Class Improvements

Change Review Weeks to Planning Weeks: I really like this idea because I wish I would have taken more time to plan out my schedule. At the beginning of the semester, I set a schedule, but I definitely did not follow it. I hadn't had the chance to get a feel for my semester, so I found myself motivated by deadlines more than anything. By having built in planning time, I think students will be benefited.

Expand the Story Planning Option: I loved being able to plan my stories. It is really hard to sit down and write a story that I am immediately happy with, so being able to plan actually made me enjoy the writing process more. As for the storybook, it would be nice if we could do planning assignments and get feedback from other students. I got feedback after writing a story, but by then, my main story elements were in place and the feedback really couldn't help shape or influence the story as much.

Create more audio recordings: This would be a really great idea for this class. It is sometimes hard to find time sit down and read, but there are plenty of times I could be listening to something (like while driving). I also think having it as an extra credit assignment would save you from recording so much. My only concern with this idea is that it would be much harder to take notes over the reading. I don't know if I would look for storytelling ideas while listening to a story.

Create writing tutorial videos: I think my students would appreciate these kinds of videos. It has been a while since I've taken any grammar/writing classes, so sometimes I find myself making mistakes, too. I also think it would be really helpful for less common types of writing like dialogue. I, for one, had done very little dialogue writing prior to this class, so it would be nice to have a reference when doing it.

Create thematic reading units: I really like this idea! I'm just not sure what themes you should do since many common themes are present across the different cultures the reading materials come from.


One suggestion I have would be to push the storytelling assignment back to Thursday. If the story is based on a reading done on Tuesday, it can really be hard to turn around and have a nice story within a day. Although the story planning option is helpful in this regard, I still think even the planning process can be hard when I've not had much time to think about it. Most of my a-ha moments for the storybook came after I thought about it for a couple of days. I also think the extra day would be helpful if a student were trying out a new way of telling a story. 

Tech Tip: Weather Widget

I decided to add a weather widget to my site after seeing another classmate with it on his. I want to know the weather at any given time so I can be prepared. With Oklahoma's weather, you can never be too sure what's going on in the sky.

Week 14 Storytelling: The Lonely Mermaid

"Grandma said I could start looking for a man when I turn 15," Ariel reminded herself as she counted down the second left until her 15th birthday. "Three, two, o--" Ariel was interrupted by a loud crack of thunder coming from far above her underwater abode. "That was unusually loud. Might my father be scaring off a surface-dwelling traveler again?"

Quickly swimming to peak her head out of the ocean, Ariel heard another loud crash. Only this time, it didn't sound like thunder. With her mermaid tail moving faster and faster, she soon made it to the top of the ocean to find a wooden vessel stranded on a rocky beach in the midst of a storm. "Surely they are seeking shelter," Ariel wondered to herself. She quietly swam closer, continuing to hide from view. She saw a few men carrying supplies ashore at a fast pace. The storm seemed to be picking up.

"Oh, my!" Ariel spotted the most handsome man she had ever encountered. She watched as he commanded his group of men to build an awning-like covering near a small cave. His skin seemed to glow. "He must be a prince!" Suddenly, another burst of lightning tore through the sky. That was Ariel's sign that it would be in her best interest to return to the depths of the ocean.

The next morning, Ariel's curiosity got the best of her. She got up extra early, before any of her sisters, to go take a look at that island. When she reached the outer edge of the rocky beach, she noticed the men still remained even after the storm blew over. It looked as if they intended to take residence on the island rather than simply take shelter. She desperately wanted to call out and make her presence known. She wanted to introduce herself to the man, and maybe he would be the one she marries. But she was too afraid to speak, so she silently watched. Soon, they had several maps flattened on wooden tables, being used in conjunction with sextants and telescopes. "What might they be up to?" Ariel pondered. She decided she would keep track of their work.

For weeks, Ariel would surface the waters early in the morning only to find the men doing the exact same tasks each day.  She felt like all of the work was meaningless. She wanted to know what was so important. But as each day passed, she became more and more disinterested in the men. She decided she would check on them one last time, but come morning, the men and ship had completely vanished. She circumnavigated the island looking for any sign of life. Once she returned to the point where she started, she decided she would never know. However, as she swam away from the island, she spotted something glimmering atop the water.

She quickly made her way to the object, to find a business card with the handsome man's image along with contact details printed with a metallic finish.  Hurrying back home, she looked the man up online. The first search result was for a blog about exploring. "Surely this is it," Ariel spoke to herself. The side of the web page confirmed her suspicions. There was the man -- a prince!

I, Prince Martin, have been out on the ocean for the past few months. As you know, it was prophecized that my soul mate would be a mermaid! I traveled to the only known location of mermaids, and I did the only thing I could do -- I waited! Yet, no mermaid came to me. I guess this is a cruel fate I must come to terms with.

Horrified at her decision to remain silent, Ariel began to post a comment. I was there! I watched you from afar, but I didn't know why you were there. Surely I am the mermaid foretold in your prophecy! she typed. But before she could hit send, she decided it was too late. He was long gone, and what are the odds he would actually believe her? Ariel turned off the computer and went to play with her sisters. She knew he was the man her grandma told her she would fine -- but he was gone.

