A Universal Game of Literacy Essay -- Reading Writing Language Essays

A Universal Game of Literacy "The blank page is nothingness-the silence- on which the words enact their epic journey, which is both a quest for a meaning and a creation of meaning." O. B. Hardison The Bible introduced the concept of God as a creator of the universe. In contrast, Darwin's theory supplanted the idea of a single creator orchestrating all extant processes by affirming the role of chance in shaping the reality. According to Darwin's story, random events create chaos in the universe and then re-establish order characterized by certain patterns of life. Like the changes in the environment, the emergence of specific patterns cannot be predicted. Yet, no matter how chance might shape reality, language adapts to mirror all of the changes. Consequently, by molding language to reflect the emerging patterns of life, chance begets new meanings. Building bridges between time and space and arranging the patterns created by chance inside these domains, language contains the expression of meanings. Therefore, using language to describe the surrounding world, we control the universe. The role of language in the formation of reality also makes us reconsider our notions of self an d freedom. Fueled by chance, random memes generate new patterns. As Dennett contends, memes need human minds in order to live and "reproduce" (give rise to a new idea, thought or meme). As soon as a meme assumes a trivial meaning, it is supplanted by other memes. Once a meme is anchored in a brain, it is "processed" and changed in compliance with the idiosyncrasies of that particular brain. Then, it is passed to other brains. According to this description of memes, an individual cannot generate germinal memes without being influenced by ... ...ht in an effective way, those who have mastered to the art of expression elicit emotions and thoughts from the audience. The ability to achieve this grants immortality to the text and its creator. Random events inspire new meanings, contained in words. Arranging words to transmute time and space, people manage to control the universe. Giving us the freedom of thought, language allows us to impose order on the surrounding world, thus enabling us to create reality and grow. Having the ability to transmute the environment according to our own volition, are we free to do whatever we want? Are we entitled to the right to do so? References: Daniel Dennett, Darwin's Dangerous Idea (New York, N.Y.: Touchstone books, 1996) George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-four (London: Penguin Books, 1990) Jonathan Culler, Literary Theory (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000)

Healthy Living Essay

Why is a healthy lifestyle so important for us? It is important because it can help us to avoid the disease and illnesses such as hypertension and cancer. Having a healthy lifestyle also makes the life become more enjoyable and the most important thing is a way to keep our body in good condition in order to accomplish day-to-day tasks. When you’re living a healthy lifestyle in your future, it will make all of us have a healthy body and mind. It is also very important to have a healthy lifestyle because it will save your life in the future. By living a healthy lifestyle you will be fit and you’re able to do things that you have never done before, or even thought about. In addition, there are several ways to maintain a healthy lifestyle that is exercise, eating healthy and reducing stress. Exercising regularly is very important because through exercise it can boost the metabolism in our body. It also can help us burn off the excess calories in body and increase the mobility in our muscle and joints. Next, eating healthy is also a very important way. Eating healthy does not mean eating expensive food with little waste. We should choose to eat the food that contain minimal amount of unhealthy fats. We must also choose to eat a variety of different whole foods instead of eating processed foods. Last but not the least, healthy lifestyle can bring us lots of benefits that we can’t be expecting. Managing your weight is the key to obtaining all of the health benefits of a Healthy Lifestyle. A weight reduction of just 10% will significantly reduce risk of heart disease and other obesity-related illnesses. The other benefits are reduced tension and blood pressure. There are so many ways to having a healthy lifestyle and we can take more benefits from having a healthy life. So, let’s practice this healthy lifestyle by doing exercise regularly, have enough sleep, eat a balanced diet, and stay away from unhealthy habits such as consume junk food, and don’t ever having a lot of stress. Be healthy, be happy. Sources: www.health.com www.wholeliving.com www.healthylivingforlife.com www.shape.com

