Thursday, June 26, 2008
Who is Cassie
This is a brief description of Cassie Pompa. I am a senior at West Texas A&M University, majoring in Mass Communications-Education. When I graduate in December of 2009, I plan to be a high school journalism teacher. I will be the advisor to the newspaper and yearbook staffs. I am the only person that attends WT with this major. When I graduate, I will be the first graduate with this degree. I will leave school with two degrees; first being in secondary education and second being in Mass Communications. My experiences in the field of Mass Communications include; competing in UIL for headline writing and feature writing. The 2007 fall semester I was privileged to have a story published in the Canyon Newspaper about my first person experience of my son starting his first day of Kindergarten. Personal information about me includes; I am 26, married with two kids. We live in Amarillo. My son, Keegan is 6 and will be starting First grade in August; my daughter Katie is 3 and loves gymnastics. My husband and I have been together for 10 years in September and have been married for five years in July. I hope you have enjoyed learning a little about my life.
Saying Goodbye for the First Time
This is my pride and joy. I wrote this first person story last fall in my Feature Writing class. It is about my experience of my son starting his first day of school. This story was published in the Canyon Newspaper September 29th, 2007.
I sat in my car for almost 10 minutes crying, thinking about what had just happened.
I said goodbye for the first time as my son started his first day of kindergarten. Of the 2,340 days my son will spend in school, this was his first.
As we walked toward Sundown Lane Elementary, I walked behind him because he didn’t want his mommy to hold his hand. My neck was weighted down with cameras to capture the day my son has been waiting for, and the day I was dreading.
We entered his classroom where his teacher, Mrs. Deonia Campbell was waiting with a smile. My son wanted to find his desk that was designated for him. As he walked around the room to look at the names on the desks, I heard a little voice say, “Mommy, this is my desk.” I walked to him to see if he was right, there it was in big letters, Keegan.
As Keegan settled in and was ready for his first day of school, his classroom started to diminish from the pack of parents surrounding their own kindergarteners. I knew it was about time for me to leave. I could feel the minutes ticking in my heart as the clock reached 8:05. I thought Mrs. Campbell would have to say, “Mrs. Pompa, you need to go home now.” As hard as it was, I left with tears already forming in my eyes as Keegan told me, “Mommy, I will be OK; you can go home now.”
Memories poured through my mind of Keegan as a baby and needing me for every milestone he conquered. This was different, he didn’t need me because he is a big boy.
As I drove away, Sundown Lane was getting smaller and smaller through my review mirror. Soon the elementary was nowhere in sight.
I thought about Keegan all day. I kept my cell phone close by in case his school called me. The seven hours he was away from me were excruciating. I was worried that he wasn’t being helped, or he would get lost going back to his classroom after using the bathroom. I couldn’t keep my eyes off the clock as the hours went by slowly.
The time was finally here, 3:20. School was out. It was time to see my kindergartener for the first time since saying goodbye seven hours earlier. The anticipation was killing me, waiting for my 3-foot-5-inch, 38-pound, 5-year-old to exit the giant building.
When I saw Keegan walk out with his class, I held back my temptation to run after him and hold him in my arms. I waved to him to show him where I was. A smile from ear to ear formed on his face when he spotted me. His little mind was full of stories that he couldn’t wait to tell me, and I couldn’t wait to hear about his first day of kindergarten.
Keegan didn’t close his mouth the entire drive home. We talked about friends he met, what he learned from his teacher, and his favorite part of the day—recess. Keegan is a very picky eater; I was curious what he had eaten for lunch. He was excited to tell me that he had pizza.
“Mommy, my pizza wasn’t shaped like a triangle,” Keegan said. “It was shaped like a door.”
I laughed at each story he told me. My mind was put to ease with each passing story; I was assured he had a good, safe day.
Keegan was very excited about his first day of school.
“Mommy,” Keegan said, “My teacher told me to come back tomorrow. Can I?”
Yes, honey, I told him. You can go back tomorrow.
