Assignment 2B

The Exploratorium, San Francisco

2. Contains the sources you used with links to these sources .25 points
http://www.exploratorium.edu/
www.exploratorium/exhibits/f_exhibits.html

3. Contains a brief paragraph how it connects to your study of humanities. 1 point
I think this museum is a great example of what Paulo Freire was talking about when he said students should learn hands on. The Exploratorium lets children be creative; it allows them to perform new and exciting experiments and gives them the chance to learn in a different way. The Exploratorium is also something different; it’s not like most museums that you go to. It definitely relates to our humanities class because it connects to our Freire assignment and it also shows the work of people through their own creativity.

4. Contains the following "analytical elements":
a. Observation: What did you choose? What do you see or hear or feel or think of in the choice you made? What is the subject of the work? If you chose a 'thing' what is the work made of and what techniques (colors, lines, shapes, textures) does the creator use? Be specific in your description. If you chose a place, be specific in your description of what you see or hear. Talk to your reader as though they cannot see the item but somehow must draw a painting of what you see or hear. 1 point
When I think of the Exploratorium I think of children running around screaming exited to try the next experiment. The rooms are huge crammed with cool lights, funny experiments, and lots of noise. This museum isn’t like other museums, it thrives on children having fun, trying things on their own, and expressing their own creativity. There are normally people from wall to wall and it’s hard to move along. There’s a small pond outside where children go to have their lunch. When I was there they had two swans (which I had never actually seen before)! There are statues along the buildings and a dome gondola. It really is a beautiful place to visit, and quite a lot of fun for all ages.

b. Interpretation: What is your choice about? Give specific examples to support this statement in 2 sentences; do so in a way that teaches us something about your choice. Make Paulo Freire proud! .75 point
The Exploratorium’s purpose is to provide children with a fun and new way of dealing with things. A lot like Freire, the Exploratorium wants to bring out the creativity in children and give them a new perspective on science, school, and art. The hands on experience that the Exploratorium gives you enables children to remember things better, It also makes them feel more comfortable because they’re enjoying what they are doing.

Judgment: What led you to your choice? What do you think or feel about this choice? Why do you feel this way? Support your thoughts with specific observations. .5 point
I chose the Exploratorium for a few reasons, one was because I had done San Francisco in my last assignment and thought I should try to pick something there, and also because I LOVED the Exploratorium when I went. I went when I was in 5th grade and would love to go back again. It was just so much fun, there was so much to do and see. It honestly was my favorite field trip I had ever been on.

Questioning: What else would you like to know about this choice? When completing the question section, lead your audience into the question by stating a fact you do know, yet you still have the related question. This way, both your audience and you will have an educational experience. Example: I learned that John Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath was based on his personal experience working with farm workers. I would like to know if the characters he used in that book are fictitious or are they people he met? .5 point
Exploratorium is one of the most popular museums among children and schools along the bay area. Children love their experience when they go and say they learned things in a whole new way. My question is whether or not they remember what they learned years later. Is it a one time thing or does it really help your overall knowledge and do they contain that knowledge years later?

5. Using your classmates work from last week, tell us one thing you learned from 1 student. Is this one thing some common experience you share or some experience that is completely different than what you experienced? Is this one thing related to our class theoretical foundation and if so, how? Is that one thing related to historical or cultural context of this country or a different one? Link that persons blog to this entry (e.g. cut paste that blog entry here) .5 points
I learned quite a bit from Vicki’s blog. I thought it was interesting how New York City only houses around 8 million people, how there are 170 languages spoken, and approximately 36% were not native to the city. New York is a very popular state and especially New York City. It is very diverse and it thrives on being that way. I think New York City has a lot to do with the cultural context of this country.
http://vsetting.blogspot.com/2009/02/2a-new-york-city-ny.html

Assignment 2A

San Francisco, California

Contains the sources you used with links to these sources
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japantown,/San_Francisco_Californiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Gate_Bridge
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haight_Ashbury
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Francisco
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinatown,/San_Francisco_California http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coit_tower

Contains a brief paragraph how it connects to your study of humanities. I chose San Francisco for this project because it connects to the study of humanities in many ways. Humanities is the study of the works of people from art, literature, music, film, dance, philosophy, and religion within their cultural contexts. So what could possibly be better then one of the most diverse cities in the United States. Driving down any street in San Francisco you will see many forms of art from billboards to bus benches and if you happen to be driving with your windows down you will hear many different types of music from the rap and hip hop to country and jazz. In San Francisco you never know what you’ll hear or see.

