Rockwood Conservation Area Youth Education Program Essay Example

Rockwood Conservation Area Youth Education Program Essay Example Rockwood Conservation Area Youth Education Program Essay Rockwood Conservation Area Youth Education Program Essay Rockwood Conservation Area Youth Education Program Introduction Take a Hike – Outdoor education is a multidisciplinary team consisting of 6 students from the University of Waterloo. Our goal is to develop and implement outdoor education programs promoting a comprehensive, flexible, and environmentally focused outdoor education program for the Ontario School Board. Purpose of Research The current education system focuses on learning within the confines of a classroom through the use of textbooks and worksheets designed to create a structured learning experience for students. Information obtained from textbooks allows students to comprehend and later regurgitate the material presented; nonetheless, interaction with the natural environment would strengthen knowledge through practical learning and hands-on experience. For that reason, the Rockwood Conservation Area would provide exceptional opportunities for meaningful learning. The purpose of this study is to develop an outdoor education program that employs the environment of the Rockwood Conservation Area. This program would be beneficial to the education of middle-school students as it would enhance their knowledge pertaining to nature, science and geography through active learning, which coincides perfectly with the Ontario School Board Curriculum. The program will be designed to hold neutral ideologies, and therefore, would be applicable to any curriculum (Public, Catholic and additional school boards). Related research on the subject has been compiled and reviewed, and is described in greater detail under the heading â€Å"Literature Review. † Site Information The Rockwood Conservation Area is one of many parks within the Grand River Conservation Authority’s watershed. This 79-hectare property was acquired in 1958, and opened its gates to visitors in 1961 (Chapman 1984). A portion of this property was later sold to the University of Waterloo in 1972 (McKenzie 2011). The Rockwood Conservation Area is located east of Guelph on the outskirts of the village named Rockwood, residing by the Eramosa River (Chapman 1984). Its location is accessible to countless schools in Guelph, Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, Hamilton, and the Greater Toronto Area. The conservation area possesses unique geological features, such as potholes created by the runoff of the Wisconsin glacier several thousand years ago, which includes the creation of the world’s largest pothole, the Devil’s Well (Morgan 2002). Morgan (2002) mentions that other features such as caves, wetlands, gorges, limestone cliffs, forests, trails, lakes and rivers can be found within the Rockwood area. Furthermore, camping, fishing, hiking, canoeing, and mini-golf are a few of the many recreational activities currently offered at the conservation area (Rockwood Conservation Area 2011). Literature Review Four main concepts were uncovered from the literature that was analyzed in relation to the implementation of an outdoor educational program. A deeper understanding of these four key concepts will help develop a more appropriate, as well as an all-encompassing program that would achieve its goal in all fullness. These concepts include curriculum, teaching techniques, benefits of outdoor learning, and conservation. The following paragraphs will specify relevant information pertaining to the proposed outdoor education program. Curriculum All school boards within the province of Ontario share the same curriculum. Under the Ontario School Board Curriculum, grade seven and eight students cover a wide range of topics that would be applicable to the development of learning activities for the proposed outdoor education program. The requirements of geography entails that grade seven and eight students learn about the environment, environmental issues, physical and human geography, and fundamentals pertaining to mapping. Regarding the requirements of science, grade seven and eight students learn about the impacts of pollution, water systems, the use of human technology and the use of fluids in technology and industry (Ministry of Education 2004). Teaching Techniques Through a thorough examination of journal articles, significant and positive teaching techniques were outlined. These methods can be utilized to enhance the learning and the overall outdoor experience for students. One study prepared by Vivian Shulman (2005), illustrated how teacher participation in planning workshops would lead to the development of discovery-oriented activities intended for student learning. This study was conducted in New York City, focusing exclusively on middle schools. Its purpose was to establish the impact regarding planning workshops on student academics. Thus, the study concluded that teacher involvement in planning programs would undeniably lead to a larger number of students meeting curriculum standards (Shulman 2005). An additional study presented by Terry Shaw and Terence Mills (1981), examined the association between outdoor education and student motivation in relation to learning. The results revealed that students preferred hands-on instruction and active learning in comparison to learning within a classroom. Additionally, student-teacher relations improved after such an experience (Shaw and Mills 1981). Simon Beames and Hamish Ross (2010) conducted their research in the Edinburgh area in England, which focused on the importance of student preparation prior to exploring school grounds, as this would reinforce knowledge pertaining to human and ecological influences on the environment. The findings revealed that students acquired the ability to construct their own learning plan appropriate to the demands of the curriculum (Beames and Ross 2010). Ina Stan’s (2009) study assessed the importance of facilitators and teachers that accompany school field trips. The area of study where the research was conducted was in a rural area of the English countryside. Stan (2009) concluded that facilitator presence and interaction with students would irrefutably contribute to a positive and successful outdoor experience. Furthermore, the experience appears to be most positive when the facilitator is directly engaged with the visiting group of students by means of social interaction, and thus, both will share in the learning experience (Stan 2009). Benefits of Outdoor Learning The vast majority of studies analyzed described the positive characteristics associated with outdoor learning. Peter Gibson’s (1979) article discussed the therapeutic benefits associated with outdoor activities. Gibson’s (1979) findings demonstrated that outdoor activities enabled participants to develop superior communication skills along with methods of handling conflict with others. Accordingly, these activities improved relationships amongst participants, while providing a more relaxed and non-restrictive learning environment (Gibson 1979). Chris Taylor, Sally Power and Gareth Rees (2010) performed their research in the United Kingdom, and based on their findings they declared that student participation in outdoor learning activities had essentially enhanced cognitive skills, personal development and improved social interaction capacities. A study performed in Melbourne, Australia