Saying Goodbye for the First Time
I sat in my car for almost 10 minutes crying, thinking about what had just happened.
I said goodbye for the first time as my son started his first day of kindergarten. Of the 2,340 days my son will spend in school, this was his first.
As we walked toward Sundown Lane Elementary, I walked behind him because he didn’t want his mommy to hold his hand. My neck was weighted down with cameras to capture the day my son has been waiting for, and the day I was dreading.
We entered his classroom where his teacher, Mrs. Deonia Campbell was waiting with a smile. My son wanted to find his desk that was designated for him. As he walked around the room to look at the names on the desks, I heard a little voice say, “Mommy, this is my desk.” I walked to him to see if he was right, there it was in big letters, Keegan.
As Keegan settled in and was ready for his first day of school, his classroom started to diminish from the pack of parents surrounding their own kindergarteners. I knew it was about time for me to leave. I could feel the minutes ticking in my heart as the clock reached 8:05. I thought Mrs. Campbell would have to say, “Mrs. Pompa, you need to go home now.” As hard as it was, I left with tears already forming in my eyes as Keegan told me, “Mommy, I will be OK; you can go home now.”
Memories poured through my mind of Keegan as a baby and needing me for every milestone he conquered. This was different, he didn’t need me because he is a big boy.
As I drove away, Sundown Lane was getting smaller and smaller through my review mirror. Soon the elementary was nowhere in sight.
I thought about Keegan all day. I kept my cell phone close by in case his school called me. The seven hours he was away from me were excruciating. I was worried that he wasn’t being helped, or he would get lost going back to his classroom after using the bathroom. I couldn’t keep my eyes off the clock as the hours went by slowly.
The time was finally here, 3:20. School was out. It was time to see my kindergartener for the first time since saying goodbye seven hours earlier. The anticipation was killing me, waiting for my 3-foot-5-inch, 38-pound, 5-year-old to exit the giant building.
When I saw Keegan walk out with his class, I held back my temptation to run after him and hold him in my arms. I waved to him to show him where I was. A smile from ear to ear formed on his face when he spotted me. His little mind was full of stories that he couldn’t wait to tell me, and I couldn’t wait to hear about his first day of kindergarten.
Keegan didn’t close his mouth the entire drive home. We talked about friends he met, what he learned from his teacher, and his favorite part of the day—recess. Keegan is a very picky eater; I was curious what he had eaten for lunch. He was excited to tell me that he had pizza.
“Mommy, my pizza wasn’t shaped like a triangle,” Keegan said. “It was shaped like a door.”
I laughed at each story he told me. My mind was put to ease with each passing story; I was assured he had a good, safe day.
Keegan was very excited about his first day of school.
“Mommy,” Keegan said, “My teacher told me to come back tomorrow. Can I?”
Yes, honey, I told him. You can go back tomorrow.
High School Journalism
I picked this site because I am going to be a high school journalism teacher. I found this Web site very interesting. It shows journalism and how it occurs today in public high schools.
Ease of Navigation: There was a lot to offer in this site. You can view high school newspapers and yearbooks online through this Web site to see the differences between states and regions throughout the US.
My Recommendation: I recommend this site to teenagers who are interested in journalism during their high school years and beyond. This site shows colleges who carry a journalism program in which students can apply to attend. There are scholarships that students can apply for to attend these colleges. Even though I am not a teenager, I feel like it is necessary to know about this site to better communicate with my students.
Ease of Navigation: There was a lot to offer in this site. You can view high school newspapers and yearbooks online through this Web site to see the differences between states and regions throughout the US.
My Recommendation: I recommend this site to teenagers who are interested in journalism during their high school years and beyond. This site shows colleges who carry a journalism program in which students can apply to attend. There are scholarships that students can apply for to attend these colleges. Even though I am not a teenager, I feel like it is necessary to know about this site to better communicate with my students.
