Sachi's English Class Reflections

In this reflection, I will be talking about what new information I learned and what skills I achieved through the process of writing an academic essay. As it was the last day of English class as a middle school student, I’d like to thoroughly reflect on this trimester. First of all, I learned the basic rules of an academic essay, and how these differ from our usual writings. For example, personal pronouns as well as sweeping generalizations such as “never”, shouldn’t be included. Especially the word “I”, unless you are talking about your personal experience, must be avoided since you are trying to make a claim. In addition, avoiding terms like “always” can make it harder for others to argue against your point, thereby resulting in a stronger essay. Not only word choices, but the formatting, structure, and flow of your academic essay can also largely influence your entire piece. I think one of the most important things I learned is that your strongest points should always come first and...

In class today, we learned about improving our overall essays and the finishing touches since the final draft is due tomorrow. First, he reminded us about how to use better vocabulary in our academic essay. By copying each second draft of each paragraph (intro, body paragraph 1/2/3, conclusion) and pasting it into one of the online tools he provided, we can find out its AWL percentage. AWL means the Academic Word List, and he explained that we should moderate amount of these. Making sure that they're not overused or underused, can help improve the quality of our paragraphs. After checking each paragraph separately, he suggested that we put the paragraphs together into one entire essay, then repeat the same process as a whole. By doing so, we can check if our essay overall is balanced. Then, he taught us that all of our paragraphs should be around 8 to 11 sentences, and that they should all be abut the same. Lastly, once we put all the paragraphs together into one academic essay, we...

In English class today, we proof-read some people's drafts as a class and worked through them. First of all, Mr.Paterson noticed that there was a 'finally' at the beginning of a body paragraph. He explained that words like 'finally' only belongs at the end of a paragraph, therefore, doesn't belong there. In another essay, 'on top of that' was at the beginning of an essay. Readers can't tell what 'that' is pointing to, so there is a need to change this. In addition, when reading through someone's writing, we found some casual phrases. For example, one had said 'good stuff' which shouldn't be in an academic essay. He also explained that redundant words such as ridiculous or crazy, shouldn't be used and should be replaced with words such as 'useful'. In another essay, we found a piece of data that was missing some information. The data was about how much food has been thrown away annually. The problem with this is tha...

In English class today, we went over how to format academic essays for the third time this trimester. First, the introduction should always have a hook, background, and a thesis with the three claims that become your body paragraphs later on. For the third time, our teacher explained that our strongest points should come first and last. Within those body paragraphs, our first and third evidence should be the most persuasive. Also, they should all be wrapped up with a concluding sentence. Mr. Paterson, again, went over the two ways of writing it. One pattern is to just restate the claim, and the second way is to restate the claim with a simple summary of your three points. Throughout our essay, he said that we should try to balance the use of these two. It would be a good idea to ask our teammates about which suits our paragraphs to improve the writing. In addition, our conclusion should be written in the order of a summary (with our three claims), conclusion, and a limitation / CFFR. M...

In English class today, we went over a couple more documents and revised them together, as well as talk about the importance of teamwork. First of all, we were assigned to reread our teammates’ drafts and highlight what we didn’t know, which is equivalent to what needs to be cited. In the few documents we looked at as a class, there was still some pieces of information what wasn’t commonly known, but left uncited. In addition, Mr.Paterson found many personal pronouns in a few academic essays, which doesn’t belong in one. Since this is something we’ve gone over multiple times, he reminded us to not make the same mistakes as we continue writing up our academic essays. One good part that was pointed out, was that someone had written about their personal experience. It was a strong claim, however, the teacher mentioned that it was grammarly incorrect. I’d like to make sure to read my teammates’ writings carefully and thoroughly so that the same doesn’t happen to my group members. Lastly, w...

Today, Mr. Paterson taught us about referencing and credibility in academic essays. According to his personal experience, not citing resources properly can get students kicked out of school. This is how gadgets such as zotero.org can come in really handy, as it'll make sure you don't put your citations in incorrect orders. We learned that facts only need a reference if it's not commonly available, or if it's in dispute. For example, the fact that Japan is an island, is common knowledge, therefore doesn't require a reference. But when talking about how many islands Japan contains, you need to site the source because some people might say that some of them belong to another country, and because it's not a piece of information everyone knows. However, when citing a source, you must keep credibility in mind. The teacher listed a couple of trustworthy sources such as the Embassy of Japan. Acquiring information from credible sources can help make your arguments much s...

In English class, we newly learned about an online citation tool called Zotero. Mr.Paterson taught us how to use it, and about how the software is an extremely helpful and convenient tool when it comes to academic essays. First, the app is something that needs to be downloaded and we only have school computers, so we went over the steps he showed us on the screen projector. First, we download the software on our home computer from zotero.org. Then, after creating an account, we choose the style of citation that suits our research topic. Next, you hit command shift. As you add citations, you'll notice that zotero will recognize what type of resource it is. For example, if it's a newspaper article, a small newspaper icon will be up on the top right bar. This makes the processing very quick and easy. However, our teacher taught us that it isn't always accurate. For example, it cannot identify what type of resource it is when it's Japanese. In these cases, we can easily twe...

