Life in a Childs Eye :: Literature Movies Teenagers Adolescence Essays

Life in a Child's Eye In the movie, The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, Callie Khouri directs something of a powerful story between a mother and her daughter. The movie Life as a House (Wrinkler, 2002) tells something of the same; of a father and the fight for the love of his son. The two movies both portray the fight between parents and their children. The commonality between father and son and mother and daughter is portrayed through the troublesome children and the problems that they face together. The â€Å"abuse â€Å" that these children have received has formed them into the people they are today. What these characters had become is something that they do not want to be. As we age, we begin to discover the importance of family as depicted through Life as a House and The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. In southern Louisiana, Sidda is a tempestuous play writer who has blamed her mother, Vivi, for the faults within herself that she has come to know. As a young child Vivi did not have the best of mother. Her father had spoiled her with many gifts and parties. Vivi made a few friends throughout her childhood. Through all of the adventures the four of them had gone through, they had made a club for the four of them. This club was called the Ya-Ya sisterhood. Through this they would tell all their secrets to each other and stay behind one another as they grew to adults. As older women, they had kept their promise to each other and are still called the Ya-Ya’s. Throughout the movie, Sidda takes glimpses back to her past and remember incidences and happy occurrences that had developed between her mother and her. The story develops; Vivi and the Ya-Ya’s take glimpse of their own lives together and individually. One of the things that the Ya-Ya’s would do socially was drink alcohol. Some people can take it and some can become very addicted to this sensitizing depressant. Vivi was one of those who would fall into the addiction. She would drink to kill the pain of a lost loved one. She then started to become into drugs; drugs that became very addicting and fed into her behavior in a negative way. As a child, Sidda bore the brunt of the pain that her mother had inflicted upon her and her siblings.

Describe an event, achievement, or experience of which you are particularly proud but will not show up on a resume Essay

Hardship. We all go through it at least once in our lives. It visits us all from time to time and in many different ways. It can come disguised as a marriage trouble, an illness, a financial calamity, or even as a long-distance relationship. Hardship is never a pleasure for us but whether we like it or not, we all must face it. So the question now is: how well we respond to it. Among the many hardships that I have faced in my life, the hardest one was not the irritating illness called the â€Å"singer’s nodules† which I had since I was nine and still suffer from, nor the separations within my family. The hardest one was the language barrier I had to cope with in America. Since my family moved to America from Korea in 2005, my responsibility in the family has become increasingly determined because no one in my family spoke English. I was not fluent in English but I knew I had to master it so that I could help my family. But for the meantime, from sending a bill to renting an apartment room, everything was my job because I was the only one who could speak some English. However, the true yearning to learning English was derived when I was denied of need: a friend. It seemed to me then that there was no way to make a friend in America without knowing English. It seemed that the most important thing here is to be in the popular group. Being in a non-popular one meant rejection. So just imagine the isolation I endured due to the language barrier. It was such a cruel punishment just for being unable to communicate. If I had one wish that could be granted during those days, it would have been to be completely fluent in English so that I could be in the popular group. I studied hard to learn the English language but I still could not understand the nuances nor the inside jokes among popular kids in school. I studied harder and harder to fulfill my dream of being in the popular crowd but the language barrier always hindered me. And that barrier never seems to break. It was only about a year later when I realized that my motivation to learning English was wrong and immature. I participated with one of my â€Å"non popular† friends in many community services in the local area and I realized that a student like me, one who does not speak English well, can help make a more positive environment. I used to think that I am useless because I do not speak the language well. But now I see that I am wrong. Upon that realization, which also became a motivation, I started to study English in order to help other people who are struggling and no longer to be in the popular crowd. I started to stay up all night to study English. I started to refuse to answer any question that my family asked in Korean. I forced them to speak English at home. I covered the walls with English words I did not know. I wrote English phrases on the bathroom tiles and on the shower curtain so that I could study while taking a shower. I put my English notes inside a zip-lock for waterproofing so that I could study in the bathtub. I literally watched the movie â€Å"You’ve Got Mail† more than a hundred times. And I even memorized funny stories and wrote letters in English to communicate with the people in the nursing home and the pregnancy care clinic. My new attitude towards learning the language not only gave me many true friends who actually care about me but it also drastically improved my English oral communication skill so much so that people now say that I do not have the language barrier anymore. The thing I take most pride in, but will not show up in my resume, is having overcome the language barrier and having overcome it by helping others. Being a non-English speaker in America never means that one has to be useless and aloof. With hardwork, with the right attitude, and with a right heart, one can overcome anything.

