Video Project

          This video project was hard for me to start because the topics to choose from were so open. Once my topic was chosen I started to fly threw the basics. My topic, why students go home on the weekend, was a popular one for the people I interviewed to talk about. I noticed a huge difference with the variety of interviews I got. This definitely helped that portion of my video. The major difference I am making with this video compared to my first video is my the details I am putting into it. I am spending a large portion of my time working with the introduction of my video. I believe this is important because it really captures the audiences attention at the begging of the video, which will lets the audience become captivated  in the video. 
 
          I think paying extra attention to my begging will pay off because it will keep the view interested. Putting extra effort into the begging will turn my work from good work to college work. Another way I am going to turn my work into more professional work is by adding varied music to my video. In my last video I only put two songs that played throughout the entire video. This time I am going to split up the music so it keeps the audience intrigued. In the last video, I covered all of the required material; however, I am going to do more to keep the video visually intriguing. 

Experiencing the Library

           One of the school course requirements is to take a history class. The history class I am taking this semester is Western Civilization. I have an awesome professor who really make the class interesting. Sometimes making history interesting is hard especially when your teaching it to kids who are less than enthusiastic to learn the material. A few weeks ago my professor talked about a list of books he wanted us to pick from. The assignment was to go to the library pick a book and write a book report on it. I picked the book Flags of Our  Fathers.

          The book was a good level read for me. The book was based of World War II specifically the Battle of  Iwo Jima.  It was a very bloody battle that killed many American lives. The book was a good read. It kept my interest. I was worried that when I was reading a history book, I would find it boring and unable to read. However, if you have to read a history book, I definitely recommend this book. It offers a great insight towards the time period. It was relevant to the time period we were learning about in class. 

          The book was easy to locate in the library. Although, I did ask for help because I wanted to make sure I found it quickly. Next time I go into the library to retrieve a book I will probably be able to do it entirely by myself. I am definitely familiarizing myself with the library. 

Class Led Discussions

        On Tuesday, two groups held the floor for a group discussion. One group's topic was healthy relationships, and the other group's topic was personality types. Both groups did a very good job getting the class participating and active in the class discussion. Here is a little bit about my opinion on how each group did on Tuesday.
         I thought the topic healthy relationships was a great topic to pick. It was something everyone could relate to, everyone had an opinion, and everyone cared about. The presenting group had the class split up into groups according to the color everyone picked. Each group was presented with two different scenarios which a person could be confronted with at some point. I thought this was a good exercise because it was purposeful yet it was something we all enjoyed and laughed about. I thought that even though the presentation was a fun one, I still learnt information about what if situations in a relationship.

          The other group that presented on Tuesday was a group that made a class discussion on personality types. I thought this was also a good topic because people are always interested in learning more about who they are as a person and how their brain functions. The survey the put online was interesting in finding out personality types, and it was interesting to see who had what personality type in class. I also enjoyed the optical illusion they did in class because it was an interesting to have a different way to determine what side brain I am. After I took that test, I confirmed I was left brain. This is not something new to me but it was interesting to see a different way to confirm that; however, I do not think this test worked as well for others, so perhaps it was just luck it was correct.

          Over all, I thought both groups did an awesome job with their presentations. I think by doing these presentations we are coming closer as a class because we are interacting more. I am liking the class led discussions.

Parenting Styles

           There is no denying that my childhood is vastly different for the childhood of my parents. We are coming from a time where physical punishment was a good way to discipline children. Today, it is likely if a parent were to correct a child physically, the child would call the police on the parents. Children today also have a lot more luxuries compared to the children fifty years ago. Children today have TV's, ipods, cell phones, and computers. Do you think this freedom is causing a dramatic change in the behavior of children?
           This was the class discussion topic on Thursday. I thought the group who led the discussion did a very good job incorporating the entire class into a discussion. The games that they had us play were creative and informative. The class as a whole did believe that new technologies and freedom is leading to a change in child behaviors.