In English class today, we learned about sources in an academic essay, and spent the rest of the time working on the reference test via google documents. First, Mr.Paterson taught us that one of the major differences between an essay and an academic essay is that they are backed up by data and information. Within them, there are two kinds called primary sources and secondary sources. Primary sources are pieces of data collected by ourselves, while the latter is information gathered by another. For example, a survey by a researcher you found online, is considered a secondary source. The teacher taught us that those are more found more frequently in academic essays because they’re more  trustworthy. You might be asking yourself, how so? Well, when we try to gather information ourselves, it often times turns out inaccurate or unbalanced. Mr.Paterson used the height of people as an example. If you only ask a few people, it cannot represent the entire race. In addition, if you only ask ...

In English class today, we took some documents and went through them as we corrected their mistakes. First off, he reminded us that all students must have shared their e-portfolio with Mr.Paterson so that he can comment and edit it. Not giving him or group members editing rights, could be misunderstood that we don't need their help. In addition, he said that an essay without resources is not an academic essay. It would become like a blog post, which is writing straight off of your head. As we looked through more academic essays, we came across the mistake of using personal pronouns in our paragraphs. Saying "I think" makes your statement weaker, because the point of this writing is to argue what your research shows, not your opinions. We should avoid words like 'you' as well, and we can eliminate them by replacing it with phrases like "people". When we looked at my e-portfolio, he commented that I had contractions in my academic essay. Instead of using w...

In English class today, Mr. Paterson went over the few important details about our introduction and the body paragraphs, then we got the rest of class to work on commenting on our teammates’ e-portfolio documents. First, our teacher taught us that our introduction should have mentioned the two or three points we’re going to talk about in our essays. We later went over the two ways of formatting the body paragraphs. The first one is to have one paragraph dedicated to the claims the opponent might make, then arguing against them with your two claims. The other, is to have three arguments, one for each body paragraph, and mention the other side’s views at the beginning of each paragraph. Mine is the latter, as I found that it suits my topic better. Mr. Paterson showed us a helpful example arguing why apple products are the best. Afterwards, he gave us time to go on our computers and work on the peer revisions. During this period, I was able to give a couple comments that might help my tea...

In English class today, we looked at four people’s e-portfolios and went over its flaws. Firstly, we saw the mistakes being made most frequently in the “resources” section. This seemed to be due to students not knowing the difference between resources and sources. According to Mr.Paterson, resources are on a bigger scale, so things such as websites with lots of sources or libraries containing many books. On the other hand, sources are the actual news stories and books in the resources. Additionally, another problem we saw is that the teammates didn’t start revising each other’s documents until yesterday in class. This applies to both people who had their first draft done over the holiday, and for people who seemed to have written it in the last couple days of winter break. In the first situation, the teammates who hadn’t accessed the e-portfolio until yesterday is at fault. However, in the latter situation, the person writing the essay is to be blamed because they didn’t give their tea...

Today was our first English class since third trimester started, and we were given class time to work on our academic writing after a brief talk. As a class, we lightly went over the mistakes people made in second trimester and were reminded about the winter break homework. Those mistakes include things like not sharing the documents properly, which could have a huge impact on your grades. Also,  our homework over the holiday was to type up our introduction paragraph (first draft) in our e-portfolio, and comment on our group mates’ documents. Although I should’ve started the latter a bit earlier than I did, I was glad I had the entire break to research about my topic and get a good grip on where I stand. Afterwards, we got into our groups and continued to comment on each other’s documents, make suggestions, and help make it the best it can be by revising it. I was glad to have gotten more work done than I thought I’d finish. I hope to to take the suggestions from my teammates in a ...

Now that we know how to write an academic essay, we've moved on to learning about the actual research. When researching about the topic, we are bound to come across different opinions. To identify which resource is more trustworthy, we must take a careful look at its 3B's. The first B is Background. Now, that you understand the topic, you must compare it with the resource/writer's biography. Their biography probably somewhat connects with the background, and from the background and biography's connections, you can identify its bias. For example, if the author was a Roman Catholic, they might express abortion in a negative way. Also, we learned that personal experience can affect the bias. For example, someone who has voting rights in the United States may have different opinions from those who don't. By identifying any bias and putting them on a scale, you can find a way to balance your writing and prove that you are unbiased. By weighing up and evaluating the point...

