Famous Last Words: Week 14

Your reading for this week. 
I did not have to do any reading for this week. I actually have not done any reading in a couple of weeks. I was lucky enough to be able to watch the videos. They were so interesting and it definitely helped with the name pronunciations.

Your best writing for this week.
I didn't really do any writing this week. I was able to finish the revisions on my storybook and I am feeling really good about my storybook. I am quite proud of how it turned out. Hopefully everyone is enjoying it but even if they aren't, I still like it. I am really glad that it is finished now too. I feel like I put in a lot of effort for the storybook so it is definitely a relief to see it finally completed.

Screenshot of my storybook. Rama and Sita: Not So Happily Ever After

Other people's writing.
I got to read a couple of storybooks that I had not read yet and I am so glad that I did. All the storybooks are coming out so good and they are all so different. I am enjoying reading as many as I can. I am probably going to be reading some in the next week just because they are so interesting to read.

Your other classes.
My other classes are not going as well as this one is. I am getting so close to the end but I have a couple of partner assignments and my classes are all online so it is very difficult to be able to communicate. I am having to work on everything last minute and it is becoming very stressful. Hopefully everything works out.

Outside of school.
Since it is so close to the end of the semester and  I graduate on the 18th, my life consists of school and that is pretty much it. I manage to set aside some time each day to spend with my kids but other than that, school is keeping me very busy.

Reading

* What readings did you like best?The reading that I liked best was the Ramayana Online: Public Domain Edition. I thought that it flowed really well so that the story wasn't hard to follow at all. I didn't actually have to read it either, I was able to listen to it which definitely helped because at first I was not able to pronounce any of those names! I really enjoyed this reading section though and it was definitely my favorite.
My most favorite "reading" was actually the video, Sita sings the blues. I really enjoyed the movie and it was a nice break from reading about Sita to actually being able to watch it.

* What reading diary strategies were most effective for you?The reading diary strategies that were most effective for me were mainly just jotting down some important parts of the stories and also making a note of anything that I found to be interesting. I would also make comments about what I thought of the particular parts. I found that this made it easier for me to be able to remember the important details of the stories and it also gave me ideas for my storytellings.

* What did you think of the overall balance between reading - writing - commenting in the class assignments?I honestly love how this class is structured. It is the same basic concept almost every week, so I didn't really even have to try too hard to remember what was due and when it was due. I just knew that every week was virtually the same. I loved the idea of doing the readings, then writing, then commenting. It not only let me be creative and retell the stories how I wanted to, but it also let me see how other people thought to change the stories. 

* As you look back from the end of the semester, what advice about the reading do you have for students who will be getting started next semester?
You may want to break the reading up a little more than they already are. Sometimes it gets a little tough to try and do so much reading at one time. Also, when you get your free reading options, really look through the options so that you are sure to read something that you find to be interesting and something that you are able to understand and then enjoy.

Reflections

I loved this class. Before this semester, I knew virtually nothing about the Indian epics. I found this class to be so interesting and I loved learning about all the different gods and goddesses, especially since I knew nothing before.

The main thing that I learned from this class was how to tell a story. It was always fun to be able to rewrite the stories that we read to make them just the way we wanted. There were numerous times that I would just think "I hate that it ended that way" or "I think that should have gone differently" and then I was able to change the things that I didn't like.

I think that this class is so beneficial. I got to learn about something that is completely different than anything that I know. My major is psychology so there doesn't tend to be much room for complete creativity. I'm glad that I decided to take this class.

I have to say that the thing that I am most proud of would be my storybook. I had a lot of fun writing it and I hope that others like it as much as I do. I feel like I worked really hard on it, so its nice that I finally added the last story. I still have one more round of editing the story, and then a final edit for my storybook, but so far I think its going really well.

Smiley faces on the moon. Source: tumblr

Famous Last Words: Week 13

Your reading for this week.
I didn't do a reading but I watched the videos Pattanaik. Week 2 Videos. I watched both parts of the videos and I think they are so interesting. The main things that I learned was what each god and goddess stand for. It also explained what they are known for. I thought it was a really good addition to the reading because it gave me more information about the gods and goddesses than the epics did. I think my reading diary worked out well. I focused on what I found to be the most interesting.

