'Tech Class'

Graduation requirements

2005-11-08T10:36:00.000-08:00

4) What are your feelings about your academic career in light of knowing your graduation requirements?

I don't really care. We might have a whole lot fo requirements, but I do not look at it any different. I knew this was a college prep school, I knew what I was getting into from the beggining. I feel no different.

What? Learning style test results....again?!

2005-10-04T11:05:00.000-07:00

We seem to be doing everything the same as last year, we're taking the learning style tests AGAIN....

This time 'Spatial' - learning through pictures and such -is still my strongest, and 'Intrapersonal' -thinking deeply -the weakest. BAH! They're just not asking the right questions. Everyone knows the amount of thought and depth I put into my stories and characters!

But this year, the other categories all tied - Musical, Kinesthetic, Verbal, Logical, and Interpersonal. A step up?

As for improving the way I learn....there's not really much I can think of to improve. If I do good in everything what is there really to improve?

I think this test isn't accurate. I mean, some stuff applied only halfway - and the descriptions of the learning style dont fit the questions!

Animo

2005-06-17T10:57:00.000-07:00

I think it was very stupid of them to ruin things like that, because then you can't use them anymore and everyone just gets madder and tense. I wish people would stop doing things like that because then we can get more things like candy....
I also want to know who keeps stealing the computers because they keep saying they caught someone and they know who it is but they won't tell us who. And thats not fair because its our school too.

Biology Class Extra Credit

2005-06-17T10:37:00.000-07:00

Myth: Tobacco is not a drug.
Fact: Tobacco contains nicotine, a drug which can cause dependence. Nicotine increases the heart rate, constricts the blood vessels, reduces the appetite, and changes many body functions.

Nicotine is found in cigars and cigarettes. That is what makes them so addictive. They are also carcinogenic, which means they can cause cancer. It also increases the level of 'ad' cholestorol. Even secondhand smoke containing nicotine is harmful. But people keep chewing or smoking it because it makes them feel good. Nicotine is a natural alkaloid, like caffiene. It works by releasing adrenaline and increases neurotransmitters like endorphins which make you happy.

Vista LA Animo schools report

2005-05-06T11:09:00.000-07:00

What did the report talk about?
It talked about how the animo schools from greendot were doing compared to other schools
What new things did you learn from the report?
steve barr had a midlife crisis? And theodore roosevelt is the biggest highschool with 5300 students.
What else do you want to know after viewing the report?
Ummm....I wanted to know which school was which. They kind of melded all the animo schools together, I could only tell which one was our school, but not the others
General comments.
We were on TV?

Green Dot Schools

2005-04-20T14:00:00.000-07:00

a. What did Mr. Barr talk about?
He talked about what we want to do with the school and about the other animo schools.
b. What did you find the most interesting? Why?
Which classes we wanted because I had a lot of ideas.
c. What do you think about Mr. Barr?
I don't know. He's just...Mr. Barr. He made the animo schools...does that make him like...president of the animo schools or something?
d. What did Mr. Barr teach you about leadership and making change in your life? In this school? In this community? In this world?
To do more things to get things started. To try to make deals to do what we want to do.

Hole in the sidewalk

2005-04-04T12:51:00.000-07:00

1) Do you think the author really fell into holes in the sidwalk? What do you think the "holes" in this poem are a methaphor for? What kinds of "holes" have you fallen into in your life?
Holes in the poem is a metaphor for things you do that are wrong, or things that make you feel down. I have often fallen into holes during second semster of school; i always get worse grades.
2) When I first read this poem, I thought of what's happening to your grades. Some of you seem to be stuck in hole #2: your grades go down; you pretend you don't see it; you have "F"s again; you can't believe you're in the same place; you say it isn't your fault; it takes you forever to get out or you don't get out at all. Which hole are you in right now? Why do you think so?
The hole where you know it's your fault but you dont care/can't get out?
3) In terms of your grades, what do you have to do to reach step V and not fall into the hole of letting your grades drop? If you have already reached step V, how did you get there; and what advice can you give to the students who are stilling falling into "holes"?
Get homeschooled. Cause that's a whole 'nother street. Haha, I think I'm actually supposed to say 'try harder and not go down the street that makes me fall, like do all my homework etc etc'. But I think sometimes people say or try it but they never do or can't keep it or it doesnt work and they go down the street with the grand canyon anyway.

