Thu
Jun
11
Look at how far ago this was! And now school is over!! ahh, the old days….
tcsnmy6:
Welcome back to school! I hope you enjoyed your first day of class and are looking forward to the 2008-2009 school year as much as I am.
Here are the homework assignments that I mentioned today.
1. Finish or review Uglies by Scott Westerfeld. As you do so, think specifically about what flaw the Rusties had as a civilization that led to their end. We will begin a class discussion on Friday which will continue into next week.
2. Prepare your summer reading record and have it ready for class on Friday.
3. Think about a personal learning project that you would like to tackle over the course of the school year. Consider your interests and hobbies, but also keep in mind that you should feel challenged as well.
4. Also continue pondering a significance for the red chair and how to use the free wall space in the classroom.
Wed
Jun
3
For my last CSL CTA, I read an article on www.msnbc.com about Hate crimes against the homeless. In the state of Maryland, they have become the first state to strech their hate crime laws to include crimes against the homeless (along with crimes against race, ethnicity and religion). The state of Maryland is taking this big step because Between 1999 and 2007, there were 774 violent attacks on homeless people in the United States, and they are hoping that other states will follow in their footsteps. I think it is really smart of Maryland to take a forward step in Homeless hate crimes, and i think that Homeless hate crimes are just a very, very unacceptable part of our society.
Fri
May
29
I thought the experience of making a documentary was very enjoyable and somewhat rewarding. I enjoyed the teamwork of it and how it was basically like we got to make our very own movie. Sometimes, it was frustrating when one person kept on messing up something that they had to record, or someone would hog one job, and it would take more time that usual to finish one little thing. I don’t think my opinion really changed despite making this documentary, it is the same as it was before (Women should have been treated better back then). I would be interested in making more documentaries in the future because it found it very enjoyable and enriching. I really don’t think that anyone in my group did NOT cooperate or put in 100% effort. I am extremely happy with our finished project because we where all passionate about our topic and we did a great job. For my next documentary, though, I would probably stay stricter to the schedule (no ahead or behind schedule kind of stuff). By creating my own rubric for this project, I learned how hard making a rubric really is! Its harder than it looks (Deciding the topic, writing it, etc)! In terms of managing my own project, I learned that it is very important to stay to your schedule! The schedule was very helpful in giving us a good amount of time to do a certain part of our project. And finally, I think this project taught me alot more then I new about how Women where treated back then (and how in certain countries, they are still treated like that). I was also surprised that little girls in grades as young as kindergarden knew that women where not allowed to vote in ancient times. It made me happy that today we are raising future feminists ;).
Wed
May
27
For my 6th CTA, I first saw this story on the news the other day. It is about a 11 year old Florida boy, named Zach Bonner who is walking 1,200 miles from his home in Tampa, Florida to Washington DC. Why is he doing so much walking, you ask? Well, it is because he wants to bring to attention to the recent rise in the amount of homeless children in the USA. He stated his charity giving when he became a local Tampa clebrity for pulling his little red wagon around his neighborhood (hence the name of his charity, the Little Red Wagon Foundation) to raise money for the victims of Hurricane Charley, which hit Florida in August 2004. He ended up collecting 27 pickup truck loads of stuff. Last year, Zach walked 300 miles from Tampa to Tallahasse for the same reason he is walking this year. There is a film crew following Zach on his journey, with plans to make a movie about his life. British rock legend Elton John is one of Zach’s fans and has pledged $25,000 to Zachs charity if he finishes the trek. I found this story very interesting and somewhat moving, and I wish Zach the best of luck on his journey.
Links:
http://zachtracker.com/ (this website tracks how far Zach has walked on his journey so far)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30644308/ (link to the article)
Tue
May
26
Sabado, yo voy a la museo de siencia. Domingio, Yo y Maya va feria. Lunes, mi familia va a casa de Abuela y Abuelo.
Wed
May
13
For my third CSL CTA, I read a very sad story about Huang Meihua, a bright, spirited 12-year-old with an uncertain future. She was affected by last years earthquake in china. Her legs amputated after they where crushed inderneath a falling building during the earthquake. Although she survived after six days, she had to have her legs amputated. Since she lost her home, she is living in an old school building. Due to her disability, she and her family get a room to themselves. Most of the others have to live with 8-10 people in a single room. She goes to a school that is being closed next year. I feel really bad for Huang Meihua, because of how hard her life must be now with both of her legs gone.
Article link: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103725672
Thu
May
7
Rob, you are the teacher with the best sense of humor out of all. The funniest joke you made was probably the “Tigger and Poo” joke. Thank you for letting us listen to David Sedaris and watch the simpsons sometimes when they relate to somethng we are talking about in class. I also think that the stuffed animals you make are really cool. I also liked sitting at your table at pathfinder and becoming part of the “pentagon of awesomeness”.
