Unfortunately I missed class this afternoon and I would like to place all the blame on my mother. Who lovingly shared her cold with me this past weekend. I passed the favor along to one of my room mates, so now I have company in my misery.
Now I'm going to crawl back into bed and hope for chicken noodle soup....
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Monday, February 26, 2007
Blah
I have been sitting and staring at the screen of my computer for a while now, trying to think of what to write about class today. I can honestly come up with not much to say.... I spent most of the class trying to stay awake since I had a horrible night last night. Lack of sleep and flu like symptoms are not how I like to start a week off. I am very proud of myself though because I took notes! That is like a miracle because normally I highlight along the notes we are given and add in thoughts here and there. But this time I actually wrote them all out!
Out of all that happened in class, I enjoyed the conversation that pertained to Camel making cigarette packages more appealing to girls with black and pink coloring, and yet having the company say that was not their plan. Ha!
Out of all that happened in class, I enjoyed the conversation that pertained to Camel making cigarette packages more appealing to girls with black and pink coloring, and yet having the company say that was not their plan. Ha!
Sunday Comics
So I was enjoying a nice cup of coffee and reading the Sunday morning comics yesterday, when I turned to the comic entitled "Marvin" done by Tom Armstrong. I realized it had something to do with our last class and thought I would include it...
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Bed Wetting, Feeding, and Pull-ups!
Class on Monday was very informative on the secrets of feeding your children, potty training your children, and why they may wet the bed at night. All in all I was brought back to my experiences of being a baby-sitter. Of course I don't sit on babies, but I do enjoy watching my neighbors three children!
Professor Welkowitz stated that pull-ups are evil, and just prolong the torture of potty training. I may have to agree with him, because if a child has a diaper that has cool designs on it like children's underwear and literally you pull them up like underwear, then why would a child decide to use the toilet. My parents did not get me the cool designed pull-ups, instead they bribed me. Yup my parents bribed me with candy! M & M's to be exact... no wonder I like those things! Well anyways it work so I guess I will have to thank them next time we talk.
Also during class Larry demonstrated on a classmate of mine, how he would feed his daughter. Now this is exactly why I do NOT sit in the front row! He went at her with the remote to the projector, and talked about how he wouldn't do the cool airplane or force his daughter to eat. Instead he sent her the message that if SHE wanted it then SHE had to come and get it! Now that makes sense and all but come on now, every parent wants to have some fun in feeding their kids and what better fun than making airplane noises!
Eventually the conversation went on to bed wetting... Larry talked about possible reasons for why bed wetting occured, one of which was that the child slept to deeply. Or they could not distinguish the signals that they had to use the bathroom until it was too late. So he brought out this device that a child would wear, and one end would go into the diaper and the other would attach to a shirt or an arm. When the child started to pee the device would make a loud noise and it would in theory wake the child so they would begin through classical conditioning, to recongize the signals. Now if I were a child I would run if my parents brought home this device. It just is scary with the tangle of wires, and a loud noise no thank you!
Well that is all for now, I am going to study now for our awesome test on Wednesday
Professor Welkowitz stated that pull-ups are evil, and just prolong the torture of potty training. I may have to agree with him, because if a child has a diaper that has cool designs on it like children's underwear and literally you pull them up like underwear, then why would a child decide to use the toilet. My parents did not get me the cool designed pull-ups, instead they bribed me. Yup my parents bribed me with candy! M & M's to be exact... no wonder I like those things! Well anyways it work so I guess I will have to thank them next time we talk.
Also during class Larry demonstrated on a classmate of mine, how he would feed his daughter. Now this is exactly why I do NOT sit in the front row! He went at her with the remote to the projector, and talked about how he wouldn't do the cool airplane or force his daughter to eat. Instead he sent her the message that if SHE wanted it then SHE had to come and get it! Now that makes sense and all but come on now, every parent wants to have some fun in feeding their kids and what better fun than making airplane noises!
