June 3-15, 2011: Mike had his BFA final show.

The final requirement for Mike's BFA program at BYU was to create a graphic design exhibit for display at the HFAC (BYU's arts buildng).  During fall semester, his class researched a subject/topic that interested them. Then, in winter semester they worked on presenting their ideas visually/artistically.  Mike could probably explain the requirement better I can, but anway, he decided to research the topic of immigration.  He had a hard time deciding how to implement his ideas at first, but I think the final product turned out great!

This board explains the title of Mike's show and part of the inspiration behind it.

Mike built this "plinko" machine from scratch.  Doesn't it look awesome?

Some infographics he made to illustrate his research.

Instructions for the machine.  We had a ton of trouble getting the plunger to have the right amount of power (it broke several times) but it sort of worked!

The division between north and south.

My family checking it out.

Other students from Mike's program got together to put on their reception.

I'm so proud!  :)

 

Mike also got some interesting quotes in his guest book; I'm going to copy  a couple of them.

"I like art that influences my life and makes me think and more than that makes me think of how to be better. I appreciate you creating something beautiful that did this."

"Awesome interactive piece!  I looked at it and thought 'of course I will be North side. I was born in America.  I'm lucky and rich; that's just how it is.' That made me pause and realize how none of it's deserved.  I never realized I've been thinking that all this time.  Thanks for making me think."

Back to me (Alison):  As you can see, I love those responses! I'm a firm believer that more people in this world need to spend time doing just that: THINK! 

May 26, 2011: My internship at Mapleton Junior High ended.

Here are a few pictures from my internship.  I wish I would have taken a lot more pictures of class activities that we had, but I wasn't really sure about the regulations for taking pictures of students.  So, mostly I just took pictures while they weren't there.  :)  Anyway, this is just a very small glimpse into the events of the year.

This was the motto for the school where I did my internship.

I felt so official when my name went up outside the room.

Empty classroom before school started.

Bringing in some of my books.

Trying to get things organized.

Classroom library semi-organized.

Close-up of tree Mike and I made for my classroom.

Fall version of tree.

Over the summer I got some books donated from donorschoose.org, and I had to put together a thank-you package with photos that show how the donations were put to use.  So, since I didn't have pictures of the students, I took some screenshots from one of my observation videos.  :)  So, here is one of my students reading.

One of my students reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

This is how my students decorated our door for Red Ribbon Week.  My class won  the "Most Clever" award and $30 for a class party.  :)

Close-up on the artwork.  :)

The theme for the year was influence, and each term we had an "essential question" relating to our projects for the unit.  "How are we influenced by others?" "How are we influenced by ideas?" "How are we influenced by the past?" and "How can we influence others?"

The colors on the wall were part of a project we did while reading The Giver.  The  black and white posters represent Jonas' society, and the colors outside represent the memories he starts to receive about all of the diversity that there used to be/could be in the world outside.

Covered up colorful calendar I had underneath.

Covered up previous classroom rules about respect.

More authoritarian version of our normal classroom rules to imitate the strict rules in Jonas' society.

Students wrote concrete and abstract associations they have with all of the colors for a group activity and then I cut up the papers to put them on the wall.

A few more examples.

These are from a project we did while reading The Devil's Arithmetic.  Students  learned about the  meaning of their names and then made rip-art projects that would visually symbolize their name's meaning.

One of the choices for book projects, a "book float" that represents the elements of fiction in their  individual reading books.  One of the main purposes of this assignment was to help promote and share the books they read with their classrooms.

Some more examples.

Good old book mobiles!

Kind of a crazy display I made at the beginning of year.

A couple of my students decorated my room with a few Jimmer Fredette signs as a "random act of kindness" they were supposed to do for someone when we were reading Stargirl as a class.  :)

Classroom at the end of the year.

Farewell shot of my door.

Good-bye class!  Bittersweet memories!

January 1, 2011: 2010 ended and 2011 happened.

Just a few pictures to mark the occasion.

A political rant/rave

Read at your own risk.....

I am highly opinionated about politics; I sometimes avoid discussing political issues in public-type forums for that reason. Many people I respect in other matters have completely opposite views from me, so I don't want to create conflict. However, I can't resist expressing my delight with this "official statement" about immigration from the LDS church (my emphasis added):

Around the world, debate on the immigration question has become intense. That is especially so in the United States. Most Americans agree that the federal government of the United States should secure its borders and sharply reduce or eliminate the flow of undocumented immigrants. Unchecked and unregulated, such a flow may destabilize society and ultimately become unsustainable.

As a matter of policy, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints discourages its members from entering any country without legal documentation, and from deliberately overstaying legal travel visas.

What to do with the estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants now residing in various states within the United States is the biggest challenge in the immigration debate. The bedrock moral issue for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is how we treat each other as children of God.

The history of mass expulsion or mistreatment of individuals or families is cause for concern especially where race, culture, or religion are involved. This should give pause to any policy that contemplates targeting any one group, particularly if that group comes mostly from one heritage.

As those on all sides of the immigration debate in the United States have noted, this issue is one that must ultimately be resolved by the federal government.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is concerned that any state legislation that only contains enforcement provisions is likely to fall short of the high moral standard of treating each other as children of God.

The Church supports an approach where undocumented immigrants are allowed to square themselves with the law and continue to work without this necessarily leading to citizenship.

In furtherance of needed immigration reform in the United States, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints supports a balanced and civil approach to a challenging problem, fully consistent with its tradition of compassion, its reverence for family, and its commitment to law.

I think this statement is so appropriate in light of the callous remarks and attitudes that I have seen and heard expressed by so many in my community/social circle. For example, many people express pure OUTRAGE that some small portion of their tax dollars might go to providing education, health care, or basic life necessities to... gasp... ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS! Yet, many of these same people believe in a gospel that states the second most important commandment is to love thy neighbor as thyself. Could it be possible that even illegal immigrants might qualify as one's "neighbor" using Christ's definition? Didn't Jesus say, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Could the least of these also be illegal immigrants?

I'm not saying that I necessarily support illegal immigration. Rather, I am opposed to the entitled attitude of American citizens who think that just because they happened to be born in this country, or their great-great-great-grandparents "immigrated legally," that their family deserves to have a good quality of life while billions of people in this world do not.

Throughout history, societies in crisis have looked for scapegoats for their problems (e.g. Jews after WWI). Clearly, the United States is in the midst of a financial crisis, and many people would like to assign blame for this outside of themselves and to the "other"--namely, Hispanics. Partially because the idea of subsidizing the other's lifestyle (charity?) enrages them, but also, I believe, partially because of fear of anyone who is different from themselves. Thus, the push for "English only" laws, etc. This blind hatred is the antithesis of the values that should be espoused in our beautiful country.


"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"