Students Expelled

2005-03-11T10:39:00.000-08:00

We recently had a few students not allowed to come back to Animo Venice for long time, almost like being expelled. This is because they shot a bb gun at a teacher, and now we're having conferences and questions about it...

a. What do you think about the incident with Luis and Chris?
I think it wasn't a very smart idea to bring those guns to school and even worse to shoot someone with it.
b. What do you think about the decision that was made about Luis and Chris?
Well a lot of people don't want to see them go, but the decison was kind of fair I guess and couldn't be stopped. Not now anyway.
c. What do you think about yesterday’s student assembly?
That our student speakers were not getting the respect as opposed to if they were teachers or something. Everyone was so quick to boo or clap for things, and generally be really noisy.
d. What do you think could be done differently in the future?
....Think before you act? Only people can stop themselves from getting in trouble.

Ethnic Studies class questions

2005-02-18T13:07:00.000-08:00

1) Luis Rodriguez said he joined a gang because he wanted power. Do you think he has power now? Why or why not?
Yes, I do think he has power now. He changes the live of people all over, he influences people and tries to do things to help people and to help the community. He has acheived these goals.

2) Do you think Luis is a leader? Why or why not? Yes, he is a leader. He fights for his goals and for other people, he gets things done and leads people to do things.

Ten Questions

2005-02-14T13:05:00.000-08:00

These are the ten interview questions I've compiled for Technology for the person I'm writing a biography of:

1. When and where were you born and raised?

2. Do you consider yourself as a leader? Why or why not?

3. Do you like helping people? Why or why not?

4. Why do you think other people think of you as a leader?

5. Who do you think is a leader? Why do you look up to them?

6. What do you think are your best qualities? Why?

7. You've stopped people from committing suicide. How did you convince them? Why? (Question may be left blank if it is too personal.)

8. What do you want to do when you grow up? (ie a career, where you want to live, goals etc)

9. What do other people think of you?

10. What is your favorite thing to do?

Leaders

2005-02-08T13:01:00.000-08:00

1) What is a leader? What is the difference between a good leader and a bad leader?
2) When and where have you been a leader? Describe the moment you were a leader.
3) In your life, who do you consider a leader? Why?

1) A leader is someone who inspires people to do things, leads people and projects to their goal and is a strong person who has responsibility for the group and their actions. A good leader is responsible and knows what's going on whereas a bad leader does not know what to do and is off in thier own little world (or just has a bad cause/goal like Hitler. Hitler was a leader...just not a morally good one.)
2) I am sometimes a leader in groups. I keep people on task and moving. Umm....I felt in control?
3) In my life, who do I consider a leader? People who aren't sheep and go their own ways are leaders to me because they're doing what they want without people bossing them around. They're their own leaders. And sometime they can lead people into 'fads' O_o

Danny Trejo

2005-01-28T10:36:00.000-08:00

1. What did Danny Trejo talk about yesterday?
He talked about societies and jail and his cousin Gilbert who got a life sentence on top of life sentence. "He talked about people making bad choices and good coming out of good things he did for other people.
2. Of all the things he said, what connected with you the most? Why?
The part about what happens in jail to 'pretty' guys....because I didn't think it was very funnywhen evryone laughed because I already knew what happens (because I watched TV o.o; I don't know anyone in jail)
3. What did you learn from his talk? How can you take what he leaned and apply to your life, this school, your home, and your community? Don't make bad choices and be good to other people for no ulterior motives?

What will you remember about your generation?

2005-01-14T13:11:00.000-08:00

What will you remember about your generation? What will you hold as important to you?

I'll remember the day of the 9/11 tragedy, the morning a friend called and frantically told me to turn on the Tv and saw the towers fall, the discussions and absences from my school that day. I'll remember my passing interest in the first election and the opinions my friends had about the second one. I'll remember the increasing amount of anti-bush and bush is stupid thing on the internet, the controversial flash animations about war and presidency. I'll remember my old friends and the new ones I made, the schools and teachers and years I passed through, and my own developments and art, my thoughts and feeling. I'll remember my mom's sickness and fragility, I'll remember the hard times and the good, I'll remember my evil cat and loyal dog. I'll remember this generation as one of sadness, and the war as something we shouldn't have done. I'll remember innocence and ignorance lost. But I'll remember that after every rainy day the sun will come out.

My Winter Vacation

2005-01-03T13:56:00.000-08:00

I didn't do much over winter break. I went to a friend's house for about a week (during Christmas) and then the day before school started I attended a birthday party of one of my school friends. For Christmas I got a Chesire cat clock, a new backpack, and two Hellsing books. My friend Karol got a Gameboy Advance Sp and two Sonic games, plus Animal Crossingand Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles. We've almost finised FFCC already, and in half the time than the first file. Also the birthday party was at Build-a-Bear Workshop and everyone got to make a stuffed animal. I made an army dog and named him Erik.

Why do you hurt yourself? Answer

2004-11-29T13:00:00.000-08:00

Why do you hurt yourself?
Dear Students,

I want to tell you something that I've been noticing this month. Many of you like to hurt yourself.