Eventually the conversation went on to bed wetting... Larry talked about possible reasons for why bed wetting occured, one of which was that the child slept to deeply. Or they could not distinguish the signals that they had to use the bathroom until it was too late. So he brought out this device that a child would wear, and one end would go into the diaper and the other would attach to a shirt or an arm. When the child started to pee the device would make a loud noise and it would in theory wake the child so they would begin through classical conditioning, to recongize the signals. Now if I were a child I would run if my parents brought home this device. It just is scary with the tangle of wires, and a loud noise no thank you!
Well that is all for now, I am going to study now for our awesome test on Wednesday
Thursday, February 15, 2007
SNOW DAY!
So the weather had perfect timing and created a Winter Wonderland for Valentine's Day. Which in turn closed the college... I can't really complain about that because snow days are very rare to have once you are in college. I did find my self missing my Abnormal Psychology class because it is at a time that breaks up my day nicely. The humor and stories shared in that class are quite fun... guess I have to wait until Monday to get my dose of Abnormal Psychology!
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Haddon Synopsis
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
By Mark Haddon
In this novel the main character is a boy named Christopher Boone, who suffers from Asperger Syndrome. Asperger Syndrome is a form of autism, which makes it hard for Christopher to understand human emotions, and facial expressions. He refers back to drawings done by his aide Siobhan when he can not distinguish a person's feelings. He can understand happy and sad, but anger and confusion are harder for him to understand.
Christopher has excellent mathematical skills, and he has a great memory when it comes to conversations and the details of certain places. He was able to notice a poster had fallen in his class room, and that it was put up slightly to the right of where it once hung. When Christopher starts to become nervous or scared he does mathematical equations in his head, which helps him clear his mind. He does quadratic equations, finds prime numbers, and squares numbers. All of the chapters in this book are prime numbers. He likes those the best, and the book is a murder mystery because that is the kind of book he likes.
When Christopher has some one touch him physically he becomes violent and panics. When he becomes uncomfortable in a situation he curls into a ball and rocks himself back and forth while groaning. These are part of Asperger Syndrome, and are Christopher's coping mechanisms. His parent's are not able to hug him so they fan their fingers out and have Christopher touch their finger tips. That is how they show their love for each other.
Since this is Christopher's murder mystery book, there has to be a mystery to solve. His neighbor, Mrs. Shear's dog Wellington was killed with a garden fork. Christopher likes dogs very much, so he is very interested in finding out who committed the murder. In order to be a detective he has to over come his fear of strangers. He goes to the neighbors houses and asks them questions about the murder. His father becomes very upset with Christopher when he discovers the murder mystery book.
Mr. Boone tells Christopher to stay out of other people's business and to stop the detective work immediately! Christopher does not truly listen and finds out that his mother is not dead, like his father told him, but she had an affair with Mr. Shears. Mr. Boone hits Christopher, and Christopher becomes very scared of his father. He then hides out in the garden and once his father leaves the house, he packs his things.
Christopher decided to run away to his mother's house, which is in London. This requires him to go on the train. The problem with that is he has to ask strangers for directions and has to be with strangers in small spaces. Some how Christopher manages to get through all of that and finds his mother's home. She is living with Mr. Shears, and is very happy to see her son. Mr. Shears is not very kind to Christopher, so Mrs. Boone takes his car and brings Christopher back to Swindon.
Things eventually work out for Christopher, he is able to take his A Level Math, and he lives with his mother in a small apartment. He stays with his father until Mrs. Boone comes home from work. Christopher was still very afraid of his father, so he refused to talk to him for a while. At the end of the book, Mr. Boone takes out a golden retriever puppy that is now Christopher's. The puppy is named Sandy, and it looks as though Christopher may be able to trust his father again.
The mystery was solved; Mr. Boone killed Wellington because Mrs. Shears loved the dog more. Christopher's parents now lived in a closer area, and Christopher was able to spend time with both of them now. It all seemed to have worked out for the best.
