I listened to the PechaKucha by Cynthia Drescher called  Planes & Hard to Reach Places. She explained how the U.S is one of the only countries who does not get a certain amount of paid vacation each year. She also informed me that most countries get a minimum of four weeks of paid vacation. In her presentation she shows me all the places she gets to go because of her job.
 
Praise: The narrator of this Pechakucha really grabs my attention through her creative and fascinating pictures as well as her descriptive vocabulary. She also picked a good topic to do this over. It wasn't something that would bore me and it was something she was passionate about which showed through her presentation.

Polish: The narrator tended to drag her words and sentences out. Although I was interested it wasn't fun to wait for her to finish a sentence slowly.

Overall I really enjoyed the presentation. Looking at her pictures and hearing her talk made me feel like I was there with her and not every presentation cad do that. Personally I am a little nervous about doing my own PechaKucha they seem a  little bit tricky.

Education depending on location: Chinese Education

Chinese Education is the largest education system in the whole world. Education in China has a very long history of being successful & Chinese students value their education greatly.  The majority of Chinese students strive for perfection and look to furthering their education after high school. I chose this topic because my pen pal Liu Chenghong told me how his mother worked full time so that he and his brother could get the best education possible. He expanded on about how grateful he is to have his mother. It is interesting to me that he makes school one of his main priorities. Although many students in the U.S. value their education I think we often take for granted the opportunities that we have to learn. Although American and Chinese students have the same amount of organized time for classes, they both spend it completely different. The amount of time American students are engaged in class is dramatically less than in China.

Chinese education is vastly different from U.S. education. In China, schools do not segregate high achieving students from low achieving students through tracking levels unlike the U.S. In the U.S, we have classes offered labeled as “Honors.” This is the idea of taking the same class everyone else is required to take but at a more advanced level. This is an option not a requirement. In a way, I believe that this is a smart thing to do. I believe it gives the students in the school who take their education seriously a chance to expand their knowledge in a specific subject. In China, they do not practice this method. They believe that causes students to feel uncomfortable and makes some students look like they are better than the ones who decide not to do this.

In China, students attend classes five to six days a week. Many schools in China require students to attend school on Saturdays regarding math and science, which are the two subjects that they feel are the most important. Just like in the U.S., they offer many of the same subjects we do including history, literature, English, and physical education. In the U.S., we take tests throughout the year to examine our knowledge and how much we have learned in class. In China, each student must take a test at the end of the year in order to pass into the next grade. I am not positive on the grading system they use or what type of scoring guide but it seems like it would be tough.

In my opinion, I think that it is awesome how much students in China look forward to the chance to learn. I wish that I had the motivation and consistency to pay attention all the time in my classes. I also think that I would like being in the same classes with everyone in my grade rather than singling individuals out. It seems like a smart idea and looks like it works out really well for them.     Although that method works in China just by attending Parkview I think having honors classes is a good idea. Not everyone is great at every subject in school so I think challenging yourself where you feel you can is a good thing. 

 Sources:
 Van Schaack, Tara L. "Comparing U.S. and Chinese Public School Systems: Strengths and Weaknesses of Both Systems." Comparing U.S. and Chinese Public School Systems: Strengths and Weaknesses of Both Systems. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.
Secondary Source Link

"What Is Education Like in China?" About. Lauren Mack, n.d. Web. 09 Nov. 2014.

Secondary Source Link

Primary Source- Liu Chenghong. "Whenever never, giving up. One thing I learned from my mother" Letter to Ashtyn Smith. October 29th. Qingdao, China.

 Listening to peoples stories about their feelings in hard times is impactful. I think that in some way it's sort of cool to hear how people process devastating information,  and what their first thoughts are when hearing things. One of the stories that really stood out to me was a Muslim woman named Anjum Mir who was in her mid thirties during 9/11. She talks about how so many things were going through her head when she received the information. She said she felt like she was  hit with a "double whammy." She was scared for her family's safety, the people in the buildings safety, and most importantly what was going to happen to the Muslims after everything was said and done with the terrorist attack. She says something about feeling bad for her 2 year old child and how he is going to have to grow up in this. I totally agree with her. Society can be so evil and corrupt that sometimes I wonder if I would even want to bring a child in to such a messed up society. I also heard a story from a man named Khaled Abou and what his reaction to 9/11 was. He mentions the hope that he had for Muslims in this situation and how much of an impact it had on him and his family. He talks about how much 9/11 brought him and his family closer. I think that it's super inspirational to hear about people can be going through such a hard time but somehow seem to make the best out of it. I can't even begin to imagine what these people were going through. Especially families who lost someone in 9/11. Having to watch what's going on but not being able to change it or do anything about it would absolutely suck.

Book Response #4: Don't Turn Around

Don't turn around: Michelle Gagnon 
      A sixteen year old girl named Noa wakes up on a table with an IV in her arm and no idea where she is at and no recollection of how she got there. Noa wakes up to a man telling her that she is in the hospital and that everything is okay. Noa can sense that isn't true. She somehow escapes from the supervision of this mysterious man by knocking him out. Although she may have escaped from him, she is still stuck in a large facility with no idea how to get out. Noa is now on the run from numerous people who are looking all over for her. Noa then realizes that she is in a marine shipyard, dry-dock storage for boats. She quickly finds a boat and gets under the dock to hide. This quote really tells how Noa is reacting to her situation. She is scared but is trying to make the best out of her situation because she can't change it.

