Mastersirloin's Blog

The following are the movies I’ve seen out of the list of 100:

• The Wizard of Oz
• E.T. The Extra – Terrestrial
• One Flew Over th Cuckoo’s Nest
• Snow White and The Seven Dwarves
• The Sound of Music
• JAWS
• Silence of the Lambs
• Forrest Gump
• Titanic
• 12 Angry Men
• Tory Story

Silence of the Lambs:

I’m going to chose the movie Silence of the Lambs. I have recentley watched this movie and was so entertained. There is so much suspense, action, and great actors and actresses. There are famous actors such as Jodie Foster as well as Anthony Hopkins. Anthony Hopkins plays a brilliant Dr. who has been put in solitary confinement for many years due to his crazy eating habbits. (He eats people). Clarisse (Jodie Foster), an aspiring detective, gets to the bottom of the missing Katharine, daughter of the Senate, from Buffalo Bill, the crazy man who cuts off peoples skin, and wears them. Although it may seem gory and disturbing, it’s a great movie in which you are on the edge of your seat the whole time.

Atonement

I believe that one of the “greatest” movies of all time is Atonement. Atonement stars Keira Knightly and was made in 2007. I feel this is one of the greatest movies because it’s suspensful and very well thought out. You must pay attention to the sequence of events in the movie and has twists and turns that are unexpected, that truly make a great movie.

Review:

Joe Wright’s “Atonement” begins in the endlessly photogenic, thematically pregnant interwar period. The setting is a rambling old British country estate where trim dinner jackets and shimmering silk dresses are worn; cigarettes are smoked with sharp inhalations that create perfect concavities of cheekbone; and the air is thick with class tension and sexual anxiety.

New York Times/ A.O. Scott    http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/12/07/movies/07aton.html

Tyler Perrys: Why Did I Get Married?

I really enjoy the movie Why Did I Get Married. It gives real life issues and gives people the hope and strength the need to keep going. It’s a very inspirational filmthat provides people with happiness, hope, and courage.

Review:

The enormous success of Tyler Perry’s 2005 feature, “Diary of a Mad Black Woman,” was a surprise only to white America. For years the talented Mr. Perry has been entertaining African-American audiences with his sentimental and hugely popular stage plays, using a patented blend of Christian moralizing, social melodrama and rambunctious comedy.

New York Times/ Jeannette Catsoulis   http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/10/13/movies/13marr.html

I believe that Obama’s idea is not realistic. I understand where he is coming from, however it would never work. Although other countries go to school more days than American students, this system has been used for decades and has been doing just fine. I believe that students would rebel and the drop out rate would be much higher. Students would be overly worked and extremely tired at the end of the day. Many students attend sports teams, extra curricular activities, and have after school jobs. If the school day was longer, it would make those activities more difficult to attend due to amount of work they had put in during the day. Also, there is the financial aspect. Taxes would be raised due to higher electric bills, teacher salaries, and other hidden expenses that have not been brought to attention. Also, I believe that breaks and summers come at the appropriate times, generally around the time of extreme fatigue amongst the students. Fall break and winter break are the appropriate lengths and amount of time to keep the students going sufficiently. I believe that the summer time is a boost for the students. It gives them a long period of relaxation, getting it all out of their systems until the next school year begins. The idea has its positives on keeping up with the other countries, however I do not feel we are much further behind. I believe the system should be kept as is.

My goals for this week include:

-Recieving information from Ms. McCowan and Mrs. Belcher

-Putting articles from amnews.com on our headline page

I completely agree with the article. All we have ever been taught to do is to get ready for the next step. In elementary school, they prepared us for middle school. In middle school, they prepared us for high school. Now in high school, the only focus is college. Most educators act like there is no other option. Our school shows little to no emphasis on vocational studies. Danville High School do offer classes that involve technology, some mechanics, and culinary basics, however it is not provided directly through Danville High School. The students have to take a bus to Garrard County every day to attend the class. I don’t feel that all schools operate this way. When there are bigger schools, they have to reach to a larger variety of student interests. They have more money and receive more grants to finance these types of classes. Larger schools have wood shop, some type of mechanical program, and other classes that focus specifically on a certain career. I believe that if our school put emphasis on Vocational students would be more enthusiastic about them. Most of the careers in this category do requiring some schooling; however it is not the same as college. If there were more emphasis on them, students interested in the studies would pursue them more rather than feeling stupid or as if their career choice isn’t good enough.

So far, I have sent emails to the following:

Ms. McCowan, Mr. McAfee, Mrs. Hager, and Mrs. Belcher. Two have replied and I’m waiting for the others.

Thursday September 10

All we have been able to do is look up stories on am news and save them until we get access to the login.

Monday September 14-Friday September 18

During this week, I accomplished all my goals. I have forwarded my teacher information to Rachel and Taylor. I have been granted access into the editing pages and have revised Mrs. Towns’s article and put it on the Danville High School web page. Also, I created a story about Lori Harris’s accomplishment of having her newspaper article selected.