Word Choice in English Composition and Literature

Word Choice in English Composition and Literature The words a writer chooses are the building materials from which he or she constructs any given piece of writing- from a poem to a speech to a thesis on thermonuclear dynamics. Strong, carefully chosen words (also known as diction) ensure that the finished work is cohesive and imparts the meaning or information the author intended. Weak word choice creates confusion and dooms a writers work either to fall short of expectations or fail to make its point entirely. Factors That Influence Good Word Choice When selecting words to achieve the maximum desired effect, a writer must take a number of factors into consideration: Meaning: Words can be chosen for either their denotative meaning, which is the definition youd find in a dictionary or the connotative meaning, which is the emotions, circumstances, or descriptive variations the word evokes.Specificity: Words that are concrete rather than abstract are more powerful in certain types of writing, specifically academic works and works of nonfiction. However, abstract words can be powerful tools when creating poetry, fiction, or persuasive rhetoric.Audience: Whether the writer seeks to engage, amuse, entertain, inform, or even incite anger, the audience is the person or persons for whom a piece of work is intended.Level of Diction: The level of diction an author chooses directly relates to the intended audience. Diction is classified into four levels of language: Formal which denotes serious  discourseInformal which denotes relaxed but polite conversationColloquial which denotes language in everyday usageSlang which denotes new, often highly informal words and phrases that evolve as a result sociolinguistic constructs such as age, class, wealth status, ethnicity, nationality, and regional dialects. Tone: Tone is an authors attitude toward a topic. When employed effectively, tone- be it contempt, awe, agreement, or outrage- is a powerful tool that writers use to achieve a desired goal or purpose.Style: Word choice is an essential  element in the style of any writer. While his or her audience may play a role in the stylistic choices a writer makes, style is the unique voice that sets one writer apart from another. The Appropriate Words for a Given Audience To be effective, a writer must choose words based on a number of factors that relate directly to the audience for whom a piece of work is intended. For example, the language chosen for a dissertation on advanced algebra would not only contain jargon specific to that field of study; the writer would also have the expectation that the intended reader possessed an advanced level of understanding in the given subject matter that at a minimum equaled, or potentially outpaced his or her own. On the other hand, an author writing a childrens book would choose age-appropriate words that kids could understand and relate to. Likewise, while a contemporary playwright is likely to use slang and colloquialism to connect with the audience, an art historian would likely use more formal language to describe a piece of work about which he or she is writing, especially if the intended audience is a peer or academic group. Choosing words that are too difficult, too technical, or too easy for your receiver can be a communication barrier. If words are too difficult or too technical, the receiver may not understand them; if words are too simple, the reader could become bored or be insulted. In either case, ​the message falls short of meeting its goals . . . Word choice is  also a consideration when communicating with receivers for whom English is not the primary language [who] may not be familiar with colloquial English. (From Business Communication, 8th Edition, by A.C. Krizan, Patricia Merrier, Joyce P. Logan, and Karen Williams. South-Western Cengage, 2011) Word Selection for Composition Word choice is an essential element for any student learning to write effectively. Appropriate word choice allows students to display their knowledge, not just about English, but with regard to any given field of study from science and mathematics to civics and history. Fast Facts: Six Principles of Word Choice for Composition Choose understandable words.Use specific, precise words.Choose strong words.Emphasize positive words.Avoid overused words.Avoid obsolete words.(Adapted from Business Communication, 8th Edition, by A.C. Krizan, Patricia Merrier, Joyce P. Logan, and Karen Williams. South-Western Cengage, 2011) The challenge for teachers of composition is to help students understand the reasoning behind the specific word choices theyve made and then letting the students know whether or not those choices work. Simply telling a student something doesnt make sense or is awkwardly phrased wont help that student become a better writer. If a students word choice is weak, inaccurate, or clichà ©d, a good teacher will not only explain how they went wrong but ask the student to rethink his or her choices based on the given feedback. Word Choice for Literature Arguably, choosing effective words when writing literature is more complicated than choosing words for composition writing. First, a writer must consider the constraints for the chosen discipline in which they are writing. Since literary pursuits as such as poetry and fiction can be broken down into an almost endless variety of niches, genres, and subgenres, this alone can be daunting. In addition, writers must also be able to distinguish themselves from other writers by selecting a vocabulary that creates and sustains a style that is authentic to their own voice. When writing for a literary audience, individual taste is yet another huge determining factor with regard to which writer a reader considers a good and who they may find intolerable. Thats because good is subjective. For example, William Faulker and Ernest Hemmingway were both considered giants of 20th-century American literature, and yet their styles of writing could not be more different. Someone who adores Faulkners languorous stream-of-consciousness style may disdain Hemmingways spare, staccato, unembellished prose, and vice versa.

