Lee McKinnis (57)
Kristina Marynczak (37)
Killian Noonan (36)
Melissa Castillo (32)
NikoVelazquez (27)
Shannon Ratzel (23)
Michelle Reyes (22)
Kyle Barczak (21)
Maura Bilek (21)
Susan Bayaa (21)
I will have final grade information posted to the Splatter “Check My Grade” area by 6pm Friday, May 18. This is a few hours later that I originally said, but patience is a virtue, eh? The portfolios themselves will be available before then by noon–in D108–if you’d like to pick them up, but the grade info won’t be available until the early evening. Thanks again for a great semester.
CONGRATS TO ALL!!! Prof. McGuire can be tough at times but is a great teacher and motivator!!
For this weeks Journal entry I would like to talk about the 7th chapter of “Why White Rice?” This chapter is titled “Mash It Up… GRACEFULLY Using Sources”. What I thought about right away while reading this chapter was that I never really knew how to properly source things until this semester. This is mainly because I sat down with Professor McGuire and he should me how to properly site things. In the past I always thought that if you just move words around and rephrase what is being said that it isn’t plagiarizing. I was never really sure about it till this semester. The next part of the chapter talks about words and origins, I sort of understand where the writer is coming from but not 100%. I think he is saying just try to know words and remember phrases etc… on our own terms. Like the Thyroid and shield example. I knew what a thyroid is but had no idea it’s origins was from the word shield. So we sort of take in ideas and rethink them, then we interpret them in are own way. That’s what I think anyway. Regarding the response to other authors, I think that whether you agree or disagree try and go into full detail and get the reader to understand where your at with the idea. Later in the chapter talking about sources being a way for readers to track down the ideas and learn more. To be honest, I have never thought about that before, but it makes perfect sense to me now. Then the talk about Obama’s speech was interesting and when I get time later this week I will be viewing the youtube video’s as mentioned in the chapter. In conclusion, I will have to take citations more seriously and give credit where credit is due. The last couple paragraphs are right and I don’t want to look like a Jackbut, trying to post out information that is to technical that there is no way that it came from me. After reading this chapter I truly will take more precaution when writing future essays/papers with a lot of information from sources.
Swanson, Troy. “Mash It Up…Gracefully Using Sources”, (Why White Rice?) Thinking through writing,Dubuque, IA, Kendall Hunt, pages 163-173, Print
For my last reading journal entry I decided to respond to the the short excerpt “Write that Down” in “Why White Rice?”. This small entry in the book talks about using simple language instead of complex words. I feel that I can relate to this because I often find myself using fancy words and intelligent sounding phrases to make myself sound like I know what I am talking about. It is not like I just get a thesaurus and try to find better words to make myself sound smarter. I actually know the words I use from my own knowledge, off the top of my head. I use these words and phrases because I feel that they give me a sense of confidence when writing. For example, when I am writing and I write a good sentence and I feel that it sounds intelligent and flows nicely, I will keep it. Although, sometimes I can see that my writing becomes a tad complicated too understand, so i try to shorten it up. When I am writing I try to keep it simple, but still incorporate my nifty words so I can sound like I know what I am talking about. I do not find myself making complicated sentence structures and over the top vocabulary words. For the most part I keep it simple, yet intelligent. I found it helpful when Tom said that when your ideas become more intricate, be sure to keep your language as simple as possible. I agree with this because sometimes I get carries away with my ideas and they become so complex I do not know how to write the down on paper. All I have to do now is to remember to keep everything simple!
DeVillez, Eric R. “Write That Down!” Why White Rice?: Thinking through Writing. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt Pub., 2010. 98. Print.
intro-conclusion
Get INVOLVED
Throughout this semester I have worked on many different papers talking about getting out there and helping people that are less fortunate. These papers have come from the heart, these experiences were life changing and found my inner soul and were expressed on to paper. The organizations that I went to volunteer at this semester changed my life and whole perspective on volunteer work. I always thought that I was to busy and had too much to do I didn’t have time to help others in need. But when you take the time to actually step back and try and understand why these people at organizations help every single day you realize that you can make a difference in actually saving someone’s life. How many people can go home and say I saved a life today? That is normally not a part of everyone’s normal day routine. So to volunteer whether you are feeding the hungry, giving low-income families food, or packing shoes to give to a third word country you are saving a life and you should not cut yourself short of this accomplishment. Not only did I feel a sense of accomplishment throughout this semester but through these papers I have expressed what I’ve learned and what I will carry with me for the rest of my life. A class is only a semester long but what really matters is when after the class is done with what you can take along with you through the journey of life. To me this portfolio isn’t just a bunch of papers put together in this book it is life experiences almost like letters to myself of what I learned along the way. From when I went to my first organization at share your soles to my last organization at Orland food pantry I learned something from beginning to end and noted that all onto paper. Every college student that I have talked to says that they are either too busy or just feel that they cannot make a difference so they see no need to help out but you shouldn’t feel this way and after going through all this volunteer work I have realized that this is far from the truth. I met very extraordinary people that care so much about what they do and really made a difference on there own so don’t use this an excuse to not help out. If your so busy that you feel you cant get anywhere to help out you can help out for just an hour when you have nothing to do people say they do not have time but then turn around and say they are bored well if your bored get out there and HELP!! What you need is a push and ill be the first to admit that is what I needed to do community service just because and that’s exactly what this class was it was a push to help those in need. After I got that little push I got really into it I noticed that when going to my first organization I was dreading it I couldn’t wait to go and get it done with but by the last time I helped I was actually excited to go and help and couldn’t wait to tell my classmates, friends, and family what I learned by going and what I did to help. Community service I consider to be contagious once you go and get hooked on it you want others to get involved to and you want to spread the word. There is nothing wrong with not being sure if you want to help or not but if you aren’t sure just find something that interests you and help out there. I hope through my writings you can find an organization that sounds interesting to you and you can get motivated to not only help out but to help out others. I hope to achieve my goal through my writings and that is that the people that read this portfolio understand how much my perspective on volunteer work from beginning to end changes and that motivates them to get out there and get involved in hope that they will change there perspective also. All it takes is one day one experience that really had an affect on you to change your life so try it think about it you have nothing to loose you only have knowledge and hopefulness to gain!
