Journal #1; First Elementary School Visit

As I took my first visit to my school of West on a dreary Wednesday, I attempted to find the correct building and park in the correct spot, while in the downfall of rain, which seemed to be a task in itself.

Once inside, I was seated in the office while I waited for other FNED students in the program to arrive, and for the literacy coach to give us an orientation. She gladly walked us through the activities and steps of tutoring and volunteering, then brought us each to our individual classrooms. There, I was introduced to the six students I would be working with. Each group of three kids got to split their time with me and I found the whole visit quite enjoyable. I look forward to returning next week!

Talking Points #2: Rodriguez

1. "An accident of geography sent me to a school where all my classmates were white, many the children of doctors and lawyers and business executives."

-I found this quote on the first page to be stand out because it is an example of how geography can play a large role in how you live, or are viewed in society. It reminded me of the reading Amazing Grace, by Kozol because that book was a large discussion on how location can be a struggle in life. This quote is displaying that idea.

2. "We lived among many gringos and only a block from teh biggest, whitest houses."

-When I read this at first, I laughed at the grammar used because gringo, is Spanish slang for a white, English person. I also was confused knowing what gringo meant, if the 'whitest houses' part of the sentence referred to the actual color of the houses, or the people who lived in them. It was just an interesting set up.

3. "It was her public face the mortician had designed with his dubious art."

-The last sentence of this reading was stand out to me because it displays the underlying message that growing up in an English speaking society, not knowing the speech of many as a first language, gives two different personas to people. The person who is comfortable in their own skin, and the person who tried to mold to what society accepts.

Talking Points #1: Kozol

Jonathan Kozol; Amazing Grace

Samantha Taylor

1. "Depression is common among children n Mott Haven. Many cry a great deal but cannot explain exactly why. (p. 4)"

- This is a stand out quote to me because it demonstrates the emotional stress put on children living in such a bad area. It is strong for me because the children don't even have reasons for why they are crying, yet neurologically and emotionally they keep becoming more and more unstable.

2. "Come on over here, I'll show you how to end your life. (p.)"

-This quote stuck out to me mainly because it was such a strong statement to add in at the end of the reading and it made me realize just how hard it must be to live in a place that it seems impossible to escape from.

3."We came here in chains, and now we buy our own chains and we put them on ourselves. (p.)"

-The last stand out quote to me was this because it is displaying how some people are oppressed because they can in some ways do it to themselves, and they get into bad things such as drugs that bring them down even more.

I found this reading to be different because it was factual, yet also included statistics and evidence as well. I liked the incorporation of both to make it a better read article. While I read it, I was interested as well as informed, alike the story of Wind-Wolf, and the Indian father's plea.

It also relates to over texts we've read because there is much discussion on diversity, and poverty, both of which play into the idea of scawmp. The discussion on minorities and their struggle to survive can greatly connect to the "culture of power" and the Johnson reading on oppression.

First Post #1

I am currently a freshmen at RIC, and my major is El. Ed./Special Ed. with a minor in Spanish. So far my semester has been going well, I don't have a vert hard schedule and I enjoy my classes more than last semester.

While I'm not in classes I enjoy hanging out with my roommate/best friend Meghan. We live on campus in Sweet. When we're not out or doing homework I like to play the piano and listen to music.