           I think children today have too much freedom. Children as a whole have less respect for authority and they take a lot for granted. Children five and six years old have their own cell phones. This I just do not understand. How many five year olds do you know that need to make an important call? Children today expect too much, and consequently they do not have an understanding for working for something. If every child gets an Ipod when he or she is seven, what is the motivation for the child to work for it? I think that technology is great but when I have children of my own I will not be spoiling my child with the technologies. They will have to earn their privileges. There is no reason young children each need there own laptop. When did you first get your laptop? Did you need a laptop when you were six?

The Writing Center

          Are you a strong writer who may just need a quick proofread? Or are you a writer who needs help making sure your on the right track? Well, Southern Connecticut offers the writing center located in Englman Hall on the bottom floor. The writing center may be the perfect place to bring your papers to ensure you are doing the best you can be doing. 

         This Friday, I brought my history paper to the writing center. My paper was a five page book report. I thought I did a good job on the paper; however it was worth twenty-five percent of my grade so I wanted to make sure it was the best it could be. I was a walk in because I was unsure at first on how to go about it. They were booked all day but they managed to squeeze me into an appointment after my last class of the day. 

          I had a professor check my paper. It was good; however, I had a lot of grammatical errors that the teacher fixed for me. I was glad I brought my paper in because I worked hard on my paper and I would have hatted to see my grade drop a letter grade because of little proof reading mistakes. 

          I would recommend that if you have a paper due, to call a head to the writing center. It is a good idea in case they are booked all day. Do not leave it to last minute because you may not get a spot. This is especially important because we are approaching finals. We will have a lot of papers to be passed in and the writing center will be booking up quick! good luck writing, and remember the writing center is there for your benefit! take advantage of it. 

          This week's assignment was to give the class a presentation in order to make a class discussion. On Tuesday, the first group to go was a group that gave their presentation on drugs, alcohol, and sex. Yes, it was a boys group. I was really impressed with their presentation. They really gave out a lot of information. It was very informative and a lot of the facts they presented to us were staggering statistics. I thought the only way they could have improved that part of the presentation was if they used a power point, it would have made the information and fact easier to retain. It was a lot of information.

         After they went over all of the statistics they had the class take a survey. They wanted to see how our class statistics on drugs and alcohol compared to the national average. Our class was lower compared to the national average statistics on Alcohol abuse. I thought this was interesting. Either some people were not 100% honest in the survey or we have a very well behaved class!

          They group presenting also had the class get into groups to discuss some questions. I found this to be very effective for getting a lot of people in the class participating and not just the same four people. Some people are definitely more outgoing when it comes to raising their hand. It does not necessarily mean that pay attention more. By getting us into groups, I thought it allowed a larger variety of voices to be heard. Over all, I thought that the group did a good job informing the class and getting the class to join together for a constructive class discussion. 

Class Discussion

          So you think directing a class is easy? Well this week we have the opportunity to direct the class for 30 minutes in a class discussion. We worked as a group of four in order to prepare a topic that would interest the class in a group discussion. We came up with the topic of healthy eating in college. 

          Many incoming freshmen fear the freshmen fifteen. Something that can definitely be avoided but only if you do not let the temptation of food buffets, fatty foods, and alcoholic beverages get the best  of your life style. Many students no longer have the option of their mothers home cooked meals. It is up to us what we choose to put into our bodies to fuel it.  Our presentation offers lots of advice for the incoming and returning student so they can make he or she is being healthy. 

                During our presentation we include a power point, personal surveys, and group discussion questions. I think we have prepared ourselves well; however the outcome of the presentation depends on how much the group participates in the discussion.  A lot of the discussion questions are open ended so there can be many different ideas that can be added to the discussion. Hopefully each answer will feed off each other to get the group to think deeper into their lifestyles. Another segment of our presentation will be focused on exercising. It is not always enough just to eat healthy; we must also exercise our bodies daily. In our discussion we will try to get the class to think or alternative methods of exercising other than going to the gym. Hopefully, people will help out and give constructive ideas. This group assignment was a test of how well we work in groups and how well we can lead a class. Join Tuesday's class for an informative group discussion on your health!