I got the iPhone a few months after it came out and I must say it is pretty awesome. It is probably the most futuristic phone out there. What makes me so mad that as soon as it came out what's the first thing people do? That's right, figure out all the things that are wrong with it. These people don’t even own the phone and say how badly it “sucks”. A number of people complained about the price of the phone when it first came out $400 for a 4G and $600 for an 8, wow. Nobody seems to remember that when the RAZR came out, it was $500, and now you can get it for free at walmart. Everyone keeps saying that the Verizon voyager is so much better than the iphone but its really not. At first glance the Voyager looks like an iPhone knock-off. The iPhone is an mp3 player with the largest highest resolution screen, 10 years of iPod technology and also applies mac software which blows the voyagers software out of the water. The only thing I like about the voyager is the keyboard.. I like the design of the iPhone a lot better and of course its much sleeker and nicer looking than the voyager. It also has a built-in memory and double-click zoom. I don’t think the iPhone is in any danger of extinction because Apple has such a loyal fan base. The iPhone is very innovative, the first of its kind, and will only get better as Apple updates the software.
Monday, April 28, 2008
iPhone
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Thursday, April 17, 2008
In the Classroom
Last semester for my special education class we had to complete so many hours of observations. I would like to share this experience because I feel that being in the classroom and seeing what it is like day by day had a big impact on my life. I thought it would be a breeze being a special education teacher because there are so many paras in the room. This experience did not change my mind about wanted to become a special education teacher but it certainly had a huge impact on the way I felt about it.
I did my observations at P.S.30 elementary school. The principal is Mrs. D. Spina, the assistant principal is Mrs. K. Nuzzela. I picked this school because I went there and my little brother still goes there. The class I observed was a third and fourth grade special education class. There was a total of thirteen children in the class. The teacher is Ms J Owens, and the paraprofessionals are Ms. Mucchino, Ms. G. Persico and Mrs C. Miskowitz.
At first I was a little nervous because I did not know what to expect. When I got into the classroom I said good morning and surprisingly all of them said it back at the same time. From that point on I realized that there was nothing to be worried about and that these children seemed to be a nice, respectful group. The teacher told the class that they had a visitor because people want to see how wonderful they all were doing, and that seemed to put a smile on most of their faces.
On the board all the way on the right hand side there was a list titled “Flow of the Day”, it said 8-9 science, 9-10 reading (tree of birds/word study), 10-11 math patterns of the day, 11-12 lunch, and 12-1 HW/ writers workshops. I thought that this was a good idea because the children can understand what needs to be done to have a successful day at school. Next to the “Flow of the Day” was homework and one of the first things the class did was to copy down the homework in the brown homework book. I would say that it took the class a good twenty minutes to write down the four things they had for homework. The teacher and the paraprofessionals kept walking around the room to push them along if they got distracted or began to daydream. When they were finished the teacher began the math lesson. The Obj (objective) was to use patterns of hundreds and thousands. The rule was when adding or subtracting hundreds only the hundred place changes, and when adding or subtracting thousands only the thousand place changes. The students did not really grasp the math lesson. The teacher seemed to be getting frustration that they were not grasping the lesson. She finallysaid that they needed more practice and crossed off the math homework. I noticed that a lot of the children seemed to be in a different world. They kept making funny noises and squirming around as if they were bored, and the teacher would yell.
When they were finished with the word study the teacher told the class to get into their assigned reading groups. One of the boys refused and began to curse at the paraprofessional. The para seemed to get really frustrated and began to yell back at him. He finally calmed down and got into his group. There ware three different groups, the teacher was working with one group and the paraprofessionals were working with the other two. One of them went over word study words using flash cards. The other group worked on book called “Tree of Birds” and they did a story map, and the last group worked on vocabulary words.
I feel that doing observations was very rewarding. I got the chance to see what it was like being in the classroom with these special needs children. It is defiantly not as easy as some people think it may be. You have to have a lot of patience with these kids. Im glad I was assigned to do this because I received first hand knowledge on the way special needs children learn and behave. I feel that the only way of knowing if a career as a teacher is right for you is to actually observe in the classroom. I am looking forward to spending more time in the classroom.
I did my observations at P.S.30 elementary school. The principal is Mrs. D. Spina, the assistant principal is Mrs. K. Nuzzela. I picked this school because I went there and my little brother still goes there. The class I observed was a third and fourth grade special education class. There was a total of thirteen children in the class. The teacher is Ms J Owens, and the paraprofessionals are Ms. Mucchino, Ms. G. Persico and Mrs C. Miskowitz.
At first I was a little nervous because I did not know what to expect. When I got into the classroom I said good morning and surprisingly all of them said it back at the same time. From that point on I realized that there was nothing to be worried about and that these children seemed to be a nice, respectful group. The teacher told the class that they had a visitor because people want to see how wonderful they all were doing, and that seemed to put a smile on most of their faces.
