Sherell Messing Public Feed

Sherell Messing Capstone

Posted by Sherell Messing in Capstone · Sessa · Wed on
​Abstract

For my capstone I wanted to create an ILP that was different from all I have encountered and heard about from my peers. This ILP would not only further a group of individuals way of thinking but way of communicating. No other learning topic can express SLA’s core values in complete silence than American Sign Language (ASL). As a community we are strongly opinionated and often forget to focus on a voice, or idea, other than our own. By learning ASL you use your eyes to listen, a talent many have concurred. A language as beautiful as this can truly make you see the world from a different view. There is history that is not taught in schools and a community that is separated due to lack of communication.
To inform our community and make a change I held multiple bake sales to bring the SLA community together in a creative way. During this time I also deeply searched for an instructor to teach ASL classes next year. Sadly, I was not successful due to the classes being too expensive or unavailable. At the moment I am waiting for a response from my final contact, which is Pennsylvania School for the Deaf. If they are able to provide their services then I will communicate with Jeremy to get a list of 10 students who are interested. I will finalize the process by organizing a schedule and providing welcoming bags filled with notebooks and stationery.
Digital Piece https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/18w0Ovg1W9H3PB-6ykBrYKpxWyAO26jo4i47uwtb3IzU/edit?usp=sharing
Bibliography https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CbkH6gEfY319HBIBeUYpuMdpGsGA39_NjK5ftI0ZpJs/edit

Q1 Final Project

Posted by Sherell Messing in Advanced Art · Hull · e2 Band on

I have always thought the ceiling tiles in our school made the students of SLA unique. The colors literally brighten up the room and spread curiosity, inspiration, and memories. As I gaze around the room I see memories of my childhood represented through cartoons. Everyone has a different representation of what was once, and still might be, meaningful to them. This is why I decided to incorporate Pokémon, from my childhood, and Pokémon Go, from the present, into my ceiling tile. It brings a mixture of realities and memories for the students who are here now and those who will be here in the future. This piece took at least 10 hours to complete.

After some inspiration and a confidence boost I finally completed my self portrait after 3 ½ hours. I love drawing silhouettes but what happens in between those lines is an unsolved mystery. Noses and lips were never my specialty but I tried my best, and I think it came out pretty good for my first self portrait. I used only a number two pencil to create an image of myself by looking at picture that I held in my phone, nothing too special. I will continue to look at this portrait when I doubt my future works knowing that I tried my best and succeeded.

Advanced Essay #4: "Now & Then"

Posted by Sherell Messing in English 3 - Block - E on
​My goals for this writing were mostly to inform. I wanted to compare how much the world has changed because it is important to see how differently things are done and understood. I wanted to make my thoughts clear to myself as well as the readers. When I felt as though my writing was complete I was satisfied with the results. I think my argument was strong, but there is always that thought that I could have done something to make it a little better,
Letter-to-a-Homeless-Person
Letter-to-a-Homeless-Person

Violence and nonviolence is not the same today as it was in the past. The image above shows an example of the mindset people have today. This image shows a man in a black body suit holding another mans head to look away from the homeless man lying on the ground. The homeless man is leaning against a piece of cardboard that is leaning against a building made of marble bricks, that is clearly not his own. The man in the black bodysuit is a physical version of our fears. The homeless man represents the reality that we need to face.

Fear has always played a big part in History. History is not just a subject in school, but a topic in life. If you were to ask somebody about what they first learned in History you are guaranteed to get an answer including Martin Luther King Jr. He is known as the king of nonviolence, and he has made many changes with this method. “Perhaps a more tragic recognition of reality took place when it became clear to me that the war was doing far more than devastating the hopes of the poor at home.” This is from his Beyond Vietnam speech in New York, NY on April 4, 1967. This specific quote was interesting to me because he was basically saying the true reality of what was happening was not revealed to him until the situation got worse. But as people learned in early History classes, the time in which MLK was alive the level of nonviolent protests was popular and favorable for the future which is now our present time.

