Mount Hood

Studying tips to help material stick

Rebecca Meyers | Freelancer

Students may have just finished midterms, but finals are fast approaching. The last few weeks of the term can be the most stressful — even more so when feeling underprepared. Having a study system can not only help combat this stress, but also ensure that students don’t sit down to a test and find themselves staring blankly at the first question.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind as students countdown to summer break.

 

Repetition

Repetition works wonders for retaining information. For those who look over notes every day, even if it’s only for five minutes, it will help information stick much better than cramming the night before. For those who find it difficult to read their notes without their mind wandering: try writing the important parts out again, as the act of writing forces the brain to process the information again. This works for memorizing anything: from vocabulary words and definitions, to formulas and equations.

 

Note Sharing

For those not feeling confident about the thoroughness of their notes and the lectures aren’t on Moodle: invite other classmates onto a Google Doc so everyone can compile notes. This allows students to go over them when they have time, rather than trying to coordinate a study group. Google Docs allows for comments to be made in the margins, and can be used to ask questions if someone needs clarification on a certain topic.

Of course, studying in a group in person works best for some people. However, everyone has different schedules to work with and if meeting before a test is not possible, it’s still an option to help each other out.

 

Environment

Students should be aware of the environment they study in and whether it’s helping or hindering their efforts. When studying at home, sometimes students don’t realize that a cluttered desk is adding to their stress. Those like me probably have trouble keeping everything nice and organized. This means that every so often it’s helpful to make a reminder to do some simple adjustments, even if it’s just tidying up a bit. It will relieve a bit of stress that some students carry without even realizing it.

 

Contact the author at rmeyers17@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

Getting crafty with grad caps

Caity Healy | Lifestyle Editor

When taking the step from being a Western student to a Western graduate, adding flair to a graduation cap to display during commencement can be the ideal way to stick out from the rest of the class. It gives graduating students one last opportunity to showcase who they are, whether it be through humor, a memorable quote or simply a design they think represents them well.

For those considering adding some style to their caps, it’s not too late. Designs can be intricate, simple or anything in between. Here is a quick description on how to form an idea and get going on making yours look distinguished from everyone else’s.

 

Find inspiration:

For some, their caps are a dedication to those who helped them get to this point; for others, it can simply be a statement of pride they have in themselves; and, of course, for some, graduation caps are based on a show, movie, book or other quotable material. To get inspiration on what to base a graduation cap on, students should think of what would best represent them. For those struggling to come up with something, a good idea would be to watch a movie that has meaning for them or to speak with someone of importance to them.

 

Purchase supplies:

The basics for decorating a graduation cap include colored or designed paper and cut out letters. This will ensure that it looks well put together and the letters are evenly sized. Anything beyond that depends on the cap; sparkles, studs or other fun flair are worth looking at to see if it might add to the look. Head to a craft store such as Michael’s or JOANN stores to look at all of the options.

 

Putting it together:

It’s important to take time on the project. Keep in mind, this is the cap that will be featured in every graduation photograph; when thinking back to commencement, this will be an image that will reappear. Take the time to fix up the small details, and have fun with it. Ultimately, all that matters is that the one who is wearing it is happy with the final product.

 

Contact the author at chealy16@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

Take a bite out of these bagels

Zoe Strickland | Editor-in-Chief

Ingredients:

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 ½ tablespoons granulated sugar

1 ¼ cups warm water

3 ½ cups flour (you can use bread flour, but regular flour is more useful to keep around)

1 ½ teaspoons salt

Any toppings you desire — I recommend Everything but the Bagel seasoning from Trader Joe’s

Extra flour for creating a non-stick counter surface

 

Adapted from sophisticatedgourmet.com

 

Directions:

This recipe takes around two hours, so it isn’t for those with scarce time but these bagels are pretty great, once prepared.

In a bowl with ½ cup of the warm water, add in the sugar and yeast — but don’t mix it. Let it sit for about five minutes, or until the mixture has become frothy.

In a separate large bowl, mix the flour and salt together. After it’s mixed, pour in the yeast mixture and the rest of the warm water. Combine into a rough dough.

Once combined, place the dough on a floured countertop and begin kneading it with your hands. After about 10 minutes, the dough should be able to form a smooth and firm ball.

Put the dough ball in a lightly oiled bowl and cover it with a damp towel for an hour. The dough should double in size. Once doubled, punch the dough down and let rest for around ten minutes.

While the dough is resting, bring a pot of water to a boil. Take the dough and place it back onto a counter, dividing it into eight evenly-sized pieces — or 12 to 16 if you want to make mini-bagels.

Take each piece of dough and roll it into a ball. Some people prefer to form the balls by pressing and rolling the dough against a counter, others prefer to roll the dough in between their hands.

Once the dough balls are formed, use your finger to punch a hole in the center of the ball, spinning the bagel around your finger to make the hole larger.

After all of the bagels are formed, put groups of them in the boiling water, flipping them over after a minute. Once all of the bagels have been boiled, place your selected toppings on them and put them on a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet. Bake them in a 425 degree oven for 20 minutes, or until the bagels are golden.

