prompt #2-

     I think that when Ray says that the land is an exchange she means that every thing is exchanged . Like in the chapter "Built By Fire" are helping each other because they depend on each other. So they need to exchange things to help the other stay alive. This is an example of an commensalism. this is because both things benefit from the exchange and they don't die because they didn't have the exchange. Another example of this would be a person giving another person some money for food.

where im from

Do you see this picture? This is where my precious life as the person who wants to make a difference started.I have a close connection to this hospital just like Ray was in the Child Of a Pine .This is the place where I was delivered and held in my moms arms. I remember like yesterday. Well actually I cant because I was just a baby. But still it was a special day that will always be special to me. This place has shaped me too me to be the person I am.

Science Culminating Activity-Pamela

Chapter 28, The Kindest Cut, in Ecology of a Cracker Childhood talks about how forests are being cut down and how every individual tree is important. Trees are not just building material but they're homes for wildlife. This has impacted my life because many trees are being cut down in my neighborhood and one in particular was the biggest tree in my backyard. It fell down in April of this year. The tree was old and decaying but it was a great source of squirrel and bird homes. It was also precious during the summertime because of the massive shade that the lush leaves supplied. Today, every time I look out the window the sky seems fuller and now with more sun new plants can thrive. When I look at the rings on the stump I'm amazed at how many years it lived and     how much life it supported.

Driving and Singing :)

Driving and singing, something I do not do because first: my parents would murder me if I ever drove without a license, (that is, if I don’t crash before they find out I’m driving), and second: because apparently singing at the top of my lungs in a moving car is distracting to the driver. But, that is exactly what Janisse and her brother, Dell, would do with their family after supper some days! The whole concept of willingly going into a car to drive around town is foreign to me. Maybe that’s because neither of my parents are from anywhere near Georgia and I was raised differently, or maybe because I get awfully carsick if I am in a car too long... either way I don't really enjoy driving in cars (but I do love to sing, even if im not very good at it:) ). 

In the book Ecology of a Cracker Childhood by Janisse Ray,  Janisse mentions getting into the cars in the junkyard behind her home with her brother and pretending to drive off to faraway places like Canada or Europe. They would travel the world through their imagination! That is something my brother and I never had the need to do. My mother is from Spain, and my father is from Minnesota, so as you may infer, we traveled (and still do). A lot. Instead of imagining ourselves traveling the world, my brother and I would gather up whatever old/interesting things we could find and make cool traveling kits and gadgets to keep us busy on the plane to and from wherever we were going. We never used those gadgets or kits, (maybe once or twice when the Nintendo battery died), but my mother still keeps a box of them somewhere in our house in case my brother and I want them.

    My experiences and my ecosystem have formed me into the person I am today. I am proud of where I come from and I honestly wouldn’t change it for the world! Reading her book, I don’t think Janisse Ray would either. :)

The Normalness of Difference

After reading Child of Pine, I realized how real Ray’s games of pretend have become. Though we’re taught to stand out, one’s “normal” could be the most unique of all.

Ray enjoys these games because she becomes her version of different. Through her adventures, Ray shows her unique “normal” ’s beauty.

Like Ray, once all “different”s were taken, I could only be me. While others parade around, changing like chameleons, being myself actually feels pretty nice.

This flower agrees; among the artificiality, her natural beauty shines. Besides, it’s much harder to reach the sunlight with paint on your petals.
Katy Mayfield

prompt #2-

     I think that when Ray says that the land is an exchange she means that every thing is exchanged . Like in the chapter "Built By Fire" are helping each other because they depend on each other. So they need to exchange things to help the other stay alive. This is an example of an commensalism. this is because both things benefit from the exchange and they don't die because they didn't have the exchange. Another example of this would be a person giving another person some money for food.

