CLASSES & JOBS

I find personal blogs very interesting because I can never figure out if a person is writing their thoughts because they think someone out there is actually reading them, or if they are writing them as some sort of emotional release. I find them to be interesting, but also kind of self-absorbed. That being said, I think really good things can sometimes come from them. Writing is a cathartic release for a lot of people, so if they want to post their thoughts online, that’s great. Also, writing personal blogs is a great way to stay connected with friends and family. Last but not least, keeping a personal blog allows you to practice your writing skills (which are important for any career) on a daily basis.

Also, blogs seem to be a new kind of outlet for people to get creative in their writing. Rather than scribbling thoughts down in an old fashioned journal, people are taking to the Internet. This is especially true for young people, who have kind of developed a whole new dialect of English on-line. I like that blogs are informal and everyone can voice what they want to on the same level.

Some college students who excel in certain areas of study choose to tutor others to make some extra money. There are lots of tutoring opportunities out there, and they are easy to find. Usually people on campus or on athletic teams need tutors and are willing to pay by the hour. Also, people who need extra help in learning a second language are good candidates to tutor.

My roommate tutors a young boy after school in his home and is paid by the hour by his parents. It’s a great setup for her because she feels like she is doing something good for someone else and it’s good for him because he gets to benefit from her knowledge of math. You can become a tutor by posting signs at local elementary schools or looking for jobs in the paper. Or, alternatively, if you need a tutor, post signs or take out an ad in your local college paper. Choose college students who are more experienced and have several years of education under their belt.

Losing weight can be a difficult struggle. But it’s also worth it in the end. The important thing is to lose weight in a healthy way, and to lose it gradually over time so it stays off in the end, and so you develop healthy eating and exercising habits. Quick, unhealthy diets are bad for your body and won’t help you keep the weight off in the long run.

I had a friend in school who was very athletic and strong when I met her. She was not at all overweight but for some reason became addicted to quick-fix diets. Seeing her deal with this addiction was one of the scariest experiences of my life. It was terrifying to see a close friend not herself. Her skin was pale, her hair was dead, and you could see every bone in her body. She’s doing very well now, but for a while it was scary. It’s so incredibly important to stay healthy while you’re losing weight!

I would encourage anyone with any opportunity to study abroad to do so, because you learn so much more about different cultures by experiencing them and immersing yourself in them than you would by just reading about them in a textbook. You can get a different kind of education when studying in a foreign country than from studying at home. I had the opportunity to study abroad and I came back to the States with a whole new perspective about life.

Specifically, when I hear about certain global issues and partake in discussion, I am quick to think of those people I lived with and what their concerns would be. It’s easy to think of things in the context of your own culture, but it is much more meaningful when you step outside what you know and use your experience to broaden your horizons. Traveling abroad is one of the best and most enjoyable ways to educate ourselves to other cultures, political events, foreign policy, and languages.

Teaching English overseas is a great way to travel and immerse yourself in a different culture, and usually you end up learning the native language while you’re there. There are many programs out there that make it easy to get involved in something like this. And speaking from experience, it’s worth it. I taught English in Mexico for a month, and I loved every moment of it. I picked up some great Spanish speaking skills, and I made friendships that will last a lifetime.

My friend taught English in Madagascar as part of an internship and it changed her life. She had the privilege of teaching both children and adults who would stop her on the street after classes and practice what they had learned. It was an experience that she wouldn’t trade for anything, and because of it she hopes to teach again. In addition to a great life experience, she was able to pick up some French and Malagasy as well.

A child’s brain is still developing and evolving as they grow. An essential element to assist in this growth is education. A child needs to learn how to speak, to walk, to eat, to drink, to behave, etc. Parents are responsible for their child’s education. Many people believe that they must start their child in school at a young age and many people believe otherwise. Whether the child is educated in the home, public school, or private school they will learn necessary behaviors and traits to communicate effectively with others.

Businesses and families come together with education software and educational toys. They are created with the purpose of being beneficial as well as stimulating for a child to use or play with. Children have limited concentration compared to adults. Every child is different and has a personality all their own. Engaging in a social atmosphere enables a child to learn to share and to communicate with other children.

Another trend in child education is developing talents while young. Many parents will enroll their child in soccer, swimming, ballet, dance, piano lessons, baseball, basketball, or skiing at a young age as it is easier for them to learn these talents. Some children will learn different languages as a youth so they can gain a better understanding because of their malleable brains. Awareness of a child’s surroundings for safety can also be a part of their education. As a popular belief, to live is to learn and to learn is to live.