Speeches and sharing ideas are some of the great ways nonviolence was supported during MLK marches and meetings. Today we still hear stories about history but ideas and thoughts are more vaguely and strongly made aware to others as individuals today. The way we talk and the specifics of what we talk about are said angrily. Our views on situations that happened in the past can be expressed strongly enough to change the tone of a story and make the person listening understand in a negative way resulting in the butterfly effect of whisper down the lane. Some might say stories can never contain the full truth. Others might say truth is build off of stories, vice versa. In a way “truth” and “story” can be the same and different at the same time.

The same way stories can be ingrained in our society militarism is also ingrained in our society in almost every way possible. By contrasting how most people deal with war today and in the past it is easy to see that people are way more aggressive and violent today. We would rather take action to make a faster change than to sit around and wait for a “maybe” kind of answer. Militarism is ingrained in our society as a way to show pride in our country. It is also seen as a way of protecting what is yours, as well as hurting what is not. Depending on the type of individual you are you will fall into at least one of these three categories. When I watch older movies that include parents watching their children be sent off to war, they go to “serve” their country. Today the reason would be to fight for what is right, not to serve the country. Some go into the field to have the power and authority to kill just because. We try to use nonviolence as a form of protesting today but some thoughts do not start with this.

Nonviolence was a very large and powerful way of protesting in the past. Our people today brush the thought of nonviolence out of their minds with no reflex to the cold chill it brings to some. “A true revolution of values will soon cause us to question the fairness and justice of many of our past and present policies.” I believe this is what happened to change the way we protest for change. I believe that we questioned the fairness and justice and did not like what we seen. This resulted in a hidden revolution. The revolution included switching from nonviolent tactics to violent ones. Because people today question everything to make sure they are being treated equally there is no doubt in my mind to know that we will never again be a society rooted in nonviolence.

How does war and violence change people? The real question to ask should be “How does it not change people ?” War has been a part of my everyday life even when I did not know it. My country was at war, my family, and even myself. I realized how my attitude has changed over time as well. I would react calmly to situations as a young child but now, if I know something doesn't feel right, I will stand up for others and myself. War and violence has not changed people in this generation because we are so accustomed to it being in our lives. It all depends on the time frame you include or talk about.


Bibliography


"Beyond Vietnam**." Beyond Vietnam**. Web. 17 Mar. 2016. <http://kingencyclopedia.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/documentsentry/doc_beyond_vietnam/>.


"Fighting with Nonviolence." Scilla Elworthy:. Web. 17 Mar. 2016. <https://www.ted.com/talks/scilla_elworthy_fighting_with_non_violence?language=en#t-314454>.

Identity & Belonging Podcast

Posted by Sherell Messing in English 3 - Block - E on
​My goals for this podcast were to bring to my viewers an overall idea of how identity is found. I wanted talk about the introduction of trends and how social media affects the lives of everyone who is starting to find themselves. Things and people that you encounter throughout time affects your personality depending on how you interpreted it or them. Trends are turning this generation into a world of plagiarism. With this being said, trends can be both bad and good.

After creating my podcast I was mostly pleased with my work. The editing took a while and so did the audio of the podcast but I was happy with the outcome.  I had the most fun with adding the music to my audio. This was also one of the most difficult parts of creating this project. Overall I learned how to gather information from a person rather than online and I learned more about how to be open minded when looking at arguments.
English Identity Podcast

Advanced Essay #3 "What Is Original?"

Posted by Sherell Messing in English 3 - Block - E on
Before writing this paper I had very specific goals that I wanted to achieve. My main focus was to open the eyes of readers and make them think about the world around them, more importantly the people around them. I wanted to explain how hard it is to be original in the 21st century due to trends and social media. No matter how the world changes there will never be such a thing as normal or original, but you can be different, which is not a bad thing. As I look back to what I have created I see myself in my writing. The topic does not define me but I am a outsider making her way in to the trend world on an appropriate level with differences.

Society has slowly but surely constructed and destroyed feelings of identity and belonging over a long period of time. Recently, relying on society's opinions has become the only advice needed in order to craft an image, personality, and identity for oneself in order to be accepted by masses. Trends have played a big part in this problem. Trends have been spread through all types of social media available for all age groups. Trends of makeup happen and then we all look the same, trends of big lips happen and we all get botox, trends of a certain name brand occur and we all wear the same outfits, yet we call this original. This is not something we should strive to cut out completely due to trends being used for supporting advertisements of clothing and consumerist items. The change that we need to make as a whole is being able to find ourself instead of others finding us.

