Who do you think you are?

 Interview #1

Interview #2

Email to family member

Family Echo

4/28/2015

Read THIS blog post by a teacher. I mean actually read it. Take it in. Think about it. And then, write about it. What do you think about it? What is the teacher trying to say? In your own words explain what "the main event" is.


I think the teacher is absolutely right in saying that school prepares us for adversity in life.  I find it interesting to see how much he cares about his students.  I learned that teachers care a lot about students, much more than just the academic surface of it.  The teacher is trying to say that life is challenging, but that doesn't mean you can just give up when the going gets tough.  School prepares you for toughness in life to help you fight your way through it.  You can't just give up and lie down, you have to stand up and fight through the hardships.  The "main event" is never giving up.  It is a lesson that demonstrates how resilient people are.  Everybody has a shell, how thick is your shell?

4/16/2015

1. What was your stop motion animation about? Why did you choose your video to be about this? Was it because it was easy, because it would be fun, or it would be challenging? Explain your reasoning behind your project (and be honest). My stop motion animation was about a rubber band ball being taken apart.  I chose to do this because I thought it would look really cool.  I thought it was a lot of fun.  It didn't turn out exactly the way I wanted it to, but I think it would have looked really cool with more effort.
2. If you could rate your stop motion on a 1-10 scale. 1 being low effort and no very good and 10 being out of this world/mindblowing, how would you rate your project? Explain why.  I would rate it a 6 because it took a lot of time and a decent amount of materials.  The only reason is isn't higher is because my effort put into making it was lackluster.
3. In hindsight, what would you do differently the second time around? Better lighting? Time management? Explain yourself.  I would put a blank background behind it and make sure nobody was in the shot.  It also didn't help that I couldn't take all the pictures in one day which meant my camera angle changed a bit at the end.
4. Explain what makes your stop motion animation unique. How do you believe you thought "outside of the box" on this project?   I don't think anybody else had the idea of taking pictures as something was broken down so that you can see the process of something being destroyed.  
5. What grade do you feel you deserve on this project? Explain your reasoning.  I think I deserve an A because I put a lot of effort into making it, but due to complications it didn't turn out as well as it could have.  The pictures were interrupted by curious people and I ran out of time and had to finish taking pictures another day.  Overall, the idea was there, but my capture of the idea wasn't ideal.  I still had a lot of fun with the project though.

4/14/2015

3 day weekend... how was it? Give me a good story or something funny that happened this weekend. Go.

My weekend was really crazy! I had a soccer tournament in St. Louis, but I also went to Prom.  I played one game on Saturday morning, then drove back home to attend Prom.  It was a lot of driving back and forth because I drove back out on Sunday morning at 4AM to play two more soccer games.  The tournament went really well and we only lost one game.  I had a lot of fun, but was super tired once the weekend was over.

4/7/2015

Tell me ALL about what your idea is for your stop-motion animation. I need detail. Who is going to help you take photos? What props do you need? Where do you plan on shooting? EXPLAIN everything.

I am going to use a rubber-band ball and take it apart.  I will take a picture after each rubber band has been taken off and then when I'm done, I will play it backwards so it looks like it is being put together and then forwards so it gets take apart.  Adam Houghton and Grace Hermes will help me take photos.  The only props I need will be a rubber band ball.  I will most likely borrow a tripod to make sure the camera will be still.  I plan on shooting this either in the senior hallway or the classroom.  The senior hallway will be preferable because it has natural lighting and the photos will look better out there.  

4/6/2015

Tell me all about your weekend and please share photos!

This weekend was quite a lot of fun.  I didn't do much on Saturday except hang out with friends, but Sunday, being Easter, was quite busy.  Sunday began with an early morning trip to church.  Then I went to IHOP with my family and grandmother.  I asked Jenny to prom on Sunday morning also.  Finally, I went over to my grandparents house for dinner and we had really good food.  

5-Frame Storyboard

4/2/2015

What do you love most about this time of year? Explain why you love it.

My favorite thing about this time of year is the soccer season. The Spring soccer season begins and I get to play soccer again after the long winter break.  I get to see all of my soccer friends again.  I also love the weather warming up and the fact that the day last longer.  I hate when it gets dark early, but I love it when it stays light out longer.  Spring is a great season because everything begins to turn green and colorful again after the long winter.

Photo Editing

3/30/2015

Did you complete the photo scavenger hunt? What kind of fun pictures were you able to capture? Did you do all your photos at school or did you do some at home over the weekend? Share one of your favorites.

