Taking Action by Ashley.

   I am taking action by signing a petition to get junkfood out of the YMCA. The YMCA has a partnership with PepsiCo, therefore while they are promoting children to get fit and exercise, they are also promoting soft drinks and foods of low nutritional value. With childhood obesity being one of the largest epidemics for children, it seems absolutely outrageous that a place that is supposed to promote health also promotes sugary drinks and high calories.
   Signing a petition that helps children get healthier connects with democratic values in the fact that being healthier is for the common good. For the next generation to be and stay obese as they continue to get older, there's no way to stop how much more obese the following generation will be. Being healthy is a huge part of people's lives, it makes them happier, have more self-confidence, and helps them live longer, without giving them all of the problems of high cholesterol, diabetes, or possibly depression. And isn't that what America is all about? Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Give children a longer life, and the chance to be happy about how they feel and look.
   I have no problem teaching about healthy foods that we should be eating, and the epidemic of childhood obesity. Regardless of what I tell my students, I know that it will always be an opinion of theirs to make. I especially think that in this decade, parents don't have the time to always feed their children the healthiest of options, so if I can make a difference in children's minds, maybe when they go to the grocery store with their parents they will choose the grapes instead of the cookies. It's small changes like these that will begin to change the epidemic of childhood obesity.
   I think the quote, “Struggle for social justice is central to our nation’s history…Concerns about the common good and the rights of the individual, no matter how humble in social standing, transcends politics and holds a definitive place in the realms of morality, ethics and federal law, and therefore in the world of teaching social studies” is true. I do believe that social justice is extremely important for our nation because what are we, if we aren't based on the principles of equality and solidarity? Teaching social studies should be on the common good and the rights of the individual, because even though the students are young when they are learning them, they can go on to do great things in their life with what we have taught them. We teach social studies in order to not duplicate what has already been done in the past, but by teaching the common good, maybe students can learn what can be done that can change our society for the better. 

   I really enjoyed doing this project on childhood obesity. It is, and unfortunately will always be, a growing epidemic. We need to change the way of the children so they do not get into habits that they pass down to their children, only to continue this epidemic. I personally liked how we connected our projects to a blog and also to the iPads. When other students were blogging, it is very interesting to see their point of view on things that I might have never thought of, but that make a very good point. 
   I believe that I will always feel strongly about childhood obesity. Obesity relates to so much more than physical problems, it becomes psychological, and now is even related to higher car related deaths, and eventually Alzheimers. If this one thing can be changed at such an early age by simply getting more exercise, eating healthier, and knowing how to balance the two, then why not do it and make the change. 
    When I was younger because my mother and my aunt, the two that raised me, were so busy with work and school, we used to get McDonald's a lot, because it was cheaper and easier when my mom would come home late and didn't want to cook us dinner. This was absolutely nothing that I could control at such a young age, but I see now that that is not the life that I want to live, for me or for my future children. While my family got out of the habit of getting fast food, (thank God, because I now think McDonalds is absolutely disgusting), some families don't have the option of cooking for their children at night and fast food is the way to go. I think by knowing this information we should absolutely make the student's school lunches healthier, but still something that they would enjoy to eat. We cannot always control what goes on at home, but we can control what happens in schools. And I believe we can start to win this war by changing the school lunches to healthier, better options. 
    If you had asked me a few months ago if teaching current events is important, I would have probably answered with an "I don't know". Now, I can confidently say that it is extremely important for us as teachers to teach current events in schools. Students need to form their own opinions and take a stance on whatever it is that they believe. They are so apt to choose the side of their parents, but we need to give them the opportunity to know why they are choosing that side if they still choose to do so.