Biology Peer Tutoring - 12/15/09

Today was my first day of tutoring for biology. I'm coming into this activity with great hopes for myself and some goals that I've set. I really hope that I can be an effective tutor, given the fact that I have no prior experience in tutoring peers. My main goal is to teach the students about biology; I don't just want to tell them the answer, but instead thoroughly explain it to them. I also want to establish a symbiotic relationship in which I learn from them as well.

Zach and I both helped tutoring today. There were three students that needed help, two freshmen and one sophomore. They were all working on a worksheet that Mrs. Kehoe had assigned them for homework and that they didn't finish. It was about transcription and translation, a topic I know well, so I felt very comfortable in helping them. Whenever the students were feeling discouraged, either Zach or I tried to talk them through the problem. I certainly was not just giving the kids the answers, but instead I was approaching the problems by providing background information and encouraging the kids to remember the answer I knew they had in their heads. This seemed like an effective method and I definitely think that the kids learned what we were teaching them, not just guessing on the problem or copying what we said.

I was very happy with our first day of tutoring and I think the kids were satisfied as well. This was certainly a challenging new thing for me, coming in with no prior experience, but I think I developed some new skills in teaching methods. I learned that I should show the steps for the student to get the answer, not just give it to them. All in all, job well done.

Academic Team Update - 12/15/09

Today at Academic Team we resumed practice of the lightning round. Dr. Stewart had a giant book of random lists of trivia. We were given bells to ring when we knew the answer. The questions had to do with airport codes, international cities and rivers, and other things like internet domains. I think I did well on them considering by aptitude for geography. That is definitely one of my strengths on the team, and I think that when we have to choose players for the lightning round in January that I will be chosen if the topic has anything to do with geography.

After we finished up practice on the lightning round, we moved on to Trivial Pursuit questions. These always tend to be challenging and random. I did well on the geography ones, but did miss a few including one about the Eiffel Tower. There was another moment where Mr. Scott asked the city that Orly Airport served, and instead of saying Paris I said France, which made me feel very embarrassed. For the most part, we did really well on the Trivial Pursuit questions and everyone on the team made fair contributions.

In the most recent Academic Team meetings, a unilateral rivalry has been developing between Marliee and me. She seems to take it as an offense when I know an answer to a question that she doesn't. It makes me feel bad that she gets angry at my success, and I really don't understand why she does. Because of this conundrum, I was forced to consider the ethical implications of my actions when I decided to approach her about it. I didn't know if it was the best idea to talk to her about her opposition to my success, but I decided that this rivalry needed to be resolved for the betterment of the team. I asked why she was acting like this and she said that she sees my extensive geographical knowledge as impressive but also a fault of hers because she knows very little on the subject. I asked her to stop with this competitive attitude and she agreed that she will lay off the rivalry. I hope it will end and that by deciding to talk to her about it, our team will get stronger.

Sturgis Curling Club Update - 12/14/09

It is such a pain to drive to Falmouth every Monday for the Curling Club. There always seems to be issues with rides and carpools and getting there on time. Because Falmouth is about 45 minutes away from the school, each Monday we have to make elaborate plans so that everyone arrives at the Curling Club on time. Despite the nuisance it is to get there every week, I think that it is ultimately worth it. I think this shows that I am committed to the activity because I manage to get there every week despite the hassle of organizing rides and then having to get back from Falmouth so late at night.

Today at curling we had our first game. We split into teams of two and three. My team consisted of Rachel and me, and the other team was Brian and Fabio. We were then each assigned a skip. My team had Adam Paul and Brian and Fabio had Mary Colacchio. We then began the game. Fabio got off some really good shots and the other team quickly had the lead. Rachel and I weren't working too well together and we were having issues with aiming the stone. I wasn't doing to well sweeping her stones too. We managed to get off a good shot towards the end that knocked out some of the other teams stones. Adam really helped us to aim the shot and know what to do while we were curling.

We lost the first set and did progressively worse score-wise on the next two. However, Rachel, Adam and I worked better together and were able to improve on our aim and our shots in general. The score didn't reflect the improvements we made throughout the sets. I was pleased with our effort and I think that if we are able to practice before we curl next time, then we will do better. I know that I was struggling in maintaining the correct form while throwing. My shots are alright, but there is definitely room for improvement. I need to make sure I can keep my balance while throwing and throw the rock at the correct speed. My aim and sweeping are another two weaknesses I can improve on. Despite my curling flaws, I do realize that this was our first game and due to inexperience we were bound to fail. I'm still satisfied with our efforts and I hope next time we can work well together and I can improve my mistakes.

