When I was creating this challenge, it took a lot of thinking figuring out what I kept and why i kept it. When i was speaking to my new friend Emily, I had discovered that there are many reasons as to why someone keeps an item. It could be because they were tied to it as a child, like Emily, that brought them comfort when they needed. It can remind them of a memory, like myself, that brings me happiness thinking back to my past accomplishments. There are so many more reasons why we keep items throughout our lives, and it was amazing to see. At first, it started out as one of those interviews where we just start asking questions and receiving answers, but it turned into much more than that. We both started conversations about our home life and how our item connected to it, it connected us to curriculum and where we are at now in our academic and post-graduate careers. It sparked a friendship that was not there before. Moving forward, I think it's important to remember that everyone has a story. And whatever their story is, it is important to them in more ways than none. As a future teacher, it is extremely important to realize that every student has different backgrounds and different stories, so we should get to know our students before making changes to curriculum that could shape the way they learn.
Challenge #2: Be your own detective
I have always have a love for the planet/nature. As someone who strives to be as green as possible, I understand that others don't feel the same way. A lot of individuals take our earth for granted, saying "The planet wont die in the time i'll be alive." Although that may be the case, the Earth is a beautiful place that should not be destroyed because of that mentality. A hobby that I enjoy pursuing is nature photography/ horticulture. It is my dream to take pictures of the Earth worth saving the world over. For those who have that mentality, I hope my pictures will change their mind. For this project, I interviewed my brother who studied horticulture at Joliet Junior College and a professional in a greenhouse.
Nature photography/ horticulturist. Work in Horticulture might properly be said to have begun with the establishment of the Agricultural Experiment Station. The Station was made possible by the passing of the Hatch Act by Congress on March 1, 1887. For several years prior to 1896, it was listed in the Division of Botany, Forestry, and Horticulture, which was one of two divisions in the Department of Biology. The other Division was that of Zoology, Entomology, and Physiology. https://horticulturecenter.illinoisstate.edu/ is a great resource for students at Illinois State University. Day to day life during the summer/fall is taking care of greenhouses, gardens, and sometimes fields. Some other activities include landscaping. Some of the things that we need to consider before starting up is understanding that you spend most days outside in the sun, in greenhouses that can be very moist, and working every single day. My brother suggested that I start with one plant to take care of and see if I can keep it alive (because I am very bad with plants).
Because of the discoveries I made during this project, I would like to start a small garden and a few plants. I understand that jumping into it could cause harm to the plants because of the lack of knowledge, so id like to start small. Hopefully in the near future, depending on time constraints, I would like to start before fall to be able to have a functioning garden before the winter time. THIS is what brings me joy.
Challenge #3: Investigation Mixtape
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What lessons/thoughts have you learned as a result of this experience? Why are they important or do they stand out to you?
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I have learned that everyone has their own unique viewpoint on topics such as these that weigh heavily on our society. It depends on their experience with their topic. For example, the first quote I pulled from came from my father, who works for Exxon Mobil. Exxon is the 4th highest carbon emitter in the world. It is interesting to see his perspective from other varying perspectives that do not interact with fossil fuels on a daily basis.
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How might understanding different perspectives contribute to who we are as learners? Humans?
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This question ties into the lessons that I had mentioned in the previous question and there is a definite difference between the experiences of those who work around fossil fuels daily and those who have a love of plant live and biodiversity. Someone, like my brother for instance, who works in a greenhouse and is constantly fighting to keep plants alive may have a very different perspective on this question than my dad who works to support fossil fuels.
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How did this challenge impact your thinking moving forward?
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As a teacher, we are told to think about each one of our students' prior knowledge as well as background information when creating our lesson plans. creating questions such as mine that are controversial in nature are some that we have to keep in mind before talking about. Some of the information could lead into a debate that is not properly talked through, hence the important of knowing our students before sending them into conversations like these. It is also important to note that sitting and having conversations like these when you are simply listening and not responding are difficult when the conversation is controversial
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Multigenre Project