As the technology has increased over the years, I have thought of these same thoughts. Most kids only care about the things they have rather than the things they could do. There are only a select few of students who still strive to be the best and set high standards for themselves. The beginning of technology progression started with a simple calculator; doing the work for the students who once did the work for themselves. Next came radios, cell phones, mp3 players, internet, and other technical devices that interested kids rather than school. Obviously, kids need things they like to do and do things that they enjoy. However, this has been taken to an extreme. Traditional teachings are now considered “old school”. Classics aren’t taught in school like they used to be; and most students know nothing of them. At the end of the article, the author suggests using these developments to their advantages. Teaching kids with methods that would interest them would greatly benefit our future generations. By blogging, writing to their friends, reading the responses, and being online for great periods of time, could be used to teach kids. Although kids have lost touch with the way things should or used to be, they are still the future and the generation contains our future leaders, presidents, scientists, medical cures, and life changing people. Something has to be done to prepare them for these great responsibilities. I believe that if new, modern ways of teaching were brought in, we would succeed.

The Hendersonville High School web page, located in Tennessee, is very appealing to the eye and makes you want to find out more. They have current pictures showing student life, everything is updated, and it is very well put together. It contains everything a new student, parent , or even current student would need to know. I chose this because I found that when a webpage looks nice, it makes the viewers think of the school in a better way. http://hhs.sumnerschools.org/

 The webpage at Madison Central High School, located in Richmond, Kentucky, isn’t as flashy however contains everything you need to know. They have links to news at their high school, lunch menus, sports schedules, directions, summer reading, and other useful tools. I believe their website would be more appealing with a better color scheme and more pictures. I chose this because  I felt that Danville should have this much information. http://www.madison.k12.ky.us/mc/

After comparing the two web pages to Danville’s, I feel that we are at a good place with the appearance; however we are behind in the information that should be given. I believe this is a good assignment so we can improve our webpage to the satisfaction and awareness of what’s going on in Danville High School.

The Danville High school web page has progressed greatly over the years. I believe it is important to have an updated, well thought out school web page. It keeps the students, parents, and interested citizens informed.

1. Format:  On the Danville webpage, it’s very organized and well put together. The color scheme matches with the school colors and gives the website a professional appeal. It’s clear to read and everything is a proper, appropriate place.
2. Homework Board: The Danville web page does not have a homework board. I don’t really feel that it is necessary to have one because if the parents are that concerned the parent could just email the teacher and they could work out some type of agreement. Another option would be checking the student’s assignment book every night to have a better understanding of the homework. Also, if they are interested in the coursework, the syllabuses provided on the first day of school will give them a general idea of what will be going on during the year.
3. School Supply List: There is no place for a school supply list. Although it would be helpful, teachers usually tell what the students need on the first day of school. The supplies are always included in the syllabus provided by the teacher.
4. Student Project Showcase:  On the main page of Danville Schools, there are pictures and descriptions of students and teachers and their accomplishments. Although it’s already on the main page, I think it would be useful to have one for the high school section as well. That way, it would focus on only the high school area of the school.
5. Parent Resources: Generally I believe that if the parent wants to get involved, they will enroll in PTA or be a big part of their student’s school life. I don’t believe it’s necessary to have a place just for information for parents. As I’ve said before, the teachers always give out a syllabus that describe the upcoming year for the parent. If there are any more questions; the parent should ask the teacher directly.
6. Master Calendar:  The Danville High School webpage does contain a master calendar. There is also a calendar sent home along with the registration papers before the school year begins.
7. Contact Information: There is a contact list. On the list, is a picture of the teacher along with their school information as well as their email addresses. If you have any questions or concerns, it’s very simple to contact a teacher.
8. Alumni Section: There is not an alumni section. However, on the main page, if a student makes a great scholastic accomplishment such as a high ACT score or getting accepted to a prestigious school, there is always some information about it. It would be a good idea to have an alumni section to show the great achievers of the Danville school systems.
9. Pictures: I believe this is very important. There aren’t many pictures at all. We should provide sports pictures as well as individual players on the roster. Also, we should have pictures of students doing daily activities in the school and have them updated about every couple of weeks. Currently, the webpage does not contain any of this.
10. Online Registration: Danville High School does not offer this. I don’t think it’s a good idea because it’s a time to get reacquainted with the student’s and teachers. It’s also a chance to get a good look at the school, get your books, find your locker, and think about how your daily routine will go.
11. Online Store: I don’t think this is important. Our school isn’t very big so usually the tickets are sold at the event unless spirit cards are sold in the pre-season. Also we don’t have a lot of merchandise. The Admiral Store contains the t-shirts and Danville fan merchandise. There is also a store in town which sells Danville paraphernalia.
12. Fundraising Tools:  Danville does not have this on their webpage. I don’t really feel that it is necessary because I don’t think parents would provide the school system with donations. If a donation is made, it’s usually more upfront and is made into a bigger deal than just a click of a button.