Argumentative Essay:


Are all changes and transition beneficial? As students and teenagers, we experience many changes. Some changes have outcomes that are good, but some can be unfavorable. Technology can be very convenient and has have been incorporated into our environment, and will continue to be more important.  Starting in August 2013, all students of Sioux Falls School District were each given a chromebook to use while in school. Incorporating technology in our education can be a sufficient advantage, but Chromebooks has many disadvantages that adds stress and obstacles for both students and teachers.

Although ChromeBooks seem conveniently small, they are fragile and easily breakable. We were given Acer ChromeBooks, which is the cheapest type of Chromebooks available to buy. Because of the cheap price and quality, these Chromebooks have poor performance, which makes them unreliable. Many repairs have been needed because of the many problems that occur with the chromebooks. This causes money to be wasted on maintenance and repairs. This money used could have gone towards a better quality laptop or tablet. There are many other options when it comes to devices to use for education.

Sioux Falls school district should have spent the money towards something more beneficial. The contract that we were required to sign in order to receive a chromebook states that we must pay $275 to replace the device if an an accident were to occur. The value of the chromebooks are actually less than the replacement price.

Acer Chromebooks are not like other computers. These devices can only access and run google software. This means it is not be able to use Microsoft Word, which is more advanced than Google Docs. Unlike normal computers, Chromebooks have limited access to everything. These laptops do not have the ability to connect to a printer, which causes problems for school reports and assignments. Chromebooks also have less storage and shorter battery life than most computers.

When we received our Chromebooks, the school emphasized the importance of the using this new devices. I have not noticed the importance of these devices. In many of the students classes, including mine, the chromebooks are not used at all. It seems that the school exaggerated the importance and the benefits of the new technology. Although the amount of Chromebook usage depends on the classes you take, I believe all classes should be required to involve chromebooks in some way. This will help use them to learn more about using and operating these new devices and  to become comfortable with them. With this, all students will become more familiar with using these chromebooks.

The transition to using more technology in education is very constructive and ideal, but the type and quality of the devices and the way they are used determines how beneficial they actually are. Sioux Falls School District could have purchased a better quality device for their students and their education. Technology can teach us many things and help us to be productive, but sometimes they can cause more problems than advantages.

It started when I was little,and became worse as I grew up. At a young age, anxiety started to control my life. They usually occurred at random times with no explanation. I want others to know how difficult and serious Anxiety Disorder can be. Many people ask me what my anxiety attacks are like, but I can never find the words to explain it. The severity of my attacks differ from minor to very intense. Some attacks are very painful, but some are also very minor. I have had many major anxiety attacks in my life, but there is always one specific attack will always remember.

2 years ago, my family and I drove to my stepfather’s small home town, O’Neill Nebraska, to visit our family. Everything was calm and relaxing as we headed south in our black
pickup. We finally arrived at one of the only few hotels in the small town, relieved to escape the constant vibrations of the highway. My anxiety didn’t increase until we settled into our hotel room, where my mom and I were relaxing and watching TV inside our room. With every second, anxiety made my heart pound faster in my chest. My anxiety became a painful nightmare, and this was just the beginning.

Consequently, my hands began to shake uncontrollably as my heart rate increased rapidly. Every part of my body started trembling while blood swam faster through my veins. My mind overflowed with fear, causing tears to drain from my eyes. My mom didn’t know quite what to do, but comfort me. She had me lay with her on her hotel bed as attempted to calm me down. I just kept wondering what was happening to me, or what was going to happen next. My breaths became shorter as my heart beats faster, and I started feel sharp pain in my chest. I couldn’t seem to catch my breath. I was hyperventilating. Anxiety was dominating me.

In addition, my eyes were shaky, making it hard to see or focus my eyes on anything. I started to become nauseous, as my head became to feel lighter. I laid there shaking in fear, as my body tensed up. I felt fear because I couldn’t control what was happening to me. Emotions crammed through me like cars rushing in 5 O’clock traffic. I was feeling embarrassed, confused, afraid, and most of all, I felt as if I was dying. It might seem dramatic to say that, but it was true. Fear took over my body and I lost all control. I just wanted that living nightmare to end, and it eventually did. After 45 minutes, I started to calm down. I was able to breathe more easily, and my body shook less.  As my anxiety decreased, I started gaining control back little by little.

At this time, it was my worst anxiety attack I have experienced, but since then I have lived through many more. This experience made me realize how serious my disorder was, and helped me learn how to cope with it. Anxiety Disorder can change how a life is lived and be very serious. I have experienced many anxiety attacks in my life, but this one I will always remember. It started to dominate my life and made me fear every day to come ahead. It started dragging me into deep depression, until I learned to control and tame my anxiety disorder. Facing my fears and taking control of my anxiety disorder, made me learn that I can decide and control the path of my life.