Its your turn..
Now that you have read all of my papers it is your turn to get out there and help. I hope that my portfolio has motivated you to do this. Writing this conclusion to this portfolio I feel a sense of accomplishment. After I went through so much and learned so much and I was just able to put it all on paper and include it in this book. I hope to continue my journey and to keep helping others that are less fortunate then me. This is not only the conclusion to this class and semester so it is a big accomplishment to make it this far. After my group completed the Orland Food Pantry project there was an Act Out volunteer fair that my teacher Mr. Mcguire organized. My group had to make a poster board and take it to the volunteer fair where we talked about what we learned from this organization and educate others that may be interested in volunteer work they just don’t know where to go. After sticking by my poster for a while I walked around and looked at other places that other students in the class had went to and helped out. There were people there to represent the groups and tell you a lot more information that you need to know about the organization and how you could get involved. I could not believe how much work people put into these poster boards it was amazing to see how much hard work went into this fair. I enjoyed my time at the fair and going into this class I cannot say that I would have had the good time that I did looking at volunteer work like I did at the end. By walking around the fair I got a sense that a lot of my classmates felt the same way because their poster boards were awesome and everyone had a smile on there face and was laughing and joking around. This fair in my opinion was a great way to end this volunteer work and semester because it made everyone realize that all of there hard work paid off and now they can talk about it and get others involved and want to be involved. This is my first year in college and this was the first class that I actually had life experiences and can take it with me for the rest of my life. When I was looking back at all of papers I felt as though I was looking back at accomplishment and achievement. Volunteer work is not just going and helping out it helps you find what kind of person you want to become. It makes you feel good about yourself and motivated and that to me is the best feeling in the world. Volunteer work doesn’t have to be boring you can take friends with you or family the more people you bring the better it is. There is no certain way that you have to volunteer so make it fun and hopefully you will come out of it with a whole new look on things like I did. I hope that by reading my work you can reflect back on some of the pieces that you read and try and get involved. I thought that I could never make a difference but the truth is I already have I’ve helped out at two organizations and changed the peoples lives that I’ve worked with just as they’ve changed my mind. So get out there and touch the hearts of others I believe that anyone can make a difference all they have to do is care.
About time the website is up…
Amateur to Expert
• First and Final impression:
I thought back on my previous experience in service learning because many were social issues. I have volunteered to walk in the Breast Cancer walk in down town Chicago when I was a freshman in high school at the Chicago High School for Agriculture Sciences. This was a great event to attend because I felt I was showing all the people with Cancer in the world that I care and I believe I donated my legs for an eight hour walk to show how much I care. I went with a small group from our school and some of the students that attended were handicap and I assisted them greatly. I would push their wheelchairs around and help with any other assistance they needed. I really enjoyed helping in this event and wish to do it again soon. I have also volunteered at the Oak Lawn Community High School my junior year in a Baseball clinic for young baseball players. I helped show them how to hit a baseball the correct way and really enjoyed teaching them. Whenever I have a chance to show a young person how to place baseball I makes feel I am doing a good deed and it reminds me of my myself because I have been playing since I was four years old. Before we could even start there were many technical difficulties. Each and every one of our group members tried to contact the Animal Welfare League but never received a call back. This was a major downfall as a group because it delayed more of our time to being able to type this paper from an experience in the project view. The final portfolio was a great chance for me to show my overall experience in life on service learning. I felt great going about completing the Live, kill, die project, service/activists guide to an issue, Letter to the Editor, A Critical Reflection of Service, A Story of service, and Beginning and end we all were required to complete. I have read feedback on my writing from multiple people and asked the professor questions whenever I have some. I understand all the readings of the course and maintain the schedule well. I also connect the drafts to the major readings. If I don’t understand something I ask multiple people. I believe we will all learn well from these experiences and have enjoyed giving a helping hand to others through the peer reviews. When we all first met in class and got to know a little bit about each other through playing the yarn game, many of us said we love to help others. The story of service project has given me the opportunity to do so in such a way that we can be graded for it. This has been the most convenient way for everyone to be able to pass and I believe it will boost my grade drastically. Life has many challenges and we just have to make the best of it. I greatly enjoyed this experience and I will be more than happy to come back and help again. Everyone at the facility greeted me with a warm welcoming and they were very kind. The Critical Reflection of Service showed me the best way to show my experience at the Share Your Soles event I attended. This event was fun-filled and I really enjoyed writing about it. I was able to express all my thoughts and feelings about the social issue. This experience of performing a service for a greater good compliments with what we are learning in class because that is one of the main points of the class to be able to help others in need such as peer reviews and making notes on print outs of others peers assignments. Learning through experience has taught me more in the class because it helps understand how to deal with adversity when it arrives. The Letter to the Editor assignment made it possible for me to send a letter to an editor and be taken serious. I was not very sharp at writing letters to editors but after doing so for an assignment I have mastered it. When our loved ones are away at war we hope for their safe return and when we receive a call that they didn’t return we become very devastated. Having to live with the fact of loosing a loved one is very complicated because it is so hard to get off our minds. Those families should be honored to the up-most and have special privileges in the government such as being able to live comfortably for the rest of their generations on top of generations. Allowing them to live comfortably means allowing them to be government-expense free and not having to worry about any type of government finances. The Service Activist guide to an issue piece of work allowed me to express my thoughts on equal rights. I really appreciated having the chance to be open about my personal take on the equal rights issue. When I did this assignment I was able to collaborate with another classmate and really found it interesting because we didn’t have all the same takes on some of the equal rights issues. Life has its ups and its downs so we as humans have to make the right decisions so gay rights should be accepted everywhere because we shouldn’t be judged on our personal preferences, we can’t control who we like and it can produce self-hatred. When an individual realizes they are gay at a very young age they feel like they are trapped and can’t handle the pressure that society puts on them. They feel like they are abnormal and often an outcast. Society’s negative impact on them can cause