by Cecily Jane Maller (2009), examined the correlation between the overall well-being of children in conjunction with hands-on contact with nature. The final results indicated that such activities had a positive impact on the emotional, social, and mental well being of children (Maller 2009). Richard Louv, author of the book entitled Last Child in the Woods, discussed the implications linked to the â€Å"Nature Deficit Disorder,† which was the focal point of the article presented by Kathleen Kennedy Manzo (2008). Louv declared that childhood obesity, depression, and the prevalence of attention disorders would amplify as a result of inadequate outdoor experiences. The necessity of nature-based learning is not limited to matters of health, as outdoor education can provide assistance in regards to student academics, social interaction, self-confidence, and will inevitably create an eagerness to learn and explore (Manzo 2008). Conservation The notion of conservation is quite significant especially when developing outdoor learning programs. The articles reviewed below portray student views in relation to conservation methods, and how their beliefs and attitudes have been altered after partaking in an outdoor education program. The study carried out by John Crompton and Christine Sellar (1981), utilized a sample group of third, fourth and sixth grade classes in Texas to show how outdoor learning can be used to influence children’s thoughts pertaining to conservation. The study concluded that outdoor education increased environmental awareness and sensitivity amongst students, and as a result, these newfound attitudes became a part of their beliefs (Crompton and Sellar 1981). Throughout Pavol Prokop’s (2007) article, he observed the short-term effects field programs had on student knowledge and their attitudes toward the environment. Prokop (2007) conducted his research in Slovakia, and he decided to narrow his study to rural schools, gathering student responses of those in grade six. The results show that student involvement in outdoor field activities had actually strengthened their knowledge of classroom material, and students became more appreciative of biological and ecological matters (Prokop 2007). Jeffery Marion and Scott Reid’s (2007) study centered on the use of low impact educational programs. These programs support a type of interaction with nature that leaves it completely undisturbed. Marion and Reid (2007) concluded that low impact education programs were successful in shifting participants’ attitudes in matters of conservation. As a result, participants were found likely to partake in conservation acts including reducing damage to the environment by means of disposing of garbage appropriately and following park regulations (Marion and Reid 2007). Methods Derived from Literature Review All the studies mentioned above obtained their data through participation and observation, and through the use of questionnaires, as well as focus groups. However, these methods have no implication on the outdoor education program that will be developed. The methodology that will be utilized for this study includes an analysis and observation of terrain and environmental characteristics. Therefore, the proposed study will not consist of data collection or participant input. The articles above were solely used to demonstrate the positive attributes in regards to the necessity of outdoor education programs. Therefore, their methodologies will not be discussed in greater detail. Goals and Objectives The goal of this study is to provide a comprehensive, flexible, and environmentally focused outdoor education program geared towards middle-school students, particularly those in grades seven and eight. This program will foster teamwork, creativity, and an appreciation for the environment, creating a positive experience gained through practical learning. Four objectives are required to achieve this goal. The first objective is to develop potential program activities that could be employed for the outdoor education program. The second objective is to analyze the conservation area for key locations that can be utilized for the program activities. The third objective would include the connection of these key location-based attributes to the designated activities, and relating this to the Ontario School Board Curriculum requirements. The fourth and last objective includes the construction of a flexible program that flows from activity to activity, covering a wide range of topics that coincides perfectly with the Ontario curriculum. Methodology The existing educational programs offered at Rockwood Conservation Area are sufficient for all ages; nonetheless, the research for this proposal will focus on improving the diversity of programs designated for middle-school students. Exploring background information pertaining to the Rockwood Conservation Area is crucial prior to fieldwork, as this will provide insight regarding past and present conditions, including geologic formations. Furthermore, through the use of topographic maps and aerial photographs, additional knowledge concerning the physical attributes of the area can be obtained. The significance of carrying out these methods is for decision-making purposes regarding where proposed educational activities will be positioned along the trail. Several literature reviews were conducted concerning the feasibility of outdoor learning as a core component of the Ontario school curriculum. Corresponding research topics included: learning benefits of outdoor education for both teachers and students, teaching techniques associated with mapping skills, and environmental awareness. The outdoor learning program currently offered at Rockwood Conservation Area was reviewed and taken into consideration for the implementation of proposed educational activities that would concur with any school curriculum. Prior to fieldwork, it is essential to determine the criteria required to construct an exceptional educational experience for students. Examples of such criterion includes the length of walking involved, the necessity of definite stops for discussion exercises, as well as enforcing students to remain on the designated path due to conservation issues and safety concerns. Lastly, the materials required such as maps of the area, a compass, and weather-appropriate gear, must be obtained prior to field research. Materials  · Compass  · Aerial photographs of Rockwood  · Map of the Rockwood Conservation Area  · Pens, pencils, notepad  · Mobile communication devices  · Digital Camera  · First aid kit  · Stopwatch  · Raincoats and boots Flexible Timeline January 7, 2011 (Friday) First class meeting: assemble a research group and decide upon a topic for the proposed research project. January 14, 2011 (Friday) Second class meeting: research was conducted in relation to background and site information of the Rockwood Conservation Area, as well as educational programs currently offered. The topic was narrowed down, and tasks were allocated to all group members. January 19, 2011 (Wednesday) First group meeting held at the Dana Porter Library, where each group member presented the literature they obtained over the past week, and explained its relevance to the proposed project. The project goal and objectives were discussed during this meeting. January 21, 2011 (Friday) Third class meeting: methodology, budget and timeline were considered. Each group member was given a section