Society has constructed the feeling of identity by saying “if you are this race” or “if you have these features” then this is how you are defined. Most people go with it. In This American Life: Status Update Ira Glass states “What they are waiting for is not just likes and comments, but a specific kind of comment. This is probably not gonna be news to any of you who have teenage girls in your lives but I bet lots of you do not know about this. They want comments from other girls. And they say the wording is pretty much always the same.” This is a prime example of how young girls create an image that is striving to be acceptable by other people. The rare few that do not listen to constructed trends of identity are seen as boring people and outsiders because they do not go with what other people say they are. Instead, they go by what they know and they know more about themselves than anybody else in the world. The people who go along with these types of trends are having their identity built for them and they show that they are okay with this because “everyone else” does it too. They feel as though they now belong. This shows that identity can only be created by trends and the thoughts of others.

Society has destroyed feelings of identity and belonging for these very same reasons. “Class can be harder to spot than racial or ethnic differences, yet in many ways it's the most important predictor of what kind of financial and educational opportunities someone will have in life.” This quote from PBS: People Like Us is a great example of society's views. A summary of this larger insight is how today's world is filled with people who do not know who they are, they know who they want to be. If their image does not fit a higher class they change it to do so, not because ethnicity defines class because it does not, but to show they are wealthier in some categories in addition to money. These additional topics are mostly a part of beauty including body parts, actions, and thoughts. With these topics in the minds of viewers of society, this information is taken in and used so that others think of them positively. This shows that identity is based off of the money on your body and just your body.

Most viewers of society are perceived as one person on social media but are perceived as another person in real life, personality and looks. It is quite easy to be somebody else over the internet. I do not mean this in a Catfish type of way but a I-am-uncomfortable-with-my-real-self way. For example, a teenage girl decides to exaggerate her good qualities by posting inappropriate pictures of her body for others to sexualize in order to get attention. This attention could be compliments that no child's parent should read. But it is trending, everyone is posting pictures of her butt and breast, so “why can’t I do it too?” they think. Which leads to another popular trend; name brands. I think back to a times when I was younger and had dress down days at school when I did not have to wear uniform. I would pick out a simple but cool outfit, then be on my way out the door. When I got to school everyone was wearing something completely different and satisfied with it. The kids today walk into others with the same pair of jordans and same hair cut as soon as they walk out of their house.

Something has always been popular, from a new style of clothing to new music. But it has come to the point where people try to be original. Even though the “original” trends of today go around, nobody realizes that this happened in the 70’s or 80’s. This goes for music beats, lyrics and vintage clothing. Original became a trend. And if everyone is original, nobody is actually original because everyone is being just that. They are all the same. They copy off of others to create a person they want to be. They create a person others look to be. Copies are not original. If anything, people should learn to be inspired than to copy stitch by stitch.


Advanced Essay #2: "An Empty Book"

Posted by Sherell Messing on
          For this paper I focused on human development and learning styles. Education will forever be a part of the world and it is important to enhance it for the better of the learner. As time goes on more information will be available. It is the job of the educators to help the learners develop a path for themselves because not everything can be taught in school. I am most proud of finding an argument I care and feel greatly passionate about. By including memories I was able to tell my side of the story as a student. As my writing abilities continue to grow I plan to continue to explore and discover. Without exploration there is no story to tell.

          ​When I was young I enjoyed the basic necessities; school, bath time, and books. At school there were multiple personalities that surrounded me, and they were all judged for a grade. The “100 Book Challenge” was one of the activities that we engaged in. It was designed to see how many books we could read, not how well we read them or how much of the book we understood. As said in I Just Want To Be Average, by Mike Rose, “Students will float to the mark you set.” Children around me always read the thicker books, while I read the thinner ones, but they didn’t comprehend what was happening in their book while I did. The teacher's seen them try but didn't see me succeed. So, why were the other kids praised for books they didn’t understand? Reading a book can’t be the only form of literacy because I can do more than read books. I can comprehend the world around me by listening and visualizing.