Yes I completed the photo scavenger hunt.  I was able to capture lots of fun photos of interesting items.  I did all of my photos at school.

3/27/2015

What do you know about photography and/or photo editing? Do you take photos? How do you take photos? Do you edit photos before posting them on social media? How do you edit them? Explain any background or knowledge you have about photography and photo editing. Do you like it? Do you have any interest?

I know that cameras take photos.  I know very little about photo editing because I never edit mine.  I take photos everyday though because they capture memories.  Most of the time, I take photos with my phone, but sometimes I take photos with a camera when on vacation with my family.  I don't post very many photos on social media and the most I have done to edit one would be cropping it.  I don't care much about photography as a career so I possess little interest in it at this time.  Photography, to me, is just a way to capture memories.

3/23/2015

Welcome back! Go ahead. Tell me all about your Spring Break. Include photos!

I stayed in town for Spring Break, but I still had a lot of fun.  I got my new car after I was rear-ended.  It was quite a hassle because the guy we were dealing with through craigslist wasn't very well-prepared and it took a lot more time than it should have.  On St. Patrick's Day, I had green pancakes for breakfast.  Finally, I had a soccer tournament at the Overland Park Soccer Complex.  It was fun to play soccer, but half of my team was out of town because it was Spring Break and we lost our games because of that. 

Animal Experimentation Prezi

3/11/2015

What are you doing for Spring Break?

I am staying at home for most of spring break, but I will be going to Silver Dollar City for two days with my dad.  I will be working on the weekends reffing soccer and will probably hang out with friends most of the break.  Because my car was rear-ended, I will also be looking for a new car on craigslist. Overall, I look forward to relaxing over spring break and taking it easy.

3/9/2015

Tell me about your weekend.

This weekend was very hectic.  It started off with Relay for Life which was a ton of fun.  I saw all my friends and had a really good time, but I left early because I had to referee soccer the next day.  I got to do two centers for some very boring, small-field games.  My mom and my sister left for their cruise on Saturday and will be gone for an entire week.  On Sunday, I did yard work and chores.  My dad and I went to look at a 2005 Honda Civic because my Infiniti G20 got rear-ended and is most likely totaled.

3/6/2015

If you were the Principal for a week at BVHS, what would that look like? What changes would you make? Why?

I wouldn't change very much because our school is already quite studious.  The teachers are great and do their jobs well because they care about the students.  I would only change the WiFi and what you can access on the WiFi.  I would put a shorter leash on it because most kids are well-behaved and don't do inappropriate stuff online.  The school already has a great atmosphere so I would most likely keep doing what Mr. Bacon is doing.

3/5/2015

List out 10 pieces of advice you would give someone on how to create an amazing presentation.

1. Only use a necessary amount of slides: only use as many as needed for your information.
2. Don't try to cram too much information into one slide: too much information can be overwhelming
3. Put some visuals on your slides to make it more appealing: people will fall asleep if your presentation is boring
4. Add repetition for important topics: repetition helps things stick better in people's memories
5. Summarize information rather than putting it down word-for-word: put it in your own words because it will be easier to understand
6. Create one that is unique and different from other peoples:  It will make it stand out more
7. Have confidence in what information you put on your slides: If you aren't confident about your information, then your presentation will be weak
8. Have good transitions between slides: makes it more interesting
9. Make text and visuals as large as possible to draw attention to them
10. Highlight what you are talking about: Shows the more important parts of your presentation

3/2/2015

This weekend was was uneventful, but I got to see my grandmother in her nursing home because it was her birthday.  I went to the store to get candles for her since she was turning 81 and when I went to check out the lady asked me "Oh, who is turning eighteen?"  My response was switch those numbers around and she returned with a quizzical look on her face.  It was very amusing.  My soccer tournament was canceled because of the snow again and I had to shovel the drive way.

InfoGraphic

2/24/2015

Use the internet to find an infographic about infographics. Place it in to your blog post. Read it and then give me the top 5 things you learned from it that will help you make a better infographic.

More likely to be read if it has good information with good graphical support.

It should educate and inform in a fun way.

Infographics are visually appealing and can draw in a better audience.

Include a diversity of sources and statistics

Make it easy to understand.

2/23/2015

Tell me about your weekend. Give me a story, something funny that happened, an experiencing you had, the way you felt, etc. Include photos!

I felt sick over the weekend so it was uneventful.  I slept quite a bit of the weekend, but one good thing happened.  On Saturday night, I went out to eat orange chicken, my favorite food.  Overall, my weekend was nothing special because I was sick.  My soccer tournament was canceled which I was disappointed about because I had been looking forward to it for quite awhile.  Felt a little better by Sunday, but still spent the day at home.  Overall, the weekend was boring but provided some needed relief from school.

