Touch

I have mixed feelings in regards to this weeks reading on touch in middle schools by teachers. I feel that touch is a very effective way of communicating and getting across positive reinforcement when it comes to preforming a task correctly. I feel that at that young of an age students aren'y fully capable of understanding non-verbal cues as well as say a highscooler. But at the same time, not all teachers who want to hug children when they walk in the class-room want to sexually assault them. Some teachers are more hands on with students and I don't really see how that has to effect all the other teachers. Touch and feeling is one of the best non-verbal ways of communicating there is. When you are given a hug for a job well done, there is no better gratification then getting that hug meaning what you are doing isn't going un-noticed. I feel that the doing away with of touch in the school system may end up hurting more then doing good.

American Language

In recent times we have been reading an article about how the use of IM or other CMC forms of communication can have impact on our language as we use it today. I see how in many ways text (talk) or IM (talk) can hurt our language and the youth that use it most. When speaking and using abbreviations in texts or cmc communication that can and more then likely will spill over into our everyday speach. I can remember times when I have use the letter "u" to mean "you" in a paper. Or in my public speaking class used it in short hand to look over when giving a speach. The amount of time youth and people in college settings spend on the computer is outrageous. The amount of times during the day where they are using text short hand is also outrageous. Over time this will and probably has in many circumstance spilled over into meetings and or other forms of buisness in everyday life. What can we do to help stop this from taking over completely if we do think that it will?

Similarities

Hello all, I hope this semester is going as planned for everyone. I have enjoyed a lot of the topics we have covered so far in class. I feel that this most recent on siblings and twins has a special place for me. I have two twin sisters and two twin boy cousins. So I see a lot of the similarities and differences that take place with siblings. My cousins are Identical as well are my sisters, and in both circumstances I feel that there is one that stands out more then the other in different aspects of life. There is one that is a little more talented in sports and one that is a little more outgoing when it comes to certain things. In most circumstances that person who is a standout in athletics is the same person that is a little more outgoing as well. I wonder if that is because the sibling feels that they don't have the spot light in sports thus they feel that no one would see them as a outgoing person in the social scene. But as time has gone on the roles have been reversing. The one that in the beginning was the more shy one, now has all the friends and is excelling at a different sport then the other. Take my sisters for example. Taylor has the ability to go anywhere and cheer for a college team. They cheer competitively for a gym in raleigh. While Taylor is on all the best teams and over all she is on 7. Haley is on all the best teams to but not in the front where everyone can see her. Taylor is the flyer, while Haley is the base in most all the stunts. While they moved into highschool this year, Haley has been playing volleyball. Thus volleyball practice started a few weeks before school this year, helping Haley to meet people before Taylor did. Now making her the more shy and not so outgoing person. But Haley now has all these friends and is the outgoing one leaving her sister behind. I feel that they aren't any different, but that they are just catching up to one another at different times. This makes the talk about environment having more of a role on similarities between siblings seem a lot more possible then it is learned.