For some reason, you guys like to do things that end up hurting yourselves. Some of you still refuse to complete all of your homework. In the end, if you don't do homework, who do you hurt? Do you hurt the teachers or your parents? Maybe a little bit. But if you think about it, not doing your work won't hurt me because I'll still get my paycheck. You, however, will suffer in the end because you won't be prepared for college.

If you do drugs or inhale stuff, who do you hurt? Not the teachers or your parents because we're not the ones damaging our brains. A lot of you still don't understand how hard it is to succeed in college. You will need all of the brain cells that you have right now. Each brain cell you kill means you're one brain cell dumber than other people. So, tell me, who do you hurt in the end when you do drugs?

If you act out in class, and you don't learn the stuff, who do you hurt in the end?
If you fight, and you get suspended from school, who do you hurt in the end?
If you copy homework or cheat on tests, and you don't learn the stuff, who do you hurt in the end?
If you need help with homework, and you don't come to office hours, who do you hurt in the end?
If you have a problem in your life, and you don't get help from us, who ends up getting hurt in the end?

When I said "Think before you act" in my last letter, this is what I meant. Before you actually do something stupid, think about what will happen and who you're going to hurt. I'll bet you, in the end, you will hurt yourself the most. There's enough pain in this world; why do you think adults are always looking for happiness? So, if you can't stop others from hurting you, then you can at least stop yourself from hurting yourself.

If you don't understand what I mean, come talk to me. Make sure you save this email, because I will ask you to copy it in the future, to remind you that you're hurting yourself again.

With love and respect,

Mr. Hsu

Questions:
a. Describe a situation where you had “hurt” yourself in the way that I described in my letter.

b. Discuss what you can do to prevent other students from hurting themselves.

c. Talk about whether my letter made sense or not. Do you agree or disagree with what I said? Why?

Answers:
a. I hurt myself a lot because I can never remember things. Sometimes I don't remember that I have to bring a certain book or if I turned in a certain homework and that hurts my grade. Another thing is that I trust people too much. Once I let someone I didn't even know borrow my math book (this was in 6th grade) for a day because they had taken me by surprise early in the morning and I wasn't thinking. They ended up keeping it for about the entire semester and I couldn't remember who it was I lent it to, and eventually we had to pay for the book. I can't remember if she ever gave it back or not.

b. We could stop them from copying homework, or at least your homework. You could tell them what the homework is if they ask though because its the helpful thing to do especially if the person is very forgetful.

c.Yeah it made sense but the title made it seem like it was about physical abuse like cutting yourself or something. And I sort of agree with your letter. It's not okay for someone to cheat or copy all the time or anything. It's just not right and not fair for the other students. But if it doesn't affect the whole class (like a grade curve or something) some people will think its ok to cheat because it just pertains to them and no one will get mad. I don't think grade curves or things that hurt only a certain percent in the class are a good idea though it's like saying those people are smart and the ones on the other end are stupid.

Grades and questions

2004-11-08T13:10:00.000-08:00

a. What do you think about your grades? Do you like or dislike what you see? Why?
b. How can you improve your grades further?
I've very happy with all my grades except for biology. I have 4 A's (Geometrey, English, Spanish[A-] and Curriculum skills) 2 B's (In Tech and Ethnic Studies[B+]) And one 58 F in Biology. I am not happy with the F but otherwise I like whatever else I have, except I need to give a little push in Ethnics for an A and watch my Spanish so it doesn't go down.

c. How do your grades at Animo compare to your grades in your last school?
I think I did better at Animo. I have almost 5 A's and one F. I still had an F last year though but that was on account of the teacher (who had the be replaced second semester and the replacement failed everyone on the first day and was very negative and racist for the first week.)
d. Was there anything unfair about how you earned those grades?Which grades? These grades? Last year's grades? No, but I remember a lot of people at my middle school copied homework from other people. I don'tlike letting people copy my homework, so I don't.e. If you received comments, what do you think about them?
They're probably true on some basis otherwise they wouldn't have been commented that way.

My weekend..

2004-11-01T13:12:00.000-08:00

So I'm supposed to write about my weekend? Well....
I was sick all weekend. So I didn't go anywhere, or do anything. Not even on Halloween. That sucked. I had to miss school on Friday too I was that sick. Bad bad throat. I always get sick when the seasons change. I didn't even buy a costume because I sort of was gonna use my graduation dress which was a long chinese mandarin color green one, it was really pretty. I got to talk to my friend in Southgate online on the computer and I got to take a 'class' on the Gens. Molly was the teacher of it, and it was mainly to explain it to her friend Dusk. That was pretty cool, and I actually got some stuff right, haha. I started my super-secret art project too, muahaha, but I've only got one picture I'm coloring because I can't seem to get the lineart of the others to look right. Oh yeah and I got permission frm Tard to draw MR RIBBON/Yhetla/Altehy too. He's scary but he's cool. Also drew another picture of NiGHTS/Plum-bum with his hat haha XD. I also had the strangest dream: The toilet was an insant messaging program and the words were like 'projected' onto the porchlein tank (the part with the flushy thing) and 'attachments' or sent stuff just like popped out of thin air. That was strange. Well my friend sent me like this little egg-shaped bath toy or whatever and it came with a note that said 'Eggmanism mixed with Confucious' (Eggman from Sonic games) and it was all very strange. Anyway, so I didn't really get to do anything this weekend, just went on the comp and drew and be sick.

