hello again

Hey web friends! I feel as if its been awhile since my last post so here I am. My reflections from the last week are that its been exhausting (what week isn't?) but overall very positive. I went to WSHA last weekend and got to see some pretty cool presentation and learned about some new topics like evidence based practice and response to intervention. The speaker that Alycia and I introduced was really amazing. She has worked in various jobs in the field for the last 30 years and still has such a passion that it is really inspiring! Also, Semiahmoo is absolutely gorgeous. I will definitely be back to bike around the area. Anyone want to join on an awesome day or weekend bike trip to come? Alright, its time for bed.

Temple Grandin

One of the things that struck me about this piece was Temple Grandin's ability to remove herself from the situation and be completely objective. I have always considered myself a very logical person but my emotional reaction to the idea of working to help ease the process of killing animals is a little sad and morbid. But Temple realizes that everyone is going to die so she wants to try to make the animals the most comfortable they can be durring that process which when phrased that way, makes sense.

Another thing that fascinates me about individuals with autism is the need of concrete examples. Temple talks about growing up and not knowing how to interact with others and advice like "be nice" does her no good. I read A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime which is a book that attempts to tell a story through the eyes of a child with Aspergers and this book also emphasized the need for concrete examples. The child in this book did not like to be told just to be quite but to be told to be quite for a specific amount of time.

Lastly, I think that every exposure to individuals on the autism spectrum is helpful but we also have to realize that individuals on the spectrum vary greatly and each individual we encounter will be different.

Reflections after a busy first week

I didn't know what to expect starting up at Western but I knew it was going to be different then coasting through undergrad at a university that even I affectionately call Not A University (NAU). I certainly had a great time during my four years of playing frisbee and climbing during the week and exploring the southwest on the weekends. I thought I had this school system figured out, I could do all the fun extracurricular activities and still maintain a perfect GPA. Well this week has taught me something new, I need to get a little more serious about my school work. I think I will also have a catch up time so if I am asking silly questions please have patience, I will learn eventually. I am motivated to not be the weak link in class, that kid you groan when you realize he or she is your partner. These next two years my job really is to be a student and it will be a full-time job. I am a little nervous but I am excited for a change and think that it will be rewarding in a different way.

IPA- the alphabet not the beer

I realized in phonetics class that I needed a refresher on the IPA. So, I searched online and found this cool website to help practice. There's even a game to play. If you also want some extra practice, check out this link http://www.ic.arizona.edu/~lsp/IPA.html

Good luck!

Jumping in

Welcome to my blog!

So far I don't have too much to report, it's the first week of classes and I am already busy learning lots of new information including how to make and operate a blog. For CSD 589 we are becoming more tech savy and are creating a blog to prove our skills.