Think about the hard time

I have never experienced such hard time, but my grandparents have had the similar experience as Freddie. In 1959-1961, Three Years of Natural Disasters, people in china struggled with hungry. Some people even eat bugs and rind and everything they could find,my grandfather told me when I was the age of Freddie. This was hard for me to imagine. It liked an unreal story.
Maybe kids in this kind of circumstance could grow up earlier. Nowadays,many children are spoiled by their parents,especially in China. I think these kids should read some books like "King in disguise". When I was a kid, my mum always told me that I should treasure what I have and think about the hard time. To be honest , I didn't want to hear that after I have heard many times.But it still worked.
I hope every kid can get good and right education from families and schools and the whole society. What is the best way to achieve that?

thoughts about second life

Either I'm not smart enough, or Second Life IS NOT as good as people describe, I just don't think it's an apporiate tool for teaching and learning. It's not user friendly, first of all. And kids nowadays love fancy things--clothes, jewerly, weapons, which means most likely they'll have to pay for get those. Also there're inappropriate contents everywhere--sex and violence. Basically it wastes time and energy and money. I would not recommend it to my friends.

My answers

1.Yes,I've played some Video Games.Like "Empire","Second life" and so on.In "empire",I acted as a country,created it and developed it,then killed each other with enemies.I had fun during the game,however, I felt tired after several hours' fight.In "Second life",I acted as a person who I wanted to be.I can do anything I can't do in my real life.Anyway, the time I spend playing games is less and less after I got married,now I think it's waste of time.
2.When I first entered the virtual world,it was amazing that this virtual world was so real--a real society in the computer!I can chat,walk,drive,fly and travel from one place to another in a few seconds,build house and decorate it,or do some business.The most interesting part is to experience things that would never happen in your real life.
3.Maybe a little. I was an interior designer when I was in China.So I am more interested in the buildings' styles and their decorations in the second life.
4.No,I don't think so. Actually,I think the character in my real life decided what I acted in the second life.But I am much wilder in the second life,because I don't have to be responsible for anything.
5.In my opinion,there are several advantages in the second life.First,there is no violence,just relax in this game and needn't be nervous like in other games.Second,you can be more creative in this game.Third,you can learn something useful for your real life.
6.The second life need a computer with high performance.I have a computer which can't enter the second.And sometimes, it will crash down my computer's system.
7.For me,I am an English learner right now,so I need more chance to speak and use English.That really helps me improve my English when I chat with the people I met in the game.Also,I still can know more about American people's life as I am travelling in the second life.

"THIS CANNOT GO ON"

The following information is from Yang Guo's friend and "student", who as her, was also an English major years ago and has been taking housekeeping as a new major for the past year.

Kings in Disguise was nothing like any comic book I had read before—too serious and heavy even for an adult. But “KID” is for kid and educational in the sense that it reminds us of those hard times and how people’s hearts should not be tainted and willpower not be worn out. Freddie turns out to be a man before he himself is aware of through his own efforts and Sam’s.

I am most impressed by the words on page 168, when Freddie realizes there’re people who would do anything just to survive, but there’re also people who would not succumb to the force, “who would not hide, who shouted out to the world, ‘this cannot go on.’ ”

They strike me the most because it is the same scene happened very recently when our Chinese people stood out and shout out loud to major medias all over the world “ The scheme of separating Tibet from China CANNOT GO ON !”. And even though our patriotic movement was described as uncivilized violence by some evil media, we will definitely not be discouraged and we’re determined to let the people all cross the globe to understand the truth. We Chinese people love our country as a whole and allow nobody to sabotage our unity.

Interview questions about Second Life

Dear Friends,
I hope your travelings in Second Life are going very well.

May you please think about the following questions while you are exploring the Second Life?

1. Do you play any Video Games? What are they? (Can you briefly describe them, one or two? What do you think about them? (What do they mean to you? Part of your life? Interesting? Time-consuming? Knowledge-gaining? Or are they meaningless just for you to kill the time?)

2. What do you think about the virtual world Second Life? (What is it like to you? Do you like it? Dislike it? Amazing world and amazing people? Dangerous and horrible space/people? A waste of time being there?)

3. Do you think you have brought your own background knowledge (who you are, your own personalities, your knowledge of the world, etc.) into the second life characters? How?

4. Do you think your character in Second Life has also affected/reflected who you are in the real world? How?

5. What do you think are some advantages/benefits of Second Life?

6. What problems/questions do you have when interacting in Second Life?

7. What do you think are the things that we probably can do with Second Life to help enhancing teaching and learning? (Besides what we have done: role-play in there)

Thanks for your time:)

child to man

I've just finished the book "Kings in disguise".This was not so easy for me to read it in English.It's even harder for me to express my thoughts about this novel,but anyway,I want to try.
Most of people had hard lives struggling for living during the great depression,espesially for a child.Freddie was forced to start his journey to look for his father.On the road,he expericed a lot,met some bad guys and good guys.Only in sevearl months,he grew up surprisingly fast from a child to a man,which might not be a good thing for a 12-year old child,but he had to.
At that time,what a child like Freddie needed ,I think,was a home where people care about each other,and they don't have to endure hungry everyday.Such a simple wish become a dream hard to reach.
I feel sorry for him,but I think his life would become better gradually over the time,because the great depression would be over soon,and as a responsible and inselfish "man",he would lead a more meaningful life ahead.

About your blogs

Hi, Kings in Disguise is a graphic novel which invites deep thinking.

I hope your blogs could focus on what Freddie had mentioned "New world". Please write from your characters' perspectives on:

1. What is your definition/understanding of this "New world"?
2. What do you think Freddie should do in this world?
3. Plan a future life for Freddie: where would he go and what he might experience later, etc.

Will you please post your first journal entry by the end of this Sunday (May 4)?
Creative ideas with sufficient evidence are especially welcome!

Have a wonderful day there :)

Yang ~