Advisory Programs Reflection

The advisory programs consisted of the Turkey Dinner Program for CACCI and the Dress A Live Doll program for Salvation Army. I have never organized any community service like this before, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to practice doing work for the less fortunate around me. I had the goals of effectively raising the money to buy the items needed for the turkey dinner and the Dress A Live Doll gifts, shipping them off on time, and simply feeling satisfied for making somebody's holidays a lot better. I thought these goals were appropriate and not far-fetched. They were all achieved.

I basically planned and organized both of these programs. From day one, I set goals for the advisory and quotas of food or money to be brought in. I assigned jobs to each person and delegated responsibilities, while at the same time bringing in money and food myself. I played a very active role in the collecting of food and money for the Turkey Program, and in the collecting of money and the buying of gifts for Dress A Live Doll.  The two programs were complete successes. We packaged a great turkey dinner for a needy family and bought tons of clothing for a young boy who otherwise would receive no Christmas presents. I was incredibly happy with myself that I could complete service projects like these and be such a positive and giving presence in the community. It really felt good to give to those less fortunate, and I was satisfied with my contribution. 

The activity was very valuable because I got experience in raising money and doing service for the community. It also obviously benefited others because the advisory collected food and gifts for those less fortunate. I really learned a lot from this activity. For one, I learned how to be a leader and organize a service program. I learned how to interact with the other people doing the programs with me and correctly delegate jobs and tasks. Teamwork was essential to the completion of these two programs. I also had to learn how to overcome difficulties that arose during these programs. Some of the members of the advisory did not participate or were not enthusiastic about doing service. We really needed help from everyone, but when some people didn't want to contribute, the rest of the advisory - including myself - simply picked up the slack and worked harder. I also think these two programs helped developed my aptitude for developing and planning service projects and helping out the community, which could be beneficial for my future if I choose to join the Peace Corps or something similar.
 
I really enjoyed doing this activity and I think that these two programs were great service projects. I had a lot of fun and feel proud of myself for donating my time, money, and effort to the less fortunate in the community. It really meant a lot to me to help those in need because my family has suffered times of financial instability when it would have been great to receive aid from the wealthier people in the community. Now that my financial situation is stable, it was great to give to those who might be in a similar situation to the one that my family was in. 

This activity met learning outcomes 3, 4, and 5. It met learning outcome 3 because I had to plan and initiate both of the programs. I organized who would do what, when the items or money was due by, and when we would shop for the Dress A Live Doll program. It met learning outcome 4 because even though I acted as the leader and sort of planned the programs, I still had to worked collaboratively with the other members of my advisory to achieve the desired result. If it weren't for the help of everyone, we wouldn't have been able to collect food or gifts for the less fortunate. Finally, it met learning outcome 5 because I persevered and stayed committed to the activity from the first day to its completion.

Model UN Update - 12/10/09

Yesterday we had a quick meeting after school with Lucia and Marjorie, in which we discussed briefly how to do the position papers. Today during the meeting at lunch, Mr. Fetzer gave us more tips for the position papers and reminded us that they are due by January 8th. This is going to be a huge challenge to undertake. I barely know where to begin. Mr. Fetzer told us that all the information we need for our topic can be found on the Model UN website. However, this is still a very difficult task to undertake on top of my already heavy load of school work. But I'm confident that if I collaborate with my partner Amy and we can fully comprehend what we are supposed to do, then I will do the position paper successfully and on time.

At lunch we also went over some points for debate. Mr. Fetzer read us some bylaws and important tips to remember while debating. He made sure that we remembered the most important aspects of a debate and he hopes that we will take advantage of any opportunity we have. He also reminded us not to ally with our enemies, even if we are in favor with their plan. It is going to be difficult to uphold all of the views of Macedonia, but it is essential in order to be successful in MUN. As for now, all we can do is memorize the rules and regulations of debate and do our position papers so that we are fully prepared for the trip in April.

Model UN Update - 12/9/09

We had a short meeting after school today to discuss the position papers. Being new to MUN this year, I don't know too much about how to write the position papers. Thankfully, Lucia and Marjorie briefly explained to us what to do. Amy and I are on the Legal Committee for Macedonia, so we will each have to write a position paper on one of the two topics, and then revise the work of the other one. It is definitely a difficult challenge to undertake. I know very little about the international policies of Macedonia and it will be tough to do research and write an entire paper. On top of schoolwork, it will be quite a burden, but we have until January 8th so I hope I will be able to complete it.