them to want to give up on their own life and possibly consider suicide. No one should judge a book by its cover because it is so hard to determine the many downfalls in the book and the many ups that can shape, an individual, American’s decisions in considering the book to be a great, fair, or bad book. Everyone should accept and love the way they are no matter what the circumstances are and they need to know that they can’t help it. Gay rights should be accepted everywhere because we shouldn’t be judged on our personal preferences, we can’t control who we like and it can produce self-hatred. The Live, Kill, Die project gave me the opportunity to explain in detail what exactly I care about so much that I would lay my life on the line for. Laying my life on the line is not easy but having the chance to tell what reasons I would was a great experience. If a person thinks they have all the experience they need then they are truly mistaken. Many people will think they have reached that adulthood in life but really haven’t. Reaching that adult will be very difficult because as life goes on there is always opportunity to learn. The beginning and end paper has allowed me to reflect on the course as a whole and specifically the final portfolio. This assignment is great for the teacher to see how their students feel about the course. I try to ask questions that I believe the whole class would want to know. I always include a reading journal of at least two-hundred fifty words each week. Each written contribution to the side is of great quality and sufficient. The contributions are substantial and I try to reply on some Open conversations area. I have assisted others in numerous tasks. I have demonstrated great leadership while taking on this project. It is also good for us students to show how much we care and the Communications 102 course and its entirety. If I continue to do well on these assignments I will be able to achieve success in communications 102 and have the opportunity to take communication 103. Having to do all the assignments McGuire presented to us in a timely fashion was very difficult. I believe he is trying to help us be better students and not only that but better people to the world around us. When I took this class I did not plan on just trying to pass it, my goal was to learn something from completing the course by conducting in such community services. As of week 14 I believe I have learned many new ideas and became a more open and willing individual. The course has been tough but I believe since I keep trying my best and meeting the grading contract I will be able to learn the most out of the course. My loved ones are also very helpful with things in my life so they too care for me just as much as I do for them. Success will come through care and pride in whatever I endeavor because if I have enough care and pride in what I plan to do, the sky is the limit. Being able to expand my horizons and reach new heights is a great ability that should be prized by who ever may possess that trait. I am very grateful to have had a chance to be taught by Mr. McGuire and do believe he will continue to do well as a teacher and community outreach. I feel that I really brought out my inner activism because I have been learning about many different services since high school. Three things I have learned so far in the course are what is expected from the professor, the necessity to read every time assigned to read, and necessity to stay on top of all my work.
This is crazy! I’ve been trying to get into this site for so long. UGHHHHHHHH
Are each papers supposed to be individually stapled and or one staple through it all? Also what about the bibliography cause i recall him saying he wants that in the back after the “end” piece.
papers stapled individually, binder clipped together. bibliography after end piece
Thanks so much he also wants a title page right?
Your Welcome! and yes on the front of the folder
bibliography on what at the end?!?!
For the papers we had to use sources, do we have to do an annotated bibiliograpy?
3 annotated for paper 2.
I uploaded the latest grade info (with the exception of peer review 5, which I’m still working on). Take a close look. If anything looks amiss, let me know ASAP–no later than Wednesday of this week.
does anyone know if the elevator outline speech has to be in our final portfolios?
No, it doesn’t.
thankyou just making sure!
Beginning and End
Beginning
I work hard. I educate myself. I love my family. I chill with friends. I hate my job. I’d die for those shoes. I’d kill for a million dollars. There is nothing in the fridge. I’m bored. I’m sure that sounds a bit familiar, at least one statement. We say these things without thinking. Some of us have the privilege to buy new sneakers when we feel like it. Or go out to eat because nothing in the fridge looks appetizing. And I think that is perfectly normal in the world we live in. Why not? I just stated I work hard. I deserve what I like and want and need. But the issue here is we don’t think sometimes before we say or act. Would I really die for shoes or would you really kill for a million dollars. If you answered yes, I hope you were only joking with yourself.
There are very important issues surround us. One of the most significant is helping one another and figuring out what is important in our lives. Not the shoes, or money or the cars. Think of what is truly important to you. What if it was taken away? All of it! Even the food in your refrigerator! What would you do? Would you want help? What if no one wanted to help? You’d be screwed if no one cared for you, shared their time and items and gave their attention and love. I think a lot of that is missing in the world today. We need to find the value of what it means to help one another. We as human beings all have one common goal and that is to survive. We want to be loved and cared for. When it comes down to it, what else could be more important than giving a helping hand to one another. We need to wake up and ask ourselves a couple questions. What do you live for? What would you die for? And what would you kill for? I have answered these questions and they were not as easy as one may think. But they have helped down the journey I have accomplished.
End
I walked away with memories of my accomplishment but most importantly I found more of myself. I realized what is important in my life and its significance. I could not possibly be or think the way I do with out being born into the life I was born into. I made the choices to stand up and believe in the things I do such as legalizing medical marijuana for cancer, MS and other chronic pain patients because I have seen my grandfather suffer and decided to educated myself and learned that legalizing medical marijuana is very important to many patients. If I didn’t speak out then I am one less person in this world who cares and I don’t want to be that one. Volunteering at organizations allowed me to see the world in a realistic way. But having the opportunity to help and make a difference is all the difference in caring, sharing and loving. This is what truly makes the world go around. We need to reevaluate the way we think and treat each other. One day the tables may turn and that privilege of owning shoes or food on the table may suddenly disappear. One day you will need help be it small or major. We as people are here not only for ourselves but also for human kind. I don’t believe the world would survive if no cared. So lets start with those little steps to making a difference and helping others. It is an amazing feeling to have a smile on your face so why not pass it on by something as just giving a couple hours out of the day to volunteer. Trust me when I say you will walk out feeling wonderful knowing you have turned some ones day around by allowing them to eat or saved their lives.
It takes one person to begin to make a difference, just like Lee Ravenscroft. He didn’t start with a team he began with a thought and people began to follow because it was good and sincere. He and many others I have met and learned about during this journey have inspired me to believe in myself, to not be afraid to step out of my comfort zone. Most importantly to stay true to what I believe in and that I can make a very big difference in the world as long as I work hard and stay dedicated.