Don't turn around:
"'What kind of accident?' The doctor paused , his eyes shifting as he searched for a response, and Noa knew he was lying ."(pg.3)
In this passage Noa realizes that he is lying, right after this the "doctor" tells her that she was in a car accident which Noa knows is certainly not true, she doesn't own a car and never takes taxis. She walks almost everywhere she goes.  In this point of the book, Noa is feeling many things: shocked, confused, scared and definitely in fear of her life. Noa is fighting for her life. Will she make it out alive?
Connection: Personally I really have enjoyed this book so far. I can only read a book that keeps me intrigued from the first page to the last, and this book does just that. This book is very suspenseful!

Reading Response 3: Every day

Every Day: David Levithan.

        Although Rhiannon wants to, she cant get past A changing lives everyday. Through the past couple days in the book A is beginning to realize that his chances of living a normal life are very slim. Even though he has been dealing with this obstacle his whole life he hasn't ever cared because there wasn't a reason to care. There is a reason now to care, the reason is love. A loves Rhiannon so much and keeps picturing a life with her, but a life with her is almost impossible. Or is it? A is finding out more and more about the way he lives compared to how others do. He goes through a period of time when he has a lot of unanswered questions in regards to his life.  A finds out that he might not be the only one that switches lives every day, but doesn't know how to be sure if he is or isn't the only one. He also finds out that it might be a possibility to kill whoever's body he is and be able to stay in their body and never leave. A knows he could never do this to that person. He couldn't ever take someone else's life for his own selfish desires. This picture is a quote from the book that A says in regards to how he feels. He feels entirely ignored even by the one person that is supposed to stick by him and love him.

   Now that I have finished this book I would say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I honestly thought that this book was more then just a love story. In this book it says that love can't always conquer everything, some times you have to take care of yourself instead of falling for love. I liked everything about this book up until the end of the book. I think that the ending leaves you hanging but not enough to make a second book. I think there should have been more about what happens to A.

Reading Response 2: Every day

Every Day: David Levithan

       Rhiannon is now aware that A is in a different body every day, they have formed  an unusual relationship. Rhiannon is still dating Justin but is coming to the realization that A (who she has known for a short period of time) treats her better then Justin ever has. Every day when A wakes up in a new life he will email Rhiannon to set up a time they can meet up, through meeting they begin to get to know each other more and more. For A its easy to fall in love with Rhiannon because she isn't changing body's and living a new life everyday, but for Rhiannon it is taking a huge adjustment for her to talk to A as if he isn't someone new everyday. Even though its the same person Rhiannon is having to learn how to love beyond his appearance everyday. The body A is in for the day is temporary but his love for Rhiannon does not change.
Quote:
" I love you-I do-but I am afraid of making that love too important. Because you're always going to leave me, A. We can't deny it. You're always going to leave." -Rhiannon. 

  I think in this passage Rhiannon is trying so hard to see past this problem but she keeps coming back to the same conclusion. No matter how much A wants to be there for her every day he isn't going to wake up in the same body the next morning, he cant physically be there for her all the time. She realizes that this isn't something that he can change but she isn't sure if she can handle it. I think this is one of the times where Rhiannon is trying to fight the love she has for A. She wants to believe that she can move on and find something that isn't as hectic and as crazy as this situation is.
Connection:  I think that if this was even a possible situation in my life I would act very similar to how Rhiannon is acting. I would be very hesitant to even begin talking to A. I would try to talk myself out the whole situation. I think I would start feeling like I was crazy for even thinking this was real. Even though this situation is impossible I feel myself connecting with Rhiannon along the lines of knowing how she feels in situations where I have no control. 

Reading Response: Every Day

Every Day: David Levithan


   I am reading the book Every Day. In this book the Main Characters gender isn't addressed mainly because it doesn't matter because of the circumstances, but for my sake I am going to refer to the main character as a he.This book is a about a teenager who wakes up in a different body every day and has to live the life of him/her that he is in. This teenager has never been in his own personal body ever since he was born it has been someone different every day. This teenager has given himself a nickname of "A." Even though A doesn't have a personal body of his own, he definitely has his own personality. A has even came up with specific guidelines by which are followed in his day to day life in different bodies; Never get to attached, Don't get noticed, and don't interfere. A is able to abide by these guidelines until one day A wakes up in a teenage boy's body Justin and falls in love with his girlfriend Rhiannon. The rules A has followed are tossed to the side because he has finally met someone he wants to be with for the rest of his life, but can A be with Rhiannon when he is in a new body every day?

Every Day: Page 6
"I'm glad you're not mad at me,"she says. "I just want everything to be okay." I nod. If there is one thing I've learned, its this: We all want everything to be okay. We don't wish so much for fantastic or marvelous or outstanding. We will happily settle for okay, because most of the time, okay is enough." 

In this passage A is in the body of Justin who is Rhiannon's boyfriend. Regular Justin doesn't treat Rhiannon right and A can see that. He has control of all of Justin's thoughts and can sense that Justin means more to Rhiannon then Rhiannon means to Justin. But to A she means everything, A does not usually feel this way towards anyone, he has gotten in to the pattern of living who's life he is in for the day and moving on. But Rhiannon is different to him and A loves everything about her and sees things about her that Justin should be seeing. 

101 Things About Me

- I'm 17 years old.

- I was born in Springfield Missouri and have lived here my entire life.

- I enjoy running and am on the Cross country team.

- I am a christian and have been a member of Graceway Baptist church my entire life. 

- I sit around my house and watch Netflix more than I should. 

- My main hobby would be eating, I am pretty good at it.

- My favorite food is Spaghetti.

- I recently went on a Missions trip to Costa Rica.

- I suck at math.

- The mall is my second home.

- I work at the Fieldhouse. 

- I am always craving Chinese food.

-I am very much so a pessimist.

- Naps are a must in my life, especially on Sunday afternoons.

-I've always enjoyed to sing, I am in my youth praise band at church.

- I really enjoy Country music.

- My favorite show is Criminal Minds or Greys Anatomy.