2/20/2015

The perfect curriculum is one that meets the needs of an individual.  I think that for a couple years, the basics need to be taught, but once you are through with the basics, the curriculum needs to conform to what you want to accomplish in life.  The titles of the courses would be similar to arts, engineering, or other titles associated with specific jobs or functions.  What you studied would pertain to what you want to do with your life.  If you want to be an accountant, you would study a lot of math.  Class time would be more like CAPS where you get real world experience in different situations.  The classes would be quite different than they are now in the sense that what you takes or enroll in will be more meaningful to you.

2/19/2015

My favorite food: Orange chicken
Foods I'd like to avoid: Lima beans
My favorite things to learn: physics
My favorite color: blue
My best friends are: Carson, Ryan, and Aden
My favorite games to play: strategy games
My favorite books: Any book by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
My favorite movies or TV shows: Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Prison Break
My favorite holiday: Christmas
Things I do well: game and sports
Things I need to practice more: exercise
My favorite place to go: panda express
My favorite family activities: board games or card games
My favorite thing to do outside: soccer, basketball, golf
My favorite chore: make my dog's kong
My least favorite chore: vacuum the house
What I want to be when I grow up: Engineer
A place I want to visit: Greece
My favorite part of the year: Winter
My favorite part of each day: The end of the school day

2/17/2015

Tell me what you believe this cartoon is trying to say. Do you agree or disagree with this idea? Try and look at this from two different perspectives. What is your perspective? What would be an adult/teacher's perspective?

The American kid looks like he cares less about school, whereas the Chinese and Indian students are studying really hard.  I agree that most Americans get outworked by other nationalities in school, but I don't believe this means Americans don't care about school or learning, they just care less.  I think that if you only study from books, you won't be able to learn as much without experience.  A teacher's ideal student would be the two students who are studying and working hard in school.  They are model students and the American student would be frowned upon by a teacher.  I think that as long as you excel in learning, it shouldn't matter how you go about the learning.

2/10/2015

Think about the quote above. What does this mean to you? How could this apply to your life? How could this apply to your school work?  I would love to give you less work in class if it meant you were going to focus harder on the work. Do you think you would get more out of it? Would that work for you? Why or why not?

Doing less with more focus means that I would be able to concentrate more on what is important to me.  For example, school work could become more concentrated towards the area of study I am interested in.  For me specifically, engineering focuses on math and science.  I would be able to focus more on these topics than other topics that aren't as important to me.  It is the simple idea of quality over quantity.  If I focus more on soccer outside of school, i will have the potential to become a better soccer player.  Everything that you devote more focus to has more potential to become greater.  Rather than having retakes for tests, if you focus more on that test, you will do better and there will be no reason to have retakes.  I think if I devoted more time and effort to the things that I do, then they will in turn be better than they would have been, had I neglected them.  Giving something my full attention will always be better than devoting less time to something.  Just because there are less assignments though, I don't think I will feel any more motivated to do more work or work harder.  It would be nice to have less work, but I wouldn't put any more effort than what is needed.  Would this improve my work?  Probably not.  

2/9/2015

Tell me all about your weekend! I sure hope you have photos to share.

Over the weekend, a fire started in one of my neighbor's houses.  I used to babysit for their three children, but was relieved when I heard nobody was injured.  The entire house did not burn down, but they did have to take out a section of wall.  The fire started in their fireplace because the previous owner had installed insulation behind the fireplace which should not have been there.  I was watching the scene outside my bedroom window and was shocked to see how many firetrucks and police cars had arrived.  Multiple police cars were blocking off the street and at least six firetrucks passed through at various times.

2/6/2015

Tell me about some interesting things you have learned about your global issue so far. What have you learned that you didn't know before? Include a couple images from the internet if possible. (Make sure to cite images that are not your own.)

Traditionally there is no law that conveys rights upon animals, yet people still advocate for animal rights.  The exploitation of animals has been carried out for centuries, yet beginning in the nineteenth century, people began to protect animals.  Research involving animals has had numerous positive benefits to mankind.  So why do people want to stop animal experimentation if it is beneficial to the human race?

2/5/2015

You haven't had a chance to tell me about your Sweetheart weekend yet - tell me about it now! Include photos if you have them. Even if you just laid around on the couch and watched Netflix, tell me all about it.