Science Culminating Activity- Zoe

My grandmother and I when I was younger

In Chapter 19: Beulahland in Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, it talks about Janisse's grandmother Beulah and how she had a big influence on Janisse. My grandmother (or Omi as I call her) had a huge impact on me as well. She's from France, and as a young child my family and I would travel there for long periods of time. I remember her big yard, climbing up the old trees, and the delicious cherries she grew. This has impacted my life because my family celebrates a lot of traditions that my grandmother did. For example, I always open one present on Christmas Eve, and my dad always cooks this special mashed potato dish that Omi always used to make. Now that she is gone, I will remember and cherish those moments when I was younger even more and I will definitively keep these traditions going generation after generation.

Living in a College Town

This is Sanford Stadium, the University of Georgia’s landmark. In the months September through December every Saturday there are intense football fans everywhere. My dad is a professor at UGA and always gets season tickets to the home games on the 20 yard line. I always go with him to at least 2 of the games. Most of my friends are major Georgia football fans also and they all have their own traditions. Every Saturday Caroline goes on campus and watches the game from the bridge, while Mr. Tim (her father) does security. Mr. Yawn has gone to Chick-fil-a every Saturday morning since Georgia won 10 games in a row. Mary Carroll watches the games at home with her family and her friend Drew. One tradition that is most common is tailgating. Downtown, on campus, and in 5 points there are tailgaters everywhere. You see what I mean, these people are in my ecosystem everyday. As Janisse Ray (1999) said in her book, Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, “It is a land of few surprises. It is a land of routine, of cycle, and constancy” (p. 3).  Sanford Stadium has a major impact on my life, It always has and it always will .   

Talk Science To Me Culminating Activity

Talk Science To Me Culminating Activity

My siblings and I

To me, a big part of my ecosystem is my family. More specifically, as the picture to the right shows, my siblings. Throughout all of the twists and turns of life, my family has become a mixture of many families strung together by the children who have become my brothers and sisters.  I have six siblings; one whole sibling, three half siblings and two step-siblings. These children are all the parts to one, big, interconnecting web that i call my family.
As a major part of my ecosystem, hey have all made me who I am and impacted my life and ecosystem in so many ways because everything about them shapes me! For example, one of my siblings, the youngest (Cyrus), just turned two. Living with a two year old is crazy and very different. His toys cover the entire house, his screaming wakes me up at night, I am only allowed to watch shows like Yo Gabba Gabba when he is home, and he always can cheer me up with just his smile :).
      
       Since my parents have been married, divorced and remarried multiple times its hard to keep track- nothing is constant. Except one thing, my brothers and sisters. Houses, belongings, parents and friends can change, but siblings don’t. They will always be my siblings. They will always be there for me through good times and bad. They will always be a part of my life. 

     In the book Ecology of a Cracker Childhood by Jannise Ray, she experiences something similar. In the chapter Forest beloved, Jannise talks about how a major part of her ecosystem as a child was the longleaf pine flatwood forests near her home. To her, the forest was her home as well as her friend. She says that the forest offered loyalty and would never tell her secrets.  In a way, my siblings are what the forest was to Jannise; they are both friends to us, loyal to us, and was/will always be there for us. 







    

Culminating EOCC Project Colin DC

 Our ecosystem forces us to adapt to it, so we can survive. To survive you must pay money for things, but if you don't have enough money, you have to find alternative ways to survive, but it will be hard.
 In the book, Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, Frank's family adapt to their ecosystem to survive by getting car parts, house appliances, etc. from the junkyard and selling them. This illustrates my response to the Essential Question because this family adapts to their ecosystem to survive. This picture was taken in Bishop, Georgia. The person who lives here gets metal from junkyards and makes it into these things and sells them. This is how this person earns their living.

Religous Families

          The book, Ecology of a Cracker Childhood, has a chapter named Heaven on Earth. This chapter talks about how religion is forced upon Janisse and her family by her father. Her father was so committed to the lord and his beliefs that he didn't let his kids watch t.v or wear clothes that weren't longer than their knees or elbows. This picture I took shows my mom and my brother reading the bible together. Personally I was born into a religious family. I go to church every Sunday, participate in Lent, and my brother and I were baptized. I am really glad my parents forced me into religion because without it I wouldn't be the truthful person I am today.