of the pre-field proposal report to be completed by January 26, 2011. January 26, 2011 (Wednesday) Second group consultation at the Davis Centre Library: integration of all components required for the final pre-field proposal. A team name was deliberated and decided upon. Group members were required to revise and format the field proposal on their own time. January 28, 2011 (Friday) Class meeting: submit a hard copy of the pre-field proposal. Discuss and finalize schedule for field visits. February 4, 2011 (Friday) Class meeting: amend the proposal and enhance project plan. Each group member will be responsible for bringing their own ideas regarding potential education programs to the class meeting. As well, the team must consider how the educational activities will be carried out. February 11, 2011 (Friday) Preparation for fieldwork: arranging rides, buying materials, considering safety precautions, and so forth. It is important to become familiar with the Rockwood Conservation Area through the use of maps. March 4, 2011 (Friday) First field visit to the Rockwood Conservation Area (by ourselves): take notes of the vicinity, and perform and strengthen activities. Take pictures to use in the final report. March 11, 2011 (Friday) Field visit with professor and teacher assistant: complete unfinished tasks from previous visit and carry out any additional work. March 15, 2011 (Tuesday) Group consultation: submit a summary of fieldwork. March 23, 2011 (Wednesday) Group consultation: prepare and practice for final presentation. March 25, 2011 (Friday) Give a class presentation: group seminar. April 15th, 2011 (Friday) Submit final report no later than this date. *Dates are subject to change due to weather variability. Budget Work Hours Research: 40 hours Includes preliminary research on methods and background information on Rockwood Conservation Area. Development of research plan and methodology Meetings: 100 Hours Includes weekly meetings to review and discuss methods, research, fieldwork, and the development of the education program. Reports: 50 Hours Includes production of statement of research and field plan, field work summary, and the final report Fieldwork: 180 hours Time for 6 Take a Hike researchers at Rockwood for 30 hours (Including travel) Analysis of site, selection of trails, and activity testing Summary of hours Item |Estimated* |Actual | |Research |40 | | |Group Meetings |100 | | |Reports |50 | | |Fieldwork |180 | | |Total: |370 | | * Labour costs are $25 per hour Materials/Additional Items Item |Estimated |Actual | |Field Supplies |$300 | | |Printing |$150 | | |Transportation |$250 | | |Meals |$350 | | |Total: |$1050 | | The total estimated labour and material costs for the development of the outdoor education program are $10,300. Actual figures will be provided as milestones are completed and the project progresses. Time Management Schedule Dates |Group Hours |Rey |Peter |Andrew |Rachel |Stephy |Zach | |01/07/2011 (In Class) |2 | | | | | | | |01/14/2011 (In Class) |2 | | | | | | | |01/21/2011 (In Class) |2 | | | | | | | |Components | | | | | | | | |Literature search | |1. 5 |2 |2 |3. 5 |4 |2 | |Methodology | | | | |2 | | | |Budget | | | |1 | | | | |Materials | |0. | | | | | | |Ethics | | | | | | |0. 5 | |Timeline | | | | | |0. 5 | | |Literature review | | |6 | | | | | |Editing |5 | | | | | | | Research and Ethics According to the Office of Research and Ethics, since the development of our project does not consist of research that involves humans as participants or research with animals, we do not need to apply for ethics approval from the University of Waterloo. We have the permission from the University of Waterloo for our research in the course Geography 391 – Field Research. In this course we will be working under the supervision of the Adjunct Associate Professor and Undergraduate Associate Chair, Ian McKenzie for the remainder of the Winter 2011 term. Conclusion The various studies examined confirm that the development of an education program within the Rockwood Conservation Area would be beneficial to its participants. The core components of the Ontario School Board Curriculum for science and geography, particularly for grades seven and eight, could easily be integrated into an outdoor education program using the unique natural landscape of the conservation area. Moreover, the teaching techniques associated with outdoor education programs would benefit both the students and teachers in matters concerning social interaction, academics, cognitive abilities, creativity, and physical health. Finally, nature-based learning exhibits conservation methods used to boost environmental consciousness. Take a Hike – Outdoor education can provide all services needed to accomplish this task and develop a comprehensive program for the Rockwood Conservation Area. ***Still need to work on works cited!!! Bibliography Stan, I. (2009). Recontextualizing the role of the facilitator in group interaction in the outdoor classroom. Journal of Adventure Education Outdoor Learning, 9(1):23–43. ( informaworld. c om/smpp/content~db=all? content=10. 1080/14729670902816611) Marion, J. , Reid, S. (2007). Minimizing Visitor Impacts to Protected Areas: The Efficacy of Low Impact Education Programmes. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 15(1), 5-27. Retrieved from EBSCOhost. ( informaworld. com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a907373106~frm=titlel ink? words=minimising,visitor,impacts,protected) Chapman, L. J. and Putnam, D. F. (1984) The Physiography of Southern Ontario; Ontario Geological Survey, Special Volume 2, 270p. Accompanied by Map P. 2715 (coloured), scale 1:600,000. Toronto: University of Toronto Press Morgan, D. A. , (2002). The Grand Strategy: May-June 7, 4. Glacial Potholes at Rockwood 1-2. Rockwood Conservation Area, Summer 2010. Rockwood Conservation Area: A geological and biological treasure chest. Beames, S. and Ross, H. (2010). Journeys outside the classroom. Journal of Adventure Education Outdoor Learning, 10(2):95–109. ( informaworld. com/smpp/content~db=all? content=10. 10 80/14729679. 2010. 505708) Shulman, Vivian, and Deirdre Armitage. Project Discovery: An Urban Middle School Reform Effort. Education and Urban Society 37. 4 (2005): 371-397. Scholars Portal Journals. Web. 18 Jan. 2011. Shaw, Terry, and Terence Mills. Involved and Uninvolved Student Perceptions in Indoor and Outdoor School Settings Involved and Uninvolved Student Perceptions in Indoor and Outdoor School Settings. The Journal of Early Adolescence 1. 2 (1981): 135-145. Scholars Portal Journals. Web. 19 Jan. 2011 Prokop, Pavol. â€Å"Short-Term Effects of Field Programme on Students’ Knowledge and Attitude Toward Biology: a Slovak Experience. † Journal of Science Education and Technology 16. 3(2007). Web Jan 2011. DOI: 10. 1007/s10956-007-9044-8 Crompton, John L. Christine Sellar. â€Å"Do Outdoor education Experiences Contribute to Positive Development in the Affective Domain? † The Journal of Environmental Education 12. 4. 1981. Print. Gibson, Peter M. â€Å"Therapeutic Aspects of Wilderness Programs: A Comprehensive Literature Review. † Therapeutic Recreation Journal 2nd quarter. 1979. Print. Ministry of Education. â€Å"History and Geography. † The Ontario Curriculum. 2004. Ministry of Education. â€Å"Science and Technology. † The Ontario Curriculum. 2004. McKenzie. â€Å" Year when University of Waterloo bought property in Rockwood. † Personal Communication. Jan 21,2011.