3a. Observation: For my observation I chose walking over the Golden Gate Bridge because it honestly is a breathtaking experience. You have this 8,981 foot bridge in front of you and you have the Pacific Ocean as far as you can see below you. The air is much different on the bridge; it’s windy and cold and has a completely different smell. It smells like an ocean (which I know isn’t very descriptive) I guess it’s just the salt water below that does it. When you look up you see the steal arches that just seem to go on forever, and if you look to the street you see millions of cars zooming by. When you look to the land close to the bridge you see mountains, and in the water pretty far away you can see Alcatraz which once was a jail. This is the view that people from all over the world come to California to see, because it really is beautiful.

b.Interpretation: Even though San Francisco is pretty fast paced it is a place where anyone can fit in, there are so many different people in the city it kind of makes you feel more comfortable about being yourself and expressing your creativity. Being in San Francisco can be a bit of a culture shock to some people who have sheltered lives just because things are so out in the open there. You can buy pipes at glass stores and you see bums on all the streets, it’s just part of what makes San Francisco.

c.Judgment: I chose San Francisco because I find it exciting and adventurous. It truly is a beautiful city and there’s just so much to see when you are there, from the people on the streets, to the architecture, to the museums, it’s all amazing. When the sun goes down you can see all the lights throughout the city and still feel that ocean breeze. It’s a whole different way of living compared to the Sonoma Valley lifestyle.

Questioning: Through this project I have learned a lot more about the history of San Francisco and more of the popular reasons that people from all over the United States come here to visit but I would like to know what it is that that attracts most people into making San Francisco their home?

5. Using your classmates work from last week…What I learned from Michelle was her view of how Paulo Freire’s work relates to our class. “I think all of this information relates to our study of humanities because what Paulo teaches provides students with the ability to think about our place in the world and learn through his unique way of teaching what the humanities is truly about.” I completely agree with what Michelle said and I think she explained the relationship quite well.

(http://michelle-assignment1a.blogspot.com/2009/02/assignment-1c.html)

Assignment 1C

The first blog that I read belonged to Lori Sargiotto and I really liked her response to how people who do not love in California may think of it. Like Lori, when I think of California I think about San Francisco. I don’t know if it’s because it’s the most popular place around here, or because it’ so well known. When I talk to others about this state I usually get a comment about Hollywood, stars, beaches, and the sun. Although all of those things can be found here they aren’t necessarily what make up this state. I think that’s the most common misconception of California. I agree with Lori one hundred percent with her response and thought she explained it well.

Through Lori’s blog on Paulo Freire I learned that Freire had been jailed and exiled due to his subversive activities. I thought this was very interesting because I hadn’t read that through my own research. I also learned a lot about how Freire viewed culture. Paulo Freire believed that culture is all around us and it’s everything that we do.

The next blog that I visited belonged to Elizabeth Laxton. I learned a lot about what Elizabeth hopes to study throughout this course. She wants to learn more about liberal arts and how exactly they differ in different cultures.

Through Elizabeth’s blog I learned about one of Freire’s principles “Theory of Consensus.” Freire believed that disagreement was inevitable and healthy; he also believed that without conflict there is no human existence. Another thing that I learned through Elizabeth’s blog was another one of Freire’s principles called “Theory of Value.” It was interesting to read about how Paulo Freire viewed the student teacher relationship and how they should treat one another.

This project relates to our humanities class because we get a better understanding of our past and how it affects the future. This was also helpful because it discusses how students deal with their own education, or in Freire’s terms of “banking.”

Assignment 1B

Freire believed that all people should have the chance to become educated. I think the fact that he grew up in poverty helped him to become one of the most influential educational thinkers of the 20th century. He thought it was unfair and unjust that people in the lower class were not able to vote because they couldn’t read or write. Freire did his best to convince them that they had the chance to learn just like anybody else. Friere wanted to bring education to the most urban areas and he also wanted to come up with a new of teaching.

Freire was able to teach 300 sugarcane workers to read in 45 days, and that was just his first experiment with teaching people to read. I think that is quite an accomplishment, and I think it shows just how badly he wanted to educate those around him.

Freire also had a concept of “banking” that was quite popular. He viewed his students as an empty account and he, the teacher, would fill their accounts with knowledge. He not only wanted to teach his students, but he wanted to learn from them. A student-teacher relationship was very important to him and his work.

http://www.wikipedia.com/
http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-freir.
htmhttp://www.education.miami.edu/ep/contemporaryed/Paulo_Freire/paulo_freire.html