For this week’s journal entry I want to write about the Act Out event that we had on Tuesday. I thought it was good and I really liked how the other groups’ poster board turned out. It was really nice how most of the representatives for each organization came and talked about what they do and what the volunteers do. The representatives gave a lot of information especially the guest speakers. There was one representative who grabbed a lot of people’s attention because she was outgoing and also she had a puppet on her hand and asking people questions. I didn’t really get a chance to stop by their table. Next to their table was the Children’s Museum in Oak Lawn and their representative was doing face painting. Some of my classmates decided to get their face painted just for fun and it was hilarious because two guys got their face painted with girly designs. Anyway, I am really glad that our representative was able to come to this event; she actually came early and brought a lot of flyers and pens that people can take. The flyers had information about for people who would want to volunteer for the Orland Township Food Pantry. She also brought some flyers that said what the foods are or products that go in the bags that they give out. Some other tables had flyers as well, and also candies. The Share your soles table was also really cool because they put a lot of effort in their poster boards and they brought some decorations that looked like old shoes and clothes. The event turned out okay and if Mr. McGuire is going to do something like this again next year, there should be a photographer or just someone who’ll take a picture of the event, other than that it turned out well.
“ACT OUT.” Moraine Valley Community College. 1 MAY. 2012
For this week’s journal entry I decided to read “Sometimes it is Fun to Lose the Map (everything is not a position paper). It is in Chapter four of Why White Rice. I actually really liked this story because it is very relatable. In this story, Mr. McGuire goes on to telling a story of when he and his wife “wandered” for a month during the summertime. He tells stories of how they just got in a car with very little money, and wandered through different parts of the country, and Canada. I always thought this would be sort of fun to just get in the car and go, and not worry about your destination. He relates this “wandering” back to writing papers. The way to write a paper is thesis, evidence, conclusion. This is how many people write papers, and how many teachers expect you to write papers. This way of writing gets pretty boring after awhile, though. Up until this Com 102 class, I thought that is how you were supposed to write. Mr. McGuire makes it pretty clear though, that we do not have to write in this expected form. This was the first I have ever had to not expect us to write like that. To me, I think it makes papers a lot more interesting, “losing the map”, as he puts it. It makes writing papers a lot easier, and go by way faster. It is not the normal way to write a paper, and I really like it.
McGuire, Michael. “Sometimes It Is Fun to Lose the Map (everything Is Not a Position Paper).” Why White Rice. 82-83. Print.
For this week’s journal entry I decided to read “Sometimes it is Fun to Lose the Map (everything is not a position paper). It is in Chapter four of Why White Rice. I actually really liked this story because it is very relatable. In this story, Mr. McGuire goes on to telling a story of when he and his wife “wandered” for a month during the summertime. He tells stories of how they just got in a car with very little money, and wandered through different parts of the country, and Canada. I always thought this would be sort of fun to just get in the car and go, and not worry about your destination. He relates this “wandering” back to writing papers. The way to write a paper is thesis, evidence, conclusion. This is how many people write papers, and how many teachers expect you to write papers. This way of writing gets pretty boring after awhile, though. Up until this Com 102 class, I thought that is how you were supposed to write. Mr. McGuire makes it pretty clear though, that we do not have to write in this expected form. This was the first I have ever had to not expect us to write like that. To me, I think it makes papers a lot more interesting, “losing the map”, as he puts it. It makes writing papers a lot easier, and go by way faster. It is not the normal way to write a paper, and I really like it.
Introduction and Conclusion
An individual may be influenced or forced to participate in a service learning event throughout their life, or discuss the most meaningful things that they treasure in life. They may be compelled to write a letter to an editor in their local newspaper about the major social issues within their community, and may even go above and beyond to do ethnographic field work on such social issues. There are many things wrong in this world and some people actually want to take the initiative to help fix these problems. Some people may also think that some of these problems can never be fixed, so they do not bother to try. Well, I feel that something can be done to help fix an issue. It may not be able to be completed fully by one person, but with the help of others it can surely be done. One does not have to just focus on one social issue at hand. They can strive to participate in fixing multiple social issues. After all, the more the merrier! I have taken the little time I have to do as I have explained above in the attempt to help fix some issues I believe are a problem in this world. I have a few different social issues that are of concern to me that I have done my best in working with to help fix.
These issues consist of the violations and restrictions regarding the freedom of speech in the United States, a local issue concerning the condition of the roads around my town, and an almost never ending need for people around the world to have a decent place to live. These are not just some random issues picked out of a box by my instructor, but rather ordeals that strike me as being important. They may not be as of great important to others, but to me these are things that need to be taken care of. These issues pertain to my life more than anything else out there and that is why I have chosen them.
The social issues I have chosen to write about are all connected in one way or another. They are not, by any means, random issues I have decided to research in an attempt to bring them all together just to meet a length requirement. These issues are connected by a common bond, which is to take action. When I say “take action”, I do not mean to take action on an issue that is of no concern to you. If you are going to take action you must do so with a social issue that interests you deeply and is something you truly care about. I have completed my action of reaching out to the community and informing them about the topics that I believe are of great importance. I have done this not only by writing these essays and taking part in service learning activities, but also by participating in our “Act Out” service learning fair where we informed people about certain issues that needed to be addressed.
In this portfolio you will receive an in depth look from my point of view as to what is going on with these troubling issues in the world today. I have taken several hours out of my work week, social life, gym time, and kickboxing classes to painstakingly show you why something should be done about these issues. Not only have I written what must be done, but I have also gone to these lengths to help fix these issues. I alone am only one person who can only make a small impact in the crater of social issues that need to be dealt with throughout the world. I believe something can be done in the near future with the help of others to not only inform the people of the world as to what is going on, but to also encourage them to take action and help.
