ARTS EDUCATION IN HIGH SCHOOLS

The arts create memorable experiences especially during the adolescence stages of high school. The experiences and memories that are created in high school will last a lifetime. Even if high school is not the easiest time in a teenager’s life it is a time to grow and learn about new passions. By high schools providing more arts education programs, more students will find the arts as a place they belong. The importance of arts is shown throughout so many activities whether it be marching band in the fall, a musical in the spring, or choir and design all year long. I personally found my importance through joining marching band my freshman year of high school and learning a numerous amount of new things. The arts develop more than just the mind, but also develop social skills. The beginning qualities of learning how to read music, hold a pencil, or act like someone else are taught from an early age whether or not it be a regular activity in the rest of life.

Imagine drawing a flower by starting off with the basic stem and pedals then think about the significance of the drawing. Flowers are living and full of life. Music on a piece of paper can come to life like a flower that was drawn on a piece of paper. Many people feel like the arts give them a specific and unique purpose in life every day. The significance of the arts is lost a lot of the time when it comes to providing classes in high schools because of the cost, availability of teachers, interest from students, and that arts education is also not a requirement to graduate.  

Transitions are hard for most people, but are healthy ways to grow, and a way to find true identities in every individual. The transition from middle school to high school is hard and the arts can be a helpful resource to get involved and find new identities and relationships. High schools should provide more opportunities to get involved in art programs because they teach time management, responsibility, and respect, and allow for expression and diversity in new developing ways. By providing more arts education programs in high school students will benefit during their experience, and throughout the rest of life. Arts education is a significant resource to teach things that cannot be taught anywhere else and therefore is beneficial to all.

One phrase that is popular in many young generations today is “thrive or die”. This basically means by doing the best that is physically possible for one is enough to survive which means it is also enough to thrive. Time management, responsibility, respect, diversity, and knowledge allow students to thrive throughout life. It is important that high schools all around are aware of the beneficial effects the arts can have on students and start to use that knowledge and provide more arts education in the classrooms of high schools so that students have the choice to develop and grow in that abnormal area of school. The arts are well worth the money, time, and work it takes for them to be successful.

Personally, I do not know where I would be without the arts. When I felt lost and unsure throughout high school, I turned to music and the arts. The arts is not only a learning opportunity, but it is a way to have fun, get connected, and be part of something wonderful. I was taught how to persevere, discipline myself, and be optimistic by getting injured and not being able to march my instrument and do what I had planned on doing that season. I know how to manage my time and have learned how to problem solve now because of the experiences I had in the arts education programs at my high school. The obstacles faced throughout the arts are like the experience Kelly Clarkson mentions in her song, “Stronger”, when she says, “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”

The Cheese Touch –Try Not to Catch This Addiction – Critical Review on The Cheesecake Factory

Do you like the Cheesecake Factory? A Cheesecake Factory Critique

Why do favorites exist? Savory or sweet. Italian food versus American food. A debate that occurs often between many friends and families. Well, thankfully The Cheesecake Factory offers both. It is a place. A place where friends and family come together.

As a child, when my family and I were on vacation a favorite thing of mine was to get a fruitful virgin drink at the bar by the poolside because it looked just like what all the adults were drinking but tasted much better. It had the fancy sugar on the brim of the cup rather than salt. Now the lemonade at the Cheesecake Factory is served that way and it brings back wonderful memories that are full of excitement. Here it is a great place for all ages and easy to find what you are looking for.

The abnormally large menu allows for a variety of choices –splendid and warming choices that are pleasing to the eyes. Carbs. Everybody loves carbs. Bread comes in two different types.  Regular white bread or brown honey wheat bread which is the favorite choice of many. The bonus of dining and eating in is that it is warm and soft too. It is pretty much unlimited bread also, but do not fill up on the bread before you get to the actual meal unless leftovers sound good because you will most likely have them anyway.