10/30/12- Prompt #1

Prompt #1:  Ray expresses appreciation and disdain for her heritage, in particular, aspects of the geographic location and the poverty in which she has grown up. Ray also expresses a necessity in "turning back to embrace the past" (32). When you are older and look back at your time growing up here in Athens (or for new folks in another region) what aspects of your "ecosystem" do you think you will remember fondly? With distaste? Can you pinpoint any one part of your current ecosystem that you believe may shape your future? Do you think you will want to "turn back and embrace" Athens later in life?

When I look back at my childhood here in Athens, the things I will remember most fondly will probably be my home, and specific place (neighborhood) where I spent most of my time, and my family and how we interacted with each other. This is a fond memory because it is a large chunk of what I do with my time as well as where I spend it. I will also remember certain things that I always seem to notice because it is just something that is important to me such as the cherry tree I have in front of my house that always seems to get the seasons confused.
Some things I may remember with distaste might be the waking up at the crack of dawn in the cold of  a winter day and dress in multiple layers in order to get ready for school. Or when I have to do my chores around the house. There are a few parts of my ecosystem that I feel will shape my future. One aspect may be the style in which I was raised- to be a hard worker, and to never give up. This may help me to better find a job. Also, the fact that Athens is a small town is an aspect that will teach me to be friendly and kind to people since everyone lives so close together, and odds are you go to school with the majority of your neighbors.
When I am older, I may think about what being raised in Athens has taught me as opposed to growing up somewhere like Montana or California and such. When I am older, I will probably think about all the good Athens had taught me and how growing up here has influenced where my path leads when I'm older. Though I will have Athens in my thoughts, I probably won't ever try to come back here and relive what I once lived. It will sill be a very important aspect of my life, though.

Good afternoon, Talk Science to Me Bloggers. Let's see what you make of this!


In the introduction of Ray’s novel, she describes the land as symbiotic nature, “always an exchange”(3). How does this idea connect to the chapter ‘Build by Fire” and its description of how the longleaf pine and lightning came to “depend on each other” (38)? What other kinds of symbiotic relationships can you think of that would serve as good examples of the theme “survival based on exchange?” Post a picture if you can to demonstrate this relationship.

Embracing Athens- 10/11/12 Violet

Prompt #1:  Ray expresses appreciation and disdain for her heritage, in particular, aspects of the geographic location and the poverty in which she has grown up. Ray also expresses a necessity in "turning back to embrace the past" (32). When you are older and look back at your time growing up here in Athens (or for new folks in another region) what aspects of your "ecosystem" do you think you will remember fondly? With distaste? Can you pinpoint any one part of your current ecosystem that you believe may shape your future? Do you think you will want to "turn back and embrace" Athens later in life? 


(In response to Prompt #1)
                      When I am older and looking back at my childhood and my ecosystem here in Athens, I believe I will miss many aspects of this town that only it can provide. For example, I will miss growing up in a college town. Although it has its negative sides, such as the traffic, crowds, drunk college students, and game days, I am used to it and it makes me feel at home.   . Which is why i could never move to a small town. Athens, to me, is the perfect size; Nat as big as a city such as Atlanta, but not as small as the town of Mayberry (Andy Griffith reference). I will also miss all of the small boutiques and restaurants which in my opinion, define Athens. Most of them are local, such as Helix, Clocked, Pitaya, The Grill, and Wuxtry records. 

Child of Pine Zoe 10/11/12

Downtown Athens

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Prompt #1:  Ray expresses appreciation and disdain for her heritage, in particular, aspects of the geographic location and the poverty in which she has grown up. Ray also expresses a necessity in "turning back to embrace the past" (32). When you are older and look back at your time growing up here in Athens (or for new folks in another region) what aspects of your "ecosystem" do you think you will remember fondly? With distaste? Can you pinpoint any one part of your current ecosystem that you believe may shape your future? Do you think you will want to "turn back and embrace" Athens later in life? 