Your best writing for this week.
I did my writing at my house, mostly on my couch. (I love having a laptop). I didn't write anything of interest for this class. I didn't do the storytelling for this week due to lack of writing topic. I just couldn't figure out which story I wanted to retell and how I wanted to do it so I skipped it. I do think that this class is helping me with my writing in other classes. It just gives me more confidence in my writing which helps me in my other classes.

Your other classes.
My other classes are going quite well. It is getting close to finals time so I am getting a little overwhelmed, especially since I am graduating in a couple weeks. I am finding I am so close to the finish line but so many things to do beforehand. Finals, papers, group presentation, etc. So many things left to do!

Outside of school.
It was Thanksgiving this week! I got to eat at my family's house and then I went Christmas shopping after with my sisters and mother. It was a good week overall. I'm just a little slow moving with the school stuff. Just ready for the holidays! I love Thanksgiving.

Turkey. Source: Cafepress

Tech Tip: Pinterest Research

For this week's tech tip, Pinterest Search and Pin Pages, I searched for more pins to add to my pinterest. Since it has been icy for the past couple of days, I have had to find activities to entertain my children. So I began by searching Children. This gave me many options so I clicked on activities. This also gave me many options so I chose indoor. This showed me exactly the items that I was looking for.

There are so many indoor activities for children to do to keep them entertained on days like these.


Kids Activities Blog

 

This blog had so many cool things for kids to do. I will definitely keep these in mind for the next rainy day.

Reading Feedback: Pattanaik. Week 1 Videos

Reading Review- Pattanaik. Week 2 Videos.

How and why did you choose your reading selection? Are you happy with the choice?
I chose these videos because I had already watched the week 1 videos and wanted to hear the rest of it.

What part of the reading made the biggest impression on you and why?

I just really enjoyed watching these. In the readings for class, I only got a small sense of the gods and goddesses and I liked how this went into more detail about what they represent and what the different pictures of them mean.

 

Was there anything in the reading you did not understand? Did you do any research on your own to find answers to your questions?

I felt like I was able to understand everything in the video. It did a good job of explaining everything.

 

Did the reading come with a Reading Guide? If so, was the Reading Guide helpful? If there was not a Reading Guide, would it help to have one?

The reading guide for these were very helpful. It let me focus on the video and helped me to be able to find the information that I needed for the reading diaries.

 

How much time did you spend on the reading? (The goal is for the A/B together to take about 3 hours; it's the equivalent of going to class.)

I spend a little over an hour with the videos.

 

What specific format did you use? (Some options are available in multiple formats, e.g. print book or audio book.)

I used my laptop to view the videos.

 

Vishnu. Source: Wikipedia

 

Week 13 Reading Diary B: Pattanaik. Week 2 Videos

For this week, I decided to watch Pattanaik. Week 2 Videos. Here are the things that I found to be interesting in these videos.

Vishnu's Secret Part 2:

"If Ram is about laws and appropriate conduct, Krishna is about love and affection. While Ram focuses on discipline and the head, Krishna focuses more on affection and the heart."
I feel like a lot of these are talking about the gods that are opposites of each other. Just as Shiva is the opposite of Vishnu, Ram and Krishna are the opposite of each other too. I notice that a lot with these epics. A god will represent something but there always seems to be another god that represents the opposite. It is as if everything in life has a purpose and a god that represents it.

Brahma's Secret Part 1:

"...creation happens for a reason, and Brahma forgets that reason, which is why he is declared unworthy of worship."'
I think that it is sad that even though Brahma is considered responsible for creation, that he is deemed unworthy anyways. It appears that he has no idea who he is and keeps chasing different parts.

"As a human being one is blessed with the ability to reflect on existence and think about its meaning. This reflection leads to self-discovery."
I found this quote to be quite interesting. I never thought that human's curiosity would be considered a blessing, but I guess it does make sense.

Brahma's Secret Part 2:

One image shows Vishnu rescuing an elephant. The elephant represents man who believes that the purpose of life is to gain fame, wealth and power. Vishnu is rescuing man from this incorrect way of thinking and from the pain and misery that this thinking causes.

Screenshot that I took from the video. It shows Vishnu rescuing an elephant from an alligator.