So what is the value of an education? It would be easy to be sidetracked by stopping here to define just what the concept of education means, but I’ll save that for another time. Let us simply classify it as the means of obtaining a degree or certificate from an accredited facility. And again, I pose the question, what good is it really?

I have my bachelor’s degree, and I am proud of that accomplishment. I do not use it in the field I studied, but having a degree has been of use to me in diverse ways in my life. It sets me apart from those who have not graduated from college, and that is helpful when on the job hunt. It helped me learn to be a more divergent thinker. It broadened my horizons and gave me a glimpse into fields of study I would not have encountered any other way. And, truthfully, it is a feather in one’s cap to have a diploma which you earned by your own efforts.

Having the degree is important, but it is the process of getting it that really helps us become better people. It takes plenty of determination to stick with schooling. College and University life can be exciting and rewarding, but it takes a lot of time and money to make it through and accomplish your goals. Personally, I don’t think it matters one bit where your degree comes from-it is the discipline you learn along the way to getting that piece of paper which makes you a more valuable employee, spouse, boss and human being. Having a degree is like passing that difficult math class when mathematics is not even your major. You may never use the math again, but it gives you excellent character to persevere and finish what you started.

One of my favorite holiday gift-giving traditions started with my extended family way back when. We call it Penny Christmas. It’s kinda like a glorified white elephant/flea market gift swap.

Each family brings a certain number of pre-wrapped gifts for the exchange. They can be anything at all, but there is one rule: nothing can be worth more than a dollar. (You gotta allow for inflation from the “penny” in Penny Christmas.) These gifts go in a pile. Then, beginning with the youngest person, go by age around the room, allowing each person to select a gift from the stash.

It can get interesting because, rather than choose a wrapped gift, anyone can pick a present someone else has already opened. Then the person whose find was taken gets to open-or “steal” another gift. If there is a lot of stealing going on, it can be very hard to remember who is next in line, because with each steal a new item is unwrapped by someone other than the person up for a turn.

As long as good-will is evident, this game can be a great deal of fun. Just try not to let anyone take it seriously-the gifts are under a buck-what’s to stress about? One Christmas, both my grandmother and I wanted a pair of matching dishcloths that had been wrapped separately. We each did a lot of maneuvering to get them. A gift may only be “stolen” 3 times and then it is “retired.” Also, it can not be taken directly back by the person who just lost it. So, if there is something you really want, and it has been taken 3 times, or just taken from you, you have to try to get an item wanted by the person who has it, so you can trade. (Trading after the game is finished is standard procedure for us.) I don’t know if either of us got the set, I know I had at least one. I just threw it away this year, as it had to many holes to clean anything. The “Dish Cloth” Penny Christmas is now family legend. Try it and see if it becomes a new family or roommate favorite.

I always opted for the less traditional whenever I took P.E. in college. Some of the more memorable were the bowling and golf classes I took. Those two have something in common–it’s all about your aim. I know just from playing Frisbee that I have a wicked hook when I throw-or swing. It makes for some interesting plays on the green, but you should see what it does in the bowling alley! I cannot ever seem to throw or follow-through without sending the object slightly-or at times considerably-off course. So I compensate, and that makes for some interesting moments as well. So, if you ever challenge me to a simple game of Frisbee, keep your eye on that flying disc-it’s not headed where you think it is. . . .

There are only two projects I kept from my student teaching days. One is the portfolio showcasing how hard I worked. The other item was an assignment I gave to a class of third graders during a unit focusing on outdoor life and habitats.

I get more than a little tired of not ever hearing the other side of the story from the environmental slant that is preached to children from their TV, in song lyrics, and in their classrooms. I decided to spend a little time one day discussing the nearly extinct concept of lack of intervention. I tried to explain to these average third graders that, sometimes, it is best to just let things be. Some situations call for direct action, some do not. It is up to us to decide when to step in and when to step out. Nature has existed for hundreds and hundreds of years-without us AND with us. It is egocentric (I did not use that word in the lesson) of us to think that we always make such a huge and detrimental impact on flora and fauna. Sometimes we do, but mostly, animal and plant life just adapt and go blithely on their way, disregarding the whole human species.

Well, most adults cannot grasp this concept, so I don’t know why I expected youngsters to get it. They didn’t. The end of the lesson had an activity where I gave the class members small scenarios and asked them to solve them. In the game of please-the-teacher-even-if –I-don’t-agree, they answered just how they thought I wanted them to. This was the most memorable response of the group. I thought of the ‘controlled burn’ policy so common in my home state when I read this one:
Question: You see that someone has started a fire in dry grass, what do you do?
Answer: Let it burn!
Out of the mouths of babes, right?