When I grow up, one thing I will remember from my ecosystem now is all the college students. I think this is a good and bad thing I'll remember. They can be really loud sometimes, and party a lot. A lot of college students live in my neighborhood, so on the weekends I can usually hear parties going on. This can get annoying, because it causes  me to lose sleep sometimes. This is a good thing I'll remember because the students make the town really diverse, and filled with a lot of different types of people. People come from all over to go to UGA or to teach there. Athens is a very diverse place, it's not just a regular southern town. If it were, I think I would get bored with the same types of people. But with the college students living here, it makes Athens a much cooler place to live. I will also remember downtown Athens. There's a lot of really cool stores and restaurants there, and I never get bored when I'm walking around downtown. Clocked and Ted's Most Best are two of my favorite restaurants, both very unique and appealing. Also downtown are the UGA arches, the Georgia Theater, and close by is Sanford Stadium. All of these places are places I will remember when I grow up. I think when i grow up I will definitely want to go back to Athens, and visit the places I did as a young child.  

Some places in Athens, GA

Gabe Annoys Me While I Try to Write a Response

In Ray's book, she shows a great appreciation and love of her homeland and heritage, along with a bit of loathing for the stereotypes outsiders assume of her when they hear her southern drawl, or see her red, sun-tanned skin. To connect to my own life, I feel as though Athens is a less "southern" town, and has a great and unique culture full of creativity and art. Its (Gabriel please stop messing with me) culture revolves around its identity as an artistic college town, and it has a cool vibe that I appreciate. I think that is one think that I can look at and embrace- a feeling of being cool, unique, and artistic. However, often people outside of Athens do not understand the town and feel that all Georgians are the same- beer-drinking, God-fearing "Good Christians" or have sons who play sports and go to football games with them. Me, I don't believe in a God- I am not affiliated with any religion, nor do I enjoy sports or going to football games GABE STOP IT GOD sorry about that. I feel more comfortable around technology. I feel like a normal teenager, and it's annoying how everyone seems to think that Southerners STOP PRESSING BUTTONS GABE are all sports fans who love goin' to a good 'ol footballs game and drinkin' me shum beers. There is a lot STOP I ALREADY TOLD YOU TO STOP about Georgia that Id like to not attach to myself, JOSEPH YOU TOO and I wish that people would judge me as an individual and not from where i come from.

The difference( Athens and Chicago) ......10-12-12

             I have many ideas to answer the prompt. I will share a few. The prompt ask "do you think you will remember fondly? With distaste? Can you pinpoint any one part of your current ecosystem that you believe may shape your future?When you are older and look back at your time growing up here in Athens do you think you will want to "turn back and embrace" Athens later in life?" I would answer this question by saying I will definitely remember A LOT of things from my time in Athens or embrace as I might look back in the past. 
             Some things would be the small town and how almost everybody "knows" everybody(only if your social), the way the how Athens is so small and you go out to a store and see many people you know, and also schools. Probably with not a lot of distaste but not so much. I say these things because so far as I'm growing up in Athens and how I think "Wow Athens is so small compared to Chicago" I'm most certainly going to grow and look back and say/think of that. I said Schools(positively) because who doesn't remember their 1st,3rd,9th Etc. Teachers, and I really think I will remember my teachers as I grow up. I also said Schools(negatively) because some people might remember Bullies, Uniforms, Bad Teachers, Etc. . I think I will really remember these things and they will most DEFINITELY impact me positively.  

What is your Long-leaf Pine?

Good morning, Talk Science To Me Bloggers!

Of the endangered long-leaf pine Ray says, “I am daily aghast at how much we have taken, since it does not belong to us, and how much as a people we have suffered in consequence” (15). Can you cite examples from your immediate ecosystem where this quotation would apply? How about from more global ecosystems? The county?  Internationally?

prompt one: The thing I will probably remember the most about Athens is my school life. Probably not my friends but mostly my academic career at school. Like probably the performance I have done in each school year. I probably won't remember all my grades but I might remember some important ones.
I will most likely remember this because it has a big impact on my future.