Practice in Identifying and Correcting Verb Tense Errors

Practice in Identifying and Correcting Verb Tense Errors This proofreading exercise will give you practice in identifying and correcting verb tense errors. Before attempting the exercise, you may find it useful to review our pages on regular verbs and irregular verbs. Instructions The following passage contains 10 errors in verb tense. The first paragraph has no errors, but each of the remaining paragraphs contains at least one faulty verb form. Identify and correct these errors. When youre done, compare your answers with the key below. The Worst Tourist The least successful tourist on record is Mr. Nicholas Scotti of San Francisco. In 1977 he flew from America to his native Italy to visit relatives. En route, the plane made a one-hour fuel stop at Kennedy Airport. Thinking that he has arrived, Mr. Scotti got out and spends two days in New York believing he was in Rome. When his nephews are not there to meet him, Mr. Scotti assumes they had been delayed in the heavy Roman traffic mentioned in their letters. While tracking down their address, the great traveller could not help noticing that modernization had brushed aside most, if not all, of the ancient city’s landmarks. He also noticed that many people speak English with a distinct American accent. However, he just assumed that Americans were everywhere. Furthermore, he assumed it was for their benefit that so many street signs were written in English. Mr. Scotti spoke very little English himself and next ask a policeman (in Italian) the way to the bus depot. As chance would have it, the policeman came from Naples and replies fluently in the same tongue. After twelve hours traveling round on a bus, the driver handed him over to a second policeman. There followed a brief argument in which Mr. Scotti expresses amazement at the Rome police force employing someone who did not speak his own language. Even when told at last that he was in New York, Mr. Scotti refuses to believe it. He was return to the airport in a police car and sent back to California.–Adapted from Stephens Piles Book of Heroic Failures, 1979) Answers The least successful tourist on record is Mr. Nicholas Scotti of San Francisco. In 1977 he flew from America to his native Italy to visit relatives. En route, the plane made a one-hour fuel stop at Kennedy Airport. Thinking that he had arrived, Mr. Scotti got out and spent two days in New York believing he was in Rome. When his nephews were not there to meet him, Mr. Scotti assumed they had been delayed in the heavy Roman traffic mentioned in their letters. While tracking down their address, the great traveler could not help noticing that modernization had brushed aside most, if not all, of the ancient city’s landmarks. He also noticed that many people spoke English with a distinct American accent. However, he just assumed that Americans were everywhere. Furthermore, he assumed it was for their benefit that so many street signs were written in English. Mr. Scotti spoke very little English himself and next asked a policeman (in Italian) the way to the bus depot. As chance would have it, the policeman came from Naples and replied fluently in the same tongue. After twelve hours traveling round on a bus, the driver handed him over to a second policeman. There followed a brief argument in which Mr. Scotti expressed amazement at the Rome police force employing someone who did not speak his own language. Even when told at last that he was in New York, Mr. Scotti refused to believe it. He was returned to the airport in a police car and sent back to California.–Adapted from Stephens Piles Book of Heroic Failures, 1979

Ethnic Studies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Ethnic Studies - Essay Example The film presents a compelling love story about a couple from different races. Jihah is in pursuit of the American dream and delineate s himself from the Korean culture. He makes Sophie happy by giving her a child, which is her lifelong dream. The film is not about who Sophie ends up with, but rather if she becomes happy. She gains her self-fulfillment through the relationship with Jihah, who she contracts to make her pregnant and save her marriage. Even so, they are both strangers who have sex, but desperately try to avoid intimacy. In their loveless encounters, the two visibly seem to fight the need to bond. Eventually and inevitably, they find themselves in a relationship despite the commercial nature of their relationship. Although Sophie is a well-to-do woman, her infertile husband, who is also Korean, puts her in an awkward position in which she cannot be a mother. The fact that she hires someone to inseminate her makes it lean towards a cross-class relationship, but the later romantic relationship means that it is an interracial relationship. In addition, Sophie dates a wealthy Korean man and this signifies their interracial relationship. Although there is the exchange of money, a late-blooming passion alters the happy conclusion of the film. None of them bargained for the emotions that accompany their interracial

A key historical development such as the development of the tripartite Essay

A key historical development such as the development of the tripartite system or the introduction of comprehensive education - Essay Example The British transition provides an excellent way for the study of the effect of a comprehensive system as compared to selective schooling system on the student's achievement. In the traditional British school system, scholars would attend an academically selective grammar college at age 11, or they would attend a secondary modern school, which used to be academically less hard. The tripartite system had its disadvantages and also its advantages but the criticisms made it necessary to development of comprehensive education, which was friendlier to the students and all the scholars involved. Starting within the Nineteen Fifties, there was once dissatisfaction with choices on the local level, and a few native authorities began to experiment with comprehensive colleges. In 1965, the local authorities requested the Local Education Authorities (LEAs) to make plans to convert to a comprehensive education system. The implementation went on slowly, with sooner growing, more Labour leaning LEA s moving to comprehensive colleges more quickly while Conservative leaning Authorities implemented the amendment extra slowly. Presently there are still few conservatives offering grammar schools as an option INTRODUCTION National school programs range extensively within the quantity of skill tracking of scholars they provide in secondary school. Some education systems are based on comprehensive systems, where students of all abilities go to similar schools, although there is typically some tracking within the schools. Other systems channel students at an early age into different school types based on academic standards (tripartite system). The British idea is appealing since it involved a significant and a well defined