All About Journalism
This Web site is great for learning what goes with journalism and calling yourself a journalist. This Web site gives a layout of the qualities a journalist should have and they are:
1. Journalism's first obligation is to the truth
2. Its first loyalty is to citizens
3. Its essence is a discipline of verification.
4. Its practitioners must maintain an independence from those they cover
5. It must serve as an independent monitor of power
6. It must provide a forum for public criticism and compromise
7. It must strive to make the significant interesting and relevant
8. It must keep the news comprehensive and proportional
9. Its practitioners must be allowed to exercise their personal conscience
Ease of Navigation: This Web site was easy to navigate through. Is it very attractive and fun to play around with. They are so many links to click on and will take you to more interesting information about journalism.
My Recommendation: I recommend this Web site to anyone who is thinking about getting into the field of journalism. This site was very helpful for me, I learned a lot.
Associated Press
The Associated Press is the number one company that deals with media. The AP deals with print media which is newspaper, magazines...Electronic media is the Internet, television,radio...Photographic media is movies and still photography...
Ease of Navigation: This Web site is very easy to navigate through. They have many link to click on which will take you to any aspect of media.
The Associated Press is the author and publisher of the AP style book. The AP style book is known as the Bible of the Media. Personally I can not go a day without reading it or referring to it.
My recommendation: I love this Web site, mainly because I love the Media. If you care about or are interested in the Media you should look at this site.
Ease of Navigation: This Web site is very easy to navigate through. They have many link to click on which will take you to any aspect of media.
The Associated Press is the author and publisher of the AP style book. The AP style book is known as the Bible of the Media. Personally I can not go a day without reading it or referring to it.
My recommendation: I love this Web site, mainly because I love the Media. If you care about or are interested in the Media you should look at this site.
Our World Through Others Eyes'
Name of Site: National Geographic
Owner: This Web site is owned and operated by the National Geographic Society. The National Geographic Society is celebrating their 120 anniversary this year.
Web Design and Ease of Navigation: This Web site is very eye catching. There are a lot of mobile icons throughout the page. There are many things to look at.
Appearance: This Web site is very attractive. There are a lot of vivid colors around the page which draws your eyes to different areas around the page. They are very organized with this site everything is color-coordinated.
Mission Statement: Founded in 1888 to “increase and diffuse geographic knowledge, “the Society works to inspire people to care about the planet.
Links: There are a lot of links with this Web site. Everything that is a link is colored in blue. Anything that you can click on is the same color. People visiting this site can subscribe to the National Geographic Magazine, they can visit other country National Geographic Web sites, and they can view many pictures and videos that photographers have taken all around the world.
My Response and Recommendation for Use: This Web site is amazing. There are many things for people to look at while visiting this site. People can take quizzes based on the information they look at, and they can play games. This site is very user friendly. I was looking at this site for 30 minutes and still had many areas to cover. I recommend this site to anyone who is interested in this world and what it has to offer.
Owner: This Web site is owned and operated by the National Geographic Society. The National Geographic Society is celebrating their 120 anniversary this year.
Web Design and Ease of Navigation: This Web site is very eye catching. There are a lot of mobile icons throughout the page. There are many things to look at.
Appearance: This Web site is very attractive. There are a lot of vivid colors around the page which draws your eyes to different areas around the page. They are very organized with this site everything is color-coordinated.
Mission Statement: Founded in 1888 to “increase and diffuse geographic knowledge, “the Society works to inspire people to care about the planet.
Links: There are a lot of links with this Web site. Everything that is a link is colored in blue. Anything that you can click on is the same color. People visiting this site can subscribe to the National Geographic Magazine, they can visit other country National Geographic Web sites, and they can view many pictures and videos that photographers have taken all around the world.
My Response and Recommendation for Use: This Web site is amazing. There are many things for people to look at while visiting this site. People can take quizzes based on the information they look at, and they can play games. This site is very user friendly. I was looking at this site for 30 minutes and still had many areas to cover. I recommend this site to anyone who is interested in this world and what it has to offer.
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