Freshman Year Reflection

One change in myself that I have experienced during my first year of high school is my maturity level when it comes to my academics. Before I came to high school I would put my personal life before my school work because it would bore me to death, not saying that it doesn't bore me to death now, but I know that my school work is more important for sure. Before I came to high school I would just wait until it got extremely late to do my homework and go to bed really late and wake up and be tired during the day. Now I come home, rest for a little while, then do my homework and focus, that is, when I have homework. Sometimes I get behind but in the end I always get done what I need to do.This change that I have experienced has been very good for me because now I put my school work first because it's what I know I'm supposed to do and it will help me in the long run to do it when I'm supposed to so I don't get very far behind and have a lot of work to do at the of the marking period. Even though sometimes I still get behind a little, it's never as bad as it was before. I believe now that my grades are very important now because of the colleges and because I've never wanted to fail anyway and I always wanted to make sure I got good grades. I remember one specific time when I had a science project due the next day and I hadn't started yet, then I fell asleep and woke up around almost 1:30 am and did my project. I think that my grade was okay but I knew I hadn't put a lot of work into it and that I was really tired. Overall, that is one of the biggest changes that I have made in my first year of high school, focusing on my work more, and I think that it has been a good change for me.

Will Smith Slaps Reporter.

Recently, Famous Entertainer, Will smith slapped a reporter for being too affectionate. The reporter tried to kiss Will Smith in the mouth and he pushed him away then slapped him in the face. Some say that Will didn't have to slap him but I think that the reporter shouldn't have tried to kiss Will Smith. They say that the reporter that Will Smith slapped is a television reporter who often kisses celebrities-- it's his schtick but obviously, Will Smith didn't like it at all. I think that Will Smith had a right to slap the reporter because why would you try to kiss somebody you don't know, celebrity or not, you shouldn't do that, especially if it is another man and you don't know if they like stuff like that. I think that is getting too personal and too comfortable. I think everybody has their standards and needs to have their personal space. After Will Smith slapped the reporter, he stated to another reporter "He's lucky I didn't sucker punch him!". Some of the camera people and the other reporters were shocked that Will Smith had slapped the reporter and thought that he over exaggerated and that he didn't have to smack him, but you don't know certain people and how they might react to certain situations and how they might feel about certain things so thats why he shouldn't had kissed Will Smith and he deserved what he got. For more information on this new story go to: http://www.tmz.com/2012/05/18/will-smith-slaps-reporter/

This I Believe " Just Say No"

"Just Say No" is what Jessica Paris from Juneau, Alaska seems believe. She believes that it is more than just a slogan from the 1980s, its a credo that gives her the freedom to discover the things she truly wants to experience in life instead of succumbing to the instant gratification pushed by so much marketing. She believes in saying no to sugar before lunch, no to high heels, no to a cell phone, no to artificial sweetener, no to pierced ears, no to bottled water, and no to carrying a balance on my credit card. I think that her belief could be right in many ways, for example saying no to things that mostly everybody does like eat fast food or eating sweets, or spending their money on things that you may not think are that important and theses things could actually help someone in a big way, for instants, it could cause you to be more healthy and also save money. She also agrees that every no is a yes to something else and I agree with that 100 percent. Her saying no to other things gave her a chance to do better things, for example , instead of buying a car, she used that money to go on a trip to India, where she road trains,camels, and a festooned elephant. She also believes saying no to some of life's shimmering pleasures buys her a moment of peace and find out what her heart truly desires, and that no is not deprivation, its deliberation and that no is not loss, its freedom. Overall i think that Jessica's believe is not bad at all and that it is true in many ways.

Career Day at Parkway.

