Month: August 2018

How was my week this week? Informative I would say.

Why?

Because I learned a great truth about life.

There are only three things that are certain in life. Taxes, death, and endless note taking in school.

Another thing I’ve learned this week, you can’t have too many highlighters.

 Despite my reluctance to once again begin the dreaded note taking, I must admit our more recent notes in American Literature have changed my perspective on books and films.

In one way, I feel more cheated. After learning about Aristotle’s Ethical Imperative, I feel more aware of my emotions being manipulated. I understand why authors use this. They do want to sell more books after all. But I now understand why I want to continue reading books and movies, especially in a series. I just feel slightly used now.

For example, the Harry Potter book and movie series follows this pattern. The books start off at a certain emotional point. It then proceeds to build until we finally come to a climax. One such point is Harry’s confrontation with Voldemort in the first book. following this climax, certain issues are resolved…

EXCEPT

the minor issue of Lord Voldemort still out there yearning to kill everyone!

So yeah, I’m going to want to read the other books!

 Because I become so attached to these characters, I become an active participant in the story. To be an active participant, I have to feel the emotions of the characters, not just observe them and keep plodding through the novel. You need to have a reaction to the characters and develop opinions.

Such as sympathy,

respect,

and a sincere desire to rid the world of loathsome vermin like this creature.

Considering how emotionally attached (or disgusted) I become with characters from the books I read, I believe I am a more active participant than passive.

All people can be active participants in reading! All one needs to do is focus on the text and let it become a picture in the readers mind.

WARNING:

Be aware that doing this may lead to crying, laughing out loud, screaming at fictional people, throwing the book across the room, losing sleep to finish another chapter, and steadily becoming addicted to each new book.

Happy Reading!!!

What a week it’s been! It feels like the summer months just flew by!

When they school year was about to start up again, I knew I was going to miss a lot of things about the summer. Last year had its ups and downs, but during the summer I was able to take a break. When it started getting into August, I thought of some goals for this year, including being more positive and being better organized.

 

Walking into school on Tuesday, I had a lot of mixed emotions. I felt a bit anxious and nervous due to having more responsibilities and harder classes. But overwhelmingly, I felt positive about this new year. I just felt like this was going to be a good year for me.

Throughout the week I was able to meet new teachers, start learning new material, and reconnect with old friends. And you know what? It went fantastic! All my new classes are proving to be interesting and challenging. If there is one thing I cannot stand in school, it is boredom. I loved that my teachers got right into the first lessons. Most of my other years started out boring and without much to do. This year wasn’t one of them!

One of the things that certainly helped this year is that all the classes I have are classes I really wanted and are interested in. It’s harder to get into school when you are sitting in a class you really didn’t want. I am particularly enthused that this year, I finally was able to schedule Voice class. I have been trying for the past two years, but it hasn’t fit in my schedule until this year. Because I love and am so involved in music, I think this will be an exceptionally good class for me.

I was surprised to see so many staff switches this year, but am open to the change. In fact, our new vice principal has proved to be very supportive and involved in this school so far. Earlier this week, he came into our voice class and participated with us in singing. I am quite impressed with how he is connecting with the students and is involved in our learning experience.

While I am glad to be back and learning, that doesn’t mean I am thrilled about the homework. As much as I love learning, I can’t say I savor the idea of staying up late solving problems or writing essays after a long day at work.

Based on how this first week has gone, I think this year is promising and has great potential to be one of my best years!