change in terms of the ability of secondary school scholars, thus offering a potential way to assess the importance of comprehensive education system on student achievement. Comprehensive education is an education system where selection is not based on academic found ation or competency. A tripartite education system was created by the 1944 Education act and provided the basis of a state funded secondary school sector. The structure was to have three schools, which were grammar school, secondary technical school and secondary modern school (Education Act 1944). In the essay, we are going to discuss why Britain switched to the comprehensive system from tripartite system and the setbacks and advantages of the comprehensive system. We are also going to look at the key areas in the development of the comprehensive education system and the factors which lead to its implementation. Comprehensive education can be looked at as an improvement of the tripartite system, but it also has its own disadvantages. Historical development of Comprehensive Education from the Tripartite System in Britain The 1944 Education Act or the Butler Act brought about the tripartite education system which was found on the belief that at eleven years of age it was possible to measure intelligence of a child, the basis of this is to make a choice on the  activity, or career the child  might be suited to. Children sat the 11+ exam which was made up of English, Math and IQ tests. Those who passed were deemed to be more academic and would then proceed to secondary grammar school while the other would go to lower level grammar school. By the early 1960s, many LEAs were devising and reorganizing plans to end the traditional

A comparative study of Sydney Carton in Dickens A Tale of Two Cities :: GCSE English Literature Coursework

A comparative study of Sydney Carton in Dickens’ novel, A Tale of Two Cities, and Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet in Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet, requires the reader to analyze various aspects that the transforming effect love can have on a personality. As we study each character, it is relatively easy to see that no matter how painful love can be, it is usually to one’s betterment to have experienced it. Love affects each person differently. Some become more introspective, searching to better themselves for the sake of themselves or another. Others do not recognize what they are lacking in their lives until they find love. In either event, it permanently redirects the course of one’s life. Or causes one to end it in some cases. We see that all three characters learn to love themselves better, to love others anew and in the end, make the ultimate sacrifice for their love for another. Point A: Both author’s illustrate well, that a lack of love can have a profound effect on the behavior of a person. Whether a person has never experienced love by fortune or by design, the initial introduction of love into the personality can be intense. Dickens introduces Sydney Carton to us immediately after a trial, speaking to his client. It is at this point that we get a glimpse of the character of Carton, "†¦who smelled of port wine, and did not appear to be quite sober†¦" (Dickens, 100). Carton is so disillusioned with his own life, that he can’t even like his client [who looks like him], "Do you particularly like the man?’ He muttered, at his own image; ‘why should you particularly like a man who resembles you? There is nothing in you to like†¦" (Dickens 103). Romeo Montague is no less desultory, but youth is his excuse, while alcohol and lifelong disappointment are Carton’s. Shakespeare has Friar Lawrence state [about Romeo’s multiple infatuations], "Young men’s love then lies not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes" (1.3.67-68). Having not experienced life yet, Romeo does not yet understand the nature of love. He still sees it as a physical reaction, rather than emotional, "For beauty, starved with her severity / cuts beauty off from all prosperity" (1.1.227-228). Juliet is so immature and unskilled in the ways of love, that she shares her youthful desperation with her nurse, "Go ask his name; if he is married / my grave is like to be my wedding bed" (1.

Carrie Chapter One

News item from the Westover (Me.) weekly Enterprise, August 19, 1966: RAIN OF STONES REPORTED It was reliably reported by several persons that a rain of stones fell from a clear blue sky on Carlin Street in the town of Chamberlain on August 17th. The stones fell principally on the home of Mrs Margaret White, damaging the roof extensively and ruining two gutters and a downspout valued at approximately $25. Mrs White, a widow, lives with her three-year-old daughter, Carietta. Mrs White could not be reached for comment. Nobody was really surprised when it happened, not really, not at the subconscious level where savage things grow. On the surface, all the girls in the shower room were shocked, thrilled, ashamed, or simply glad that the White bitch had taken it in the mouth again. Some of them might also have claimed surprise, but of course their claim was untrue. Carrie had been going to school with some of them since the first grade, and this had been building since that time, building slowly and immutably, in accordance with all the laws that govern human nature, building with all the steadiness of a chain reaction approaching critical mass. What none of them knew, of course, was that Carrie White was telekinetic. Graffiti scratched on a desk of the Barker Street Grammar school in Chamberlain: Carrie White eats shit. The locker room was filled with shouts, echoes, and the subterranean sound of showers splashing on tile. The girls had been playing volleyball in Period One, and their morning sweat was light and eager. Girls stretched and writhed under the hot water, squalling, flicking water, squirting white bars of soap from hand to hand. Carrie stood among them stolidly a frog among swans. She was a chunky girl with pimples on her neck and back and buttocks, her wet hair completely without colour. It rested against her face with dispirited sogginess and she simply stood, head slightly bent, letting the water splat against her flesh and roll off. She looked the part of the sacrificial goat, the constant butt, believer in left-handed monkey wrenches, perpetual foul-up, and she was. She wished forlornly and constantly that Ewen High had individual-and thus private-showers, like the high schools at Andover or Boxford. They stared. They always stared. Showers turning off one by one, girls stepping out, removing pastel bathing caps, towelling, spraying deodorant, checking the clock over the door. Bras were hooked, underpants stepped into. Steam hung in the air; the place might have been an Egyptian bathhouse except for the constant rumble of the Jacuzzi whirlpool bath in the corner. Calls and catcalls rebounded with all the snap and flicker of billiard balls after a hard break. ‘-so Tommy said he hated it on me and I-‘ ‘-I'm going with my sister