Ecology of a Cracker Childhood response 10/11/12

Unlike my last post in response to the prompt, I write this one briefly, and in all formality.
              The first few chapters of Ecology of a Cracker Childhood by Janisse Ray, in my opinion, serve as a backdrop for the continuation of her story, and her connection with her childhood ecosystem. These chapters discuss some of Ray's childhood highlights, such as her wild days with brothers and plenty of backyard exploration, and those things she now realizes she would have changed, such as her lack of friends or extracurricular social exposure. Though these chapters were often very descriptive, sometimes to the point of confusion, I especially enjoyed them. Since Ray's boisterous attitude and way of life is so opposite to mine, I find her short stories fascinating and, at times, exhilarating. How she describes the trees, the air, the storms, perfectly defines her storyline of childhood love and later regret. In summary, I look forward to reading the building based on the structure built in these poetic beginning chapters, and to discussing it further in class as well as online!
                                                     By Katy Mayfield

Child of Pine vs Child of Drunk College Parties

Child of Pine vs Child of Drunk College Parties  by Katy Mayfield
As many of you know (Or at least I think you know, otherwise I am just being my vain little self) I specialize in tragic narrative. Which probably spawns from the lack of tragedy in my own life, which is why, dear acquaintances, this entire piece I will look back on with disdain. Because good writing always involves tragedy, and the only tragedy I am host to is psychological and under lock-and-key, and don't even bother asking me about it. It does, however, spawn from some of my environment. Don't get me wrong- my childhood was a blissful walk in the park. Athens is one of the safest towns in the state. I think. You know what? I'm sorry. I will bet you much money that was a lie.
But I have gotten off topic. YOU'VE GOTTEN OFF TOPIC! I'm sorry again. I promise schizophrenia is not one of the psychological issues I was previously discussing. Swear. ANYWAY, when you live two streets down from sorority row of the UGA (fifth-best party college in the country, according to CNN, by the way) the things that go bump in the night are usually just knocked over speakers previously playing immensely profane LMFAO music. Nonetheless, they are still bumps in the night, and can still be frightening. My father, I will always remember, was, as I considered him to be as a child, a safety freak. As I grew older, I inherited his paranoia, and broken beer bottles no longer represented fun and parties (By this I don't mean that I myself engaged in the fun and parties. If I was drinking at age nine, my problems would be a lot larger than they are now), but teen drinking, arrest, heartbreak, and bad decisions. In a way, this is good. Being cautious can be a gift. But when fights erupt on your bus every other week, and you run for the exits when, in reality, the girls you assumed were rumbling were actually just playing a heated game of slaps, it can be inconvenient and unsettling. My life in a rather raucous town has turned me into the exact opposite, for better or worse. And to be honest, when I look back on this time,  I predict that I will check option 2. I look over my shoulder every couple of seconds when I walk home from school to make sure no one is following me with a taser (the computer says I spelled that wrong. Taser? Tazer? Tazzer?), ready to kidnap me and strap me to a fence for nine years. So, there's that. To my kids in the future, I apologize ahead of time for dressing you up like the kid in A Christmas Story so that you do not get hypothermia and so the taser cannot penetrate your skin through your many layers.
Classmates, I know you are bored now. Or maybe you like my insecurities in disguise as awkward nerd-jokes. I don't know. Or you might not be my classmate. You could be that guy with a taser. If so, know that I am looking out for you.
There are parts of my life in Athens, though, that I enjoyed. For example, my school. I know that many of you groan as I say this, but I stand with my statement. The diverse student body, the many dialects mingling in the hallways, even the disruptive teeth-sucking, eye rolling, and back-talking (I sincerely apologize for finding entertainment in the bane of your existence, teachers). I like that I live in a place so unlike the one in that episode of Seinfeld, (Dolls, I got some serious eighties references comin' up, so if you were born after, say, 1970, you can just leave now) where one of my best friends can be pro-life and yet I can still stand to be within fifty feet of said friend. I like that when I watch Mean Girls (Hey, an almost up-to-date reference! Aren't you proud of me?) I stare at the screen as if North Shore High School is a parallel universe to my own. I like that the people who read my blog entries won't judge me because I actually found the name of the Mean Girls school on Ask.com because the only things that stick in my head include the words "Young Adult Fantasy Literature". But in all seriousness, I like that I have grown up in a world where anti-conformity has been shoved down our throats so far, it is now in our bloodstream. I like that I can be the nerd, even though I've never played Minecraft before, ever (twenty of my friends just dropped me like a hot potato right there) that one can be the jock, one can be the music nerd, one can be the TV junkie, one can be the fangirl, and yet there is no hierarchy, no popular girl. We are just us. and I realize I sound cheesy, and I realize I sound like I'm pulling mushy-gushy out of my seat to get a good grade or something, but I really do cherish where I've been, because it's the perfect backdrop for where I'm going.
Oh, and just as a side note, this totally wrecks my nice emotional moment right there, but also trees. Like Ray, trees are important to me. But not because I like to climb them, like she does. I just like to stand there and feel the air and stop and laugh at a joke someone made 3 periods ago that I was way slow to get, and then when someone asks what I'm doing, I tilt my head and pretend I'm looking at the "beautiful trees". But really,  I really like trees. I like the trees in Athens and in my neighborhood in particular. They provide protection, they provide shade, they provide a coziness yet a freedom that Snuggies can't, and, most importantly, they provide really fun games of flashlight charades when they decide to fall on our power lines. If there's anything I've learned from spending two months a year in a dry, flat prairie, it is that trees and squirrels are immensely helpful to one's mental health. Mainly because prairie dogs are a lot less talkative than squirrels, and their northern accents are utterly impossible to understand. Which actually has nothing to do with trees.

