this world that we live in. As long as people are taking in information it does not
matter how you get it. The sentences I`ve highlighted seem like the overall theme of your post. I
like your acknowledgement that there are several different points of view on any given topic.


Dear Awayda,
Each post is organized and easy to read especially the 'Memorable Project post. You`re a
skilled story teller because you use good imagery in describing each step of your science project.
You inclusion of your emotions makes a really great connection with your reader. Keep up the
good work. I Iound your 'Cost oI College post particularly interesting because you present
multiple points of view in addition to your own. In this way, your ideas are advanced.
You have an excellent start so far. My suggestion is to spice up your stories just by adding more
specific description. For example, at certain points in the 'Learning post you are somewhat
vague; I think it would benefit you to be more specific. For instance, you may consider
describing how you learn best. Are you a visual learner? Do you learn best by listening? Or
perhaps you understand concepts most when they`re hands-on activities?



Response to Mondays discussion
Offensive words...There are a lot of them. It depends on what word it is and how you use it. On
Monday we were talking about the word "nigga." For my personal opinion I find it more
offensive for someone to say "nigger," rather than "nigga," because it sounds really racist. So I
think it does sometimes depend on the prenounciation of a word to make it offensive or sound
offensive. The word was used along time ago towards black people when they were slaves, today
"nigga" has a different meaning, as many other word that are commonly used today also. For
example the word "gay," gay was used along time ago to mean happy. Now days its used to
describe someones sexuality. But it also has been a offensive word because of the way some
people use it. Not to say someone is happy, and not only to describe someones sexuality, but
people who are not gay use it like "thats gay ."The word "gay" in the sentence meant gay as in
stupid or rediculous, and that is offensive to people with that sexuality.There are so many
offensive words its hard to count. But I think it matters who you use it around and how you use it
, and how you pronounce it. (I find your comparison of the different pronunciations of
nigger/nigga intriguing. I would love to hear why you believe one sounds more racist than the
other. Is it because one is more Iormal? Or perhaps it`s a matter oI slang? It would be really
interesting to see how this idea develops.)
My earliest memory of school
My earliest memory of school was when I was in kidnegarden. I remember my teacher Mrs.
Cook was telling everyone to sit "crisscross applesauce" on the carpet. We were learning how to
count to one-hundred. She pulled a jar of jelly beans out and told us if anyone can count to one-
hundred they would get the jar of jelly beans. I raised my hand and she called on me. I started to
count and made it all the way to one-hundred. When I finished my classmates clapped for me
and i cold hear some of the other kids throwing fits because they did not get called on. Then my
teacher told me I could get the jar of jelly beans after school. I remember getting mad and threw
a fit then she had to send me to time out. (I really enjoyed the way you told this story. You gave
excellent detail especially when you described how you sat 'crisscross applesauce)

Dear Lashaya,
As you`ve pointed out, 'gay and 'nigga/nigger are emotionally charged words. You make a
valid point when you state that the way a word is pronounced or the context it`s used in can
aIIect someone`s understanding oI the word or the sentiment behind it. In the Iuture you may try
expanding this idea a bit more by including why you think these words have evolved into what
they mean today versus what they used to mean. It would also be interesting to read why the
context in which a word is used in is important. Are any situations acceptable for using these
words? These are just some things to think about.
Now onto the next blog post, 'My Earliest Memory oI School. You are an exceptional
storyteller. Your use of detail is great. I would like to see you incorporate some of the emotions
you felt when your teacher called on you. Were you excited? Anxious? Nervous? Writing with
emotion can help connect you to your readers and make the story more complete. Keep up the
good work, you`ve done an outstanding job so Iar.
Thing Fall Apart Response
The Iirst thing I noticed about your essay is the strong introduction. It`s well written and
captured my attention right away. This is quite an insightful piece; I genuinely enjoyed reading
it. The quotes you`ve chosen provide good support Ior your claim and you explain them well.
The paragraphs Ilow together quite well but I`m having trouble with the connection
between your second and third paragraphs. You write about how the 'omniscient narration
makes the quotes 'pop out, butin reference to the second paragraphthere is no omniscient
narration. Perhaps this would fit better in the third paragraph where omniscient narration is your
main topic. As for a transition at the end of the second paragraph, it would maintain the flow of
the paper if you wrote about the false outward appearance of Okonkwo versus his true, inner
feelings which are revealed through the narration. This way, you would be summing up your
second paragraph and transitioning into the second.
I think you do an exceptional job of addressing the form and content of the text since you
reIer to the narration as well as speciIic quotes. Overall, you`re oII to a really great start!
Poem:
You develop a strong theme in your poem with your careful selection of quotes. Your
poem is well constructed; I appreciated the way you began and ended the poem with the kola nut.
In this way, you`ve tied the stanzas together quite eIIiciently. Your poem gives the reader a feel
Ior the story even iI they haven`t read it. Perhaps the poem would be more eIIective iI you
define who 'he is more oIten. For instance, the only name given is Maduka. Just some Iood Ior
thought. Thanks for the great read!