and her husband. He picks his nose but so does she, so they're very-‘ ‘-shower after school and-‘ ‘-too cheap to spend a goddam penny so Cindi and I-‘ Miss Desjardin, their slim, nonbreasted gym teacher, stepped in, craned her-neck around briefly, and slapped her hands together once, smartly. ‘What are you waiting for, Carrie? Doom? Bell in five minutes.' Her shorts were blinding white, her legs not too curved but striking in their unobtrusive muscularity. A silver whistle, won in college archery competition, hung around her neck. The girls giggled and Carrie looked up, her eyes slow and dazed from the heat and the steady, pounding roar of the water. ‘Ohuh?' It was a strangely froggy sound, grotesquely apt, and the girls giggled again. Sue Snell had whipped a towel from her hair with the speed of a magician embarking on a wondrous feat and began to comb rapidly. Miss Desjardin made an irritated cranking gesture at Carrie and stepped out. Carrie turned off the shower. It died in a drip and a gurgle. It wasn't until she stepped out that they all saw the blood running down her leg. From The Shadow Exploded. Documented Facts and Specific Conclusions Derived from the Case of Carietta White, by David R. Congress (Tulane University Press: 1981), p. 34: It can hardly be disputed that failure to note specific instances of telekinesis during the White girl's earlier years must be attributed to the conclusions offered by White and Steams in their paper Telekinesis: A Wild Talent Revisited-that the ability to move objects by effort of the will alone comes to the fore only in moments of extreme personal stress. The talent is well hidden indeed; how else could it have remained submerged for centuries with only the tip of the iceberg showing above a sea of quackery? We have only skimpy hearsay evidence upon which to lay our foundation in this case, but even this is enough to indicate that a ‘TK' potential of immense magnitude existed within Carrie White. The great tragedy is that we are now all Monday-morning quarterbacks †¦ ‘Per-iod!' The catcall came first from Chris Hargensen. It struck the tiled walls, rebounded, and struck again. Sue Snell gasped laughter from her nose and felt an odd, vexing mixture of hate, revulsion, exasperation, and pity. She just looked so dumb, standing there, not knowing what was going on. God, you'd think she never ‘PER-iod!' It was becoming a chant, an incantation. Someone in the back-ground (perhaps Hargensen again, Sue couldn't tell in the jungle of echoes) was yelling ‘Plug it up!' with hoarse, uninhibited abandon. ‘PER-iod, PER-iod, PER-iod!' Carrie stood dumbly in the centre of a forming circle, water rolling from her skin in beads. She stood like a patient ox, aware that the joke was on her (as always), dumbly embarrassed but unsurprised. Sue felt welling disgust as the first dark drops of menstrual blood struck the tile in dime-sized drops. ‘For God's sake Carrie, you got your period!' Sue cried. ‘Clean yourself up!' ‘Ohuh?' She looked around bovinely. Her hair stuck to her cheeks in a curving helmet shape. There was a cluster of acne on one shoulder. At sixteen, the elusive stamp of hurt was already marked clearly in her eyes. ‘She thinks they're for lipstick!' Ruth Grogan suddenly shouted with cryptic glee, and then burst into a shriek of laughter. Sue remembered the comment later and fitted it Into a general picture, but now it was only another senseless sound in the confusion. Sixteen? She was thinking. She must know what's happening, she†¦ More droplets of blood. Carrie still blinked around at her classmates in slow bewilderment. Helen Shyres turned around and made mock throwingup gestures. ‘You're bleeding!' Sue yelled suddenly, furiously. ‘You're bleeding, you big dumb pudding!' Carrie looked down at herself. She shrieked. The sound was very loud in the humid locker room. A tampon suddenly struck her in the chest and fell with a plop at her feet. A red flower stained the absorbent cotton and spread. Then the laughter, disgusted, contemptuous, horrified, seemed to rise and bloom into something jagged and ugly, and the girls were bombarding her with tampons and sanitary napkins, some from purses, some from the broken dispenser on the wall. They flew like snow and the chant became: ‘Plug it up. Plug it up. Plug it-‘ Sue was throwing them too, throwing and chanting with the rest, not really sure what she was doing – a charm had occurred to her mind and it glowed there like neon: There's no harm in it really no harm in it really no harm-It was still flashing and glowing, reassuringly, when Carrie suddenly began to howl and back away, flailing her arms and grunting and gobbling. The girls stopped, realizing that fission and explosion had finally been reached. It was at this point, when looking back, that some of them would claim surprise. Yet there had been all these years, all these years of let's short-sheet Carrie's bed at Christian Youth Camp and I found this love letter from Carrie to Flash Bobby Pickett let's copy it and pass it around and hide her underpants somewhere and put this snake in her shoe and duck her again, duck her again: Carrie tagging along stubbornly on biking trips, known one year as pudd'n and the next year as truck-face, always smelling sweaty, not able to catch up; catching poison ivy from urinating in the bushes and everyone finding out (hey, scratch-ass, your bum itch?). Billy Preston putting peanut butter in her hair that time she fell asleep in study hall; the pinches, the legs outstretched in school aisles to trip her up, the books knocked from her desk, the obscene postcard tucked into her purse; Carrie on the church picnic an d kneeling down clumsily to pray and the seam of her old madras skirt splitting along the zipper like the sound of a huge windbreakage; Carrie always missing the ball, even in kickball, failing on her face in Modern Dancing during their sophomore year and chipping a tooth, running into the net during volleyball; wearing stockings that were always run, running, or about to run, always showing sweat stains under the arms of her blouses; even the time Chris Hargensen called up after school from the Kelly Fruit Company downtown and asked her if she knew that pig poop was spelled C-A-R-R-I-E: Suddenly all this and the critical mass was reached. The ultimate shit-on, grossout, put-down, long searched for, was found. Fission. She backed away, howling in the new silence, fat forearms crossing her face, a tampon stuck in the middle of her pubic hair. The girls watched her, their eyes shining solemnly. Carrie backed into the side of one of the four large shower compartments and slowly collapsed into a sitting position. Slow, helpless groans jerked out of her. Her eyes rolled with wet whiteness, like the eyes of a hog in the slaughtering pen. Sue said slowly, hesitantly: ‘I think this must be the first time she ever-‘ That was when the door pumped open with a flat and hurried bang and Miss Desjardin burst in to see what the matter was. From The Shadow Exploded (p. 41): Both medical and