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My experience in this class this semester was very interesting. I was constantly comparing my experience in the class with Sara Gladwin's, who felt entirely different about the course than I did. To me, I felt as if all the class members were getting incredibly close. This was my smallest class this semester- by about two or three people. Maybe because of this, I felt as if I got to know everyone incredibly well, more than I did for any of my other courses. Yet I know Sara felt as if she didn't know anyone, which was frustrating for me. I kept wishing she could appreciate the closeness I felt to the other class members. But I also completely understood where she was coming from. That didn't stop my experience from being tinged by her experience, though, just as I'm sure my experience effected hers.

As for the readings, I often felt as if the class discussion totally changed my entire perception of the text. I would often read articles on my own and feel and feel completley fine with them- I agreed with the author's statements, I understood what they were saying. I had little critique. But then I would come to class and during the discussion, somehow find problems I hadn't picked up on. Or, I would become frustrated that we were just reiterating the same arguments over and over again. I guess part of my frustration was good- it means I was critically thinking about the text. But sometimes discussing the same issues repeatedly tested my limits. I particularly felt this with Terry Tempest WIlliam's work, for some reason. 

I was continually frustrated by author's assumptions that younger grades and people would not be able to appreciate their arguments. I felt like just saying to the authors, Look, your arguments are not that complex. And the parts that are exactly what young children need to learn. If we are going to try to change the world, we can't start with people who are already changed. We need to integrate complex notions of enviromentalism sooner rather than later. Otherwise, everything will stay the same. 

A lot of my contributions to the online discussion were "stand alone." While I did occasionally comment on other people's work, it was mostly just to offer encouragement or agree with their ideas. I did respond once to someone's posting about nature music with a couple of youtube videos that were completley found-sound songs. I was frustrated by a lack of response to some of the contirbutions I made of outside sources I found incredibly interesting and relevant to the class. But I also understand that I was not the best at responding to other's contributions. And that everyone is incredibly busy and might not have the time to look at all the relevant information we all posted to the discussion board. 

I really appreciated having serendip as a resource. I feel like the reason I got so close to everyone this semester was becaue of the contributions everyone made online. As for me, having serendip pushed me to incorporate other types of sources into the traditional format of the class. I was able to post videos, podcasts, and pictures online, which is something I wouldn't have been able to share in other classes. I aso felt very positive pressure to read everyone's post, which helped me understand where they were coming from, and pushed me to understand their contributions in class more. 

I think my absolute favorite part of the class was having to go to the Site Observation once a week. I loved doing that; it gave me a really good time to just relax and reflect. I also enjoyed forcing myself to find new ways to view and area. This is why is was resistant to the idea of changing locations. I don't think that doing so would have been a good idea, for anyone in the class. The semester is not actually that long, and we need all the time we can get to fully appreciate a place. 

I also really appreciated our field trips. While our first one to the Harriton House did not seem that relevant to me, and I had a couple of frustrations with my tour with the freshmen, I really appreciated the dedication the class had to exploring the environment outside ourselves. My favorite trip by far was to Ashbridge Park. For that one, I felt as if we were very connected as a class. We all had very similar thoughts and reflections from that day, although we all adressed very different issues. As for Carmen Papalia's visit, I felt as if that was just an extra bonus. I was initially very disappointed when we did not get to go on the original shuttle. I had been looking forward to this new experience, especially because I knew absolutely nothing of what to expect. As time went on, though, I came to accept the idea that I would not get to participate in that activity this semester. When I learned that we were going to get the chance to, though, I was very excited, but not as much as I had initially been. Going through the activity was very enlightening, and I felt incredibly lucky that we did get to do it. I enjoyed the first blind walk we did much more than the second one, though, and I'm not entirely sure why. Maybe it was because I knew where we were going, or because we had already walked this path, but I was just not feeling it as much on the way back. 

Overall, this course was definitely my most interesting class this semester. I loved meeting outside; whenever I told people about this they were super intrigued by the course. I loved the readings, even if I kinda hated them; they always made me think, which is what I always find valuable (my favorite was The Lives of Animals). I loved getting to know everyone and appreciate their contributions to class discussion, both in class and online. And I loved, loved, loved our final Teach-In day. That was by far my favorite single class of any course this entire semester.