Treetop Forest Production Limited Organization Structure

Treetop Forest Production Limited Organization Structure Introduction This article focuses on the organization structure of Treetop Forest Production Limited. Treetop Productions is a sawmill factory that is located at British Colombia in Canada. The main purpose of the factory is to convert raw logs that have been cut from local forest into building grade timber. The sizes of timber that the factory releases as finished products are mainly of 2-by-4 and 2-by 6 in size.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Treetop Forest Production Limited Organization Structure specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More All the timber that is released as finished products have a standard size. The factory has been in operation for the last thirty years. Throughout this time, the factory has been working in an effective and efficient manner. It has been incurring minimal running and operating costs to achieve optimum output. However, the company bought new plant and machinery equipments and undertook a r epair and maintenance exercise. All these efforts were to maintain the effectiveness and efficiency of the factorys operations. To support its activities, the company has a strong workforce that comprises of a general manager, 16 supervisors and supporting staff. The organization also has approximately 180 unionised staff who work on a contractual basis. All these employees are divided into the following departments: Boom Sawmill Planner Packaging Shipping and maintenance All of these departments work on two shifts except the planner and shipping departments that work on the morning shift and the maintenance department that work the night shift. In addition, all these departments apart from the packaging department have a supervisor in their entire shift. To compensate on this, the planner supervisor is in charge of the department during the morning shit while the sawmill supervisor is in charge of the department during the afternoon shift. The distance between the packaging depar tment and these two departments is long. As a result, the packaging department has been receiving minimal supervision. This has resulted to a decline in the performance of the department. Most of the products of the factory are sold in the international market. Here, the customers mainly rely on the packaging of these undifferentiated goods to decide on which company to buy from. Initially, Treetop had been experiencing high rates of purchase of its products.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, as a result of the laxity of the packaging department, many consumers have declined purchasing products from Treetop and instead purchased from rival companies. This has tremendously reduced the revenue of the company. In addition, there is a huge backlog of work in the packaging department. This has come about as a result of increased production from other department a nd laxity on the packaging department. To compensate for this backlog, the employees of the department have to work more hours during their shifts. This in turn increases the cost budget of the factory as a result of the overtime dues. In addition, employees of the department have been increasing their breaks and going home early. This has impacted negatively on the operations of the department and that of the factory as a whole. This scenario is common is many manufacturing and processing companies. There has always been the case of poor performance from one or more departments that in turn affect the performance of the entire factory in a negative way. According to the theory of structural causes of conflicts, the performance of one department leads to the underperformance of another department. To ensure that all the departments in an organization work effectively and efficiently, corrective measures have to be installed by the administration for an ideal situation to prevail. In this case, the management should ensure that the packaging department is supervised effectively. In addition, the employees of the department should be motivated in order to boost their morale. Analysis and Discussion From the information that has been presented in this case study, it is evident that lack of proper leadership is the main problem that the packaging department is facing. The main problem that the packaging department is facing is poor supervision. As a result, the employees find it easier to bend the rules and regulations of the factory. Poor supervision has led to the employees not being able to meet the set goals and targets of the factory. The employees have also commenced on a habit of increasing their breaks. It has been reported that they extend their tea break by five minutes and lunch break by ten. In addition, some of the employees also go home before their shift ends. This is a clear indication of poor supervision from the management and the development of bad behaviour from the employees.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Treetop Forest Production Limited Organization Structure specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Leadership is an essential factor in the running and management of an organization. It is the work of a leader to lead a group of individuals, supervise, motivate, educate and control his staff (Reisner 16). Leadership has been one of the key management tools that have been researched on for many years now. Several theories with regards to leadership have been presented. Perhaps the theory that applies the most in this case scenario is the theory of the role of human factor in human management (Bass 22). Theory was first presented in the academicians like Taylor and McGregor during the 1930s. According to them, it was essential to control the actions of employees and at the same time provide conducive working environment for them. This can be achieved with the us e of proper leadership styles, employee motivation (through rewards, salary increments, bonuses and promotions) and interpersonal communication. If these set of practices are applied, then the employees of the packaging department will increase their efforts and in the process, they will be able to meet the goals and targets of the factory as well as their own personal goals. Conclusion and Recommendation From the above analysis, it is evident that the poor performance of the packaging department is as a result of poor supervision. Supervision falls under the management of the organization. Therefore, to improve on the activities of the packaging department, it is essential for the company to improve on the manner in which the packaging department is being supervised. According to the policy of the factory, each department should have a different supervisor for each shit. The company has sixteen supervisors. Furthermore, only three departments have more than one shift. This makes se ven active supervisors on a specific day (the packaging department is not included). Therefore, on one specific day, eight supervisors are left free. I therefore recommend two of these supervisors to be assigned to the packaging department. This will not only improve the efficiency of leadership in the factory but will also boost its performance. In addition, these supervisors should be equipped with great leadership skills (Jago 330). In this case scenario, they should learn how to motivate hardworking employees. This will make employees to work even harder and attain the set goals and target. This will in turn boost the performance of the department and the entire factory as a whole.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Bass, Bones. â€Å"From Transactional to Transformational Leadership: Learning to Share the Vision.† Organizational Dynamics 18.3 2010: 19-31. Print Jago, Arnold. â€Å"Leadership: Perspectives in Theory and Research.† Management  Science 28.3 1982: 315-336. Print Reisner,Richards. â€Å"When a Turnaround Stalls.† Harvard Business Review 45.1 2002: 15-18. Print