          As a small child, after my bath and dressing for bed I would walk carefully down the tan rugged steps in the dark, tiptoeing across the arctic cold kitchen floor, and through the mirror filled dining room. I see my mother making her way towards the big green couch. She plops down, swinging her feet over the other cushions. She grabs the remote to turn the TV on until I walk in the living room. I look at her saying nothing for a couple seconds then dart to the boxed TV to grab my red Doctor Sues bag right beside it. It has little colorful fish on the outside like the book “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish.” The bag is filled with all my favorite books, but I pull out my favorite, “Are You My Mother?” It is a light green book with a white dog on the cover. “Mom! Let's read.” I say to her as she yawns and nods her head. I open the book and begin, “Are you my mudder?” My mom has read the book to me so many times I now know it by heart even though the words on the page are a blur to me. I turn each page excitedly reciting from memory to my mom as she smiles. “Are you my mudder?” I continue. I visualize the story in my head. When I am done she gives me a big hug and a kiss, “You’re very intelligent.” A smile grew on my face, and I would start from the beginning again.

          In school teachers set a “mark”, a goal of knowledge, for students to reach. The mark that is set is not always reasonable though. Most goals being set are the ability to complete certain tasks, while not understanding how these tasks were completed. The path to completion and comprehension is the most important “mark” to “float to.” Teachers should focus more on the process rather than the final product because the students, and humans in general, will never stop gaining knowledge. Teachers are so use to following a specific curriculum then once reaching a goal they aimed for, they stop and move on to the next without reflection. By the teachers setting a mark for endless exploration, and questioning, the child’s education can prosper. All children ask questions to understand better due to them being curious about the world around them that changes everyday. This is all important because goals, or “marks,” are made to be reached. Then, another goal should to set again to repeat the process in a higher educated matter.

          My mother did not directly set a timely goal for my education. She loved to watch me explore and ask questions. This is why I worked along my own path and tried to discover things for myself. I was given the time to explore. The outside world contains more visual examples than a book could ever have. Understanding is the key to literacy, not just being able to see the words. By listening to my mother read this book to me I visualized what she was telling me in my head. It made me curious. It made me want to bring the story to life. If you truly listen to what somebody is saying to you and explore it, you will find more things to explore. 

          There was a time when books and writing did not exist and now humans have prospered, from exploration, to inventing and creating things like buildings and houses with heat, hospitals to help the injured, and restaurants to feed. Today these things are normal to us, but they were not normal once before. We continue to explore by doing things to make life easier, more enjoyable. If you think reading is the only form of literacy then think about a book, any book, and ask yourself what made them write it the way they did. They didn’t get that information from another book, they would have had to find the words themselves.



Cited Sources

"100 BOOK CHALLENGE®." 100 BOOK CHALLENGE®. Web. 27 Nov. 2015. <http://www.americanreading.com/products/100bc/>.

"Overview of Learning Styles." Overview of Learning Styles. Web. 27 Nov. 2015. <http://www.learning-styles-online.com/overview/>.

Eastman, P. D. Are You My Mother? New York: Random House, 1986. Print.

Rose, Mike. ""I Just Wanna Be Average"" 50 Essays: A Portable Anthology. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2004. 316-29. Print.

https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1N50nboGeXGd8aYZCmT52X-r7kEZcBvSdxD9H--bzYHo/edit?usp=sharing
​Image Analysis

          This is a statue of a book. This book is made out of scrunched up pieces of paper and paint is splattered on the books cover while the inside stays white. The balled up paper represents all the things and knowledge that can be discovered, unwrapped. The splattered paint represents the symbolically bright and dark discoveries that can be found. The inside, pages, of the book are white, empty, clear of all words and pictures to show new life, new knowledge, and new stories. The statue can be interpreted in many different ways by all levels of knowledge. Only the mind of other individuals can tell what words should be written inside and in what way. 