I think this book did a great job illustrating what it is like to have Asperger Syndrome. The novel was written very choppy, going from past to present, just as someone would think through out the day. He gives details and examples of what it is like when they do not understand what is going on. Christopher is a very smart person, and thinks very logically. It was very interesting to read this book because you had to realize what it was like if you had Asperger Syndrome.
In this novel the main character is a boy named Christopher Boone, who suffers from Asperger Syndrome. Asperger Syndrome is a form of autism, which makes it hard for Christopher to understand human emotions, and facial expressions. He refers back to drawings done by his aide Siobhan when he can not distinguish a person's feelings. He can understand happy and sad, but anger and confusion are harder for him to understand.
Christopher has excellent mathematical skills, and he has a great memory when it comes to conversations and the details of certain places. He was able to notice a poster had fallen in his class room, and that it was put up slightly to the right of where it once hung. When Christopher starts to become nervous or scared he does mathematical equations in his head, which helps him clear his mind. He does quadratic equations, finds prime numbers, and squares numbers. All of the chapters in this book are prime numbers. He likes those the best, and the book is a murder mystery because that is the kind of book he likes.
When Christopher has some one touch him physically he becomes violent and panics. When he becomes uncomfortable in a situation he curls into a ball and rocks himself back and forth while groaning. These are part of Asperger Syndrome, and are Christopher's coping mechanisms. His parent's are not able to hug him so they fan their fingers out and have Christopher touch their finger tips. That is how they show their love for each other.
Since this is Christopher's murder mystery book, there has to be a mystery to solve. His neighbor, Mrs. Shear's dog Wellington was killed with a garden fork. Christopher likes dogs very much, so he is very interested in finding out who committed the murder. In order to be a detective he has to over come his fear of strangers. He goes to the neighbors houses and asks them questions about the murder. His father becomes very upset with Christopher when he discovers the murder mystery book.
Mr. Boone tells Christopher to stay out of other people's business and to stop the detective work immediately! Christopher does not truly listen and finds out that his mother is not dead, like his father told him, but she had an affair with Mr. Shears. Mr. Boone hits Christopher, and Christopher becomes very scared of his father. He then hides out in the garden and once his father leaves the house, he packs his things.
Christopher decided to run away to his mother's house, which is in London. This requires him to go on the train. The problem with that is he has to ask strangers for directions and has to be with strangers in small spaces. Some how Christopher manages to get through all of that and finds his mother's home. She is living with Mr. Shears, and is very happy to see her son. Mr. Shears is not very kind to Christopher, so Mrs. Boone takes his car and brings Christopher back to Swindon.
Things eventually work out for Christopher, he is able to take his A Level Math, and he lives with his mother in a small apartment. He stays with his father until Mrs. Boone comes home from work. Christopher was still very afraid of his father, so he refused to talk to him for a while. At the end of the book, Mr. Boone takes out a golden retriever puppy that is now Christopher's. The puppy is named Sandy, and it looks as though Christopher may be able to trust his father again.
The mystery was solved; Mr. Boone killed Wellington because Mrs. Shears loved the dog more. Christopher's parents now lived in a closer area, and Christopher was able to spend time with both of them now. It all seemed to have worked out for the best.
I think this book did a great job illustrating what it is like to have Asperger Syndrome. The novel was written very choppy, going from past to present, just as someone would think through out the day. He gives details and examples of what it is like when they do not understand what is going on. Christopher is a very smart person, and thinks very logically. It was very interesting to read this book because you had to realize what it was like if you had Asperger Syndrome.
Thursday, February 8, 2007
Shy Children
In class we were talking about social phobias and the signs that a child may show when having a social phobia. There was a lot of emphasize on how a child could be shy, somewhat mute, and could be clingy. Now I would like to disagree with that. I was a very quite shy girl when I was younger and I would like to think that I turned out just fine! I think that they signs for social phobia are just too vague and you could stick any child into that category at any given time.