As you commence to diligently read through these issues try to ask yourself if you have done these things throughout your life, or if you ever plan on it. The ultimate goal of investigating these issues, going to service events, and writing about them is to inform people as to what is going on with these issues and what is being done to help stop them. Take time to stop and think if any of these ongoing issues affect you in anyway and encourage you to take part in helping fix them. With this being said I encourage you to go forth and read this paper with enjoyment. Do not make it seem like another chore in your busy life. Be happy reading it and take the time to appreciate the hard work and good effort that went in to making this collection of writing. I am sure you will gain some knowledge out of it, and possibly even enjoy reading it just a tad. It may not be the most interesting topics in the world in your perspective, but you will acquire useful knowledge that can be used in the future.CONCLUSION
As I hope you can see, taking action on social issues that are of concern to you is a big deal. If none of us are ever going to take action then who will? We are the future of this world and it is our responsibility to do the best we can to help out these causes. Like I said earlier, you do not have to participate or volunteer with an organization if it does not interest you. Chances are that someone else will be much more interested in that issue that you will be. By all means, do not feel that you are being pressured to do this. Only take action on a social issue of your liking and that you think you can make a difference in. The impact you have on that particular social issue may be significant, or it may be minor. It all depends on how much work and effort you put in to it. This can be related to many things in life. If you do not put in the time to really try and make a difference, then nothing will happen.
This collection of writing about service learning and social issues should give you a good idea of how to start. If you have the time and are willing to volunteer, by all means do so. Some may think it is a waste of time, but by the end of it you will feel good about yourself. I was in a position like that before I started doing research and volunteering. Although, now that I have completed my work and helped out on social issues that are of my concern, I feel a lot better about myself as a person overall. It was indeed a challenge, but definitely helped develop me as a better individual.
If you do not know where to start and are lost in this process of beginning to get involved, use my portfolio as a guide to service learning. Not everyone always knows where to start on things like this. It is a complicated process, but with hard work and dedication it can surely be done. If you have read this thoroughly, I am sure you will have a good idea of what to do and how to start doing it. You will have an uncompromising advantage over others and will likely be more successful when you participate in doing something about the social issue of your liking. You may even go the route I went and put together a portfolio of all the works that you completed and could try to reach out to others to get them interested in other social issues.
After reading all of what I have to say do you want to take action on important social issues? Do not be intimidated at all by what I have been saying. Be confident and go into the world with a new sense of kind heartedness. Be happy and do what you can to help these organizations that are dedicated to helping the social issues you care about. If you really get into this you could possibly make a career out of it for yourself. What could possibly be better than getting paid to do something you love and care for? You never know where the world will lead you. You could be so passionate about helping out with these issues that it could become a huge part of your life.
Do you not want to become a better person on the inside? Volunteering your time to help out certain causes will most definitely make you a better person. Do not be hesitant to try new things. If you need someone else to do something like this with you, then find a friend that would be willing to help out! This could be a life changing event for both of you! I strongly encourage you to try something like what I have done, because you never know where it could lead you.
Facts are they really facts or are they just numbers that people put together to round up some numbers. as I was reading (measurements not facts) I realize the actuality of numbers and statistics, by mixing up measurements and facts, you really wouldn’t know what that is and what number are unless you use your common sense, like the number of people that live in Chicago right now 2,837,000 that’s a number it’s not a fact but it is a measurement, for the amount of people that live in Chicago right now because you have people that die and people that are born so that numbers can be off but a measurement tells us that it’s roughly around that number so now knowing this it will be easier for me to know what is a fact and what is a measurement. In the beginning of the story the writer says “if you were in school 120 years ago or so and you were in the physics class, you would have learned about a very special substance called ether.” The writer then tells us in the following sentences, “Today if you showed up in the party full of physicists and you were talking about ether you would be laughed out of the room.” Ether was a fact in the past but now it is a theory, few things change with time specially numbers so it’s not easy to say that it is a fact but it is indeed a measurement so be careful of what you use in your papers.
Eric DeVillez, Michael McGuire, Thomas Dow, and Troy Swanson.(MEASUREMENTS NOT FACTS) Pg 107-108 “Why White Rice.”
I’m decided to write about the fair since everyone is doing it. This is a whole new experience because I never took part of any school activities. When Mr. Mc Guire introduces the assignments I was very optimistic to go a second organization and volunteer as if 2 hours were not enough. However He made even harder when we had to volunteer in groups. Picking the group was also a fun activity with similarities in a speed dating show. He gave us a helpful list of different organization and working bikes were the one that we all agree on. After our struggles of arranging a meeting and drive to the organization was such a hassle. This is normal for any group knowing people work and having different schedules. After we volunteer fixing some bikes and jamming while we were doing, I thought to myself, this is not so bad. Mr. Mcguire got more creative and project with 5 ½ by having the group created a poster showing pictures and information about the organization and our experience in display. IN addition to that he wanted us to invite the organization to a college fair that the teacher was working at. Really! Can we actually tell these people, who have their hands full to spared some of their busy life to come to Moraine Valley. I was very optimistic about it. Our next step was to visit Working Bikes again and volunteer for another set of hours. However this time we took pictures of everything, I must say I felt uncomfortable taking pictures and asking other people to take pictures of us. Everyone was working and we were the only ones with our phones in our hands. Overall everything when well and we gather the picture that we needed and a bike wheel. We came home and work in our poster until 11 pm using the pictures that we got, putting some information together and attaching the bicycle wheel to the poster itself. The day for the fair arrive and my team were glad to finish the poster early and we got a lot of good feedback about our creativity. I was surprised that a member of Working bikes show up and not only that but the fair was full of other organization such as Chicago Food depository, The little Red school House, The children Museum which provide some face painting which some people use it at the fair. We had our main speaker which was the founder of Share Your Soles and she gave a very motivate speech and share her story the people. I notice some people asked me about our poster and about the organization. Hopefully someone will donate their bikes or shoes. At the end I overheard some conversation between the founder of Share your soles and the member of working bikes and it seems they knew each other. The founder of working bikes and Share your soles share something in common and that is that they both started from nothing one from his old garage and the other in her house. They are still living a normal life and they are making a difference for those who need a way for transportation either by foot or by pedal.
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I decided this journal I wanted to write about our fair. At first I was not going to talk about it but I found it kind of surprising. I was surprised to see how many people were there and the lady from The Little Red School house was there as well. I was not expecting it to be that professional honestly. I was surprised when they had people talking and them showing clips it really explained to a lot of people about every other presentation that was going on and that was interesting to me. People did seem very interested in what we had to say and what other people were saying as well. I was glad that we did make this because as I looked around I did see some people that were in the library actually listening in on what was going on which to gets them to realize some things that we were doing and maybe they would start helping out as well. I thought our class had some very good posters that are explanatory and some people were interacting and asking how they can join and what they would have to do. I do realize that when you can tell them your experience they are more interested because they know that that is what you did and if they did want to help that is what they would do. They felt more comfortable. The lady that came from The Little Red School House was explaining a lot about what they do as well which was also a help to us. I can say it was a very nice fair and they should do that more.