We are supposed to have another meeting tomorrow at lunch to continue learning about the position papers and learn some points about debating. I am very eager to learn how to be an effective member of MUN because I think the knowledge I gain in this club will be great for my worldly education. I want to go to college for international relations so I hope that I can be successful as a part of MUN.

Key Club - Dance Preparation - 12/9/09

For the past two weeks, Key Club has been working on planning for the school dance. We decided to host it at Heritage House on Main Street and have it be a semi-formal. I haven't participated as much as I would have liked too, but I have attended all of the Key Club meetings and I volunteered to sell tickets for the dance. I was supposed to sell tickets last week, but complications in planning for the dance delayed the sale. But despite the set backs we persevered with the plans for the dance. I am very committed to Key Club so I sold tickets this week. It seems to be a success so far. I sold something like 15 tickets at 10 dollars each, and a lot of kids came by to pick up guest forms but didn't pay. I can't attend the dance, which is unfortunate, but I hope a lot of people go because the funds that Key Club makes for the dance are going to Saint Jude's Hospital. I wish I could participate more in the organization of the semi-formal, so hopefully I can set up the dance on Saturday if I have free time.

Academic Team Update - 12/8/09

We got the results today about how we did on our first competition. Nationally, we ranked somewhere in the middle of the pack, which was good considering our first time. I can't help but wonder if I had been there, would we have received more points? Oh well, that wasn't the issue, we were happy with our results and then moved on to more practice for the official televised competition.

Today, instead of answering 50 questions as a team like we usually do, we practiced the lightning round, which will be another element of the competition in January. Subjects were world rivers, famous authors, chemical symbols, and many more. It became evident again today that my strength was geography, as I knew almost all of the locations of the rivers that were said by Dr. Stewart. I was proud of my performance in this subject and can recognize that I am an asset to my team in this way. However, I definitely need to make improvements in other subjects such as science and math. I was glad we practiced the lightning round today, because I developed the skills of quick reaction and quick answering of a question. Usually the team tries to answer the question as fast as possible, but the lightning round helps you learn how to do that individually. Speed and accuracy are two essential new skills that I learned.

We ended the meeting answering some Trivial Pursuit questions. I am generally satisfied with our progress so far and I think we are definitely smart enough to take on the other top teams in the state. We just need to work on team unity, especially between Marliee and I. Often times she gets mad at me if I answer a question she wanted to answer, or if I get the question right and she gets it wrong. We bicker often and I think we need to fix our problems and focus on the team before a personal rivalry.

Sturgis Curling Club Update - 12/7/09

Today was our second official day of curling. This week, all of the 12 current members of the club were present. A few of us arrived early, myself being one of them. I was able to watch some curling on TV. It was great to see the professionals curl, because you notice all the improvements you can make in an attempt to be as good as they are. It was also great to watch some curling because you pick of some of the terms that curlers use while playing the sport, such as a guard stone or a double.

Because Tory, Fabio, and I were early, we were allowed to get a head start on curling. We put on the shoe covers and headed out to the sheets. As a quick review of what we learned last time, an instructor showed us the throwing motion again, and then we all repeated her. After getting readjusted and comfortable to the motion, we were allowed to throw for the first time. Nobody wanted to try throwing first, so I volunteered and gave it a try. It wasn't a bad throw, but it was difficult to maintain my form and keep my balance, especially after letting go of the rock. I needed more power in my thrust and needed to work on my aim, as the stone was curling off of the intended path.

I received some pointers from the instructors on how to improve my form and augment my power, such as pushing off harder from the blocks and following through with my hand in the direction of the throw after I had released the rock. I did a few more practice throws, and by that time the rest of the Sturgis Curling Club had arrived. Upon their arrival, we moved on to sweeping. The action of sweeping was easy enough to learn, but it was hard to know when to start and stop sweeping, how close to go to the stone, etc. Let's just say that sweeping was not my forte. I worked hard on it but wasn't very successful.

In all, this day of curling was very productive. I realized that I have some strengths in throwing the stone. I have a lot to work on, such as aim and power, but one of our instructors recognized my emerging skills and said I was a natural curler. Learning how to sweep was a great new skill to develop and it certainly required a lot of effort. However, it is obvious that sweeping is one of my weaknesses, so hopefully by next meeting I will be able to improve.