In English class today, we were taught about the organizational pattern of your body paragraphs. When your topic has multiple possible answers, we must format them correctly. First, you should narrow your options down to three, then number them in the order of worse to best. When canceling the first choice, the worst, you should first list the good points. Then, you should start listing its bad points and the key point is to bring your strongest points right after the "however" and right after the "finally". Your second body paragraph should follow the same pattern, but your last body paragraph is a different story. The important thing is to address the third choice's negative points first, then list its positive points so that the good outweighs the bad. The first body paragraph should add up to one negative, the second should be 0, and the third should add up to one good point. Why is this essential? It's because by writing this way, you can avoid being at...

In English class today, we went over what we should get done on the scratch outline, and talked about what a good academic essay’s progress / process looks like. First off, we headed over to the newly shared document, which is a writing e-portfolio. Mr.Paterson explained to us that this will help us organize our thoughts, and that this is pretty much all we need to start creating the essay. As I looked through, I really thought that this guideline was helpful and essential for our writing. By this week, we should complete the “basic idea” section, which mostly consists of what we wrote down in the table in the previously shared document. Another task is the 5A’s, which is academic, arguable, accessible, achievable, and attractive. With the plenty of class time we were given, I was able to finish them all besides the “arguable” part. Now, I know exactly what area I need to put my focus on, and about the differing narratives on my topic. For now, my stance is that the death penalty shoul...

In English class today, we learnt about how academic 5 paragraph essays are formatted, as well as its parts and how to write them in the best way possible. From this, I was able to retrieve some of the memories of the things I’ve learned previously at school in the US, as well as gain some new information. Let me explain to you what I learned in detail. First off, when it comes to academic writing, the title becomes extremely important. This is the part where you can break almost any academic rule to show the readers your cleverness, and really appeal to them. Academic titles have mainly two parts which is divided by a colon. The first and shorter section is the attention getter, while the second part is a brief explanation. In the attention getter, you should use techniques such as alliterations or unique things like puns. For example, if you make a pun using a phrase that’s famous in public consciousness, it can really draw the reader’s attention. Next, in your title, you must state...

In English class today, we shared our academic essay topics with each other and was taught about “good” topics. Through the google document we are sharing as a class, everyone filled up the table with information about their research category, detailed topic, and stance. Although I had thought of several topics I felt passionate about and wanted to write about, I had to finally narrow it down to one. My final decision ended up being the ethics of altzheimers disease care, which crosses over many fields. Those are medical, ethics, family, and also a bit of religion. Due to the lack of information and knowledge, I wasn’t sure about my position on the topic. Mr. Paterson explained to us that this is totally normal. I was glad to hear this because in a previous research I’ve done, I changed my initial opinion after getting to knowing more. For this reason, I left the space blank, but I’m planning to learn more topic when I can. Also, our teacher went a little more into depth about this. Ap...

In class today, we were taught the importance of peer editing, as well as a few other things about academic writings. First of all, Mr.Paterson talked to us about the process his piece of writing went under before becoming a part of a book. After having finished writing it, it was first peer edited in August, 2009. The following month, it was revised again by someone from a different area of expertise. On top of that, another person made suggestions in November, 2009, which he accepted 70~80% of. Like this, we must keep in mind that we do not have to change something if we feel that it’s correct and doesn’t need to be fixed. Back to the peer editing process, Mr.Paterson presented his academic essay at a conference in March. Despite the many improvements he’s made in the past several months, the publisher’s team still had more suggestions. According to the teacher himself, he took in about 40% of the suggestions, so over half when you look at the whole picture. He expressed that peer ed...

In English class today, my group and I spent some time figuring out the more detailed parts of our project, as well as peer editing. First of all, we found a Copyright free clip of an animated sky with twinkling stars that fit perfectly with our content. We discussed what kind of video we should use for our introduction as a team, then looked through YouTube. After looking through the many videos, we decided on one, and this was just right! Also, to go along with the clip, we searched for a suitable audio. Many classes back, Mr.Paterson mentioned to make the introduction music something that excites and attracts the audience. It should boost the audience's mood, so it's best for it to be upbeat and get even more upbeat gradually. The audio we talked about and settled down with, seemed to satisfy these points so I was really glad. Then, we spent the rest of the time talking about some more details about our video, so things like editing style. We talked about our tone, and decid...

We were provided class time to work on our group book review project today. I felt really grateful because it’s often difficult to gather and discuss as a team, and we were able to stay on task the entire time. Firstly, I felt that we were productive since we decided on the general theme for our video series. Although it might sound a bit silly, our plan is to make the videos like a TV show / program for kids. Each of us is going to talk about our books to the recording device, as if we are introducing this book for children in elementary and middle school. It’s called the “Bedtime By Bookworms” series, so we’ll film on our own beds, then end the day wth our “last impactful statement”. Then, I was also glad we got the time because as a group, we got to go over our schedule / deadlines. By Thursday, all of our essays should be completed so that we can peer edit others’ documents over the weekend, then film our videos individually. Additionally, we all worked together to create the intro...