psychological writers on the subject are in agreement that Carrie White's exceptionally late and traumatic commencement of the menstrual cycle might well have provided the trigger for her latent talent. It seems incredible that, as late as 1979, Carrie knew nothing of the mature woman's monthly cycle. It is nearly as incredible to believe that the girl's mother would permit her daughter to reach the age of nearly seventeen without consulting a gynaecologist concerning the daughter's failure to menstruate. Yet the facts are incontrovertible. When Carrie White realized she was bleeding from the vaginal opening, she had no idea of what was taking place. She was innocent of the entire concept of menstruation. One of her surviving classmates, Ruth Grogan, tells of entering the girls' locker room at Ewen High School the year before the events we are concerned with and seeing Carrie using a tampon to blot her lipstick with. At that time Miss Grogan said: ‘What the hell are you up to?' Miss White replied: ‘Isn't this right?' Miss Grogan then replied: ‘Sure. Sure it is.' Ruth Grogan let a number of her girl friends in on this (she later told this interviewer she thought it was ‘sorta cute'), and if anyone tried in the future to inform Carrie of the true purpose of what she was using to make up with, she apparently dismissed the explanation as an attempt to pull her leg. This was a facet of her life that she had become exceedingly wary of†¦ When the girls were gone to their Period Two classes and the bell had been silenced (several of them had slipped quietly out the back door before Miss Desjardin could begin to take names), Miss Desjardin employed the standard tactic for hysterics: She slapped Carrie smartly across the face. She hardly would have admitted the pleasure the act gave her, and she certainly would have denied that she regarded Carrie as a fat, whiny bag of lard. A first-year teacher, she still believed that she thought all children were good. Carrie looked up at her dumbly, face still contorted and working. ‘M-M-Miss D-D-Des-D-‘ ‘Get up,' Miss Desjardin said dispassionately. ‘Get up and tend to yourself.' ‘I'm bleeding to death!' Carrie screamed, and one blind, searching hand came up and clutched Miss Desjardin's white shorts. It left a bloody handprint. ‘I †¦ you . . .' The gym teacher's face contorted into a pucker of disgust, and she suddenly hurled Came, stumbling, to her feet ‘Get over there!' Carrie stood swaying between the showers and the wall with its dime sanitary-napkin dispenser, slumped over, breasts pointing at the floor, her arms dangling limply. She looked like an ape. Her eyes were shiny and blank. ‘Now,' Miss Desjardin said with hissing, deadly emphasis, ‘you take one of those napkins out †¦ no, never mind the coin slot, it's broken anyway†¦ take one and†¦ damn it, will you do it! You act as if you never had a period before.' ‘Period?' Carrie said. Her expression of complete unbelief was too genuine, too full of dumb and hopeless horror, to be ignored or denied. A terrible and black foreknowledge grew in Rita Desjardin's mind. It was incredible, could not be. She herself had begun menstruation shortly after her eleventh birthday and had gone to the head of the stairs to yell down excitedly: ‘Hey, Mum, I'm on the rag!' ‘Carrie?' she said now. She advanced toward the girl. ‘Carrie?' Carrie flinched away. At the same instant, a rack of softball bats in the corner fell over with a large, echoing bang. They rolled every which way, making Desjardin jump. ‘Carrie, is this your first period?' But now that the thought had been admitted, she hardly had to ask. The blood was dark and flowing with terrible heaviness. Both of Carrie's legs were smeared and splattered with it, as though she had waded through a river of blood. ‘It hurts,' Carrie groaned. ‘My stomach †¦' ‘That passes,' Miss Desjardin said. Pity and self-shame met in her and mixed uneasily. ‘You have to †¦ uh, stop the flow of blood. You-‘ There was a bright flash overhead, followed by a flashgunlike pop as a lightbulb sizzled and went out. Miss Desjardin cried out with surprise, and it occurred to her (the whole damn place is falling in) that this kind of thing always seemed to happen around Carrie when she was upset, as if bad luck dogged her every step. The thought was gone almost as quickly as it had come. She took one of the sanitary napkins from the broken dispenser and unwrapped it. ‘Look,' she said, ‘Like this-‘ From The Shadow Exploded (p. 54): Carrie White's mother, Margaret White, gave birth to her daughter on September 21, 1963, under circumstances which can only be termed bizarre. In fact, an overview of the Came White case leaves the careful student with one feeling ascendant over all others: that Carrie was the only issue of a family as odd as any that has ever been brought to popular attention. As noted earlier, Ralph White died in February of 1963 when a steel girder fell out of a carrying sling on a housing-project job in Portland. Mrs White continued to live alone in their suburban Chamberlain bungalow. Due to the White's near-fanatical fundamentalist religious beliefs, Mrs White had no friends to see her through her period of bereavement. And when her labour began seven months later, she was alone. At approximately 1:30 P.M. on September 21, the neighbours on Carlin Street began to hear screams from the White bungalow. The police, however, were not summoned to the scene until after 6:00 P.M. We are left with two unappetizing alternatives to explain this time lag: Either Mrs White's neighbours on the street did not wish to become involved in a police investigation, or dislike for her had become so strong that they deliberately adopted a wait-and-see attitude. Mrs Georgia McLaughlin, the only one of the three remaining residents who were on the street at that time and who would talk to me, said that she did not call the police because she thought the screams had something to do with ‘holy rollin'.' When the police did arrive at 6:22 P.M. the screams had become irregular. Mrs White was found in her bed upstairs, and the investigating officer, Thomas G. Mearton. at first thought she had been the victim of an assault. The bed was drenched with blood, and a butcher knife lay on the floor. It was only then that he saw the baby, still partially wrapped in the placental membrane, at Mrs White's breast. She had apparently cut the umbilical cord herself with the knife. It staggers both imagination and belief to advance the hypothesis that Mrs Margaret White did not know she was pregnant, or even understand what the word entails, and recent scholars such as J. W. Bankson and George Felding have made a more reasonable case for the hypothesis that the concept, linked irrevocably in her mind with the ‘sin' of intercourse, had been blocked entirely from her mind. She may simply have refused to believe that such a thing could happen to her. We have records of at least three letters to a friend in Kenosha, Wisconsin, that seem to prove conclusively that Mrs White believed, from her