Advanced Essay #1

Posted by Sherell Messing in English 3 - Block - E on
Timely Mind
By Sherell Messing

With this paper my goals are to elaborate on the fact that everyone eventually grows up. When you grow up you will have responsibilities and you will not have the same kind of freedom that you were once use to. ​Despite the fact of it all, you must take time for yourself to me worry free, stress free, and let your mind be free. Without your sanity it would be hard to be yourself, or even to find yourself. In this paper I feel as though a did well when I gave detailed visuals so readers could see my words come to life. One thing I would like to improve is my way of blending, going from one topic to another.

This tiny piece of rainbow printed artwork slowly made its way into my hands all the way from Japan. No, I have never been to Japan. I have never even left the United States. Just like most teens and young adults of this generation I have been introduced and taken hostage of the wonderful person, place and thing we call the internet. I received this in the mail as a bonus item/thank you card. This was for buying from a specific company online that sells cool, fun and useful things from Japan that can not be found here in America. Right before I open the package I look at how smooth the cardboard edges feel. I wonder how it made it across the world and still look so untouched. The sweet, but yet strong, fresh scent of cardboard still lingered upon it.

I grab the small box and spun it upside down, left and right, examining each side just like people do to dice. Instead of searching for dots that represent numbers I was searching for the end of the piece of tape that kept presents inside and locked away from me. My fingers are the keys. I scratch at the edge of the tape with my red colored nails until I could grip it in between my index finger and my thumb. I slightly pull the tape back not trying to damage the perfected texture of cardboard. As I listen to the ripping and tearing I feel like I am doing something bad. Maybe I feel bad because I should not be wasting my time. I should be doing something like chores or homework. I choose to do something I want instead. Finally, I have the box open and a neatly folded sheet of bubble wrap is mirrored in my eyes.

I close my eyes and slide the wrap in my hands rubbing my nails against the soft plastic then piercing the paper with force repeatedly. POP! POP! POP! I sit back with satisfaction and think about all the air that touched this piece of plastic. It must have been on a plane. Or maybe a boat. Or maybe it traveled from car to car. Maybe it was all three. Was it a big truck or a small van that it was carried in? Was this package on the top of other packages? It must have been on the top. As I touch each bubble I imagine touching the ground of states in and out of the country. I wish I could travel just like bubble wrap.

This is one of the many times I feel like I have a free and childish mind. I am a high school student daydreaming on the tiny complexities of bubble wrap. I no longer have time to waste on such things. So, I steal time. I steal time on my way to and from school, while I eat dinner, and when I wash in the shower. I steal time because time was stolen from me. Life goes by way too quickly. If I do not have time to think of new thoughts then I think of the thoughts I had when I was allowed to have thoughts. Responsibility has made it hard to think for myself. As I sit in the crowded hallway on the third floor near the shiny silver elevators, up in a hard to reach window, I dose off from my work and think about when I was younger as my eyes stretch above the city building rooftops into the clouds of balloon animals. 

If the sky can paint itself with colors then I can too. I see right through the rainbow but I can never see through me. I wonder why that is if we both contain color. Sometimes if I stare at my hand too long I can see right through, until I realized I had closed the eye that was in front of my hand the whole time. But I like to believe that I can see through anything, even the darkest of colors.

I run on the steaming hot pavement without shoes like I always do, even if i’m not suppose to. I pick up my chalk and replicate what I see around me. Trees with birds, soil with worms, and a cookie on a plate. I like to draw what is real. I like to image what is not. Maybe that is why I can understand the darkest of colors. The pavement is made of black tar and it burns the bottom of my toes and the flip flops are pink which protect them. But I still decide not to wear them. The trees in the back yard have brown bark and give me splinters when I peel it and I have yellow garden gloves to protect me. But I use my bare hands anyway. Directions when cooking sweets like cakes and cookies state to bake until golden brown. They are full of sugar and I am not suppose to eat them all the time but I still love the taste.

So many things are invented to protect the world from the most natural of things. I like to take the world as it is. If I start to draw the things that I imagine then somebody out there, somewhere, will invent something to stop my thoughts. I continue to draw the things I can see like flowers and bugs so people will not change the world. The sky is even more beautiful to me when the stars are out and the moon is bright inside a navy blue spread. I may not be able to see through my hand but I can surely made a cookie disappear.