In English class today, Mr.Paterson taught us about some of the key factors we should keep in mind when writing an academic essay. First of all, grammar is important when it comes to writing a book review. We must make sure to check for contractions and casual language when typing up our essay, AND when proofreading others’ writing. This means that having phrases such as do not, cannot, and kind of in it, will degrade the quality of your sentences. In addition, in most cases, personal pronouns should be avoided. However, because our essay is about our opinions and thoughts on a book, this doesn’t apply to us. Then, the second thing we should keep in mind is sentence structure. When looking at each paragraph as well as the essay as a whole, it is vital to check the sentence lengths. Good authors and writers tend to not use the same number of words in every sentence by using all long, medium-length, and short sentences in an appropriate manner. It is all about balance, and we can avoid u...

In class today, I got back my grades for the presentation I did a while back, along with some helpful feedback. Because I’ve rewatched the video of me presenting multiple times in the last couple of weeks, some of the points he mentioned were things I noticed. One example of that is ending a sentence with “yeah”. Mr.Paterson informed us all that this habit is quite common among students, but can easily be improved with easy-to-access, advanced gadgets. It can really degrade your entire presentation, as it is meaningless and makes you appear less confident. Additionally, he gave me feedback on the actual slideshow, which had quite a lot of flaws. For one, there were sporadic white blank spaces without words on it, making the slideshow seem ununified and disorganized. As he likes to say, it’s like ketchup on sushi. It made my presentation seem far less professional, so I’d like to make sure to not make the same mistake in my future presentations. Personally, I felt that the best solution...

Today, Tamao presented her book review on the book, "The Lightening Thief" by Rick Riordan, which helped me reflect back on my presentation. From the presentation, I was able to easily understand how each part of the author's life affected the story and the way she interpreted it. For example, because both Rick Riordan and his son has ADHD and dyslexia, this story line was meant to tell readers that you can overcome anything and turn it into a strength. Her content was well thought out, as I could tell lots of research was done to make it. Although she looked up a couple times as if she was trying to remember something, I think her hand gestures made up for that. In future presentations, I'd like to make sure to use hands naturally like she did, and make it easy to understand for audience. With the time left, Mr.Paterson explained to us more about the group project that will be due soon, and about what peer reviewing is. A peer generally means someone the same leve...

Today, we listened to three more people’s presentations, since one person was absent. One thing I noticed about one of the presenters, is that she seemed really bright and her facial expressions made it clear that she was happy to be presenting. This is extremely important when it comes to presenting so that the audience can know that the presenter is enjoying themselves, which I assume has the ability to increase their attention level as well as their interest. Also, another speaker was using lots of hand motions, which Mr.Paterson has explained previously that it makes the presenter seem more relaxed and at their natural state. I’d like to make sure to keep facial expressions, enthusiasm, and hand movements / gestures in mind the next time I get the opportunity to present something. Secondly, we watched little bits and pieces of YouTube videos related to the “Despacito” music video by Luis Fonsi and later discussed, analyzed, and thought about it. Mr.Paterson explained to us that th...

In English class today, about half of the remaining students got to present their book report. Because of the lack of time, we weren’t able to fully go over what each presenter did good and bad, but some parts really stood out to me. First off, Mr.Paterson mentioned that everyone’s slideshow design was getting better, and had pointed out that full picture slides look most professional and simple. Also, towards the end, he also said that some presenters spoke without passion. I can agree with him that some people seemed to speak off of something, however there were only a few pauses so I thought it was good. Something that left the biggest impression, was how one of the presenters interacted with the audience. By involving the audience and walking around the stage, I could tell that most of the audience was able to stay engaged during his presentation. It was humurous as well, which I remember the teacher saying is a good thing as it can help the audience remember your content.

Today, about four to five students presented their book report in English class. We didn’t have enough time to hear Mr.Paterson’s feedback after each presentation, however, I’d like to talk about the things I noticed in the other students’ presentation, as well as the few points the teacher mentioned towards the end. So first off, I believe most of the presenter’s photo credits were perfectly formatted, which I found impressive. Also, I think that through watching and reflecting back on others’ slideshows, they all seemed to  improved greatly. Some bad points I noticed though, is the lack of movements in some presenters. How you deliver your presentation is a major key, so it’s important to make sure to keep your body nice and relaxed. Also, by listening to some presentations today, I learned that enthusiasm and passion is vital when it comes to keeping the audience interested. Lastly, Mr.Paterson pointed out a few flaws and good points he saw. One example of the bad, was misspelle...