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The other day I typed in ‘Service Learning’ into Google and the number 1 search was an article out of the New York Times. The main question behind this article is does service learning really help? To me, I believe it strengthens a persons attitude, mood, and charisma to get stuff done when it needs to be done. It definitely is a very helpful tool that most teachers do not know exists. It can come with a lot of bad baggage and can definitely spark a lot of goodness in peoples hearts if an organization has the right qualities that pertain to its volunteers. ‘Ms. Medina Lichtenstein’s experiences illustrate the good and the bad of service learning, loosely defined as community service that supplements and enhances what students learn in a classroom. Volunteers, as any nonprofit leader will tell you (off the record, for fear of looking a gift horse . . .), can be as much a curse as a blessing, especially to an organization that lacks the administrative structure and money to train and supervise students. Some organizations pay a coordinator to direct volunteers, but most consider that a luxury they cannot afford. “It’s not unusual for the task of supervising students to fall to someone who already has plenty of responsibilities,” says Elizabeth A. Tryon, the community learning coordinator at the Morgridge Center for Public Service at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. “If service learning is not well coordinated by the academic institution, it can place a lot of burden on the community partner”’ (New York Times, Article). The article explains further on how and why some organizations do not take care of their volunteers all the way to the fact that most students have so little time to get a lot of meaningful experience in. The meaningful experience comes to those who choose something themselves and is not assigned to them I believe. I think strong views and learning while you volunteer is what is going to shape the person you are and what you want to be in your life.
Strom, Stephanie. “Does Service Learning Really Help?” Nytimes.com. New York Times, 29 Dec. 2009. Web. 3 May 2012.
The Act Out volunteer fair on May 1st turned out pretty good. There were really good posters and a decent amount of people walking around asking us questions. I’m glad that my group managed to pull off our project just in time. The week before we had not worked with an organization yet, we only did get with an organization the Friday before the fair. But we pulled it off. Carly, the person that Working Bikes sent to represent them helped us out a bit. She helped us out on how to communicate with the visitors of our posters. Carly was a very nice person and I’m glad that she was there to help. A lot of people were coming up to our poster and asking us questions about Working Bikes. At first, it was a bit of a challenge to talk about Working Bikes on the spot, but after the second person I talked to it got easier. The people really seemed interested about Working Bikes. A few of them even said that they were going to donate some bike and visit Working Bike’s storefront on Western Ave. I had a great experience with Working Bikes and at the Act Out fair. The people at Working Bikes are nice people and I admire their mission.
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For this week’s reading journal I read, “To All the Good Ones Along the Way, We Salute You” by Eric Devillez. I really liked how he shows just how important education is at early stages of a child’s life. I like how he connected this with using his story about the dinosaur poem and how he has never forgotten that teacher and what she did for him. I really liked how connected to the reading in the chapter this helps the reader not have to change the topic of what they are reading about. I thought it was cool how he still remembered all the names of the teacher that he thought were most influential in the years of learning. This can show the character that he has and that he wasn’t getting anything out of it. I think that the students who really like their teachers and connect with them are the ones that get the most out of learning. I think that most kids are scared to go to their teachers and ask them questions or ask for help if their struggling. The reasons for this may vary but I think that if kids weren’t afraid to go and ask questions they would be utilizing the resources they have to get a better education. I really liked the end when he addresses the reader and asks them to make a list and analyze it and think about the reasons for it being a short list of a long list. Overall I really enjoyed reading this piece.
Devillez, Eric. “To All the Good Ones Along the Way, We Salute You” Why White Rice? Thinking Through Writing. Kendall Hunt Publishing Company. Page 144-145. Print
I would like to write about the fair we had Tuesday. Initially I was a little nervous because our board was not complete and we were having a difficult time completing it. I was also nervous because I wanted to impress the person who was coming out form our organization, working bikes. When I arrived with the board and began speaking to her she mentioned she liked it and I could relax. The fair was a great idea and it went very smoothly. But it was unfortunate one of the speakers, Mona Purdy from Share Your Souls, did not make it to the first session. We were fortunate enough to have a women speaker from the Sertoma Club. She spoke about the organization and what they do and why it was important to volunteer. It is important not only for oneself and helping those in need but most importantly we need volunteers to keep organizations open and running so they may do what needs to be done. That is making sure all the need items or helping hands are used properly, to help others. Our table was doing well, I thought. A good few students and adults were interested in working bikes and I truly believe we got a least a couple of them who will donate their bikes. It was a great feeling to be able to help this organization and make others aware. I wish it was a better turn out of guests but I think the word will spread from the mouths of those who attended.
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Hello mo chairde, we are here at last the final journal entry for our class. Although I quite being against the grain when ever I write about things, I am going to write about the Act Out fair. I feel that for same much work and great pay off it is worth giving a little thought. It was a great day it was bitter sweet. Sweet in the sense that the school yeah is nearly over and work is complete, and bitter in the sense that I will be leaving many cherished classmates. I really enjoyed looking at everyones final project everyone put forth their best efforts. I must say that I too enjoyed the Share your Soles video. Mona Purdy indeed has put a lot of time and effort. Even looking back on this project, there were so many upsets. So much disappointment. We were so stressed out trying to find something to do. Though even though we started with the intention of doing volunteer work for underage drinking, I am happier that we chose Working Bikes. I feel that by working there, our work actually mattered. Not to mention it was fun doing so as well. As many of you all know my volunteer work is for the Irish Republican Movement. I’m always helping out my boys back home. I though that no matter what service we picked I would not enjoy it nearly as much as the work I do for the liberation struggle. Though I must say I enjoyed so much that I really am thinking of volunteering again. I hope others not just me follow up the service they enjoyed and keep at it. Professor McGuire has done a good thing here, by getting the youth of today involved in the community and shaping it for the better. This quote next quote I have used before in my papers. It is by Irish Republican Bobby Sands who died on hungerstrike in 1981. His 31st anniversary of his death is actually approaching this 5th of May so in two days. Even though his quote is in reference to the Irish peoples fight for freedom, I think it can be related to any activ service or volunteer work.”Everyone, Republican or otherwise, has their own particular part to play. No part is too great or too small; no one is too old or too young to do something.”That mo chairde is where I leave you. I wish everyone best of luck in the future in whatever career they do. Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life. Slán go fóill mo chairde. Tiocfaidh ár lá Cillian O’Nuainn (Killian Noonan)
Act Out Fair. COM102. May 1st. 2012.