Have you ever wondered how many different types of cheesecakes there are? The amount of cheesecake is like the number of books in the Library of Congress. It is a plentiful amount of cheesecakes but the raving restaurant also has other desserts too for those that are not fans of the old fashioned cheesecake.

As a regular at this restaurant, there are a couple dishes that always seem to get ordered. When people ask about favorite restaurants, The Cheesecake Factory is what always comes to my mind first because since there is so many choices it is easy to find something to like –unless the struggle of indecisiveness occurs, good luck! If it is too hard to decide just go for the Four Cheese Pasta –simple but decadent. It will not be a disappointment. Customers should never worry about leaving hungry from the ultimate Cheesecake Factory..

Although the price of eating here is not the cheapest, it is a great place to go for celebrations or on a date. The lighting is dim and romantic which makes it feel more secluded which many restaurants are not because they are so crowded.Appetizers are just as good as the main meals and usually are cheaper or just light enough so you do not feel full to the point of having a stomach ache.

No restaurant is going to be perfect. Too many people, slow service, too expensive, not great tasting, there is always a negative aspect. Now some think how the food tastes is the most important thing but others say it is how it is served or even just the atmosphere of the restaurant itself because restaurants are mostly used for going out and socializing. Go to The Cheesecake Factory for the all around wonderful dining experience.

 

Another 20Time Blog Post – Figuring out hardships

We are getting closer to the end and we have noticed that the hardest thing is to get others participating. This is a problem in many situations. Teachers are always trying to get students engaging in conversations. Coaches are always wanting the team to participate and work as a team. Facebook posts are always being posted for others to comment or engage in the conversation. We continue to come up to this problem and are not sure how to get people to participate. Recently, I participated in a serve your city day that happened throughout the bay area of California. This was a great realization and example of why we chose to do this project. My hope for this project in the end is that we made a difference in one person at least that will inspire them to feed new needs and be kind always. I definitely feel that this project has not changed the minds of others it has taught me many new things that I can use in the upcoming years and has inspired me to keep an eye open for random acts of kindness that I can do.

Getting to the end- A daily dose of Kindness Part 5

My partner and I have created a public facebook page for our project that we hope is an easy way for people to share encouragement and other ideas of kindness through. The final part of our project is to create a presentation that is in the form of a TED Talk on what we have learned throughout the 20 time project and what affect it has had on us as high school senior’s and the people who have used it. On the facebook page is what this whole project is about and also there is a link to a survey that I have created to collect others opinions. It is interesting to see what conflicts we have come in contact with throughout the process of making this piece live. Our hope is that our project whether it be successful or not is that it will inspire others to approach their daily activities differently and be encouraged to do more random acts of kindness. Kindness is light and we want the world to be brighter!

A little change – A Daily Dose of Kindness Update: Part 4

Looking through our survey results they have been really useful to see what actually matters to our audience. My partner and I have decided to create a blog that people can share and read stories of kindness through rather than making an app for people to use to get a daily dose of kindness. My partner thought of this idea while reading and discussing Humans of New York and how that has become such a huge thing in our society. The main goal of our app is to get your perspective and stories of how you have seen kindness or shared encouragement. My one worry about a blog working for our Daily Dose of Kindness project is of how many people are going to be aware of it and use it. I feel like an app was more interactive but blogs are better for sharing something that you are passionate about. Our next step is to make the blog usable for others and then go on with our original plan!

Why? WHY? Why? – Humans of Denmark

“Why are you still here? (Earth)”

I am here to see. See the reign of the new king. I have not done what I need to do and will not leave this earth till it is all done. I am here to make sure Queen Gertrude and Hamlet never forget me and that they live a well lived life. My duty on earth in Denmark is not yet fulfilled. The ghost of me will live on here until I have met and completed everything, but then afterwards I will be just a memory that is talked about and my name will be what lives on forever. I am a martyr of the country of Denmark. I am dressed for battle and want to win the fight of life. I am here for all to follow me in my path and ways. Serving has only been one sided. I have served my country and it is now time to be served, Hamlet, my son will help with that. I am here to fight betrayal and make sure it is what I want.