My personality type

2004-10-13T14:42:00.000-07:00

I took a test in Tech class for personality, and I'm a INFP - Introvertive iNtutitive Feeling Percieving

Strong value systems
Warmly interested in people
Service-oriented, usually putting the needs of others above their own
Loyal and devoted to people and causes
Future-oriented
Growth-oriented; always want to be growing in a positive direction
Creative and inspirational
Flexible and laid-back, unless a ruling principle is violated
Sensitive and complex
Dislike dealing with details and routine work
Original and individualistic - "out of the mainstream"
Excellent written communication skills
Prefer to work alone, and may have problems working on teams
Value deep and authentic relationships
Want to be seen and appreciated for who they are

Those are some of the facets of a INFP. There were jobs also, and the only thing that upset me was that it didn't say artist....BUT! At least writer was there.
Also, for love, it said I was an idealistic and romanitcally-minded person....
For personal growth, I need to understand what's important to me, recognize my weaknesses and not hide behind them, and strive for balance.
You can learn more about me here.

The Elections at Animo

2004-10-13T13:59:00.000-07:00

a. What do *you* think about the elections going on at Animo Venice?
b. What do you think about what Mr. Chang is saying about the elections?
c. What kind of candidate should you choose? Why? How will your kind of candidate affect you as a student at Animo Venice?
d. What can *you* do to make this a better election?

A. I think that the elections are indeed pointless (at the moment) and that for some reason the whole school has become very 'political' all of a sudden without actually knowing the meaning of politics.
B. I think Mr. Chang was right in his blog. The students aren't learning anything but how to make flashy posters and bribing votes with candy, and, as usual with most contests, it's become a popularity contest.
C. I would choose the canidate who seems to fit the most for the job, because that's why they're running for that job, because they think they can and they want to do it! I'm not sure how it will effect me as a student though.
D. I really have no idea. I don't even know who the canidates are (usually in the presidential elections for the US Pres they tell you whos running....more or less.)

Learning Style Test RESULTS! Whoo!

2004-10-11T13:56:00.000-07:00

Okay, first there are seven categories - Verbal, Logical/Mathematical, Visual/Spatial, Kinesethic (touch), Musical, Interpersonal (leader), and Intrapersonal (self).

According to the test my strenghts are Spatial-visual (which is indeed true because I am an artist, I can think in 3d and colors and such) and Interpersonal (which is SO wrong because I can't even ask a clerk for extra ketchup packets, I'm so shy -.-)

According to the test, my weaknesses are Verbal (which is wrong. I LOVE to read, I've been a reading fanatic since I was little, since 5th grade I was already reading far above my reading level and always do well on the reading/spelling/vocabulary parts of tests), Intrapersonal (SO VERY WRONG! I always have little ideas running around my head with stories and characters that I'd much rather listen to than some people, and a lot of times deep serious thoughts) and Logical/Mathematical (I'm not surprised, I hate math, and I hate reality and logic BLAH it's SO much more FUN to twist logic around and into a undefinable lump....I'm very good with computers however, does that count?).

List three things to improve the way you learn:
Listen to more music, probably. I never listened to much music until recently, and its good for drawing to.
Ask more clerks for extra whatever.
Don't watch as much anime. It ruins perception of expressions....(One of the questions was are you aware of yours/other's expressions and blah blah something....eh what do you expect I have a bad memory....with unimportant things anyway)

Nabil's blog

2004-10-06T14:19:00.002-07:00

Nabil is currently in highschool, but when he started his blog sometime before November 13 of 2003, he was 16 years old. He's very much into football (soccer in America) and football video games, he likes wrestling, and shooting/strategy games (specifically Medal of Honor, Empire Earth, etc). He also writes a lot about his school, what they do and his exams. His opinions on the war in Iraq are good (for lack of a better sentence right now). Sometimes the things he posts in his blogs I don't agree with, like when he secretly laughed at an American soldier for being afraid of a bomb, or that Saddam Hussein should have commited suicide instead of getting caught by the soldiers. He's Sunni, not Shiee (I think that's how he spelled it). You can read more about Nabil here.