If I could steal time I would spend it being young. 

Climate Change Monologue Project

Posted by Sherell Messing in World History - Block - B on

Authors: Sherell Messing & Aissatou Bah​


Our unit of study included days of research on ways to fix climate change and ways it is caused. We watched videos and read articles about the different problems that are in the midst of being solved and discussed by a higher power. Our goal for these monologues is not only to make everyone aware of how climate change is badly affecting people around the world but to show them that there is something that can be done about it. We want to describe in as much detail as possible to explain the seriousness of it all. Ice caps are melting, the temperature of water is changing, humans are being physically injured around the world, and animals are going extinct. We are polluting the air and scientists warn that climate change is only going to get worse. Our monologues provide information describing the different effects it has in different parts of the world and with different species. We know what and what not to do in the future to help prevent climate change from becoming worse. These monologues are prime diverse examples of how creatures and humans are being affected. All children and adults around the world should take the time to play their part to help slow down, if not stop, the affects of climate change. It is in our hands to make a difference, one person at a time.



"Too Hard To Adapt"

As I woke, nothing but white was in my view… No friends, no family, no nothing. My home of a fallen dead tree was frozen over and covered in a sticky ice to my fur. Sleeping behind this tree takes away the night breeze that solidifies my heart. I was stuck in an empty world surrounding me. I had no hope for a new beginning because there wasn't anywhere to start from. Am I sliding? Everyday I would walk in different directions. I would say paths but there weren't any to be seen… there never were. Each step I took made me worry for my life. I knew that one day my next step will be my last. Its rolling faster.

The memory of my mother breaks into crumbs in the back of my mind. I have no guide… I never did. Trying to remember her, I question my existence. I’m gliding more! Why haven't I adapted to this lifestyle yet? Maybe it is just simply unadaptable to begin with, but why? I can't remember her sound but I can remember her stories. They told of times where life was, at what I thought to be, smooth and workable. A place worth living in. Somethings happening! At least, compared to everything I witnessed… nothing but white was in my view. I had never yet reached the age where I collected food on my own, not that there was food anyway. Whats the point now?

Oh no, I’m falling..I don’t want to! No not yet. Please. (Shivering) I don’t deserve this. I didn't do anything wrong. My home is completely submerging into this gunk. I am falling...sinking...breaking... beneath the cracked ice. No i don’t want to die, no not like this …

What's happening?… I do not understand… will this… happen to everyone?... If there is an anyone?… Ah! My eyes?… its covering my trunk… I know… I was made…  to die… but to die… for what reason?...


"It Always Repeats"

Yawn. I am surprised the sun didn't blind me this morning. Oh no, what’s this? Every time I look outside my window there is something different, but today, oh no today I  can’t describe this. I can’t believe that I’m going to sit here and talk to myself like the crazy people on TV do. It’s actually not that bad. But boy do I need to clear mind head. I don’t know what to do. Oh my god, WHY IS THE ROOM SHAKING? Oh all of my stuff is going to get wet. There is so much water. Mom! Mom! Where are you?

Yes mom I’m fine, are you okay? Oh thank god you’re okay. Mom! Say something, why are you just laying there? Mom I can’t hear anything you’re saying. Stop mumbling. Mom say something. Mom please. PLEASE SAY SOMETHING MOM. Oh no mom, you have blood on the back of your head. MOM I need to get help. I should go call Mr. Douglass next door. Wow that’s a lot of water. All of the beautiful trees are falling and this is just a whole big mess. Oh my god I hate climate change. It’s because of climate change that all of this keeps happening.

MS.DOUGLASS open the door! I need help! Yes mom has gotten hurt again because of tsunami. Oh Ms. Douglass thank you, why didn't I think of that. You’re going to be fine mom, don’t worry. Oh Ms. Douglass when do you think this is going to stop happening? I know i'm only 8 years old but i can help. I mean, I know people do not really taking care of the earth but why does it keep happening to us here in Japan? You’re right, we do need to stand up and do something. But do you think everyone else is willing to try?