Recently at Parkway West, there was a career day. Each class had three visitors and each visitor had 15 minutes to present. The three visitors that I saw were Ms. Singleton who is an Attorney, Mr. Hegler who is a Commercial Banker, and Mr. Hanible who has his own Tax Business. I thought that these presenters were very good and that they were interesting when talking about their careers and what they do for a living. Ms. Singleton, the Attorney gave some background information on her were she came from and were she got her education from. She went to Overbrook High School, She graduated College with a B.A, then she went to Law school for three years and also said that you need seven years of school after high school to be a lawyer. She also said that she does mediation which is dispute revolution. Mr. Hegler ,who was a Commercial Banker said he loans money to starting businesses, small businesses, and to help businesses. He also said that he has a Business Management Degree and has his Bachelors Degree. He also said that he went to Delaware State University. lastly, Mr. Hanible, who has his own Tax business, he said her left high school in the 11th grade. He went to Vanguard, then he got his G.E.D., and that helps people with retirement, complaint letters, and other things like that. I liked that all of the presenters made me interested in their careers and made them seem like really good jobs.

Afghan Girls , Scarred by Acid, Defy Terror, Embracing school.

In this article it explains how young girls in Afghanistan are being burned in scarred by acid that is being thrown on the by men because they are going to school but the man don't want women to go to school and get knowledge because they want them to remain uneducated and for them not to be able to do anything. One Morning, two months ago, Shamsia Husseini and her sister were walking through the muddy streets to the local girls school when a man pulled along them on a motorcycle and posed what had seemed like an ordinary question. He asked the girls if they were going to school, then he pulled Shamsia's burqa from her head and sprayed her face with burning acid. Scars, jagged and discolor, now spread across Shamsia's eyelids and most of her left cheek. I think that it is horrible that young girls have to go through something like this. Why would men not want women to learn and get an education? I think that this is unfortunate for these young girls, they should be able to get an education and not be bothered with these kind of problems. The sad thing is that these two sisters are not the only ones that had to go through such a horrible tragic, it was a lot of other young girls also. I think that whoever has sprayed these girls faces with burning acid does not deserve to be walking around and not suffering consequences. I hope that this situation is resolved soon because these girls shouldn't have to go through this.

SongeBob Bad for Learning?

In this article it talks about how watching the cartoon  " SpongeBob SquarePants" is bad for preschoolers because just nine minutes of watching the program can cause short - term attention and learning problems. A study was done and it turned out that children performed worse on tests than kids who didn't watch the show. In the study scientists examined a group of 60 4-year-old preschoolers. The scientist divided the children into 3 groups and gave them nine minute assignments. The first group would watch SpongeBob, the second group would watch Caillou, and the third group would not watch T.V at all, they were asked to draw pictures instead. After the nine minute assignment researchers gave the preschoolers some common tests of thinking skills , after examining the results, the scientists learned the group that watched SpongeBob scored worse on the test than the other kids did. I dont think that watching SpongeBob could affect a childs learning because it is just a cartoon and if SpongBob can do that, than im sure other cartoons could to. I know that kids way older than preschoolers that watch spogeBob and it doesnt affect them at all. I think SpongeBob is just a fun and cool cartoon that kids like to watch because it is ammusing. I kbow that kids that age will conyinue to watch SpongeBob because that study doesnt seem right because that means that is a lot of other cartoons that could have the same results as that study.

Dirt Bike Tragedy!

14 year old Jermaine Alexander was killed in a bad dirt bike accident in Frankford. He was riding his bike when he collided with another car by accident. His family thinks what had caused the accident is that the cops was chasing him and he ran into another car and then past away. The cops say that is not what happen but a friend of Jermain's said that he saw what happened. I feel bad that this has happened to Jermaine and his family. I think that if the cops did chase him and made him crash into another car then it is their fault about what happened. I also think that the cops shouldnt chase people who have those kind of  bikes because of their speeds even if they are illegall to ride on the streets because the something like this could of happened at anytime. Dirt bikes are dangerous and cops should never chase them because most likely the dirt bike will get away anyway because of it's speed. I hope that justice comes to the Alexander family and that they find out what actually happened to their sun for him to die. I also think that people should be safe when they are riding dirt bikes and wear their safety wear so that they do not get hurt as much.