The Future

     I have learned a lot in this class. I've learned some basic textbook definitions and I've learned how to structure my papers better.
     I think what I'm going to use the most is how I research things now. I feel that I have gotten a lot more into my papers than I did in high school. This will really help me in my graduate studies in a couple years because there is a lot of writing with music theory and history.
     I really liked how I could see how my writing evolved and I hope that I continue to through next semester.
     Good luck on your finals and have a good Christmas!!

Self Review

     Alright so it is very evident that I still have a lot to do on my paper. I read through my research paper and decided that a better argument to make would be that "music classes should be mandatory through all years of schooling through high school." I think with how much research I did about how music directly helps brain function means I have more to back that than my previous argument anyway.
     I know that I do have a lot of actual body writing to do still but I feel that I have a pretty good start to it. I am going to pull in a lot more research especially pertaining to the test scores in the us, especially since the list just came out of how we compare to the rest of the world.
     Well I have a lot of work to do so I hope you're not freaking out about finals too bad. Good luck!!

Naysayers

     Alright so I am planning on writing about how funding to the fine arts should be the same (or arguably) more than the sports program in public schools. After some research and reading some old debates from highschool I suspect that the following points will be my "naysayers" main argument.

-Children in sports have higher academic standings.

and/or

-The fine arts are all funded by the school and the sports "boosters" raise a lot of their own money.

     I'm sure I'll come across another few counter arguments but I feel confident in my knowledge of the subject.
     I hope you guys had a wonderful break!

Rogerain Argument

     Alright so this sounds pretty simple to me. Basically you are going to write a structured debate, BUT, also include in some way an opposing view to your topic. This will give you a chance to disprove anything and make the audience lean towards your side.
     For example I am (hopefully) doing a paper on why fine arts funding should be either the same or more than athletic funding. An opposing view I could use is how parents think that their children being in sports makes them keep their grades up. And then I would point out that (this is a made up statistic) the average grade point average of an athlete in school is 2.6 and they only need to make a 2.0 to participate.
     I think overall you just need to present your evidence in a way that would make most of a general audience side with you on an issue. With that in mind you do have to make your "naysayers" be able to at least see your point of view if not fully agree with it.
     Hope you all have a great holiday!!

Self Review

     So far I am quite satisfied with my draft. I know that I have to lengthen it but I already have some ideas on some more information that I'm going to research.
     I feel that so far I have presented pretty well (with some help at the writing center). I am planning on digging deeper into my subject and possibly expanding it to involve all aspects of music and the brain. By that I mean seeing if there has been any research done about how music effects someone with special needs, and how music can be therapeutic to people in harm. I also want to see if there is any extensive knowledge about music and alzheimers patients.
     I feel that I have a really good start on my paper and hope all of yours are coming along well!

Music and Math

     My informative research is on how fine arts can enhance learning skills in the academic environment. When I started delving into this project I was already aware of the statement that music helped with math education. Knowing this statement I had actually never seen any study that produced this information until I started looking for it.
     "One particular study published in the journal 'Nature' showed that when groups of first graders were given music instruction that emphasized sequential skill development and musical games involving rhythm and pitch, after six months, the students scored significantly better in math than students in groups that received traditional music instruction." So while digging I found this in an article and was wondering what the difference was in musical instruction between these 2 groups. 
     As it turns out sequential instruction (instruction involving pitch and rhythm  was a way of learning that stimulated the brain more than traditional learning (given music and practicing).  Sequential (sometimes called "Mozart" learning because his music also stimulates the same part of the brain) learning doesn't necessarily guarantee a math genius, but it does stimulate the part of the brain that involves problem solving ie, math.
     I have a lot more research to do on this subject so I wish you all the best of luck and hope you're hacing as much fun with your assignment as I am.

"The Correlation Between Music and Math: A Neurobiology Perspective." Serendip Studio. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2013.

Don't Judge a Book...

     "It's what on the inside that counts"...
But is this statement true? I'll admit that before I read anything I take in the immediate visual statement of it, wether that be a cover or the background on a web page. Honestly I think that the first glance at any reading greatly affects how the reader reacts.
     Just imagine you're handed 2 documents. 1 a standard MLA typed 4 page essay, and a printout of a colorful blog entry containing the same information. I think that if you were forced to read both that most people would drudge through the black and white copy and take in a lot more of the colorful counterpart. I feel that this is a big reason why elementary and even secondary education text books are often littered with colors and pictures to try and pull the student into them.
     I think that if a document is more visually stimulating it automatically seems more interesting because of the spectrum  of visual aspects that can be used. Using C.R.A.P. effectively can both make your document look more interesting and actually may help the reader maintain more information.