Feedback Focues Techniques

Read Out loud and Pay Attention to the Details

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Reading out loud, copying and deleting, and using a timer are all helpful ways to focus your attention in order to provide constructive feedback. Each technique's usefulness may vary between individuals. Reading out loud has always helped me remember what I have read and helps e catch thing that do not sound right to me. Maybe the passage does not flow well or something seems out of place. It may also make me aware that the argument or explanation of something does not seem fully flushed out. I had never tried the copy and delete technique before, but I found it to be really helpful. It allows you to focus on the key elements you as a reader picked up on while you were reading. By writing your comments in the margin, you are able to easily recall what you were most interested in discussing in your feedback. Unfortunately, using a timer while reading (or doing anything) does not work well for me. I am a high anxiety person, their for when I know something is being timed my focus turns to the timer rather than the task at hand. I think I will use some of these techniques as I study for the LSAT. This is my last chance to focus on the details of the exam.

Tech Tip: Google Site Website

I have created my project page. I cannot wait to start on my storybook: "Pixie Tale: The Truth About The Pixies"! Creating a storybook cite is a new experience for me. Follow the link below to access my storybook as it unfolds...
https://sites.google.com/site/hsizeproject/

Pixies Are The Most Beautiful Creatures

Pixie photo

Review, Announcements Week 4

It is important and fun to read the class announcements
Fairy Tale books. Since many of you in Myth-Folklore will be browsing the Freebookapalooza this weekend, I wanted to share this nifty poster of Fairy Tale Composers and Collectors.

Announcement photo 

Famous Last Words; "I Will Learn to Get Up Early"

women resting photo

This week time management has been an important factor, which is why I posted a learning challenge for time management. Studying for the LSAT on top of a full course load has been challenging, although I believe I have a good handle on it at this point. The holiday weekend will allow me extra study time to get caught up on any studying or homework I have. I have a Monday, Wednesday, Friday schedule on campus, which leaves me Tuesday, Thursday, and the weekends to study and complete my homework. Time management will be an important skill throughout my life and I am sure it will be important to most individuals reading this blog post as well. Graduate school or Law school will  require a lot of class and study time, along with an internship. Practicing law as a career will also require a lot of time management skills. I tend to pick a school schedule that does not require me to be at school before eleven thirty each day. My husband laughs at me every time I  complain about having a schedule that temporarily requires me to get up early. I definitely need to be more disciplined about going to bed early in order to become more of a morning person, which I currently am not. When I was younger I use to tease my parents for going to bed by nine fifteen every night, but now I understand why they did. It is much easier to get up in the morning is you go to bed at a reasonable hour and feel refreshed when you have to wakeup early. I will not have the luxury of choosing my schedule for very much longer. Most courts start going through their dockets at eight o'clock on the dot. Considering that my mother taught me to always be at least ten minutes early for any appointment, I will be getting up very early!

Learning Challenge: Time Management

Give Yourself Time  photo

30 Time Management Tips For Work-Life Balance" written by Frances Booth gives some insightful tips on ways to manage time wisely. I will list my top ten favorites here and you can follow the link I have provided to see which tip you think would best work for you. 

•  focus your efforts positively on the things you have time for (don't focus on things you do not have time for).
•   Schedule software updates to take place at night so they do not take your daytime hours. 
• values your time and others will value your time as well.
• Get an adequate amount of sleep so you can focus when time is limited.
• If you are procrastinating determine why?
• Keep track of where you spend your time. At the end of the week review and determine what areas need amended.
• Limit activities that drain your time and energy.
• Take mini breaks throughout the day to recharge your energy and focus. 
• Don't underestimate the time required to perform important tasks and factor that into your schedule.
• Do not try to force things to happen in a limited time frame. Let things happen in natural time. This will eliminate some stress that can be caused by rushing around.

Bibliography:

"30 Time Management Tips For Work-Life Balance" written by Frances Booth

Forbes Time Management Tips

Wikipedia Trail: from "Team" to "Motivation"

Oklahoma Sooner photo

My Wikipedia trail for week 4 started at "team" , suggested to me by my step son, Landyn. He is a huge sports fanatic. A team is a group of people or linked together in a common purpose. For example, the University of Oklahoma's football team works together to complete a variety of plays set forth by their team leader, their coach.

