REFLECTIONS ON TEST 3

1. My Back Dating Time Management Calendar helped me to prepare and study for Test #3. Having a calendar and referring to it kept me on track as I neared the end of this course. Not only did the calendar assist me in studying Chapters 5 and 11, it also helped me to review material for the final exam. I believe that having the deadlines in front of me (via the physical calendar) was extremely beneficial.

2. I actually did properly plan on my calendar. It was feasible and a great asset to my studies. The only thing that I failed to follow through on was developing a study group with fellow class members. I have kept the calendar for future reference and hope to incorporate a study group at some point next semester. I think there is strength in numbers and studying with others would be helpful to us all.

3. Back dating my time absolutely helped me to prepare for the test. It confused me at first, but once I grasped the concept, I realized that it could be a real life changer for me. The greatest advantage of the calendar is that it kept me on task. Every day I checked to see what needed to be completed that day and I felt well prepared to take the test. I plan to use it throughout my college career. In fact, I plan to utilize it in other areas of my life as well.

MY JOURNEY

My educational journey has been wonderful this semester. The eight weeks have gone fast and I have learned much about myself and my style of learning. I have always been a reader and thought that the most effective way for me to learn and retain information was by reading the course work. While I still believe this to be true, I have greatly enjoyed and gleaned a lot of useful information from videos that we watched in ACA115. From the short videos of a few minutes to the lectures of Randy Pausch, I learned much about time management, managing stress, and other useful information. I have applied much of the practical knowledge to my everyday life and will continue to use the time management tools as I prepare for next semester. I'm don't think that I would change anything about this semester. There were a couple of times that I was beginning to regret taking two summer classes, but now that they are nearing completion, I am glad that I did. It wasn't much of an imposition to my schedule, and having them completed and behind me will be more than worth any minor inconvenience that I experienced. I am looking forward to next semester and new adventures in learning!

MY DEGREE DECISION

I have made the decision to pursue a degree in Early Childhood Education. I have always loved the company of young children and began babysitting very early in life. When my son was born, I loved reading to him and exploring the world through his eyes. Over a year ago, I lost my job and decided to go back to my first love, which is children. I completed a profile on Care.com and currently work full time as a nanny to four children. Working as a nanny while taking classes toward my Early Childhood Education degree is a natural fit for me. It makes my classes more interesting as I can immediately use my new found knowledge. I enjoy everything about Bladen Community College and look forward to next semester!

UNHEALTHY CHOICES

There are many areas in life where people tend to make unhealthy choices. The most concerning unhealthy choices are those made in youth. This is because unhealthy choices made in youth sometimes tend to become lifelong habits.
If you begin smoking at a young age, and smoke for several years, it is going to be very difficult to stop. The same goes for any unhealthy choice. This is why it is imperative to instill good values and stress the importance of healthy lifestyles to our children. We also have to practice what we preach. If we constantly tell our children to eat their vegetables and we stand on the sidelines eating a bag of potato chips, we are defeating our purpose. The old saying "Actions speak louder than words" is absolutely true. If we don't want our children to smoke, we should not smoke. If we want them to eat healthy, we should eat healthy. If we don't want them to drink, we should not drink.
One abuse that I have witnessed in recent years is the excessive consumption of energy drinks. I see many young parents consuming these drinks and even purchasing them for their children. My advice to these folks would be to eat a healthy diet and drink lots of water, and try to wean themselves off of the excessive consumption of caffeine. Good health is something we should all be working towards as it is not handed to us and should not be taken for granted.

MY ENERGIZERS

The one thing that never fails to energize me is spending time with my son. He lives and works in Raleigh, so I don't get to see him nearly as much as I would like. He came home this weekend and I absolutely love having him under my roof! I would rather spend time with him than with anyone else. I truly relax when we are together, probably because I always worry a little bit about him every day. When we are together, I know that he is safe. Spending time with the one person who loves me unconditionally never fails to energize me and make me smile for days!

The other thing that energizes me is being around books. Whether in a bookstore or library, I love perusing the aisles of books. When I visit my son in Raleigh, I always set aside several hours to spend at my favorite bookstores there. I get excited when I find books that I know I will enjoy and I love to seek out treasures for my friends, too. I live by the creed that you can never have too many books!

READING

I am a lifelong reader and it is hard for me to imagine anyone not reading on a regular basis. Reading is more than a hobby to me. It is my lifeline, my comfort, and my solace.
I decided to go back to school thirty-five years after I graduated from high school and so far I have fared well. I believe that much of my success can be attributed to the fact that I have been a lifelong voracious reader.
However, there is a difference between reading for pleasure and reading for class. Sometimes I find myself so immersed in my classroom reading that I suddenly stop and think to myself, "What did I just read?" Because I read the text fast (like I would a novel), I may not be comprehending the material as well as I should. This is something that I am aware of and working to change. Although it is impossible to remember everything one reads, I believe that I do a fairly good job. Working on my comprehension will be an ongoing process throughout my college career, and indeed my life.

CRITICAL THINKING

I worked as a Lead Worker at Cumberland County Department of Social Services. One day a worst case scenario presented itself when our computer system went down. Our unit took and processed Food and Nutrition applications (food stamps), and the entire process was computerized. The workers panicked and clients continued to sign in to be seen.
Luckily, we had a backup supply of paper applications that we mailed out to clients who were unable to make it to the agency. I quickly distributed them to the workers and informed them that they would have to take the applications manually until the computer system was repaired. It took longer, but the clients were seen and able to sign their application, which was needed to protect the application date.
When the computer system was up and running again, I allowed each worker some "protected" time (time in which they could work without interruptions), so that they could input and process the applications taken during the down time.
This process was successful because the clients were still served in a timely manner and each worker was allowed time to complete the additional work involved.

FAVORITE COLLEGE COURSES (SO FAR)

So far, my favorite college courses have been English 111 and General Psychology. English 111 was the first college course that I took after having graduated from high school over thirty-five years ago. It was a challenge, but I enjoyed it and learned so much about what is expected of a college student. Two of my favorite things about the class were the weekly "free" writing assignments and the final essay assignment. Each week, we wrote 300 words on whatever subject we wanted. If something exciting happened during the week, I would think to myself, "This is what I am going to write about this week!" Mrs. James was my teacher and was so inspiring and helpful. My final essay was about the benefits of frequenting used bookstores. I had written about my favorite used bookstore in a "free" writing assignment and Mrs. James suggested the topic for my final essay. It didn't seem like work because I knew so much about the subject!
My favorite thing about General Psychology was gaining valuable insight into why we humans act the way we do. I experienced many "Aha!" moments when reading the course material. The course definitely gave me a thirst to delve deeper into the field of Psychology.

WELCOME TO RED LIPS LAUNCH SHIPS

My name is Kathy and I have been a resident of Elizabethtown, North Carolina for the past twenty-four years. I am currently enrolled at Bladen Community College and my concentration of study is Early Childhood Associate. In five years, I hope to have at the very least completed my requirements for an Early Childhood Associate degree, and possibly be furthering my studies.

INTRODUCTION TO RED LIPS LAUNCH SHIPS

I believe that red lipstick cures a variety of ills. Caitlyn Jenner agrees with me and all is right with the world.