Semester Essay #9

                                               Television

                                                Semester Essay #9

(Research shows that the average American watches as much as six hours of television each day. Do you think this is too much? Write an essay convincing readers to spend less time in front of the T.V)

          There are many ways in which we can spend our free time. The activities are numerous, but we sometimes tend to abuse the opportunities that we have been offered. For instance people tend to watch too much television every chance they have spare time. They do not realize that when watching too much television there are consequences. Television is not over all something negative, it nice to sometimes watch a game with friends or family, but when you abuse the time you spend watching TV it can be harmful.  

            One physiological effect that TV can cause when watching it in a great amount of time is eyestrain. When watching TV it should be placed at the same height as your eyes, and the room should be lit. These preventions however, do not prevent your eyes from getting tired when watching too much television. Television can also cause lack of concentration, especially in children. This disadvantage affects even the smallest of noises disturbances from a task at hand. Television has also been known for being responsible for the bad habits in children, especially in teenagers. Young children tend to imitate and be like the characters they see on TV, from the way they talk to how they dress and behave.  Also the sudden flashes of light shown on TV can cause serious damage to the human eye, can cause temporarily blindness, and migraine if a person watches too much television. Another side effect of watching too much television is poor health. Watching TV all day for a long period of time can lead to physical health problems. Children can develop a weak body, it can also contribute to child obesity, and sleep disruption.

                        Watching too much TV has many effects, especially for young children. With all of the options we have to spend our spare time, we have to be wise about our choices. WE need to choose something that is both beneficial and relaxing to our body. It is okay to watch television for an hour or two a day, but we should not exceed this amount. Watching too much TV can cause our body to be weary and produce migraines. There have been many studies that show all of the negative effects of over exceeding the time we spend watching television. Next time we have spare time, make sure to choose a wise decisions with all of the activities that surrounds us anything is better than hurting your body in front of a television set.

Setting as the World

I have not had an opportunity to live in a house that we can call our own. We have always

rented, it was either an apartment or a duplex. Ever since I could remember I know that the living

room was my favorite room in the house. The living room was a place where we can relax and

spend time as a family. One particular activity I remember doing in that room was when it was

baseball season my dad and me would watch all the games of the season together.

            When I knew that there would be a game that day I would get the living room ready for

when my dad got home from work. I would make sure it was clean and comfortable. When he

got home I would inform him who was playing and what time they were going to play. He would

get home shower and eat dinner. After he did that I would sit in his lap and watch the game, but

in every game before it began we would have a bet and each choose a team. At the end if my

team won ( which in most cases it did) I would receive a reward, whether it was money or a toy.

This was my favorite room in the house because I would bond and spend time with my dad.

Even though he would come home tired from work, we never missed watching a season game

together.

Semester Essay #8

                                               Single Sex Schools

(All girls schools have been gaining popularity in recent years because of the belief that girls learn better when they aren’t competing with or intimidated by boys, who statistically get more attention in the classroom. Do you think single sex schools are a good idea? Why or why not? Use specific reasons and examples to support your position.)

            The concept of single sex schools to some student’s sounds like something they will never want to experience. For others they think that it will be better because there will not be any distractions between the male and female sexes. The truth is that there are advantages and disadvantages to single sex schools.

            Some of the advantages of single sex schools are that children learn and perform better in their education. They perform significantly higher on standardized tests when both sexes are attending different schools. At an all girl school, teachers used the latest techniques to keep up with the female learning style. The teachers did this because studies have shown that boys and girls need different ways of learning because they’re brains function differently. Without boys in the classroom girls become more confident and participate in class discussions. Being more confident and being able to comprehend the concept more clearly allows them to perform well on exams. Girls in single sex schools also take on the roles of leadership whether it’s in sports or academically.

            Some disadvantages are student diversity at single sex schools. It can also provide students difficulty at single sex schools to adjust to a co-ed environment after attending a single sex school. The real world does not only come with one sex and for these students who attend single sex school will become a problem to adjust to this world.

            I believe that students should be able to choose where they want to attend school. A single sex school or co-ed school should not base the academics of the students. A student will perform academically based on themselves and not what school they are attending. Like I previously said there are advantages and disadvantages to this type of schools system, but students are all different and in most cases have a different experience on the school they are placed. I do not think  single sex schools are a better option over co-ed schools both school systems offer different things and the decision should be on the student.

Semester Essay#7

Children Allowances

(Many parents give children a weekly or monthly allowance regardless of their behavior because they believe an allowance teaches children to be financially responsible. Other parents only give children an allowance as a reward for completing chores or when they have behaved properly. Explain what you think parents should do and why.)