On the board all the way on the right hand side there was a list titled “Flow of the Day”, it said 8-9 science, 9-10 reading (tree of birds/word study), 10-11 math patterns of the day, 11-12 lunch, and 12-1 HW/ writers workshops. I thought that this was a good idea because the children can understand what needs to be done to have a successful day at school. Next to the “Flow of the Day” was homework and one of the first things the class did was to copy down the homework in the brown homework book. I would say that it took the class a good twenty minutes to write down the four things they had for homework. The teacher and the paraprofessionals kept walking around the room to push them along if they got distracted or began to daydream. When they were finished the teacher began the math lesson. The Obj (objective) was to use patterns of hundreds and thousands. The rule was when adding or subtracting hundreds only the hundred place changes, and when adding or subtracting thousands only the thousand place changes. The students did not really grasp the math lesson. The teacher seemed to be getting frustration that they were not grasping the lesson. She finallysaid that they needed more practice and crossed off the math homework. I noticed that a lot of the children seemed to be in a different world. They kept making funny noises and squirming around as if they were bored, and the teacher would yell.
When they were finished with the word study the teacher told the class to get into their assigned reading groups. One of the boys refused and began to curse at the paraprofessional. The para seemed to get really frustrated and began to yell back at him. He finally calmed down and got into his group. There ware three different groups, the teacher was working with one group and the paraprofessionals were working with the other two. One of them went over word study words using flash cards. The other group worked on book called “Tree of Birds” and they did a story map, and the last group worked on vocabulary words.
I feel that doing observations was very rewarding. I got the chance to see what it was like being in the classroom with these special needs children. It is defiantly not as easy as some people think it may be. You have to have a lot of patience with these kids. Im glad I was assigned to do this because I received first hand knowledge on the way special needs children learn and behave. I feel that the only way of knowing if a career as a teacher is right for you is to actually observe in the classroom. I am looking forward to spending more time in the classroom.
Corn Snake
I’ve always wondered why a number of people are afraid of snakes. They make excellent pets. I currently own a snow corn snake also called a complete albino corn snake. My snake is very beautiful, his name is Pinky. He has striking ruby red eyes and a white body with pink markings. I got him at a carnival of some sort about two years ago. I felt sorry for him because it was late and pretty chilly out and he was the last creature to be sold besides a couple of fish that were on the table. He eats frozen mice, I started him with pinkys and as he grew I gave him fuzzies. Right now he is about two and a half feet long but he can grow up to 6 feet. Pinky is very mild tempered and will only strike at me if I scare him, otherwise he is very friendly. I love him very much and I recommend a snow corn to anyone who is a beginner snake owner.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
World of Warcraft
Many of you might of heard of the game World of Warcraft. My little brother plays and he got me into it. At first it looked really stupid. Like why would I ever want to play this stupid looking game for $15 a month? After weeks of my brother begging me to try it I finally sat down and got feel of it and learned how to do everything. The game got really exciting for me. Maybe even too exciting. This game is a very popular MMORPGs (Massively Multi-player Online Role Playing Games), created by Blizzard entertainment, and it is known for being extremely addicting. You strive to train your character to make him/her stronger, more advanced. As your character advances, his or her progress begins to slow. It takes longer and longer to get to the next level, because you need more and more experience points each time. You feel compelled to continue because at when you get to a new level you get a really cool spell or other ability that's supposed to make the game more fun. The game is designed to make you play as much as possible. Dr. Orzack, who is the founder and coordinator of the Computer Addiction Service, says “This isn't about willpower or restraint,” she said in an interview. “These games are very elaborately designed to ease you in gently, entice you, and keep you there. And it’s a cycle: people begin to spend too much time playing and their careers and personal relationships begin to deteriorate.” I think that this is really scary. People have to worry about being addicted to a video game just like they have to worry about becoming addicted to cigarettes or drugs. Maybe it would be a good idea if these kinds of games came with warning label just like cigarette boxes have warning labels. I know if I didn’t go to school, or have a job, or a life I would be sitting home playing this game. Its going to be a great summer! I should of listened to that guy at best buy who told me not to buy it.
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060809-7459.html
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20060809-7459.html
Sunday, April 6, 2008
My New Pet
I got this Green Iguana a couple of weeks ago from my friend who was moving to Florida and couldn’t take it with her. She was very upset but knew I would be able to take care of it good. She had it in a 20 gallon take which was clearly too small for the lizard who is about 3 and a half to 4 feet long, so I went to the store and the guy said that a big rabbit cage would be perfect for it. Green Iguanas can average around 6.5 feet in length and weigh about 11 pounds. They are also among the most popular reptile pets in the United States, despite being quite difficult to care for properly. In fact, most captive iguanas die within the first year, and many are either turned loose by their owners or given to reptile rescue groups. Unlike my bearded dragons the iguana is a herbivore, which means they feeding on leaves, flowers, and fruit. She has a strong jaw with razor-sharp teeth and a sharp tail, which makes up half of her body length. Her tail can be used as a whip to drive off predators. She is really very sweet, until she tries to whip my dog. She taught Cocoa (my dog) a valuable lesson, stay away from the iguana!
Yankees Opening Day
The game was postponed due to the rain but it was worth the wait! Yankees beat the blue jays 3-2, winning the first game of the season. Chien-Ming Wang did awesome, limiting Toronto to only 2 runs and 6 hits spread over 7 innings of work. Cabrera had 2 catches out in center field, and also was responsible for a run, he knocked it over the fence! It was a great game, New York Yankees (1-0) win this one, defeating the Toronto Blue Jays (0-1)
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