Review of Reading Eggs for Children Ages 4 to 8

Review of Reading Eggs for Children Ages 4 to 8 Reading Eggs is an interactive online program intended for children ages 4-8 and designed to teach children how to read or to build on existing reading skills. The program was originally developed in Australia by Blake Publishing but brought to schools in the United States by the same company that developed Study Island, Archipelago Learning. The premise behind Reading Eggs is to engage students in a fun, interactive program that initially builds a foundation for learning to read and eventually guides them towards reading to learn. The lessons found in Reading Eggs are designed to tie into the five pillars of reading instruction. The five pillars of reading instruction include phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension. Each of these components is necessary for children to master if they are going to be expert readers. Reading Eggs provides an alternative avenue for students to master these concepts. This program is not intended to replace traditional classroom instruction, instead, it is a supplemental tool in which students can hone and build the skills which they are being taught at school. There are 120 total lessons found in the Reading Eggs program. Each lesson builds on a concept taught in the previous lesson. Each lesson has between six and ten activities that students will complete to master the overall lesson. Lessons 1 through 40 are designed for students who have very little reading skills. Children will learn their first reading skills at this level including sounds and names of the alphabet letters, reading sight words, and learning essential phonics skills. Lessons 41 through 80 will build on those skills previously learned. Children will learn more high-frequency sight words, build word families, and read both fiction and nonfiction books designed to build their vocabulary. Lessons 81 through 120 continue to build on previous skills and will provide activities for children to read for meaning, comprehension, and to continue to increase vocabulary. Here are some key components of Reading Eggs. Its Teacher/Parent-Friendly Reading Eggs is easy to add a single student or a whole class.Reading Eggs has terrific reporting that makes it easy to monitor individual student or whole class progress.Reading Eggs provides teachers with a downloadable letter to send home to parents. The letter explains what Reading Eggs is and provides login information for students to work on the program at home at no additional cost. It also provides parents with the opportunity to have an account to track their child’s progress at no additional cost.Reading Eggs provides teachers with a comprehensive user guide as well as toolkit loaded with books, lesson plans, resources, and activities. The teacher toolkit has several books and activities that they can use in conjunction with their Smart Board to interactively teach lessons to the whole class. Its Instructional With Diagnostic Components Reading Eggs provides teachers and parents with the opportunity to assign specific lessons to students. For example, if a kindergarten teacher is teaching the letter â€Å"K†, the teacher can go in and assign the lesson over the letter â€Å"K† to all of the students to reinforce that concept.Reading Eggs also provides teachers and parents with the option of giving each child a diagnostic placement test. This test consists of forty questions. When the child misses three questions, then the program assigns them to the appropriate lesson that corresponds to how they did on the placement test. This allows students to skip past concepts which they have already mastered and places them at the level in the program where they should be.Reading Eggs allows teachers and parents to reset a student’s progress at any time in the program. Its Fun and Interactive Reading Eggs has kid friendly themes, animations, and songs.Reading Eggs allows users to create and personalize their own unique avatar.Reading Eggs provides users with motivation by providing incentives and rewards. Each time they complete an activity, they are rewarded with golden eggs. Their eggs are kept in their â€Å"eggy bank† which they can use to buy reward games, clothes for their avatar, or accessories for their house. In addition, when a user completes a lesson they earn an animated â€Å"critter†, which they collect as they go through the program.Reading Egg lessons are set up similar to a board game where you move from stepping stone to another by completing an activity. Once you have completed each activity, then you have completed that lesson and get to move on to the next lesson. Reading Eggs Is Comprehensive Reading Eggs has hundreds of extra learning activities and games aside from those in the standard 120 reading lessons.The Playroom is loaded with over 120 learning activities covering a wide range of topics ranging from letter reinforcement to art.My World allows students to visit eight destinations loaded with fun, interactive activities.Story Factory allows students to write and build their own stories and then enter them into a weekly story writing competition.Puzzle Park gives students a chance to earn some more Golden Eggs by completing word puzzles and practicing sight word recognition.The Arcade is a place where students can use their earned Golden Eggs to play much fun, interactive reading games.Driving Tests contains assessments covering sights words, phonics skills, and content area vocabulary. If a student satisfactorily completes a test, they are rewarded a racing car game which they can play to earn more golden eggs.Skills Bank is designed to build a student’s ski lls in spelling, vocabulary, grammar, and punctuation. Music Cafà © allows students to access and play their favorite songs that hear within a lesson. Its Structured Reading Eggs provides students with a comprehensive dashboard located on the left of their screen. This dashboard keeps track of which lesson they are on, how many golden eggs they have earned, and allows them access to their stuff and all the other places they can go to the program.Reading Eggs forces students into order by padlocking activities. You must complete activity one to open activity two.Reading Eggs also locks components such as My World, Puzzle Park, the Arcade, Driving Tests, Skills Bank until a user has mastered the appropriate number of lessons to have developed the skills necessary to use those components. Research on Reading Eggs Reading Eggs has been proven to be an effective tool for children to learn how to read. A study was conducted in 2010 that paralleled the features and components of the Reading Eggs program to essential elements that students must comprehend and possess to be able to read. Reading Eggs uses a variety of effective, research-based learning activities that motivate students to successfully complete the program. The web-based design features those components that have been proven to be highly effective in getting children to be high functioning readers. Overall Impression Reading Eggs is an exceptional early literacy program for parents of young children as well as schools and classroom teachers. Children love using technology and they love to get rewards and this program combines both of them effectively. In addition, the research-based program successfully incorporates the five pillars of reading. You may feel concerned if you think young children may be overwhelmed by the program, but the tutorial in the help section was terrific. Overall, Reading Eggs deserves five out of five stars, because it is a wonderful teaching tool that children will want to spend hours using.