Today, after a three day weekend, was another day for presentations, and I got the opportunity to present. I will go over some flaws Mr.Paterson pointed out after I presented. Put simply, most of my issues had to do with the design of the slideshows. One major problem I had was that I layered photos over photos, and the picture that was there before the transitions were peeking through. Mr. Paterson taught me that this can get pretty distracting for the audience, and I can agree with that after seeing my own slides in the big “Present” mode. It looked a bit too busy and jumbled, so I’ll make sure not to make the same mistake again in future projects. Additionally, there was one slide that didn’t quite fit in with the rest of my slides, and it seemed to stand out in a bad way. From this, I learned that it’s hard to make the most professional looking slides, but I’m glad I now know about what to keep in mind when making presentations, even in real-life situation. Lastly, the teacher taug...

Today, five people presented their book reviews so I was able to learn from their mistakes and their good points. First off, a new design issue I heard for the first time ever was the placement of the photos. Mr.Paterson mentioned that there should be the same amount of space in between where the slide ends and the photo’s vertical line, and between where the slide ends and the photo’s horizontal line. Did that make sense? Although this is a small detail, I felt that it was something I should get used to because in the real world, this can affect your presentation badly. Secondly, I noticed that most people were not moving around on the stage much. For example, Mr.Paterson pointed out that some people were sticking to the laptop / the desk with the laptop on it, which made them look not so confident in their presentations. I will try to keep in mind to use the stage space effectively and move around in a smooth, natural manner. Another mistake that was mentioned, was the sleeves. Unles...

Today, we were going to start our presentations, but weren’t able to due to the of the train being late so we had another day to improve our slideshows. Mr.Paterson reminded  us of the things he has taught us this semester and last semester. It was broken down into three categories: Structure, Design, and Delivery. We had to make sure that our presentation was in the order of intro, author’s biography, plot, interpretations&themes, critique, and lastly the conclusion. Mine was in this exact order, so I was relieved. However, the design on slides seemed to be a bit of a problem. For example, I was using far more fonts and font sizes than I should have been. I fixed it today and I think my entire slideshow looks way more put together and unified now. Another issue I had was my pictures. The teacher advised me to not use clipart images when all your other photos aren’t clipart. This was difficult for me to fix, but I found a way to make it happen. Lastly, I was able to refresh my ...

In English class today, we got into groups of 3~5 and gave each other constructive criticism. Mr. Paterson explained to us how it’s helpful. By pointing out the flaws in others’ presentation and giving them advice, you are helping them improve. This is called the Murder Board. Shortly after we learned about it, we separated into groups (which we struggled to do at first due to our inability to be flexible haha). Then, each person presented their book review and got feedback from the rest of the Murder Board. The listener’s job was to point out as many mistakes as possible. Whether it was their body language or something to do with the actual slideshows, we had to tell them. So, what did I learn from this experience? From listening to  someone else’s presentation and critiquing them, I was not only  able to come up with advice for my teammates, I was also able to reflect on my own and really think hard about how the same could be applied for my project. An example of that is sl...

Today, we got into groups of three/four and did practice presentations. First off, today’s lesson helped me realize that my thoughts were not organized enough when it came to explaining the plot. I will need to make sure to clarify which parts of the storyline is important and must be mentioned in my presentation. In terms of content, however, I think everything else was nicely summarized. Additionally, this class was a great opportunity for me to improve my slideshow overall. When Mr.Paterson taught us about the three slides at the end, which are summarizing, questions, then the last point, I realized I’d completely forgotten to put them in. I felt lucky to have been reminded because otherwise, my presentation would have been missing an important piece! I came up with a thought provoking, intriguing question to say on my last slide afterwards, which I’m sure will really get the audience’s brains thinking. Besides the mistake of forgetting the last part, I think my slideshow was nicely...

Today, we learned several things from Mr.Paterson like the correct way of formatting our blogs and First of all, one of the most important parts of our blogs is the topic sentence. Although we did go over this last semester, this was very helpful because I'd forgotten about the fact that a topic sentence includes a heading and a claim. It is important to stay on the same topic throughout the paragraph, and to start another paragraph with a topic sentence if you wish to talk about a different topic. From now on, I'll proof read to check if I don't have any sentences that talk about anything other than the thing stated in the first sentence of the paragraph. Afterwards, Mr. Paterson reminded us about the proper way of writing up the body part. It should contain three different examples to support your claim, which should each have at least two sentences to exaplain them. Secondly, our teacher taught us about the importance of knowing your audience. Depending on your audience...

In English class today, although we had trouble connecting to the internet that resulted in us spending most of our class time getting our computers to function properly, Mr. Paterson spent the time we had left to talk about UX. UX stands for user experience. First off, when he looked through our book review plan-out, he noticed that some design techniques were not very effective. I learned that either 1.5 or double spacing is recommended to make sure anybody can read through smoothly. In terms of user experience, I thought that this is really important as you wouldn't want viewers to feel irritated by how hard it is to read the text. Also, Mr.Paterson showed us some examples of fonts and colors of texts that make it hard for certain people (I forgot the word, but it takes up about 10% of people). Of course, lights like neon yellow and off-whites were not easy to see at all, and some fonts we were shown were not legible at all. I definitely see why using colors like navy and using ...