– Hamlet Sr. (Ghost)

Fulfilling the Mystery- Book Blog 3

I completed reading We Were Liars by E. Lockart and my word to describe the last part is realization. From dysfunctional to sizzling to realization the author keeps the reader entertained. At times it was hard to read but  I also could not put the book down. There was suspense in not knowing what happened even when the characters were talking about a topic like everybody around them should know. I am glad I stuck with the book because what I was confused about now definitely makes sense and is answered by the end. I am interested in looking at some of the other similar books that this author has written. They go any many adventures to Oak Bluff Road and back to the same place every summer as a group of Sinclairs. Without giving away any spoilers I would definitely recommend reading this book because there are points in the story that can be somewhat relatable to daily life and overall it was just very interesting! It was also a New York Times Bestseller.

I am starting to read my next book which is Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling. I have read the first three in the series and am excited to continue it.

Baseball and Shakespare – Sonnet Project: Sonnet 13

SONNET 13 by William Shakespeare

O, that you were yourself! but, love, you are
No longer yours than you yourself here live:
Against this coming end you should prepare,
And your sweet semblance to some other give.
So should that beauty which you hold in lease
Find no determination: then you were
Yourself again after yourself’s decease,
When your sweet issue your sweet form should bear.
Who lets so fair a house fall to decay,
Which husbandry in honour might uphold
Against the stormy gusts of winter’s day
And barren rage of death’s eternal cold?
O, none but unthrifts: — Dear my love, you know
You had a father; let your son say so.

The modern context helps to clarify or communicate the meaning of this sonnet because in the end most of Shakespeare’s writings have to do with some kind of love. Love is not consistent and things may change. The example in the modern video was Yankee Stadium and how it has changed from the past. The first line “O! that you were your self; but, love, you are” could possibly be translated to I wish you would not change but instead remain the same but you have changed. The tone in the video is sad because change happens and sometimes nothing can be done. The old stadium is dead and the person Shakespeare is referring to in the sonnet is dead but has risen as a new person.  Towards the end of the sonnet in line 11, he says, “Against the stormy gusts of winter’s day”. This means that even when he fights the change is “inevitable”. The goal of the “eternal cold” is to kill off the old and bring in the new. Cherish the old but prepare for the new!

• Old father to young son
• Dead frosted over flowers in the winter turn to color in the Spring
• Small Yankee Stadium to Large New luxurious Yankee Stadium

 

Digging in Deeper – We are Liars Book Blog Post #2

My word to describe the next section that I have read is sizzling. I say it is sizzling because there is so much happening. All the characters are sizzling with adventure. The mind of Cadence is sizzling while she is trying to remember what happened the summer she lost her memory. Family is sizzling by all being around and doing stuff on their own. Romance is sizzling which means trouble is also sizzling. It is really interesting as I read on I answer the questions that I thought of in the previous section of reading. The main character, Cadence is usually very unreliable because of her brain injury. Cadence found out that everybody except for her knows about her accident and brain injury. The purpose for her family or narrator not completely saying why she can’t remember somethings is to make her remember them by herself. I am getting to the point of the book where I just want to know what happens. I want to see the complete picture and continue reading when I have to put the book down to go read or do some other task. One of my favorite things about the way this book is structured is the way that it includes poems or stories within the writing which is very intriguing to me because it is something new. Diverse structure keeps me interested because I get bored reading the same thing for 200 something pages or I get distracted by other things are going on if I am not fully invested in the book. I am really wondering why the book is titled We are Liars when the last name of all the characters is Sinclair. When Martha’s Vineyard was mentioned in the book I recognized the name and it made me want to continue reading to hear what happens at that point even though I could not completely recollect what it was. I included a picture of the four famous houses or so called cottages in Martha’s Vineyard. The author E. Lockhart definitely uses a different and creative approach to keep the reader engaged which is one of the things that catches my eye the most when thinking about reading this book.