Team constructing or "Team building" uses collaborative tasks to enhance team unity and define roles within the team. Overtime these tools are thought to improve the teams performance, especially organizational performance.

"Organization development" is the study of successful organizational change and performance of teams over time. Organizational development is thought to influence the motivation of teams. These studies began in the 1930.

"Motivation" is a theoretical construct used to explain certain behaviors, such as actions, desires, and needs. A team that is not motivated to win usually performs badly, but a team that is highly motivated to win has a better chance of doing so.

Growth Mindset: "Never Give Up"

This is a cute YouTube video that encourages students not to give up if they do not succeed the first time they try something. Your brain is like any other muscle in your body. The more you exercise your brain the stronger it will become.

Reading Notes: "The Belfry Rock; or, The Pixies' Revenge"

A large moor-stone rock was known as the "Pixies' church." The people of the town said that if you place your ear to the stone you could hear their church bells ringing.  The music could be heard best from a hole in the rock called the belfry tower. A man who wanted to build onto his decided he would break off some of the rock from "the Pixies' Church," No one wanted to help the man deconstruct the church so he made his sons help him. Everyone who removed the rock would suffer the wrath of the Pixies. The old mans livestock was reduced to little more than skeletons. Exactly as the clock struck twelve, he heard a noise something like the humming of bees at the kitchen door; and directly after perceived a little creature, very diminutive, but shaped like a human being, come forth through the key-hole. The pixies' are said to look act like little demons. they stripped every animal of its skin and ate all but their brains until alas the old man took down the stone which belonged to the pixies. The next morning the Pixies' Church stood as if he had never disturbed it, but the old man fell into a depression unlike any other and soon passed away.


"The Belfry Rock; or, The Pixies' Revenge"  written by ?
The Belfry Rock; or The Pixies' Revenge

Photo magical-pixies

Story: "We Were Always With You"

Once upon a time lived a young couple with two beautiful children. The couple was very happy, but their happiness did not protect them from the reality of their situation. Times were hard for everyone. Most men were out of work due to locus eating their crops. The farmer tried to replant the crops without much success. Hunger seemed to turn to anger as the farmer looked into his wife's eyes as she asked him how they would feed their children. Everything was gone. Their supplies had been depleted. What would he tell his children as he laid them to bed with growling tummies?

Trapped Within The Well

He could not bare to tell his wife and children the truth. The truth was he did not know how they would eat or if they could survive this tragedy. As his wife got the children ready for bed, he slipped out of the house without saying anything. He went into the forest hoping to find something anything that could provide a way. The farmer walked for so long in the dark that he could no longer see his house, but he could feel their hunger as he did his own. He continued through the forest until he came upon a well.


He could hear cries of distress coming from the well. As he looked deep into the well he could see his wife and two children. How did this happened, he asked his wife? I left you at the house just as you were tucking our children into bed. We have always been with you dear husband, she replied. We were with you as you walked through the dark. We were with you when you were hungry. We were with you when you were scared. We have always been here. Pull us out one by one and let us be together.


The farmer was confused, terrified, and ashamed. He had turned his back and walked away from his family. This was a mistake he would not make again. He pulled his children out and then reached for his wife. She appeared to be deeper than the children were. Just when he was about to give up he turned to see her by his side. Fear not my husband I am here with you. I am in deep in this life we have created. The family started their journey back to their house. Some might think that their situation had not changed, but nothing could be further from the truth. Sure the crops were still destroyed and they were still hungry, but they knew they would be okay.


 As the farmer's wife grabbed his hand they found their way back. Back to their home and back to one another. The farmer laid his children down for bed alongside his wife. That night he thanked the heavens for all that he had been given. When he woke in the morning he could smell a fresh country breakfast being cooked on the stove. He could hear his children laughing and playing around a warm fire. He rushed down the stair to see if he was imagining it all, but it was real. The man knew this wonder was created out of the strength of his families love. The man wondered how he deserved to have such a loving family and how he could have been so ungrateful.