Today, we learnt about how Wikipedia can be useful while researching, as well as how to determine a good book. First, Mr. Paterson taught us that there is a ranking for every Wikipedia page that tells you how accurate or reliable the information is. You can easily access that by clicking "Talk" at the top of your page. I found this new information helpful because now, I can tell which of the Wikipedia sites are trustworthy, and which ones are not. What's even better, is that all information on these Wikipedia sites are cited usually so you can find some great resources. I felt that because of this feature, Wikipedia is a great place to start your research so you can be lead to other (& better) sources. One of the examples he showed us is a piece of information that was taken from the Ministry of Japan's website. Since I've been finding it difficult to find articles about James Dashner, I'll definitely make sure to check the "Citations/Resurces" s...

Today, we had our first English class of the semester. As we will be working on our individual book report presentations in a few weeks, Mr. Paterson taught us about one of the things to talk about in a book report. That first thing is not just the author and title, but also the author's background. We learned that the author's background and past experiences have a lot to do with the story's plot, characters, and more. You might be thinking, "How?" The answer is that us people all have different perceptions of things, because what you've experienced shapes your thinking. Mr. Paterson showed and explained some examples. One example was the Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien. The novel's storyline seemed awfully similar to the situation his country was facing due to war. Although the author denied that there is a connection, it was clear to me that the historical background of when this book was published had a strong influence on JRR Tolkien's writing. T...

Today, after spending some time enhancing our group websites even more, we watched this YouTube video of a TED speaker talking about the  intriguing facts of body language. I didn't know body language can change not only how others perceive us, but also how we see ourselves, so that was definitely surprising! If we could REALLY improve our lifestyle just by being conscious of our posture and body language (which includes facial expression), I think I could really use this information. Now, as the TED speaker mentioned, studies actually have proven this to be true. Scientists who study body language have done human experiments in which some people were ordered to stand strong and confident, and some were told to do the exact opposite, which includes behaviors such as slouching and closing off arms. Then, they had to perform / work under a lot of pressure, which in this case was to doing a job interview with real professionals. Results showed that people who stood stronger before per...

**EDIT: I just noticed I had forgotten to publish this, so it's out of order. This was supposed to come right before my "Working Time #2" blogpost. So sorry about that!** Today, our teacher let us have a working period, so I'll be talking about how the hour went. We didn't make as much progress as we hoped to, but we found some great furniture ideas. One site that stood out to me was Smithsystem, as they had classroom furnitures and gadgets to fulfill all our needs. For example, they had compact individual desks that allow you to adjust the height so students can stand up when they want to feel refreshed or increase productivity. Also, when our group was brainstorming, we decided we wanted to incorporate hexagonal tables so I was mesmerized when I found exactly that! I'm glad we were able to decide on those two products, since the desks are an essential part of a classroom and will allow us to think of even more creative ideas. Then, I did some research on c...

Today, we got into our groups and reflected on our project. Even though we are done with our presentation, learning doesn't stop there! As Mr.Paterson said earlier, reflecting helps us make our next projects better, and I think it really does help! The final project is important, however the PROCESS is too! So, as a group, we talked about where went wrong, ways to avoid that from happening, as well as what was good about our project. I think I should've made every person's jobs more clear. Maybe I should've given each person specific assignments/things to do. I didn't know we were all going to research different things  until it was time for us to present, and I definitely will make sure to do so for the next project since now we know that everybody is supposed to present what they researched about a certain topic. Also, I was told by one of my teammates that I should've let the team know before making a new Google Document ( for brainstorms, research, etc ), ...

Today was the last day of presenting, and two groups presented. The first people up were Shun, Takenoshin, Manari, Shione, and Kyoko. I really liked how they made the audience stand up during the presentation to prove their point, as it was interactive and convincing! Great idea Takenoshin + Kyoko :) The seating chart seemed a bit confusing to me at first, but it was made clear in the Q&A, so it's all good. Mr. Paterson adviced them to have their arms open and relaxed to show that they are confident and feel comfortable speaking. He also pointed out that Also, I as the teacher mentioned in a previous class, dopamine generators help the listeners pay attention, the cute pictures of animals were good additions. The pictures didn't seem as effective as I expected though! The summary/conclusion wrapped up the presentation nicely also. Then, Tamao, Runa, Yuzuki, and Maile presented. I felt that having chrome books in classrooms was certainly a good idea, as you only need to ...

Today, in English class, my group did our presentation, as well as another group. Of course, afterwards we talked altogether about ways each group could've improved. My group, the Inner Innovators, was up first. I felt quite ready, so I was glad to be doing the presentation today. Before getting started, I put a timer on to keep track of how long I've spoken for. Firstly, I introduced my team to the audience, explaining what they will talk about during the presentation. I then talked about the importance of our topic, by digging up some data and telling them about what we found out in our research. As Mr.Paterson mentioned earlier, credibility is important! My job as a "heart" was to make sure to get everybody's attention, and tell them why they should listen to us. I told the audience about how long we've been working on coming up with our ideas, and how much effort we've put in to it to show credibility. I felt very uncomfortable with making eye contac...