"A Long Journey"

I am walking across this heated sand. The sun is burning my shell, it feels as if I am going to melt. Why does it have to be so hot everyday? This air is humid and difficult to take into my weary lungs. I better hurry up and find a spot in the sand before nightfall comes. By that time I’d be freezing to death. I wish there was an in between weather. This sand is way too hot to walk on. It is not like I can move any faster anyway, I’m a turtle for gods sake.

Nope, this spot is too close to the sand, and I’m scared to go near the water because of all the trash the humans throw in there. I might get wrapped around a plastic bag and just die. Wait, the temperature will affect the gender of my babies. That won’t be good. Oh, the sun is going down, I must find a place soon. On second thought, I can’t lay my eggs near the water because the sea levels are rising.

When they hatch they must be able to roam towards the water after experiencing the sands sight. Or maybe it the water was cleaner it would be better. I feel trapped I can’t stay on the sand and going into the water is a big risk. I think I’ll just take a risk. I just take the risk of losing these eggs and losing my life. Maybe if the ocean was better I wouldn't be in this mess.


"Too Little Too Late"

Yes my name is Johanna, and it is my son that was injured by the earthquake. I have been waiting in this red cross hut for 2 hours just for you to see my son! No, I will not calm down. Do not tell me to stop yelling! My child is going to die, then what will I do? Yes baby, I’m here for you. I won’t leave you. How many times do you need me to explain to you what happened? What kind of a doctor are you? For the hundredth time, because of the earthquake, a building collapsed on him and now he is complaining of his chest hurting, he is all bruised up. If you can’t see that he is in pain then I don’t know why you are a doctor.

Stop telling me it is because of climate change. Don’t you think that I know that we are treating this earth badly? Don’t you think I see the damages of climate change everyday, because I do? My child is dying because we are all so careless! My son is dying because of an earthquake in Haiti, and it’s because we don’t know how to take care of the earth. Do not touch me. Paul wake up, please don’t do this. Can somebody do there job? Open your eyes sweetie. Somebody do something! Please my son is dying! Somebody help me! Oh my god please help me. Paul please wake up. You’re the only person I have.


"Last Day of Sunlight"

Why am I the only plant left here? Day-by-day I stay stuck inside this brick wall imagining how different the world would be if it had more plants like myself, instead of it being so dry and empty.  I have nothing to do and no one to talk to. If the creatures that lived here before treated it better, I wouldn't be in this situation. Some nights the breeze is too hard and I can feel my body being ripped out the cracks. Why is the wind trying to carry me away? I wish that others were here to help me. Or even if they were here, would they be any help to me. They might be struggling just like me.

Early this morning the sun beamed on my leaves, tanning my green to a dark brown that now crumbles. I feel sick and weak. I am losing more and more leaves everyday. Today I only have one leaf remaining. This is the worst I have ever felt. Why do I to be the one to suffer. My one remaining leaf is at it’s early stages of crumbling. My stem is drooping downward, I am falling down the wall. The next strong wind will blow away my life. Why wasn't this stopped any sooner.

No rain has nurtured me in weeks. I fear that my life is going to be taken any second now. I thinks it’s for the better, because it’s not like I’m happy here anyway. I would be happy being any where but in this empty place called the earth.
WeVideo
WeVideo

Negative Space

Posted by Sherell Messing in Art - Freshman - Hull - y1 on
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     ​Negative space is basically the area behind an object in a picture of piece of artwork. This includes anything above, below, and on the sides of the object(s) you are looking at. 
     I found negative space in my "Cut Out" by first identifying the object I was looking at. The objects are a house with a fence and clouds in the sky. Only half of the paper was done at a time (left and right). On the paper, before cutting and tracing, was two separate colors (light gray and dark gray). The dark gray color covered all the objects I was looking at (the house, fence, and clouds). The insides of the windows of the house were also dark gray, along with other details of the house. All of the light gray area was the negative space. After cutting and tracing, the colors changed for negative space on two different sides. The negative space is now blue on the left side and one the right it is light green.
     I found negative space in my "Stool Drawing" after I identified the objects that I was looking at. The objects are a table, two stools (one on top of another), a plant, and a chord hanging from the ceiling. First, I took a white piece of paper and shaded it completely with a pencil. I then took my eraser and erased any part of the objects that i saw until they were white like the paper before shading. Now I can tell the objects from the non-objects. The non-objects are the negative space, which is the shaded part of the paper.
     It helps an artist to see in negative space because I believe it makes it easier to shape the object they are trying to create. It is useful in creating art by being a short cut. When I say this I mean it can help others who are not proud of their drawing skills. This is one way you don't need to know how to draw to complete.