Model UN Update - 12/6/09

I finally finished my Macedonia research paper for Model United Nations. It was assigned probably 4 or 5 weeks ago and it was supposed to be due on Friday. However, my week was unexpectedly stressful and I didn't get a chance to finish. I felt ashamed that I couldn't turn it in; the entire MUN team for Macedonia was relying on me so that they could use the research to start their position papers.

Despite my failure, I knew I could finish it by Monday to hopefully redeem myself. I worked diligently all weekend and finished it at about 1 o'clock in the afternoon today. I was proud of the fact that I kept my head down and put hours into my work and got it done. It was certainly a challenge to undertake due to my heavy work load in other classes. It was difficult to balance writing the research paper with all of my other homework, but I overcame the challenge and got it done. I'm happy that I was able to persevere and complete the paper, and I think it shows that I am truly dedicated to the MUN team. Now, onto my position paper!

Soccer Reflection

I have done soccer for years now, so the activity of soccer wasn't a new experience to me. However, this year I was a captain of the team for the first time, presenting new responsibilities and challenges. My major goal of the year was to positively lead the team, develop my skills, and share my knowledge with others. I also hoped to be successful as a team, and hopefully make it to the state playoffs.

It certainly was a great soccer season. The captains, Brenton Eddy, Aidan Arnault and I, really led the team well. I felt great about our team as a whole and I was proud of every member and how they were all able to come together and form a strong team. At the beginning of the season, we weren't working cohesively and had trouble winning games. As the season went on, our skills and teamwork developed due to our practice and discipline, and by the end we were playing incredibly together and winning a lot of our games. I was able to interact with all of the members on the team, and in turn they interacted with each other, which solidified us as a team. Being the captain, if I positively influence the team or say something inspiring, the good energy will go through all of the team members. I think that I was a great asset to the team this way. I think my goals were met as well. I led the team well through my positive comments and the sharing of my skills and knowledge. And the team itself was very successful; for the first time in Sturgis history, we had a record of over .500 and made the state tournament.

I really enjoyed this activity. I love the sport of soccer and have played it for years. Being a captain added something new to this activity. I liked the feeling of responsibility and leadership, although at times it can be a bit overwhelming because I am representing and guiding the entire team. I am pleased with my success as a captain and in meeting my goals. The activity meant a lot to me as well. Being elected captain meant that my team respected me as a valuable player and a good leader, and the fact that under my captaincy the team made it to the playoffs for the first time just emphasizes that my goals were definitely met. The goals were not set too high or low, they were set perfectly. I just wanted to develop myself as a good player and captain because I knew that I could do those two things. I knew I could prove myself as an asset and a leader. I'm glad that one of my goals was success, but not so specific to say making it to the playoffs, because even if we hadn't made it this year I would still be proud of how well the team performed and my personal contribution.

There are even more reasons why being the captain of the soccer team was such a great and valuable CAS activity. I learned how to be a good leader of a team and how to take a more active role in team decisions and strategies. It could be difficult at times to stay on top of things and keep a level head, but I would just remind myself how much the team meant to me and I would remember how dedicated I am to being a part of the team. Also, the activity benefited everyone on the team. My captaincy and good leadership was a positive influence on the players. The experience I gained as a leader and as a team player can be applied to any job I take in the future.

Finally, this activity met six of the eight learning outcomes. Throughout the activity, I identified my weaknesses and tried to improve. I also tried to focus on my areas of strength, like leadership and passing skills, to try to share them with the team. This met learning outcome 1. This ties into learning outcome number 8, developing new skills, which I obtained by identifying my weaknesses in my game play and practicing to develop new soccer or leadership skills. Learning outcome 2 was met by the fact that I was a captain for the first time. It was certainly a new challenge that I had to undertake with no previous experience. Learning outcome 4 was met easily; being on a soccer team, all of the members are forced to work together collaboratively to make plays, score goals, win games, and be successful. Through our teamwork and perseverance we were able to succeed. This perseverance met learning outcome 5. I was dedicated to soccer since day one, and I knew it was an important commitment. Behind school, soccer was one of my top priorities. Finally, I met learning outcome 7 once in a while when fights erupted on the soccer field and I had to keep my composure as a captain, stay calm, and try to prevent bad sportsmanship. I am proud to say I did not get into a fight during the season and was opposed to members of the team that participated in the mindless violence.