Private School Uniforms and Dress Codes

When thinking about a dress code or a uniform, most people will call to mind the stereotypical images we see in media: pressed and proper uniforms at military academies, the navy blazers or sports coats with ties and slacks at boys schools, and the plaid skirts and white shirts with knee socks and dress shoes at girls schools. But is this attire actually the norm at private schools? Many private schools attribute most of their uniform traditions and dress codes back to their British public school roots. The formal starched collars and tails worn by Eton College boys are world-famous, but they are hardly typical of a normal school uniform these days. Much more common is a looser dress code consisting of the blazer, white shirt, school tie, slacks, socks, and black shoes for boys; and the option of wearing dresses, or a blazer and blouse with slacks or skirts, standard for girls. What Is the Difference Between a Uniform and a Dress Code? The very word uniform suggests the raison detre, or the reason behind, unis as some of the private school crowd calls them. It is one specific and standard style of dress that every student wears, so that everyone looks, well, uniform. Some school uniforms allow for optional additions, such as sweaters or vests to wear over the uniforms. While the rules at every school will differ, and some will also allow students to add their own personal flair, dressing up their standard attire with scarves and other accessories, there are typically limitations to how much can be added to the uniform. Compared to a uniform, a dress code is an outline of acceptable attire that isnt limited to one or two options. It serves as more of a guideline rather than a rigid rule, and provides more flexibility for students. Many view dress code as an attempt to create conformity as opposed to uniformity. Dress codes can vary by school and range from more formal dress codes requiring specific colors and limited choices of attire to more flexible options that may simply prohibit certain forms of attire.   Why Do Schools Have Uniforms and Dress Codes? Many schools have implemented uniforms and dress codes for both practical and social reasons. Practically speaking, a standardized uniform allows a child to get by with a minimum amount of clothing. You have your everyday wear and then a Sunday best outfit for more formal occasions. A uniform also often serves as a marvelous equalizer of social status. It matters not whether you are the Earl of Snowdon or the son of the local greengrocer  when you put on that uniform. Everybody looks the same. Uniformity rules. Sometimes, however, students have been known to overcome this equalizing aspect by various enhancements, such as accessories and jewelry, that they would add to their uniforms. Do Uniforms Improve Test Scores and Enhance Discipline? Back in the 90s, Long Beach Unified School District instituted a dress code policy for its students. Proponents of the policy claimed that the dress code created a climate for education which led to improved test scores and better discipline. Research varies on this, and students, parents, and teachers often disagree as to what is best. Parents and students often point out the uniforms restriction of personal styles and expression. On the other hand, teachers are often largely supportive of uniforms and dress codes because of the perceived improvements in both student performance and behavior. The generally accepted opinion is that uniforms alone do not improve test scores. What they affect is the schools overall discipline and attendance, which in turn, along with many other aspects, lead to an improvement in students academics. That said, private schools generally create a climate for learning more consistently than public schools do, to begin with. Uniforms and dress codes are just one part of the formula for success. The real secret to success is consistently enforcing rules and regulations. Hold students accountable and you will see results. What About Teachers Dress Codes? Most private schools also have dress codes for teachers. While the guidelines for adults may not mirror that of students, they are often similar, engaging faculty members in modeling good behavior and best dressing practices.   What Happens When You Disregard the Uniform or Dress Code? Now, we all know that students of any age have their ways of getting around dress code requirements. The slacks have a way of becoming a bit baggier than the school regulations intended. The shirts tend to hang out below the oversize jacket. Skirts seem to shrink overnight. This can be difficult for schools to enforce, and infractions can result in varying responses, ranging from verbal reminders to detention and even formal disciplinary action for repeated offenders.