Although I did not attend sweetheart, I visited my grandmother at her nursing home on Saturday and went to Church with her.  It was the first time I have gone to Church in a long time.  I used to attend Church every Sunday with my family, but recently I have only been going to the "big" masses such as Christmas and Easter.  I watched the super bowl on Sunday with friends, but was disappointed by the ending of the game.  Overall I thought it was an exciting game with good commercials, but the ending was awful.  This year I did not make any bets on who would win because I did not care about the teams in the super bowl this year.

2/2/2015

What is email? When do you use email in your own personal life? List reasons and ways that people use email. What do you know about "email etiquette"? EXPLAIN.

Email is a form of communication.  I use email to contact people in a more formal way than a text.  While applying to colleges this year and writing scholarships, many of these were sent directly to the school in an email.  Email can be used for many different types of communication, but is prevalent in the business world.  Depending on the type of email you are writing, formal or informal, the style and setup of each email will vary.  Email is used to send messages, files, and pictures to people with ease.  Email makes communication easier and more accessible because it is free.

1/29/2015

Finish this sentence "10 years from now I will be...." (explain)

10 years from now I will be a successful electrical engineer, who owns my own business for installing cables and wires for big businesses.  I will have a Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering and will be married to a beautiful woman.  I will still be Catholic and will try to attend church weekly, but will probably only end up going on Christmas and Easter.  My sister will still be close to me and our kids will be friends.  Everybody I know in high school will be gone, but all of my college buddies will go out and drink with me on Friday nights.

1/27/2015

Yesterday I had you choose a global issue and you wrote about it on your blog. Today on your blog I want you to tell me about two different perspectives of your global issue. Are there people for an against your issue? Do people disagree on your issue? Is it a topic that can cause controversy? Look at the issue for two different perspectives. Tell me about those perspectives.

Animal experimentation is a very controversial topic.  Many people think that the benefits outweigh any negatives it causes, while others think it is animal cruelty.  Many people are for animal experimentation because it can create new, safe medicines.  By testing new medicines on animals, any serious side effects can be determined and prevented from happening to humans.  The other side of the issue is the undue harm it causes to animals.  There are other methods of testing medicines, but they are slower and can be less reliable.  Overall, the government does not step into this issue very often if ever.  There are guidelines set by the government as to the treatment of the animals, but once the experimenting begins, those guidelines aren't necessarily enforced by anybody.

Animal Experimentation

Without doing any research, what background do you currently have on this issue?
What do you want to know about this issue?
Why did you choose this issue? Had it effected your life? Is it something you are passionate about? Explain.

Animal experimentation is interesting because it is beneficial at the cost of animal's lives.  There is widespread controversy over the issue of whether or not it should be allowed.  Many experts believe that animals are a viable method of testing, but the way in which the animal is treated while it is still alive is important.  So the question that people ask is to what extent should animals be used in testing?

What are animals primarily tested for?

How are they treated during experimentation?

What kinds of tests are used on animals?

I chose this issue because I care about the welfare of animals.  I have a dog, who I love, and would never want to see get hurt.  I want to know more about the conditions that animal experimentation causes for animals.  Is it lethal experimentation?

1/26/2015

Last week I asked your to "think differently" and push yourself to be uncommon with your PSA project using Google Slides. Why do you think I asked you to do that? What is the point? Why not just use bullets and headers? Explain.

If your PSA is uncommon, then people will be more likely to pay attention to it because it is unique.  If every PSA was similar, people would stop paying attention to them.  The point of a PSA is to capture a chosen audience's attention and warn them about the dangers of something.  If your PSA fails to capture the audience's attention, then the meaning of it is also lost.  Bullets and headers are boring whereas an unconventional presentation is more exciting and will help draw attention to the issue.

1/23/2015

Those darn kids these days always speaking such gibberish about technology this and technology that.  Why can't they just write a good letter or read a good book.  They always be thinking they so high and mighty because their parents can do this and that, but what can they do?  They just sit around indoors.  It's nice outside, go outside for heaven's sake.  Back when I was a boy, you knew to be respectful to your grand-pappy.  I wish things would go back to the good 'ol days.

Underage Drinking

1/22/2015

What is a public service announcement (PSA)? What do PSA's do? What makes a good PSA? How can you get someone to take action after watching a PSA?  What is you PSA idea? Explain in detail.

A public service announcement is something that brings awareness to an issue that is harmful to society.  It is supposed to invoke emotion from the viewers while bringing attention to the harmful effects of the topic.  A good PSA should not be in the form of a presentation, but should connect with a target audience.  A good PSA can move or sway the audience's opinion on the topic through the use of emotion and factual evidence.  After watching a PSA, ask somebody's opinion on what they thought and what they will do to prevent the issues. My idea is to bring attention to underage drinking and how harmful it is.  It has no benefits in the long run, but has the potential to ruin your life.  

