BreM


 * __"Is Obama Making It Worse?"- Andrew Romano and Allison Samuels__**

This article is about Obama and the race issue in the United States. It goes into detail mainly with the Trayvon Martin shooting. Many people thought that things would change when Obama was president and African Americans would be seen as more "equal," but not exactly. In the article, the authors talk about the race issues in America since Obama came into office and how that has affected the African Americans and how it has upsetted many people in the United States to set off things such as the Trayvon Martin shooting. The authors share personal stories about how their race has gotten them into trouble or stopped just because of their race. They are sick of it, and wish things would change, but they feel like Obama isn't doing as much as he could be doing to stop these race issues that still are present in today's society. They also state that whites get away with many different things that they shouldn't and it should be investigated more in depth.
 * Summary:**

This connects to the course, because we have discussed discrimination against African Americans in the United States. We discussed this topic when we read the "See Baby Discriminate" article a while back on how young people discriminate at an early age and then it carries on to when they get older. We also talked about the Trayvon Martin case in class a little bit as well, so I thought this would be interesting to read because I never thought of maybe being Obama's fault all of this discrimination is happening.
 * Connection to Course:**

This article will impact my classroom, because I will not discriminate against any race. It is not equal or fair to anyone. Everyone should be treated equally. As a teacher you need to be willing to work with all different races and ethnicities, so by reading this article I think I will have a more understanding on how it effects the opposite race. As for the children, I will have a lesson on discrimination. It will not be tolerated in my classroom at all. No one likes to be different, but everyone is in some way, why do it based on the color of your skin.
 * Explanation:**

Romano, A., & Samuels, A. (2012, April). Is Obama making racial divide worse? //The Daily Beast-Newsweek//, 40-45.

Alisha - I totally agree with you, this article has a deep connection with what we have been learning in this class. It also will be very important in outr classroom. I think that it would be interesting to read an article about how discrimination effects children and teachers in the classroom.

Movie Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtElcB8q8m8
 * __ A Smile as Big as the Moon __**



“A Smile as Big as the Moon,” is based on a true story of a special education class who wants to go to Space Camp, an opportunity of a lifetime for the kids. Mike Kersjes, played by John Corbett, is a defensive football coach at the high school, and his assistant teacher Robynn, played Jessy Schram, work together to try and get their class to go to space camp. It’s not easy for them, because they have to try and raise $50,000 for the whole class to go and get it approved by the school and the camp itself. Space Camp has never had a special needs group come in because the stuff is so high tech and involves a lot. The whole class has to apply themselves physically and mentally for this camp; they do a lot of training within a span of seven months. Each child has a different hidden talent that no one knew about until they had started training for Space Camp. They work hard and together, but because each child has a different disability, this becomes very stressful on the children and tends to cause them to fight a lot. Both teachers step in when they need to, but otherwise they let the children deal with problems on their own. Once the school board and the camp approved, and a generous donation of $50,000 was given to the children, off they went to live their dream. During the Camp, the children were given an astronaut suit to make them feel like they are actually in space; they also had to perform many other tasks together. These tasks were building a tetrahedron under water, creating their own space logo, building a space station, conducting a space launch, and much more. They learned to work together as a team, become leaders, and learn new things that they have never learned before. There were many lessons that were taught during the movie, not just for the children, but also for the people who doubted the special needs children. At the end of camp, there are awards that are given out to teams who have done the best in each category and such; the team ended up winning awards and proved a lot of people wrong. With having the special needs class at Space Camp, the Space Camp changed their rules so not just “normal” kids could be in the camp, but special needs children were also welcomed. The class and the teachers were so excited and really made a statement across America. It was quite the accomplishment for the class.

What diverse group is being depicted? The special needs class is being depicted in this movie.

How did viewing your text change your perception of students who might be in your classroom? This changed my perception on students like this in class is that I will need to be patient with the students and I may need to give them a little more attention. I will need to think of things that will benefit the children in their working environments and school exercises.

How did viewing your text enhance your cultural awareness of the students you will serve? It will make me pay attention more to the children and be aware of their actions for what I will have them do. I will make more of an effort.

What new insights do you have now? I will look at my class and teach them about different cultures and explain that everyone is not the same and that everyone should be treated equally.

Was this text relevant to your teaching practice and/or the classroom community? Yes, it was relevant, because I feel that everyone should know about the different cultures and how to interact with others who aren’t exactly like them.

Do you recommend this text to others? Why or why not? Would you use this movie with your students? Yes, I would definitely recommend this movie to others, because it shows a great lesson for children and shows that if you really work hard for something it will benefit in the end. I also would use this movie with my students, it would teach them a good lesson about others.