In class today, one group presented their renovation plan, and afterwards, as a class, we went over the points that were not good or could be improved in their presentation. It is important to learn from mistakes, and to make sure not to make the same mistakes when doing your own. Today, Risa, Reina, Darya, and Marino went first. Their group was named TOMORROW, which I thought was a great idea as it suited their content well. Also, a good characteristic of their slideshow is that their slides didn't have too many words, so it didn't take away from what they were actually saying. Their ideas seemed to be well thought out, but I thought that if they had specific pieces of furniture included, it would've been even better! After their presentation was done, Mr.Paterson taught us about ways their presentation could've been better, and what the other students should keep in mind when doing their own. First off, he mentioned that every presentation must start by the 'm...

Although I'm definitely not new to iMovie, we learned about how to edit videos and make the best out of iMovie. This was real helpful because I now know more about how to make the video really speak to the audience. The first tip he taught us was to use upbeat, jazzy background music for the introduction to get the audience excited and intensive, while the ending music should wrap up the entire video nicely and smoothly. What stood out to me most was the transitions. Mr.Paterson, in his model / practice / example video, showed us that you should use transitions that fit perfectly with the video clips around the transition. For example, if two clips are dark and gloomy and you'd like to put a transition in between them, it would be a better option to use "fade to black", as opposed to "fade to white". Additionally, he taught us that the KEY to creating an influential and appealing is matching! Fonts, background music, sound effects, filter effects, speed, and...

Today, we learned about the features of an effective video and were shown some powerful and creative examples! Mr.Paterson taught us the characteristics a "good" presentation should have so we can include it in our current project. First of all, videos must ALWAYS have a MESSAGE and you must make sure to send that message accurately and clearly. As our teacher told us, "There has to be an argument to be made in your video." To do so, it's important to use certain video effects, expression/acting, words/dialogue, and much much more! One example of that is changing the color scheme (?) so it goes with the purpose of the video. Mr.Paterson showed us a video one of his students made that was about what you can do to prevent suicides from happening. The video used a gloomy, slow effect to match the dark and serious topic, so it really stood out to me! Also, one of the things to keep in mind when uploading a YouTube video is copyright. You should try to use non copyr...

Today, Mr.Paterson taught us the best brainstorming strategies, and used those to come up with ideas of our own for our project. Disney's brainstorming business is thriving, so they continue making tons and tons of money. They use four important steps of a good brainstorm, and that is [[ Spectator, Insider, Dreamer, and Realist ]]. It helps us have a wider perspective so we can come up with more creative, bright ideas that will attract the audience more! In our groups, we brainstormed what we should do, what to change, or what to add in the classroom we will be "remodeling" soon. First, we thought about it from an outsider's point of view, which is the Spectator stage. What if I wasn't a student here at ISS? What would I notice walking in to just classroom if I've never seen the rest of the classrooms? Often times, we miss the most obvious, simple things if we don't look at something from the outsider POV. We came up with good ideas, such as adding more co...

In English class today, Mr.Paterson taught us how to be a good presenter and do an exciting, interest presentation!  I was informed that 10% of the gestures we make while presenting are descriptive gestures, while 2-5% of it is emphatic, and the rest neutral. The neutral pose is relaxed, with arms open to show signs of trust, a little curved, and loose. Also, one of the keys to a good presentation is movement. The trick is to do so smooth, natural, and confident, and the point of making movements is to make sure you seem relaxed, and include the entire audience (so you dont't seem like you're only talking to one part of the audience) in your talk. However, Mr.Paterson taught us that the part most students struggle with most is EYE CONTACT. He says you are supposed to make eye contact with everyone in the room for 2-5 second per person. This is something we have to keep in mind as it's important to make each person feel as if you (the presenter) is talking to you and ONLY yo...

Today, Mr.Paterson wasn't here and we got time to work on our presentations. I think our group was able to use our time productively and wisely. Everyone in our group worked on different things, but we also discussed and talked about our classroom remodeling plan. It was nice because we made group decisions, AND also got lots of work done fast because of our working strategy. We looked thoroughly through our classroom furniture selection. They all seem incredibly convenient and we haven't decided but were able to narrow it down to fewer options.  However, Yuki Arai and I mostly worked on the presentation & brainstorming document. We have all our possible cover photo options laid out now and the only thing left to do now is to decide, which I'm looking forward to because I think I made some pretty fantastic ones! We included a lot of Mr.Paterson's suggestions for the cover slide. That includes the one point focus feature and placing the words so they sort ...