We all have times where we are super busy and stressed. There are some people that often have a habit of over-scheduling themselves. Most of us forget how important relaxing and downtime is. i did forget, until I read this essay in my English Class. 
"Nothing Is Doing Something" by Anna Quindlen (which you can read here: http://languageartsnhs.wikispaces.com/file/view/Argumentative+Pieces.pdf

In her essay, Anna mentions in her essay that when we just relax and think during our downtime, it fuels our creativity. We start thinking and pondering. This gives us the chance to produce our own ideas and creativity. 

What About Downtime?
During downtime, we create our own thoughts and ideas, which sometimes result in goals or DREAMS. This makes us our own individual. With downtime, we are becoming our own person with thinking for ourselves.. Downtime gives us time to organize and process our thoughts and whats going on around us. 
When we are so busy, and finally get time to stop and unwind. It relieves our stress and gives the gift of relaxation. Relieving stress is one of the keys to HAPPINESS

Children and Down Time
It is common for parents to over-schedule their children. Maybe they do it out of habit and tradition, or maybe because of the child's interests. Please do not misunderstand me. I am NOT saying that children should not get involved. I believe children should get involved with a variety activities, but I believe that downtime is as (or more) important as these activities. When children have downtime, it gives them a chance to produce life dreams. It also gives children a chance to just be a kid. 
If children are over-involved while growing up, they could end up following others' actions instead of their own unique ideas or interests. Also, kids that are over-scheduled through out their childhood may develop a habit of over-scheduling.
Scheduling
Scheduling and organizing events and plans is a great tool for every day life., but there is one rule. 
DO NOT OVER-SCHEDULE YOURSELF! 
There are two types of "down time": personal, and socializing. Sometimes you need to have personal downtime where you can just be by yourself. Socializing down time is where you spend time with family and friends while relaxing and communicating. Make sure you make time for both. Because it is important, it is a good idea to schedule downtime
What To Do During Downtime
Down time doesn't necessarily mean that you have to lay motionless and just think. Down time is time of relaxation and thinking. There are many things you can do while having your personal downtime, hobbies, for example. Here are a few things:

• fishing 
• writing
• painting/art
• cooking
• exercising/ running 
• cleaning/ organizing (surprisingly) 
• listening to music
• drawing
• driving
• going on walks
• meditating
• IDEA BOOK (tutorial and ideas coming soon!)  

But How Much Down Time Do We need?
This is different for each person, but I personally believe we SHOULD have at least one good, solid hour of downtime per day. 
I honestly think without my personal downtime, I would either have a heart attack from stress, or go insane. I sure would not be as creative as I am, if I didn't have time to think of creative ideas. 
Take on the challenge of scheduling a hour, at minimum, for downtime a day. When it comes to this down time, try it with just laying down and meditating. Lose the distractions and turn off your phone. And let you mind wonder and spark your creative imagination. 
RELAX. ENJOY. BE CREATIVE


Happy Creating! 
Love, 
CREATIVE CAILEY MARIE

Out of habit, you might start to buy the cheapest option for school supplies. DON’T DO THIS! Would you not rather buy a sturdy, reliable notebook, instead of the cheap one for 25 cents, that will fall apart in a month. Using this tip will help you in school more than you think.

Make sure you find an organization method that works for you. You might end up changing the way you organize school work if you found a better way that works for you. This is fine, as long as you are organized.

Everybody who starts their own blog has a reason for doing so, but, for myself, there are many reasons.

When I attended school, and learned how to write, I fell in love with writing. I felt that it was a way to capture all of my ideas and thoughts. Because I have never had enough patience, I was never able to write a long story.

I was diagnosed with Anxiety Disorder three years ago. The attacks are sometimes random, but are mostly caused by stress. My doctor recommended that I write to relieve stress.

When I was preparing to set up my blog, I couldn't decide what the blog should be about. I enjoy doing a variety of things and have so many ideas, so I don’t want to limited to one subject.  

I am a very indecisive person, so when it came to naming my blog I could not commit to one name. I had to create a name that describes captures what my blog is about.

Living Creative, I thought would be perfect, because my goal in life is to live a creative life.

As a bonus, there are so many things that I could write about living creative, and that is just what I am going to do.

I am new to blogging, so I would really appreciate ideas, tips, and opinions. Thank you for visiting my blog, and I really hope you enjoy it. 


Love, 
Creative Cailey