This is a link to the blog I created for this project.
http://arielswhytokillamockingbird.blogspot.ca/
Sunday, 7 April 2013
Bonus Blog Post: Letter to the Mayor
245 Livingston Blvd.
Baden, Ontario
N3A 2M2
February 25, 2013
100 Regina St. S.
Waterloo, Ontario
N2J 4A8
Dear Mayor Brenda Halloran,
I am a 15 year old student that attends Kitchener-Waterloo Collegiate and Vocational School and am currently in Grade 10. It has been brought to my attention that riding a bicycle on the sidewalk is actually illegal in Ontario. (1) The reason I never knew this municipal bylaw had been placed was because I constantly see adults riding their bikes on the sidewalk instead of the designated lanes. I feel strongly that you will want to address this issue because it’s very hazardous for walking pedestrians.
This issue is very important because cyclists are not following the law and putting pedestrians on the sidewalks in danger. (2) This is becoming a rising issue all over Ontario, and the law needs to be more strictly enforced on all cyclists. I have personally witnessed several bike accidents due to the cyclist riding on the sidewalk or trying to get on/off. It makes neighborhoods and the city much more dangerous when cyclists don’t follow the law and in result put people at risk of being seriously injured.
I believe solving this issue would simply be to raise awareness on the law placed against cyclists riding on the sidewalks because I don’t believe many cyclists know about the law and the consequences of breaking it. Putting up signs on busy sidewalks to deter cyclists would be extremely helpful and appreciated by the pedestrian community. Another helpful solution would be to build more bicycle lanes on existing roads in urban communities, therefore providing more space for cyclists to travel safely on the road.
Thank you very much for your time and attention to this important issue. I’m confident you will want to take some time to consider the solutions I have to resolve this serious safety issue. Our community needs to have safe sidewalks for pedestrians and safe roads for cyclists.
Yours Sincerely,
Ariel Bishop Payne
K.C.I Student
“Sidewalks are for Pedestrians.” Toronto website. N.P. Web.
13 Jan. 2013’
“Can I Cycle on the Sidewalk.” Walk and Roll Peel website. N.P. Web.
11 April 2012
Tuesday, 2 April 2013
Career Speaker #1- Alison Fleming
This speaker was named Alison Fleming, and she was a Social Media/ PR agent. This job consists of advertising, running websites, posting and making social media accounts for companies. The job is roughly 10 hours a day, which totals out to over 37 hours a week which is a lot. I could see myself in this career field because I love working online and communicating with other people. Parts of the job I wouldn't really like would be the long, brutal hours behind a computer screen, and it would be very repetitive day-to-day which I would get very bored of after a while. Maybe this specific job wouldn't be great for me, but a career along those lines with less hours and more diversity and change would be ideal. Alison Fleming was a great speaker and made it very apparent that she loved her job so it was very intriguing to hear about.
Friday, 8 March 2013
The Appropriate Punishment to Handing Work in Late
Handing work in late has always been an issue in the education system. Students aren't able to always hand in their work on time, whether the excuse be they didn't have time or their dog ate it. I believe the current punishment of 5% off every day is a tad unfair, because it may not seem like a large number but if your barely passing a course, it could make all the difference in the world. This punishment has mainly just taught students how to make up good enough excuses for them to not lose the 5%.
I have always believed that awarding students to have the assignment in a day early was always successful. If a teacher were giving bonus marks to students who handed it in a day early, that would encourage students to get it done. Another possible solution is saying that students can hand in the assignment anytime in the week (Monday-Friday) and if it's not in by Friday then it won't be accepted. This way students will be reminded every day of the week, giving them no excuse for them to not hand it in. In my opinion, this is the best way to not completely resolve but definetely improve work being handed in late.
I have always believed that awarding students to have the assignment in a day early was always successful. If a teacher were giving bonus marks to students who handed it in a day early, that would encourage students to get it done. Another possible solution is saying that students can hand in the assignment anytime in the week (Monday-Friday) and if it's not in by Friday then it won't be accepted. This way students will be reminded every day of the week, giving them no excuse for them to not hand it in. In my opinion, this is the best way to not completely resolve but definetely improve work being handed in late.
Ken Robinson's TED Talk-Education Revolution and To Kill A Mockingbird
"We are educating people out of their creativity." - Ken Robinson
The TEDTalk presented by Ken Robinson on the Education Revolution was very eye-opening and gave me a new perspective on education as a whole. When comparing Ken Robinson's thoughts and over all outlook on education to Jean Louise Finch's (main character in To Kill A Mockingbird) education it is alarmingly different. Jean Louise Finch (otherwise known as Scout) attends a school with very structured lesson plans and creativity is minimized. She wasn't allowed to read at home because her teacher told her that her father was teaching her wrong. It is very apparent that she doesn't fit into this horrible education system, and she begs to be home schooled. If Scout had an education like the one Ken Robinson explains, she would be extremely successful and happier at school. Her passion is exploring and reading, which is minimized at her public school.
If I was able to learn by following my passion, I wouldn't be sitting in a desk all day. I would love to visit more museums, art galleries, parks, zoos etc. I am a visual learner and if I were able to go out and learn valuable life lessons in the real world, my education would be extremely improved. I would want less structure and less students in each class, and have it be a much more relaxed environment. That is what my education would look like if I was able to learn by following my passion.
