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.