Contact the author at journaleditor@wou.edu

Photo by: Zoë Strickland

Money management made simple

Lake Larsen | Digital Media Manager

There are a lot of lessons to be learned in college, but one of the most important is how to navigate the world of finances. I’ve laid out five simple things everyone should do to point themselves in the right direction financially.

 

1.Start a checking account

Starting a checking account is as simple as going to the local bank and speaking with a teller about how to start one and what fees are involved. Having an account is practically mandatory in today’s world.

  1. Develop a budget

Every person needs to know how much they should be spending on different bills and other random expenses. There’s no need to be exact on every cost estimate but, a general rule to follow is to always assume the expenses will spend a little more than they normally are. It allows some wiggle room in case something has gone up in price.

  1. Get a credit card

While most people think they don’t need one because they can just use their debit card, it is immensely more difficult to build credit without one. Owning and using a credit card is much easier to grow credit with as opposed to any other options. It’s not so much the card that matters as the credit score that someone develops with the card. An easy way to start and grow a credit score is to get a credit card (there are a lot of cards that have great benefits for students) and use that card to pay a small subscription fee then immediately pay off the balance.

  1. Get a checkbook

This is a simple thing that most young people overlook. While it’s not as common to see people pay for things with checks, everyone still needs a checkbook whether it be for paying rent, setting up direct deposits, a vast array of other reasons. They usually cost around $30 from a bank — and there are fun designs available for them.

  1. Balance your checkbook

This goes hand and hand with developing a budget. When ordering a checkbook, they usually come free with a Check Register, or they can be ordered online. Balancing a checkbook is easy; when something is bought, write down where they money was spent and for how much. Then, at the end of the week or month, add it all up and make sure it matches what your account says. This is an easy way to make sure there are no overcharges on a bill or account overdraws.

Contact the author at llarsen13@wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

Exercising with a partner

Mikaela Wong | Freelancer

In this day and age, social media has proven to be an influential tool to educate a broad audience a multitude of skills – specifically, fitness exercises. This progressive movement in the area of health and wellness has brought about newfound motivation for many people of all ages.

One of the biggest trends right now is partner workouts – exercises that are based on manipulating a partner’s body weight in various positions and vice versa, such as a push-up/squat. It’s a concept that promotes exercising with friends rather than working out alone. However, many of these workouts are very easy to perform with improper form because one doesn’t only have to be very aware of how their body is moving, but they also have to be skilled enough to control their body movements in reaction to the constantly-changing body of their partner’s. The goal of partner workouts is to exercise with a friend simultaneously and have fun with it; one shouldn’t have to sacrifice the safety of their body in order to do it. Instead, there are ways to have a fun and exciting workout with a friend that maximizes progress and minimizes the potential for injury.

Interval training is a type of training in which an athlete will alternate between two different types of exercises that require varying amounts of effort and speed, and have been proven to be an effective type of training that is safe and modifiable. Whether you and your partner are alternating between one workout and the next, or you do the same workouts at the same time, each person can focus on their steady exercise without having to rely on the inconsistent stability of their partner or even their own.

 

Example Workout: Full Body

Partner 1:

  1. 20 second push up
  2. 10 second rest
  3. 20 second plank
  4. 10 second rest
  5. 20 second mountain climbers
  6. 10 second rest

Partner 2:

  1. 20 second jump squat
  2. 10 second rest
  3. 20 second wall sit
  4. 10 second rest
  5. 20 second high knees
  6. 10 second rest

Contact the author at mwong16@wou.edu

 

Dancing through life

Caity Healy | Lifestyle Editor

Dancing can be a valuable tool in several ways: it provides an exceptional form of fitness, an escape from stress and, in many cases, fun. And, for some, participation in this type of physical activity is more than just exercise – it becomes a passion. For sophomore education major Kaiana Bradley, this remains true.

While it’s something of great importance to her now,when she first began, this wasn’t quite true.

“I started dancing in the second grade because my mom knew one of the ladies who had a dance studio in town and just signed me up,” said Bradley. “At the time, I just loved getting to wear a leotard, and eventually I learned to love dance itself, too.”

Over the past 12 years, her love for dance has continuously progressed — as did her reason for practicing her passion.

“When I dance, all of my problems fade away. Any outside stressors just disappear and the movement takes its place. It is really freeing,” Bradley explained.

While her passion for dance is immense, so is the time it takes. With countless rehearsals, recitals and pieces she’s taken the hours to learn, dance is truly a time-consuming practice that for some, could be too much. Despite this, Bradley is able to maintain a regular academic and social life.

“I guess all of the rehearsals I had growing up taught me to get my homework done when I was available to do that … in high school, I had evening rehearsals and I was so used to coming home from school and continuing to do schoolwork, that I kept that practice going as I started college,” Bradley stated.

Not allowing dance to make an impact on her school life took years of practice and an understanding of how to fit everything into her schedule. And while some may assume it would negatively impact her social life, Bradley explains that it did the opposite.

“It provides an excellent social support,” Bradley said. “I have met some of the most amazing people in dance rehearsals.”

For students at Western interested in dance, Bradley urges that you simply go for it.