School Culture Committee - 12/3/09

Today was the first meeting of the year for the School Culture Committee. A few weeks ago, we were all assigned to review the data gathered from the HSSSE Surveys that were administered last spring. I diligently reviewed them and prepared for our discussion in the meeting today.

Three of the eight members of the Committee were absent for the meeting, but we continued as planned. The major point of this first meeting was to review what the eight members had ranked as the most important data gathered from the HSSSE survey. We ranked the vast majority of the questions as important, so the 31 most popular questions were chosen to review. The Committee hoped that these questions would help contain the focus on what is most essential for defining the culture of the school. So we reviewed and assessed each of the 31 questions, adding insights and interesting observations to the conversation.

I think I contributed greatly to the meeting. Because the survey was taken by the students of the school, the opinions of Blake Tower and I, the only two students in the Committee, was highly valuable to understanding and interpreting some of the results. I love being able to have such influential contributions to the Committee that are respected by all the members. It is certainly difficult to try to decipher the culture of the school, but when all the members collaborate and share opinions, the impossible task seems easier.

Mr. Hieser assigned us to review the rest of the questions for next time and mark anything interesting. The School Culture Committee is definitely a great group to be a part of. It helps me to develop new skills in social studies, which could be very beneficial for my future, depending on what my career path will be.

Model UN Update - 12/3/09

Today we had a meeting for Model United Nations. There was no big purpose for this meeting except for to establish deadlines and tasks. I am assigned to doing the research paper for Macedonia, one of the three countries we are representing. It is a great challenge to undertake because it requires extensive time and research on top of normal school classwork. The paper was supposed to be due today but I have only completed half of it. Mr. Fetzer was disappointed but he understood, and the paper is now due on Monday. I felt bad that I didn't complete it because other members of the team need it to study the countries. However, I am committed to MUN and I know for a fact that I will persevere and complete the paper.

Besides this, Mr. Fetzer assigned a due date for the position papers. The position papers are a daunting task, but again, I am committed to MUN and I am confident that I will complete the two that Amy Swanson and I are supposed to do. For now, we need to get in our dues, work on our position papers, and for me, complete the research.

Dress A Live Doll Update - 12/3/09

Our advisory has been working for weeks on getting money to buy gifts for a less-fortunate boy named Xavier. In the last post, I described our shopping trip for him in Old Navy and Marshall's. It was great to see all of our work and money come together so that we could buy gifts for this little boy so he could have a great Christmas.

This is the last post for the Advisory Programs besides the reflection which will be up soon. Anyways, today and on Tuesday, our advisory worked on wrapping the gifts that we had bought for Xavier. I brought in wrapping paper and some boxes. We worked together to wrap all the gifts and write short cards for him. All of our teamwork had paid off.

It was great to complete this service project. I loved raising money, buying gifts, and wrapping presents so that this kid could have a great Christmas. We all worked together to get it done. I did a lot of planning for the activities so to see it all come together under my leadership was awesome. I was committed to the activity for the entire time, and my perseverance is evident in the fact that I finished the project.

Academic Team Update - 12/1/09

Today at lunch the Academic Team met. It was a fairly good day for us. We earned around 300 points, which has been an improvement over most of our meetings. We got most of the questions on the first try actually, but we did use some unnecessary second choice and got some others wrong that we should have gotten right. I think we can achieve more points than we have gotten, but we definitely have things to work on. Our teamwork and listening needs to improve. Sometimes a person will know the answer and other members will just ignore them. We need to collaborate to find the best answer in the quickest amount of time possible. However, I am generally pleased with our performance.

I think I did well personally. I know most of the geography questions, although this time there weren't as many so I didn't feel as valuable. I know that I am an asset though because nobody else on the team knows geography very well. However, I have things that I can definitely work on. I need to deduce the answer by eliminating more often, and also I need to speak up when I have a hunch that I'm right. I know that I can be helpful for the team, but I need to assert myself and my answers.

Today I was also forced to consider the ethical implications of my actions. Tomorrow we have the first competition but I had to make the decision between attending or going to Spanish class. I decided to go to Spanish class, because we only meet once a week and of course school comes first. However, it was a difficult decision because I love the Academic Team and I think I am a great asset with valuable knowledge. I didn't want to ditch the team during competition, but I'm sure they'll do fine and school is incredibly important.