The TEDTalk presented by Ken Robinson on the Education Revolution was very eye-opening and gave me a new perspective on education as a whole. When comparing Ken Robinson's thoughts and over all outlook on education to Jean Louise Finch's (main character in To Kill A Mockingbird) education it is alarmingly different. Jean Louise Finch (otherwise known as Scout) attends a school with very structured lesson plans and creativity is minimized. She wasn't allowed to read at home because her teacher told her that her father was teaching her wrong. It is very apparent that she doesn't fit into this horrible education system, and she begs to be home schooled. If Scout had an education like the one Ken Robinson explains, she would be extremely successful and happier at school. Her passion is exploring and reading, which is minimized at her public school.
If I was able to learn by following my passion, I wouldn't be sitting in a desk all day. I would love to visit more museums, art galleries, parks, zoos etc. I am a visual learner and if I were able to go out and learn valuable life lessons in the real world, my education would be extremely improved. I would want less structure and less students in each class, and have it be a much more relaxed environment. That is what my education would look like if I was able to learn by following my passion.
Personality Explorations- Final Reflection Assignment
As I worked through all 11 quizzes, I started noticing very similar trends in the results I was getting. Many quizzes told me I'm more of a leader then a follower, and I enjoy more challenging subjects that allow me to really participate. I found out I am more right-brained than left-brained, and my dominant area of interest is people. I agreed with most of my results and seeing such similar themes made me believe these quizzes were legitimate at finding out who I am.
Due to the accurate results, they gavel a few possible career possibilities. The first one that I strongly anticipated was a Journalist (result from Quiz 6- Myers-Briggs Type Inventory) This made sense because I am very passionate about writing and English. Another career path was Teaching and Acting, which both make sense because I love working in correlation with other people instead of on my own, and I prefer occupations in which I have a chance to develop meaningful friendships.
Due to the accurate results, they gavel a few possible career possibilities. The first one that I strongly anticipated was a Journalist (result from Quiz 6- Myers-Briggs Type Inventory) This made sense because I am very passionate about writing and English. Another career path was Teaching and Acting, which both make sense because I love working in correlation with other people instead of on my own, and I prefer occupations in which I have a chance to develop meaningful friendships.
Friday, 1 March 2013
Calpurnia in To Kill A Mockingbird
The characters in "To Kill A Mockingbird" are all very interesting to read about and are what make the book so amazing. Each character has very noticeable character traits, and the relationships they all have with each other are what keep the reader hooked and emotionally attached. I find Calpurnia, the house maid, the most interesting character.
Calpurnia lives as a maid with Jean Louise Finch (Scout), Jeremy Finch (Jem) and Atticus Finch. She is a very hard working maid, but also a motherly figure to Scout and Jem because their mother died at a very young age. Calpurnia is very protective of both kids, and doesn't like when they go off to school because she has nothing to worry about during the day. She is also very loyal and religious, making her respectable to a reader. She is also a very conflicted character, because she is African American living in an extremely white community. She is very interesting to read about and I can't wait to see where the character development leads to.
"There goes the meanest man ever God blew breath into." -Calpurnia
This quote was said in the earlier chapters of the novel, and the reason I chose this quote is because it was the first thing Calpurnia had said that wasn't super sweet and nice. This made me grow appreciation for Calpurnia because it showed she had an edgier side. I included a photo of how I picture Calpurnia in my head down below. http://www.google.ca/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&rls=com.microsoft:en-ca&biw=1024&bih=570&tbm=isch&tbnid=REfVJKxZCeg10M:&imgrefurl=http://www.aveleyman.com/FilmCredit.aspx%3FFilmID%3D19714&docid=16nvD7wSueM8VM&imgurl=http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsE/57173-19714.gif&w=320&h=240&ei=jrU0Ud60Jem3yQHhiYH4AQ&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=203&sig=116346319358239339791&page=2&tbnh=139&tbnw=189&start=20&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:34,s:0,i:215&tx=118&ty=56
Calpurnia lives as a maid with Jean Louise Finch (Scout), Jeremy Finch (Jem) and Atticus Finch. She is a very hard working maid, but also a motherly figure to Scout and Jem because their mother died at a very young age. Calpurnia is very protective of both kids, and doesn't like when they go off to school because she has nothing to worry about during the day. She is also very loyal and religious, making her respectable to a reader. She is also a very conflicted character, because she is African American living in an extremely white community. She is very interesting to read about and I can't wait to see where the character development leads to.
"There goes the meanest man ever God blew breath into." -Calpurnia
This quote was said in the earlier chapters of the novel, and the reason I chose this quote is because it was the first thing Calpurnia had said that wasn't super sweet and nice. This made me grow appreciation for Calpurnia because it showed she had an edgier side. I included a photo of how I picture Calpurnia in my head down below. http://www.google.ca/imgres?um=1&hl=en&sa=N&rls=com.microsoft:en-ca&biw=1024&bih=570&tbm=isch&tbnid=REfVJKxZCeg10M:&imgrefurl=http://www.aveleyman.com/FilmCredit.aspx%3FFilmID%3D19714&docid=16nvD7wSueM8VM&imgurl=http://www.wearysloth.com/Gallery/ActorsE/57173-19714.gif&w=320&h=240&ei=jrU0Ud60Jem3yQHhiYH4AQ&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=203&sig=116346319358239339791&page=2&tbnh=139&tbnw=189&start=20&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:34,s:0,i:215&tx=118&ty=56
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