1/20/2015

It was a great relief to have a 3 day weekend because I finally had a long enough break to relax and forget about school.  Because the weather was great, I went for a jog every day and even took my dog on a couple of them.  I enjoyed the warm weather and being outside.  I also began working on my scholarship essay for the University of Tulsa.  The February 1st deadline is soon approaching and I still have too many things to do beforehand.  I relaxed most of the weekend and went to go see a couple movies with family and friends.  Overall, the weekend was splendid and I was sad to see it end.

1/16/2015

Tell me a little bit about yourself and your life here at BVHS. What activities or clubs are you involved in? What year are you in school? What is your favorite class and/or teacher so far this year? What are you looking forward to this school year? Include some original photos from your phone if you can.

I play Varsity soccer at BVHS and I am also a part of National Honors Society (NHS). I am a senior this year.  My favorite teacher is Mr. Barikmo because he is a really sociable, likable, funny person.  I enrolled in his AP Gov't class first semester and AP Macroeconomics second semester.  He is a great teacher who makes class more interesting.  This year I look forward to going on to college.  Coming up in the next two weeks, I look forward to being done with college applications.  I also look forward to going to prom this year.

Who am I?

1/15/2015

Always try

Believe in yourself

Can't isn't a word

Drive safely

Entertain others

Fix broken relationships
Go with no regrets
Have faith
Invoke creativity
Joke around
Killing is bad
Life is important
Motivation is key
Never back down
Open doorways to new places
Put others first
Quality above quantity
Respect your elders
Secrets can be hurtful
Tell the truth
Understand others
Vocalize your emotions
Welcome new people
eXemplify Jesus
You choose what you want to do
Zebras are white with black stripes

1/13/2015

What are your thoughts on this class so far? Easy? Hard? Informative? Frustrating? What have you learned so far? What do you want to learn? Explain yourself.

The content of the class is very straight-forward and simple.  I do think it has good information considering it has already become useful to me in my English class this year.  I have learned how to create a blog and maintain one.  It does seem that a lot of the information learned so far is more background info that we will build off of.  I look forward to learning about new, helpful technologies that may benefit me later because I will already know how to use them.  This class will most likely continue to be easy because the teacher walks through everything with you rather than letting you do it on your own.

1/12/2015

Tell me about your weekend. What did you do? Upload a photo to your Google Drive and then insert the photo (or photos!) to your blog post to show me what all you did.

This weekend was interesting because on Saturday my family received tickets to the KU basketball game against Texas Tech.  My uncle, who has season tickets to all of the games, was out of town for the weekend so he gave us his tickets.  Overall, the game was uninteresting because Texas Tech was a weak opponent who KU beat with ease.  After arriving at my seat, I saw my AP Macroeconomics teacher, Mr. Barikmo, a couple seats down from me.  We exchanged greetings and I enjoyed watching the game.  This was my highlight of the weekend because I don't often get to go to the KU basketball games.  Later that evening, my grandmother came over for dinner, but didn't stay long because she wasn't hungry, but was tired.

1/9/2015

Driving:  A
Skyping with Friends:  A
Playing Video Games:  A
Doing Soccer Workouts:  A
Attending School:  A
Listening to Music:  A
Checking Stocks on my Phone:  A
Reading Books:  A
Pretending to Pay Attention:  A
Walking my Dog:  A

1/8/2015

Read this small newspaper clipping and then write a blog post about it. What are your thoughts? How does it make you feel? Do you agree? Disagree? Explain yourself.

The world does not owe anybody anything.  Every material possession in the world is obtained through work not play.  But youths do not possess many material possessions because they are in a period of learning and growth.  The difficulties of youth are offset by the many fun activities youth participate in.  Although i agree that there are many things that teenagers may engage in, but I do not agree that the youth owe the world their time, energy, talent until after they have fully developed and grown.  Someday does not necessarily mean today.  There will be a time and a place for every teenager to become a responsible living active human being, but someday is a general term that should not signify now.  Somebody can be anybody.  Each and every youth will have a day when they are ready to step up and take responsibility.  This responsibility can not be forced upon them without resistance which is why you must wait for them to make the decision to become responsible.  If it is forced upon them, whose decision would it be to make them responsible.  It is not possible to force someone to be responsible, they must make that decision on their own because they feel that they are ready to become responsible.