            Parents have different opinions on whether an allowance at an early age is appropriate or not. Some believe that children should receive an allowance whether or not the child behaves properly. Most financial experts say that an allowance at an early age is a good idea because the child learns financial responsibility.           

      A parent can provide a child with an allowance as young as three or five. This is the appropriate age because this is the period where children want material items. An allowance can provide a child with understanding the concept of budgeting and saving. If a child is provided with a weekly allowance it helps the kids take responsibility on spending decisions and  encourages independence on the child.

            The controversial topic on whether a child should be given an allowance based on chores or good grades or just given on a weekly base is debated all the time. Child development experts say that generally giving children an allowance based on chores and good grades is generally not a good idea. The problem in this idea is that it undercuts the idea of the family morals. It also undermines the lessons parents want to teach their children and it becomes manipulative. I personally do not see any harm in this idea. Children will learn responsibility because in performing a chorethey know they have helped the family and will receive an award which is money for their work. They will learn responsibility and be prepared for when the time comes for them and engage in the work place. They will have experience because if they know they’re performance should be impeccable then they will be rewarded.

            An allowance can also be beneficial to children because they can save the money they receive. All children are different; some need more encouragement than others when it comes to the concept of saving. Some children who save on their own and is very difficult for them to spend money. For those children who don’t want to save, parents should require these children to save a portion of their allowance, but at the same time parents should make saving something fun. 

      Since parents have different perceptive on the way they want to teach their children about allowances, there might not be a right or wrong way in about dealing with the situation. In my opinion I believe that children should be rewarded on when they’re performance is good. Children should not be rewarded if their behavior is inappropriate because the child will know that they will receive an allowance regardless of their behavior.

Personal Essay

A time in my life that I have confronted disappointed was during my tennis season at school. When we had finished playing all of the teams in the ocean league, we were told that we the Inglewood High School team was tied in third place with Culver City High School. In order to break the tie we had to have a tie breaker game. We knew that how we performed in this game was going to decide what place we were going to play in the finals. We all wanted to win so we were going to do our best in our matches. When it was time to begin, we were all very nervous. As the matches began I was concentrated and was determined to win. When I won the first game of the match I began to feel more confident. As the match continued it was really close, we were both doing well. When I would score a good point she will return one as well. At the end she won the overall match. When I played my second match I was exhausted by the first match and knew because I was tired I had to play even better. My second match was a repeat of what happened in my first match. I came out to be fairly close and we were both given it our all, but at the end I once again had lost a match. I was very disappointed because if I would have tried a little harder I know I would have won both of my matches. Both matches turned out close but I was not satisfied knowing that. I wanted to win my matches so our team could take third place in the finals. Even though I lost my matches I knew how to handle the situation, I was not so hard on myself because I tried my best and in the finals I will not give up and give it my all.

Memoir

A time when I was misjudged by someone by my appearance was the very first time I went to Mexico with my family for the Christmas holidays. The first days that we were there I encountered a girl that lived in the same city that my parents were from. Since she saw me she disliked me. She began to judge me without even knowing me. She began to spread rumors about me and I did not know of this until my cousins informed me of what was being said about. The girl was telling people wrong facts about who I was. I truly do not know why she would do this because within the first days I was there and never seeing her before I did not understand why she disliked me and why she would spread rumors about me. When I spoke to my mom about the situation she told me that she was the type of girl that did that because maybe she was jealous of what I owned, and in order to take out her jealousy she would de negative things toward me. People who misjudge people based on their appearance is wrong. You should not judge someone on their appearance because an appearance does not define someone’s personality. You should not make assumptions about a person based on the way they look.

Cats vs. Dogs

Cats are skilled in jumping and climbing, they prefer to climb a tree and have the ability to just from a high altitude. Dogs cannot climb so they do not have that advantage when put into a difficult situation. When challenged, they will most likely become aggressive and attack. They are also more social than cats. Cats usually tend to keep to themselves and prefer to be separate from other animals. While dogs enjoy the company of other dogs and people too. Dogs will let people pet them and play with them. This situation is one that will not happen with cats. In a typical situation cats will runaway when they see that someone or another animal is going to approach them. They will not let anyone that they do not recognize come near them and in some cases they will not let their owners come near them either. Another difference between cars and dogs is that cats are quicker than dogs. They can catch their pray quicker when they hunt. Because dogs do not have the same hunting abilities as dogs they were gifted with a great sense of smell and the ability to track down. Either way these both species will make a good pet. It all depends on a persons preference.