“(Interested students) should sign up for a beginning level dance course for the next term. I would highly recommend using a dance class to fulfill one of their arts LACCs,” Bradley mentioned. “The faculty are incredibly talented and all around amazing people who would love to bring new dancers into the department.”

Dancing has taught Bradley many lessons. Whether it be about life, school, herself or anything in between, it’s affected who she is as a person.

“Dance has grown me into a more independent, confident individual than I would have been without it,” Bradley stated. “And becoming a coachable person is something that will help me later on in life.”

 

Contact the author at chealy16@mail.wou.edu

Photo by: Paul F. Davis

What it means to be Deaf

Caity Healy | Lifestyle Editor

Western offers an award-winning English/ASL Interpreting program, has several Deaf teachers and an ASL club — yet, for many, the concept of Deaf culture or the Deaf community is one that is unheard of. For those who haven’t taken any ASL courses, the idea of it contrasting at all from what hearing people grew up around is often not understood.

So, what does it mean to be a part of the Deaf community? To get a grasp of what this term truly means, I had a conversation with Professor Kara Gournaris, an instructor of ASL and American Sign Language Studies coordinator. It comes down to the concept of capital “D” versus lowercase “d”.

“Capital D means to be heavily involved in Deaf culture, to use strong ASL and to live in the Deaf world everyday,” commented Gournaris.

To look at your Deafness and be proud, to get involved with the several Deaf events and to be immersed in this world gives you the title Deaf, with a capital D. Lowercase d, on the other hand, is the opposite.

“Small d means you possibly can speak, you might have a hearing aid or you aren’t involved in the Deaf world — more so just the hearing world,” Gournaris added.

But, Gournaris added that, ultimately, “the Deaf community varies across America. Some are strong Deaf, some aren’t, and some travel between the Deaf and hearing world.”

The hearing and Deaf world differ in many ways. What is acceptable in one culture might not be in the other. For instance, in the Deaf world, “the Deaf are more open and blunt. We cherish communication and connection more, whereas in the hearing world there’s a lot more privacy. The Deaf are close and share everything. We cherish each other,” Gournaris explained. It’s simply a part of the culture to be straightforward and get straight to the point.

There are many other ways the two worlds differ. Take, for example, the setup of an ASL classroom; the chairs and tables are arranged around the room, rather than in rows. This is essential, as in the Deaf world, maintaining eye contact is necessary to communicate. To break eye contact in the Deaf world would be the equivalent as covering your ears while someone is talking in the hearing world — it’s a sign of disrespect. The arrangement also makes it so that it’s easier to see and read someone’s signs; in rows, this can be fairly difficult.

While there are several Deaf teachers at Western, the Deaf community still “is now very small,” Gournaris mentioned

“Awhile ago, we had a large number of Deaf students. Now, overtime that number has slowly diminished. We aren’t sure why,” Gournaris mentioned. She explained that in order for the Deaf community to fully develop, more Deaf people need to be welcomed to Western.

An example of what the Deaf community does look like can be seen through Western’s ASL Club. This spring, club meetings are held every Monday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. in RWEC 106. There, participants get to see Deaf culture firsthand, with a mixture of Deaf and hearing people coming together to play games, have conversations and just interact. Led by students, but with involvement from all over, you’ll develop your ASL competency in a fun and interactive way.

Those who identify as “capital ‘D’ Deaf” have certain viewpoints that they continue to stand by and want people to understand about how they should be viewed.

“Deaf people are not disabled. We’re not. We’re bilingual, we’re bicultural. We travel between Deaf and hearing worlds, between ASL and English. We are not disabled,” Gournaris defended, because the term “disabled” insinuates that they are unable to do something. Gournaris wants people to understand that this is false. They don’t want to be viewed as being unable to do something, when in reality, the only thing that Deaf/deaf people cannot do is hear.

For those interested in learning more about the Deaf community, on top of gong to ASL club, Western has many opportunities. For those who don’t know any ASL, they’re welcome to begin with ASL 1 and work their way through the nine-part series. However, many classes that are offered also have interpreters, so anyone of any skill level can elect to take them.

“There are three important classes I’d recommend that anyone can take,” Gournaris mentioned. “In Deaf History, you understand our background and why the Deaf community exists. You’ll become a better ally and supporter. In Deaf Culture, you’ll understand how to become more sensitive to our community, more of a supporter and how to better communicate. And finally, in VGC, Visual Gestural Communication, you learn how to better communicate not only with ASL but be more comfortable using your body and communicating with other people around the country.”

For those interested in learning more, Gournaris urges you to continue expanding your knowledge on the community and becoming involved. With such a small community, it can be difficult to get support. However, she notes that “Deaf people need (hearing allies) to join in. Your support as an ally can help our community progress…to make our community more noticed and help build it up.”

At Western, a school where one is likely to run into someone using ASL frequently, understanding the basics of what the Deaf community looks like can be beneficial; it leads to a greater respect for others and greater cultural awareness. With many options for getting involved, becoming more knowledgeable on the Deaf community at Western is at the fingertips of anyone interested.

Contact the author at chealy16@wou.edu

Photo by: Caity Healy

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