Author's Note: This story was inspired by "Panchatantra: The Ungrateful Man." The husband was thought to be lazy and ungrateful by his wife and children who were starving as a result of their poverty. He journeyed into the forest to find a way to take care of his family. He discovered a well with several animals and a man stuck at the bottom of it. The tiger begged the Brahman to pull him out and save his life, but the Brahman feared him. The tiger promised not to harm the Brahman. To receive salvation the Brahman pulled the tiger free. He also pulled out a monkey and a snake; which he was terrified to touch, but he promised not to bite him. The animals warned the Brahman not to pull out the man who had been trapped in the well with them. He represents every sin, they told him. Each animal asked the Brahman to call upon them in the future so that they might repay his kindness. Once the animals had left the Brahman pulled the other man out. He felt they were one of the same kind. Along his journey the Brahman visited each of the animals, receiving supplies and food. The gold given to the man by one animal was sold by the next, but the gold was stolen from the King's son. This made it look like the Brahman had killed the prince rather than the tiger. The Brahman was imprisoned until the snake devised a plan to bite the King's queen in order to set the Brahman free. Only the Brahman's touch could cure the queen. The King called upon his prisoner to cure his wife. The King was pleased and gave the Brahman a thousand villages and appointed him privy counselor. The Brahman sent for his family and lived happily ever after.


Bibliography:
Panchatantra: "The Ungrateful Man" Story source: The Panchatantra of Vishnu Sharma, translated by Arthur W. Ryder (1925).
The Ungrateful Man
Photo Water Well Photo

Reading Notes: Jataka Tales: "The King's White Elephant"

Once upon a time there were a community of carpenters searching for lumber in the forest when they came across an elephant. The elephant appeared to be limping. It was obvious that he had been in pain for some time. The elephant laid down in agony. The carpenters were able to pull a splinter from his foot and wash it clean. The elephant wanted to return the kindness the carpenters had shown him. The elephant worked alongside the carpenters pull and rolling logs for them. In return the carpenters made sure that elephant was well taken care of. As the elephant got older he could not work as hard as he once could, but he had a son who he could teach to work. He was a strong, beautiful, and solid white elephant. The carpenters took care of the young white elephant just as they had his father
before him. One day King was traveling down the river and spotted the white elephant playing alongside the carpenter's children. Although the carpenters loved the white elephant they accepted the King's offer to buy him at a handsome wage. The King adored the white elephant and took very care of him. The white elephant lived out the rest of his life at the King's estate.


                         White Elephant
Animal photo

My Thoughts:
This story reminds me of a fairytale I was told when I was young about a lion who got a thorn in his paw. A smaller animal (a mouse I believe) removed the thorn for the lion. In return the lion protected the mouse. It is interesting how similar stories exist over different cultures. 

Bibliography:
Jataka Tales: "The King's White Elephant written by Ellen C. Babbitt, illustrated by Ellsworth Young (1912).
Jataka; "The Kings White Elephant"





Reading Notes: Egypt; "The Green Jewel"

Green Jewel
jewel photo

The story of the Green Jewel is being told to the majesty by Prince Khafra. In a time of despair the palace was full of glom. The scribe suggested the Majesty take a boat ride with beautiful maidens to row him down the river. The Majesty agreed and took twenty virgins with him. One maidens brushed her hair across the end of the golden covered ores. Her hair shock from it a green jewel, which fell in the river. She stopped steering and the Majesty told her to continue. She wanted her green jewel in spite of the Majesty's offer to buy her another. The chief scribe cast a magic spell which created a lane in the river. This allowed him to find the girl's green jewel. Once he had returned the jewel to her he closed the lane. The water was returned to it's normal flow. King Khufu returned to his palace and commanded that an offering be laid in the tombs of Sneferu and his chief scribe, who was a great magician.

My Thoughts: This story was interesting. I can imagine the story going somewhat differently. The hair of the virgin who steered the boat could turn to into a gold chain from which the green jewel would hang. The jewel could have magical powers that she would possess as the wearer of the jewel.

Bibliography:Egypt; "The Green Jewel" written by Donald Mackenzie (1907).

Egypt; "The Green Jewel"