My dad has a cousin that always liked children and he just scared the heck out of me. He would try to play with me and just came at me altogether too fast. I refused to talk to this gentlemen for years, and at his wedding I hid under the table so I wouldn't have to dance with him! Needless to say he still kind of scares me, but I will speak with him now.
Children are all different and they have different comfort levels. It may take one child five seconds to warm up to strangers or a strange place, when it can take another child five days. Everyone is different and unfortunately people are too quick to judge and come to conclusions to fast. In the end it may be harmful to the child, when in truth the parent and/or guardian was trying to help.
My dad has a cousin that always liked children and he just scared the heck out of me. He would try to play with me and just came at me altogether too fast. I refused to talk to this gentlemen for years, and at his wedding I hid under the table so I wouldn't have to dance with him! Needless to say he still kind of scares me, but I will speak with him now.
Children are all different and they have different comfort levels. It may take one child five seconds to warm up to strangers or a strange place, when it can take another child five days. Everyone is different and unfortunately people are too quick to judge and come to conclusions to fast. In the end it may be harmful to the child, when in truth the parent and/or guardian was trying to help.
Wednesday, February 7, 2007
Synopsis
Unfortunately all those who were excited about reading my synopsis for the book by Mark Haddon, will have to wait one more day. I was in the process of finishing the book and writing up the assignment, when I ran from my room to the living room to send an email. In the process I kicked the cement wall and proceeded to fall to the floor. Now stubbing your toe hurts but I was reduced to tears. I finally let go of my foot long enough to look at my toes and see that one of them was not going to the right direction. I'm a very big klutz so kicking a wall in the process of walking didn't surprise me, but I broke my 20 year record of not breaking any bones :(
Needless to say I spent quite a few hours in the ER of the Cheshire Medical Center, with some lovely nurses and a hilarious X-ray technician, and found out I broke it. So now I get the pleasure of hobbling around campus on crutches trying to dodge the ice patches so I don't fall and break something else. The fact that I didn't sleep last night probably isn't helping my cause!
So all in all, I am OK, but the synopsis went unfinished. Hopefully I will have it up by tonight.
Needless to say I spent quite a few hours in the ER of the Cheshire Medical Center, with some lovely nurses and a hilarious X-ray technician, and found out I broke it. So now I get the pleasure of hobbling around campus on crutches trying to dodge the ice patches so I don't fall and break something else. The fact that I didn't sleep last night probably isn't helping my cause!
So all in all, I am OK, but the synopsis went unfinished. Hopefully I will have it up by tonight.
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Stickers & Rewards
So I have decided that I'm not very good at blogging on time... I have every intention on blogging when I am done my four classes on Monday, but when I get out of that last class... I am so excited to take a nap, I just forget all about homework!!! Opps!
In class we talked about sticker charts and I thought that was funny because in another one of my classes we were talking about rewards systems, and wether or not charts like that would work. When I was in elementary school, I remember we had a new art teacher. She was just out of school and was so excited to be using a sticker chart. Every class she had was listed on a big piece of paper and it had the dates across the top. Every month she would start a new chart. At the end of the month she would count which class recieved the most stickers for being a good class, and they would get cookies she made. The problem was that most little kids could care less about art, and her cookies did not taste very good. They were hard and tasted like salt, so they weren't a good treat! So needless to say, the sticker chart was not a very big sucess.
Now if she had brought in the Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies that would have been a whole other story!!!
In class we talked about sticker charts and I thought that was funny because in another one of my classes we were talking about rewards systems, and wether or not charts like that would work. When I was in elementary school, I remember we had a new art teacher. She was just out of school and was so excited to be using a sticker chart. Every class she had was listed on a big piece of paper and it had the dates across the top. Every month she would start a new chart. At the end of the month she would count which class recieved the most stickers for being a good class, and they would get cookies she made. The problem was that most little kids could care less about art, and her cookies did not taste very good. They were hard and tasted like salt, so they weren't a good treat! So needless to say, the sticker chart was not a very big sucess.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)