This week i decided to write my journal entry on “Why White Rice” “Be Confident, Not a Know-It-All”. I personally know a few people who “think they know it all” and overtime they become a very annoying person to be around. This section in the book made me reflect on many things, including my own writing. I did notice I made quite a few mistakes over my drafts, one not being able to fully develop my ideas and not having more confidence in my own work. The lack of confidence in a paper changes the whole tone of the piece of writing. At the beginning of this class, i did not want to write any papers because of the required length. I felt that I was forced to bs my way through some papers because I honestly ran out of things to talk about. It all changed when i realized that i needed to develop some points in my paper. I was suprise on what I was able to write after that, being confident on explaining myself in my own writing. Writing itself is something that takes practice and a couple revisions to really perfect what you as a writer are trying to prove to the audience. I never felt comfortable to write papers due to the lack of confidence, I did not like expressing my ideas to other people because i was afraid of their opinion. Once i got over that fear, I enjoy writing because you get to say what you really think. As McGuire stated “Finding the balance between confidence and arrogance is a developmental process”.
Michael McGuire. “Be Confident, Not a Know-It-All.” Why White Rice?: Thinking through Writing. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt Pub., 2010. Print
For this week’s journal entry, I, like many others, am going to be writing about the Act Out volunteer/service fair. I’m really glad I had showed up for the 11am classes portion of the fair. When I had walked up to it, to my surprise, it was actually really busy. I definitely didn’t think this fair would have gotten so much attention from so many people. When I had thought about the fair in the previous weeks leading up to it, I had thought it was just going to be a few tables in big circle with the class members and their poster boards, standing around bored. Luckily, I was way off. Especially with how many members of the organizations that showed up, I definitely didn’t think that many would have ended up showing up to the event. Although my group didn’t have someone from the organization show up, we had an excellent poster board, an iPad with a background on the organization, and a group of volunteers with a pretty good amount of knowledge. We had answered many questions from those who had came around to our spot, and we also got to enjoy going around to the other groups and seeing what they had done and learned. That’s another reason I had gone to the early portion of the fair as well, to see what exactly everyone else had done instead of restricting it to just our class. Overall I felt like it was a great experience and that it had gone very well.
Act Out Volunteer Service Fair, Moraine Valley Community College, Tuesday, May 1st
For this weeks journal entry i decided to write about the “Act Out” fair that took place in the library on Tuesday, May 1st. When i first got to the library i was a little overwhelmed by the set up. I met up with my group members and we found our spot on the table that was assigned to us. We set up our poster that we made and patiently waited for the fair to start. Mr. McGuire was the first to speak and he told us a little bit about what was going to happen in the next hour and a half that we were scheduled to be there. He then talked a little bit about Mona Purdy, who i had the honor of meeting when i helped out with Share Your Soles, a couple prior to this event. I liked how he showed the video about the organization because it gave other people, that may not have known about it, more insight on what Share Your Soles is all about. After the video was over and he finished talking it was time for people walk around and start asking questions. I was surprised at how many people came to our table first. Most of the people that talked to us seemed very interested in the Animal Welfare League, and one kid even asked what he would have to do in order to adopt a dog. I’m glad that i was able to help him out, and i hope that he will stick to his word and help save an animal. Over all, i really liked this fair and i thought that it was a good experience for the class.
For this weeks journal entry I decided to…
For this weeks journal entry, I decided to talk about Tuesday’s Act Out program. We had to meet with everyone in the library with our group members and poster boards ready to be asked questions and to help people understand why it is important to help these organizations. There were more people there than I thought there would be. Posters about this program were up all around the school so people were informed about it going on. There were a lot of groups there to show they cared about their organization and to help others. Our group did Animal Cruelty. We actually had a number of people ask multiple important questions, which I thought was a good thing. We had a bunch of pictures on our poster boards with information and the stories of each of our group members. Everyone thought that the pictures on there were horrible because some of them were of the animals that were abused. I think those pictures needed to be put on there because people need to see what others are capable of doing to innocent animals. A lot of people asked where our organization was located so they could volunteer and help out these animals. A number of people also asked how our experience was while working there. Overall, I had a really good time because I know that I helped out just a little bit with saving these animals’ lives. Which is an incredible feeling. It was a wonderful feeling knowing that my group members and I could help others understand more about what was going on in the world of animal cruelty and I’m glad to know that showing what we knew and the pictures of these animals, made some people want to go there and help as well. They need as much help as they can get.
This week I would like to write about BE CONFIDENT NOT A KNOW IT ALL. I liked the story that Prof. M told about his son being a know it all. I think at times we all tend to be a know it all. I cannot stand people that think they know everything. I have some relatives that act that way. They seem to know everything and know absolutely nothing. If you are going to say something or give your opinion make sure you have something that you can back up your statement. The same thing could go for writing. I read Adrienne Rich’s paper WHEN WE DEAD AWAKEN last semester. I found it to be a difficult piece to get through. She was confident in her writing and expressed through her poems. People need to realize at times that they cannot know everything. I noticed that in my writing this semester I used, I think, I believe several times in a paper. In the future I need to come up with a better way to write my opinion in a way that makes look confident. One needs to have confidence in something. Otherwise they will not succeed. I need to gain better confidence when answering in class. I need to overcome the fear that what I say has some meaning to it. I also need to work on how I say it. One should have a different tone when speaking about something they truly care about. They should have a sense of authority in their voice when speaking and be confident about it.