Paraphrase, Summary and Quotation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Paraphrase, Summary and Quotation - Essay Example It was defined by African Americans and given the name Lindy, Jitterbug, or swing. Most of World War II soldiers hailed from the city or the big towns in America by that time. Most rural areas did not have good educational systems and so the minimum requirements in educational cut the rural people. During that time, there were little interactions with other tribes, which prevented learning of other languages other than English. Prior knowledge on shooting did not add value to persons who wanted to join the troops. After joining the army, a soldier received a through shave and given uniforms called combats to keep neat like other soldiers. Additionally, new soldiers received a vaccine to protect them form diseases, viruses, and boost their immunity. The reason behind this is that a soldier’s work involved moving across regions with disease causing pathogens. Life of a Soldier in the World War II proved hard. First, the soldier underwent tough training to keep fit called â€Å"fatigues.† Secondly, World War II soldiers received training on different co mmands by harsh superiors who appeared prone to hardship. The passage records the life of an American soldier who qualified to fight in the World War II. He had distinct characteristics from the soldier of the World War I and spoke English. To qualify, one needed high school education, driving licence among other qualifications. Soldiers received special training after the selection process under a harsh commander. To become a soldier in the World War II, a soldier had to pass various requirements. According to Sulzberger, â€Å"When he went off to serve his country, he had had some high school education; he knew how to drive a car, how to swim, how to do the Jitterbug or The Big Apple or the Lindy† (Sulzberger 125). Other qualifications included ability to speak in English and he needed not have

History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 16

History - Essay Example The blue dragon is pictured moving in up and down waves like a fancy kite dragon I once saw flying in the air. It is a good luck sign in most Asian countries and is a very happy creature as compared with western dragons. It is in the classic ginger Jar shape. This kind of porcelain was really popular and expensive, since the cobalt blue dye had to be imported from India through China, so it was only used for dragons. These made their way west on the Silk Road, along with the rare and coveted silk to western European courts all the way to Great Britain even during the most isolationist times. The motif and some of the shape and technique was copied in the UK, as I have seen these before outside of the museum, even in boot sales. (Dragon Jar 2009) Things like this, spices and silk made the trade with the east very profitable, and controlling the Mediterranean was the key to domination. Mostly the trade was dominated by the Mughal Empire, China or the Portuguese. The next artifact I noticed in this collection was another lovely round teapot with a bird on it. Since it also originated in Korea during the same time period, I have to assume the bird is the Phoenix, the alter-ego of the Dragon even though it is very small, because the painting is done with Cobalt Blue. The teapot is in lovely condition and sports a ropy handle and a lid. It could also have been used to serve wine. Clear bottles were likely very rare in Asia as they were using more porcelain and clay, so this would not have been an unusual way to use a teapot. In the Chinese artifacts there were many beautiful dishes in porcelain from China, even one with the same kind of dragon on it, also pictured moving like a flying snake with six legs. This plate was very colorful in red, blue and green. It was even decorated on the underside, and must have been some household head’s prized