10-4-12 Child of Pine Dylan

The reason the first chapter is so significant is it introduces how life is in South Georgia. Ray's creation story serves the purpose of telling how her family is connected to the environment. How they have learned to live in the junkyard.

Child Of Pine

 In Ecology Of A Cracker Childhood, Ray's parents tell her that she was ''found in a vegetable garden''. They tell that to all of their kids. But they say different places. They also talk about myths to show things are what they are. Ray spends a lot of time in a pine woods. She thinks about how things are born. I would wonder if my parents really did find me in the garden.

By Jack Byrne

Hi, Talk Science To Me Bloggers!

Today we made a few adjustments to the Blog Requirements for the TSTM Blog based on recommendations from Ms. Hill's and Mrs. Ramsey's 5th Period Science Students.

You are still welcome to post your thoughts and reflections based on your reading and discussion of Janisse Ray's Ecology of a Cracker Childhood or answer the discussion questions that I provided for you in the syllabus, but you can also just respond to the prompt I post each week OR other students' comments about the prompt. Have fun and engage keeping in mind the Term 1 standards and our dependence and part in the ecological cycle.

Prompt #1:  Ray expresses appreciation and disdain for her heritage, in particular, aspects of the geographic location and the poverty in which she has grown up. Ray also expresses a necessity in "turning back to embrace the past" (32). When you are older and look back at your time growing up here in Athens (or for new folks in another region) what aspects of your "ecosystem" do you think you will remember fondly? With distaste? Can you pinpoint any one part of your current ecosystem that you believe may shape your future? Do you think you will want to "turn back and embrace" Athens later in life? 

Child Of Pine Aiden 10-4-12

The significance of the first chapter is to explain her life as a child in South Georgia.Ray's purpose serves in unfolding the themes for subsequent chapters by showing that her life isn't the best, but she makes it the most out of what she has.

child of pine Joseph Ingle

The significance of the first chapter is to explain her life as a child in South Georgia. Ray's purpose serves in unfolding the themes for subsequent chapters by showing that her life isn't as great as everyone's life but she takes advantage of the wildlife that is given to her and she makes the most out of what she has.

Welcome to Talk Science To Me, the CMS 7th Grade Science Enrichment Blog Site. You are welcome to post your reflections, reactions and questions related to Life Science on our page! Please keep your posts focused on curriculum and always keep it clean.