— DeVillez, Eric, Michael McGuire, Thomas Dow, and Troy Swanson. “Why White Rice.” Be Confident Not A Know -It-All. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt Publishing Company, 2010. Print
For my last journal I am going to talk about the ACT OUT volunteer fair! When I walked in on May first I was really surprised because it was a pretty good turnout it can always be better of course but a lot of people really took it upon themselves to get their organizations leaders to come and represent their poster boards. I had the Orland Food Pantry and our representative Mary Ann ended up coming which made me really happy and when she said that it was a great thing what we were doing it really made me realize that it was a great opportunity to be able to participate in this fair. The poster boards were all really awesome too I did not go to one stand that someone just slapped something together overall as a class I think everyone really put time and effort in and cared about the project. At the end of the fair after walking around and talking to all the representatives of each poster board Mona Purdy from share your soles talked and I actually went to her organization in the beginning of the year and she was a great person to have wrap up the fair in my opinion because she just has such an upbeat attitude about things and you can tell She’s really passionate about what she does it motivates you to want to help. I thought it was a positive experience and I hope as the years go on if you continue to do this the turn out just gets better and better.
“Act Out”. Volunteer Fair. Moraine Valley Community College. 1 May 2012
RJE – Last Thursday, we had an Act Out Fair that turned out to be pretty interesting. Individuals from the organizations my classmates volunteered in came in to inform ad speak to others about their organization. The fair also had face painting. That turned out to be a little interesting.
The class schedule before us had a lot of people attend and it looked like all the chairs set up for the fair where filled when the speaker was talking. During our class time, it didn’t get as big of an audience but was still fun. We had individuals from the Little Red School House, Orland township Food Pantry, and people from a non for profit organization that repairs bikes and sends them to different parts of the world. Our guest speaker was Mona Purdy, from Share Your Soles. She was very interesting and very energetic. It’s interesting how she started this organization from a simple trip to a 3rd world country.
My favorite individual at the Act Out fair, was a lady representing The Little Red School House. She wasfull of energy and had a great sense of humor. While talking to her with a group of my friends, she asked us questions about the area we live in. The interesting thing is, she used a puppet T-Rex to do, which made us laugh, yet the information stuck. What we learned is that the midwest has the largest source of fresh water in the world due to the Great Lakes. One question she asked directed towards me was how Moraine Valley got its name. She asked me using the T-Rex and, of course without thinking, I looked at the dinosaur and answered “I have no idea.” A couple seconds later, I started laughing hysterically. I put one hand on the dinosaur, looked at my friends while pointing to the puppet with the other hand, and while laughing said “I’m talking to a dinosaur.” But we learned that Moraine was a huge glacier that pushed its way from Canada through to the US and made a “valley” when it passed. We are located in that valley, and that is how Moraine Valley got its name.
History lesson taught at the Act Out Fair that was directed towards educating people in volunteering for organizations. Priceless.
For this weeks journal I would like to talk about the Act Out fair that took place on tuesday. I think for the most part it went well I know my team were under a lot of pressure because there was another group that was doing the same organization as us and was said to have done a good job on the poster and everything. And we were one of those groups where basically last week we didn’t have anything on our poster and hadn’t volunteered yet. You could just imagine how much was riding on the line for us, but needless to say we came through and did a good job with the poster. But overall the fair was a good experience for me and everyone else to learn about different nonprofit organizations. For instance the little red school house where it delt with nature and the plants aswell as animals that are trying to invade. We learned from them and also from the share your souls organization, or I learned more because I had volunteered there once already and it’s just a great expereince being able to be a part of something like that. We learned from others and quite a few people came up to us and were very interested in knowing more about my struggle was speaking about the organization to people that were coming to the table. But I was still able to do it and it was a good experience for me interacting with others and letting them know whats the organization about. But yea we had quite a few people that said they would by and drop off bikes or visit so that was excitement and success for us getting people to want to go to the working bikes store. In overall it was great experience and also being able to do this and I know this experience will help me in the future somehow whether it is speaking infront of people or whatever it maybe.
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For this week’s journal entry, I decided to talk about the fair that we participated in, not outside but in the library, “Act Out.” When we first got the library I became familiar with the setup of the tables and chairs, and we found where we needed to set up our poster. We put up our poster and our pamphlets, and I thought that it looked really good, especially after all the work we put into making it look nice. We met the lady who came to represent The Little Red School House, and she was very sweet. Amber and I helped her to set up her poster and all of her items she brought for us. I really liked watching the Video about Share Your Souls with Mona Purdy. I feel like the video really made that connection. It made me think about donating my shoes. After the video, some words were spoken at the podium, and people walked around to look at our poster presentations. I was surprised at the number of people that came to look at ours because it did not look like many people were present. The representative from little red school house was really nice to us, and really pushed people our way, and to have us answer questions, and just talk to people. I was willing to answer many questions that people had about my experience and the location we worked at. It was then, that I sort of decided I would like to go back, and work with the little red school house again.
For this journal entry, I would like to reflect on the ACT OUT! Fair we had done. I thought it went very well for our team. We had some people that had come up to us and ask us a few question. I learn a lot about certain nonprofit organizations. One in particular was the little red school house. There are a lot of plant and animals are trying to invade our nature centers and the people there want to help out and pull out all the plants to get the out of there. Also I learned about Working Bikes. It had come to me that many people did not think of people who would be in need of a bike. They go out and the give bikes out to different countries, so they do not have to go far to pick up some water. I thought that was really neat of them to do. There were a lot of questions being asked about our poster and I think that people are getting some one more involved by coming to certain kinds of fairs and things like that. I think also that when Mona came, there were a lot of inspired people by her story and what she has done with all of these shoes. These past few months had really opened my eyes on how our world is breaking apart. We all live on this one world and people need to realize that America cannot always be perfect. Everyone needs to do something.
Act Out. Volunteer Fair. Moraine Valley Community College. 1 May 2012
Tom Rybovic, 
Jami Busse, and 
Thomas Vasquez are discussing. 
James Jeszke is discussing. 
Grace Cosentino, and
Prof McGuire 2:53 pm on May 17, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Thanks, Kristina. It’s been a real pleasure–truly.