the mask project.
This unit started off studying vocabulary words that had to do with socialization, such as Fungibility, memory vs body theory, norms, sanctions, folkways, subcultures, etc. We then dived into the story of the Ship of Theseus, focusing on the question; if over time we slowly begin to replace ourselves with new qualities and we end up with no original pieces of ourselves, are we still ourselves? This story started our conversations about socialization, but first we had a project called “My Jam” where we picked a song with lyrics that fit well with our personalities and experiences, and wrote a paper about the song. Next we read the “Cycle of Socialization” by Bobbie Harro which explained the concepts of Agents and Targets. I found this study incredibly interesting, because there was so much about how humans adapt to society around them that no one would ever think of. But at the end of this unit, we were assigned a project to describe ourselves and go deep into who we are. I learned how to make sense of my identity and how to organize the information I know about myself. This project was a great way to connect with yourself and others.
For the mask project, I definitely struggled a lot. In terms of my essay, it took a lot of failed essays to finally come up with one in the correct format, that got to the point, and that I liked. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to write about, and quite frankly the essay was stressing me out. But after talking to Stephen a couple times, pieces started coming together and I was finally in the right mindset to complete my work. When I finally got to my last draft of my essay, I realized I had restarted my work 11 times, and that made me proud because I wasn’t giving up. As for the mask, I started out with a couple of ideas. Since I recently moved, one of them included a cut-out of Oklahoma, but I decided that wouldn’t give my mask the look I wanted. I knew that I could ask Stephen or my peers for advice, so I did and a lot of them told me that I needed to make sure that my mask fit my essay descriptions. I think my final work on the mask is refined, looks nice, and represents me really well. I put a lot of details and work into it, and I really like the outcome.
This project really helped me understand more about myself and my feelings. As a human, I’m sure many people can relate to my struggles in my essay, but no one in my class really felt the way I did. Also, a lot of people had really deep essays and topics that I never really knew about before, so I got closer with a lot of people during the project.
For the mask project, I definitely struggled a lot. In terms of my essay, it took a lot of failed essays to finally come up with one in the correct format, that got to the point, and that I liked. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to write about, and quite frankly the essay was stressing me out. But after talking to Stephen a couple times, pieces started coming together and I was finally in the right mindset to complete my work. When I finally got to my last draft of my essay, I realized I had restarted my work 11 times, and that made me proud because I wasn’t giving up. As for the mask, I started out with a couple of ideas. Since I recently moved, one of them included a cut-out of Oklahoma, but I decided that wouldn’t give my mask the look I wanted. I knew that I could ask Stephen or my peers for advice, so I did and a lot of them told me that I needed to make sure that my mask fit my essay descriptions. I think my final work on the mask is refined, looks nice, and represents me really well. I put a lot of details and work into it, and I really like the outcome.
This project really helped me understand more about myself and my feelings. As a human, I’m sure many people can relate to my struggles in my essay, but no one in my class really felt the way I did. Also, a lot of people had really deep essays and topics that I never really knew about before, so I got closer with a lot of people during the project.
My friends and “The Move”
Humans adapt to society around them through the process of socialization. There are a lot of factors to that process, like agents and targets. In the “Cycle of Socialization” by Bobbie Harro, agents are described as people who have social advantages. They may be more respected in the community because they fit into 7 different standards; white, male, elder, christian, heterosexual, middle/upper class, or able bodied, for example. But targets are quite the opposite. They are disadvantaged because they may be colored, female, young, atheist, homosexual, lower class, or disabled. Everyone has agents of socialization in their life. Through the process of moving from Tulsa to Durango, I've realized how important my friends and family are in socializing me.
My parents raised me and started to shape who I am today. They’ve taught me values that they hold themselves, such as generosity, understanding, flexibility, and kindness. Ever since I can remember, they have told me to act kindly towards others no matter what, despite your perspective on the situation. I remember coming home from a fight with my friend and they told me to keep my head up, look on the bright side, and continue to be kind to them even though we were on bad terms. To this day I still think that if I’m kind to everyone, it might make their day better, even if it’s just by a fraction.
But as I got older, I’ve grown farther from my parents. Our relationship had started to go downhill mainly because I didn’t know how to talk to them. I would come home from school and never be able to answer the easy question “what did you do at school today?” because I just didn’t care. I started to force them out of my life because I didn’t want to talk to them. I thought they would judge me, and they wouldn’t understand. So I only talked to my friends and people my age.
I was way more comfortable with my friends, and they seemed to understand me. I seemed to rely on because they were the only people I could talk to that understood. So when I moved to Durango, it was really hard. I lost the ability to see my friends from Tulsa every day at school. Although they were still my friends, I could tell that they were drifting off and moving on. So my last resort was making new friends in Colorado.
I got really depressed being in a different state than everyone I knew, and my only way to cope was to talk to people I trust. I had no one. So being uncomfortable with my parents made that transition even harder. But after 6 months of living in Colorado, I’ve gotten way more comfortable, and my relationship with my parents is better. We talk more, and I now know how to communicate with them. I’ve also made strong bonds with students at Animas High School, and now I don't feel so alone.
Humans adapt to society around them through the process of socialization. There are a lot of factors to that process, like agents and targets. In the “Cycle of Socialization” by Bobbie Harro, agents are described as people who have social advantages. They may be more respected in the community because they fit into 7 different standards; white, male, elder, christian, heterosexual, middle/upper class, or able bodied, for example. But targets are quite the opposite. They are disadvantaged because they may be colored, female, young, atheist, homosexual, lower class, or disabled. Everyone has agents of socialization in their life. Through the process of moving from Tulsa to Durango, I've realized how important my friends and family are in socializing me.
My parents raised me and started to shape who I am today. They’ve taught me values that they hold themselves, such as generosity, understanding, flexibility, and kindness. Ever since I can remember, they have told me to act kindly towards others no matter what, despite your perspective on the situation. I remember coming home from a fight with my friend and they told me to keep my head up, look on the bright side, and continue to be kind to them even though we were on bad terms. To this day I still think that if I’m kind to everyone, it might make their day better, even if it’s just by a fraction.
But as I got older, I’ve grown farther from my parents. Our relationship had started to go downhill mainly because I didn’t know how to talk to them. I would come home from school and never be able to answer the easy question “what did you do at school today?” because I just didn’t care. I started to force them out of my life because I didn’t want to talk to them. I thought they would judge me, and they wouldn’t understand. So I only talked to my friends and people my age.
I was way more comfortable with my friends, and they seemed to understand me. I seemed to rely on because they were the only people I could talk to that understood. So when I moved to Durango, it was really hard. I lost the ability to see my friends from Tulsa every day at school. Although they were still my friends, I could tell that they were drifting off and moving on. So my last resort was making new friends in Colorado.
I got really depressed being in a different state than everyone I knew, and my only way to cope was to talk to people I trust. I had no one. So being uncomfortable with my parents made that transition even harder. But after 6 months of living in Colorado, I’ve gotten way more comfortable, and my relationship with my parents is better. We talk more, and I now know how to communicate with them. I’ve also made strong bonds with students at Animas High School, and now I don't feel so alone.