~ ~ ~

Author's Note: For this retelling of The Little Mermaid, I focused solely on the part where the mermaid, who I name Ariel after the Disney version of the story, sees the man at the surface of the water. I extend the time she watches him to create an apparent timidness in Ariel. In the original story, she eventually meets the prince after trading her voice for human legs, but I decided that I wanted her shyness to represent her lost voice. I use her inability to speak as the way to the tragic ending of loneliness. Since this is a story I will be using for my storybook, I touched on a bit of social media -- a blog in this case -- just as a basis for when I write the full story.

Bibliography: Fairy Tales and Stories, by Hans Christian Andersen

Image:  Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen

Week 14 Reading Notes: Hans Christian Andersen, Part B

For this assignment, I chose to read the story of the Little Mermaid since that is the story I am adapting for my storybook. In my notes, I recorded things that stood out to me -- anything I might try to incorporate into my storybook entry.

The first character introduce is not the Little Mermaid, but instead the Sea King. Obviously, he must be included in my story. I also might want to include the marble statue the Little Mermaid adored. The story mentions she is 15. I think my story would have her at an older age, but I might start it at 15, progressing through her years to show how long she did not reach to the handsome prince (as I plan to do in my story). She also has a noticeable disconnect from all of her sisters. I would probably use this for conflict in my story.

The Little Mermaid has a notably beautiful voice -- which she later loses -- so I might use this as a feature of her. Since all the other stories I have written for my storybook maintain the original nature of characters (i.e. the wolf remained a wolf in my telling of Little Red Riding Hood), I have to figure out how to keep a mermaid a mermaid. I might need to expand on the side of the prince. He may have been in search of a mermaid to be his bride. I think the best bet is to give him motivation. I might even do one of those cheesy "find local singles in your area" type apps for a touch of humor.

A major piece of the original story is the loss of voice. I originally considered just having her too afraid to send a message to the prince. My intro mentions that this story was a blunder of Social Media's so I will need to find a way for him to screw up. I also might have his character act like she died to cover up his screw up.

~  ~  ~

Bibliography: Fairy Tales and Stories, by Hans Christian Andersen

Image:  Little Mermaid statue in Copenhagen

Wikipedia Trail: From International Romani Day to Czechoslovakia

 

Flag of the Romani People, via Wikipedia

International Romani Day: I first began with this article due to noticing it in the class announcements (and subsequently writing a blog post about it and how I studied the people in a world music class). I was mainly interested in knowing when it began, which was in 1990.

14th Dalai Lama: I then moved on to the Dalai Lama because I saw he lit a candle to commemorate International Romani Day in 2003. That seemed pretty significant to me, so I thought this would be the right direction to move down the rabbit hole.

Refugee: I then moved on to refugee because of a parallel I thought of. The Romani people were and are often thought of in the same way as many people in the US view refugees -- terrible people. They both are despised by many, even when there is nothing despicable about them.

Czechoslovakia: I ended my journey with Czechoslovakia because of my bloodline. There were many Czechoslovakian refugees during the Nazi era, so that tied well with the previous article. I am also 25% Czechoslovakian, so I thought it was cool to see how my ancestors are just a few jumps away from a holiday that celebrates a group of people that I have been studying in my world music class.

Growth Mindset: Growth Beyond School

This year school year, I have served as a program director for the Union Programming Board, and I can say with 100% confidence that it has been the single most challenging thing I have done in college. It has pushed me in so many ways, and I have seen growth in myself that I would have never imagined. Being able to call me a leader is something I never thought I would be able to do. Yet, here I am, two events down. I have seen growth in time-management skills, growth in empathy, and growth in self-confidence. My own mother was telling me today that it astounded her, and many others from my hometown, to see me flourishing the way I am. This was simply something so out of character for incoming freshman Todd.

Next year, I see even more growth for myself due to UPB. I will be taking on a new role on the executive board -- public relations director. Now, I get to learn a whole lot of new stuff. How to brand an organization, how to effectively use social media, how to market an organization so that we can attract more members, and so on. This is new territory for me, but I believe the growth will be worth the effort.

Image: plant, via Pexels

Learning Challenge: Sharing a Happiness Tip

One tip I've taken and applied to my life is keeping a journal. I've found that since I've started, my overall happiness has increased. I just write down things about my day, whether good or bad, and then I reflect on them. I write how I think it applies to my life and how I should react to those things. I have learned that there are a couple of things to keep in mind when journaling.

First, don't write down only the bad stuff. If you only write down bad stuff, you start to think that your life never has good stuff. Likewise, don't only write down the good stuff. I find it hard to be reflective and self-critical if I don't acknowledge what I don't like.

Next, don't make it easy to journal. By this, I mean you shouldn't have an always-accessible journal. Don't do it on your phone. If you can write something in an instant, you won't give yourself the time to think about the thing. You won't think about how it actually affects your life. You won't be able to realize you overreacted.

 Writing it down makes you acknowledge it's real and that it matters to you. It may not work for you, but it has definitely made me a happier person. I've been able to recognize and work on the aspects of my life that I want to change. But I think self-reflection, in general, can make anyone happier.

Image: journal, via Pixabay