"Mi Loco Amigos Y Yo"

Posted by Sherell Messing in Spanish 1 - Manuel - B on
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Esta es una foto de mi amigos y yo. Mi mejor amiga se llama Morgan. Es muy cómica y creativa. Va a la escuela en casa. Creo es aburrido. Va escribir en la computadora canciones. Vamos hablar por teléfono casi siempre. Mi amigo otro se llama Jason. Es super loco y bobo. Come y duerme siempre. Va practicar deportes en la parque, es por eso que te gusta jugar béisbol. También, mi llama Sherell. Voy relajar en la playa verano tiempo y estudiar en la biblioteca. Además, cuando tengo tiempo libre pastar un rato con mi amigos. Vamos jugar videojuegos en “Jugar Dos.” Comemos en el restaurantes a veces. Mi favorito es “La Manzana Abejas.” Vamos ir de compras el centro comercial de vez en cuando. Somos asombroso.

La Mejor Escuela Nunca

Posted by Sherell Messing in Spanish 1 - Manuel - B on

Mi nombre es Sherell Messing. Tengo muchos apodos, pero yo soy de costumbre llamado Shucky. También, tengo catorce años. Soy estudiante de Science Leadership Academy. Está en Filadelfia. Está cerca de siete-once. Es un más o menos alto edificio y grande vidrio ventanas. Hay cinco pisos con tantos profesores. Tenemos interesante clases y divertido profesores. Tenemos líder cheer y poesía asociación. Participo en líder cheer y poesía asociación porque es muy creativos.

Tengo íngles, geometría, historía, biochemica, informática, español, y ingeniería. Mi favorita clase es íngles porque es muy tiempre consumidor y no mucho tarea. No me gusta mucho informática porque tenemos que prestar atención siempre. Necesitamos una hoja de papel  en la clase íngles. A veces necesitamos los libros. Necesitamos una computadora y una cargador en la clase informática. Leemos libros y en clase el Señor Kay. Hablamos en clase la Señorita Hull. Para tener éxito en esta clase íngles es importante tomar apuntes y trabajar duro. Para tener éxito en esta clase informática es requerido prestar atención y estar preparada.

Mi favoríta profesores son al Señor Kay y la Señorita Jonas. El Señor Kay enseña íngles y la Señorita Jonas enseña historía. El Señor Kay te encanta café y lectura. La Señorita Jonas te gusta leer pero también. Clase íngles es muy interestante y divertida. Clase historía es importante y más o menos abborido. El Señor Kay es diferente que más profesores. La Señorita Jonas es energético.

Me gusta mis profesores porque ellos son muy importante y divertidos. Lo que más me gusta de SLA es almerzo. No me gusta nada consultivo porque no importante y abborido. SLA es incrediblemente loco, divertido, y súper educativo.

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Media Fluency

Posted by Sherell Messing in Technology- Freshmen - Hull - y2 on

I am a big time chocoholic. I like chocolate candies, chocolate pretzels, and even chocolate covered chocolate. Whenever it is in my presence I literally go “coo-coo for cocoa puffs.” In my family I have always been known as a chocolate lover, knowing this as it still shows today brings back precious memories. In my slide it views a picture of chocolate shreds in the shape of a heart and quote on top. The picture on my slide includes empty space. After reading the 7th lesson (“Empty Space”) on the presentation zen website I decided to design it this way so it wasn't viewed as extremely serious. My slide also includes large sized text. I decided to include this in my slide so that it stands out. I also got this idea from the presentation zen website, which is talked about in lesson 3(“Make Type Big”).


Sherell Q2 media fluency
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