Today, we were put into our random groups for this semester and given our first assignment! The project is to think of a creative way to reform the tedious, bland, and impractical classroom right across from ours. Some things to keep in mind are seat placement, convenience, and mood. In our groups, we'll have to think of a creative way to make sure every student feels engaged and alive. For example, my teacher's example of a bad seating arrangement is  "The Cemetery Effect". The classroom we're going to help improve uses that exact seating chart, and must be altered! Mr. Paterson showed us some examples of fresh, ingenious ideas that have been thought of and implemented so far. One example of that is the node chairs. Its features include rollers which make moving around easier, storage space just beneath the seat for space-efficiency, and a plastic shell for maximum comfort. We will make sure to find a chair that is not only cost efficient, but is also comfort...

In class today we learned about how to effectively do a presentation to get your message across. Mr.Paterson did a demonstration of a good, engaging presentation, in which he used lots of techniques he mentioned in his YouTube videos. His presentation (for his TED talk) was interesting and wasn't dull at all! I hope to make my future projects as appealing as his! He taught us that dopamine generators are important and there are lots of them in his. His slideshow uses mostly big and eye-catching images/videos that help the audience comprehend what he's talking about, and give them a good visual. These images help generate dopamine because it'll leave an impact on whoever is listening. For example, his dogs seemed to have the biggest influence on the audience. He talked about his important main points after showing pictures of his adorable dogs since the release of dopamine helps with memory. Also, he mostly concentrated on oral improvising rather than just reading off ...

I learned about tons of new "Google Search" tools that will help me find exactly what I need, and one that stood out to me is the boolean operators. By using these, I can refine my results so I can find whatever information I'm looking for quicker and easier. Some examples of it include -, which excludes any sites/documents that have that word in their title (is it just the title or the entire passage, someone please clarify!), and "", which searches that exact phrase with no words in between the words inside the "". Since I only knew about the extracting tool (-), I was very intrigued by the other features Google Search has, and I am definitely planning on using them so I can dig up information more effectively. Another Google feature that impressed me was Google Scholar. This search engine is a tool that will be very helpful since I am a student, and the features on the search bar makes it easier for me to find educational, scholastic materials. It...

In English class today, we learned about these two new tools called Google Keep and Books. Google Keep is a program where it allows you to set your own reminders on this digital "bulletin board". From trying it, I found ways to organize the notes better by using different colors. Personally, I think the best part of Google Keep is the ability to share the reminders with other just by entering their emails. Also, I can add images with the reminders. When I get assignments, I can just snap a picture of the direction sheet and add it instead of typing it. Last but not least, I can create lists on the notes. Using this feature, I can cross out whatever I already accomplished on that list. I felt that this is an amazingly useful tool for many things such as shopping lists, assignments, as well as traveling. Once I start using this tool, I won't forget any necessities such as a toothbrush(?), because it is also accessible from my phone! Secondly, we learned about Google Books...

Today, we made our own websites using our gmail accounts (as usual). It is useful because I can link basically anything in the website such as Google Documents, our blogs, and much more. Now, I can access everything I need for class from one place. I learned how to add folders in the website and how to put in links into those folders. I'm excited to play around with it a little more and discover more helpful features it may have. This will definitely help me stay organized in the future! Being able to customize my own website is a huge plus. It is very easy to personalize my website and make it more "me". Also, from today's lesson, I really started to acknowledge the importance of "legible fonts and colors". I hope to be able to make good use out of the information I just absorbed and make my website easy to read for anybody :)

In English class today, we learned about this useful tool called "Feedly". I was also able to download it on my phone, which I found very convenient. I can not only view other students' blogs, but this app will also help me stay updated on topics I have interest in. In a different class, we are learning about economics so I can already tell this is going to be something I'll be using often. I was surprised at how it shows if you've read / haven't read certain articles, and I think this really makes sure you don't miss out on anything! I love that there are so many gadgets we can access using just our emails. Also, during today's class, our teacher taught us that writing these blogs help us understand class better. He also gave us time to correct any mistakes we may have made on the "Student List" document.  After getting to experiment with Feedly on my phone, I definitely thought what Mr.Paterson said was true. I can read this anywher...

In English class today, I learned about the "Google Groups" feature and I found it helpful that the entire class can send emails to anyone and/or everyone in the group. What surprised me most was the digital writing tools. Just by copy and pasting, I quickly got back helpful feedback as well as analyses with easy-to-understand charts. I'm thrilled to have discovered these programs, as I feel that they will really help improve my vocabulary, grammar, and just my writing in general. After class, I thought, "Where have you been all my life?". My goal is to be able to write balanced and strong essays. The links the other students put in the shared document will definitely be helpful for future reference, as well as the AWL. I was definitely impressed by how easily it was to operate each program. Last but not least, as I was typing this I noticed that Blogger notices and marks misspelled words. I think this is really considerate!