fifth month on, that she had ‘a cancer of the womanly parts' and would soon join her husband in heaven †¦ When Miss Desjardin led Carrie up to the office fifteen minutes later, the halls were mercifully empty. Classes droned onwards behind closed doors. Carrie's shrieks had finally ended, but she had continued to weep with steady regularity. Desjardin had finally placed the napkin herself, cleaned the girl up with wet paper towels, and gotten her back into her plain cotton underpants. She tried twice to explain the commonplace reality of menstruation, but Carrie clapped her hands over her ears and continued to cry. Mr Morton, the assistant principal, was out of his office in a flash when they entered. Billy deLois and Henry Trennant, two boys waiting for the lecture due them for cutting French I, goggled around from their chairs. ‘Come in,' Mr Morton said briskly. ‘Come right in.' He glared over Desjardin's shoulder at the boys, who were staring at the bloody handprint on her shorts. ‘What are YOU looking at?' ‘Blood,' Henry said, and smiled with a kind of vacuous surprise. ‘Two detention periods,' Morton snapped. He glanced down at the bloody handprint and blinked. He closed the door behind them and began pawing through the top drawer of his filing cabinet for a school accident form. ‘Are you all right, uh-?' ‘Carrie,' Desjardin supplied. ‘Carrie White.' Mr Morton had finally located an accident form. There was a large coffee stain on it. ‘You won't need that, Mr Morton.' ‘I suppose it was the trampoline. We just †¦ I won't?' ‘No. But I think Carrie should be allowed to go home for the rest of the day. She's had a rather frightening experience.' Her eyes flashed a signal which he caught but could not interpret. ‘Yes, okay, if you say so. Good. Fine.' Morton crumpled the form back into the filing cabinet, slammed it shut with his thumb in the drawer, and grunted. He whirled gracefully to the door, yanked it open, glared at Billy and Henry, and called: ‘Miss Fish, could we have a dismissal slip here, please? Carrie Wright.' ‘White,' said Miss Desjardin. ‘White,' Morton agreed. Billy deLois sniggered. ‘Week's detention!' Morton barked. A blood blister was forming under his thumbnail. Hurt like hell. Carrie's steady, monotonous weeping went on and on. Miss Fish brought the yellow dismissal slip and Morton scrawled his initials on it with his silver pocket pencil, wincing at the pressure on his wounded thumb. ‘Do you need a ride, Cassie?' he asked. ‘We can call a cab if you need one.' She shook her head. He noticed with distaste that a large bubble of green mucus had formed at one nostril. Morton looked over her head and at Miss Desjardin.

Find a Great Astronomy Gift Idea

Astronomy gifts are some of the coolest ones around. There is a universe of ideas, ranging from books and gear to clothing and apps. Here are some suggestions for cosmic gift-giving any time of year. Astronomy Books Reading about astronomy is a great pleasure, whether its the latest news in a magazine or a book on a specific topic. There are amazing books on astronomy for all levels, from beginner and up. The article  Astronomy Books for All Ages offers find some good reads. The best reads allow someone to curl up and explore on a cloudy night and still learn something new about the cosmos. Good astronomy books help explorers of all ages learn about the sky and whats in it. Teresa Short/Getty Images Readers can learn about observational astronomy, with books that offer tips on the best ways to skygaze and photograph the stars. Or, for those who want to dig into the science behind the stars and galaxies, there are many books that explain in approachable language. Other works highlight the lives of famous astronomers, giving a good historical context for the work todays observers are doing. Some books are available in hard copy or electronic format, so you can choose the best way to deliver the cosmos to your intended giftee. Also, consider the two best magazines around:  Astronomy Magazine  at Astronomy.com (a great subscription for every level of an observer), and  SkyTelescope.com, which offers products for both beginners and experienced observers.  Ã‚   Astronomy Apps Nearly everybody has access to a smartphone or phablet to a laptop and desktop computer, which opens up a raft of ideas for gifts. There are astronomy programs and apps for all the different devices, ranging in price from free to several hundred dollars. Also explore some of the best-known products, ranging from Stellarium and Cartes du Ciel (which are free) to apps that cost a few dollars, such as StarMap2, and others.  Apps have a great advantage because they are available on a smart device at the push of a tab. Online Astronomy Courses Astronomy courses via the Web are another good way to learn the subject. Users can go at their own speed, and in many cases, theyre learning from some of the top astronomers in the field. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, for example, has made many of its courses available for anyone to use. Its Hands-On Astronomy course gives users a chance to learn from the best, at their own speed! NASA also has a series of podcasts that lets people explore Mars as Curiosity Rover does, one landscape at a time. There are many other delightful offerings online at the drop of a Google search for the term online astronomy courses. Telescopes Sooner or later, even the most patient star hoppers decide to magnify their view of the sky. Thats when they start thinking about telescopes. Its also when some serious money starts getting spent. If someone is ready for a telescope, its important to know what they want to observe. A telescope for planet-gazing might not be the same one theyd use for deep-sky objects. Or if telescope-buying is out of the question, consider getting a pair of binoculars first. Theyre like having a telescope for each eye, and people can also use them during the day for birdwatching and other activities. Also, look into  other good ideas about  cost-effective ways to indulge a love of skywatching. Every stargazer discovers what she or he needs to enjoy the sky. Take it easy and all good things will eventually come to you. Halfblue/Wikimedia Commons Share and Share Alike license. Stargazing Gear Stargazing exposes observers to cooler weather, no matter where they live. Even in warmer climates, evenings and early mornings can be cool and damp. So, its always good to have a sweater or jacket or raincoat handy. There isnt a stargazer alive who doesnt appreciate a sweater, jacket, or raincoat. Hats, gloves, and windbreaker, are also useful. Chemical hand warmer packs are a great stocking stuffer, along with a few energy bars to munch on during those long all-nighters. Star Party and Planetarium Visits Offering a trip to a star party is also a great gift for a friend or family member. Check out the local planetarium for a fascinating star show. Also, see if the local college or university offers public lectures in astronomy. These are all ways to give the gift of the cosmos!