When does childhood end?

     The answer to this question varies a lot because it is not the same for every person. Many people say that childhood ends at the age of 12 but I do not necessarily believe this is true. I think it is based on the responsibility you have and experiences that you have gone through. Many people are still children at 16, 18, 21 or even much later on in their life. It all depends. I read an article on BBC News that said that more than 2/3 of a group that was asked this question believed that childhood ends by 12. I am 18 years old and I would still not call myself an adult. Yes, I have a job and I have responsibilities but I do not act like an adult and I don't have bills to pay or a family to feed. I would not say that I have any more responsibilities than the average teenager does. Childhood is an extremely important time in a child's life because they have a lot of freedom and not many cares in the world. Childhood is what develops us into the people that we will become. Often you hear children complaining about how they wish they were older but I think that children should embrace their childhoods because there will not be another time is their life where they are as worry-free and stress-free as they are as kids. 

BBC News Article: http://www.bbc.com/news/education-21670962

     In the book Persepolis, by Marjane Satrapi a little girl named Marji is growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution and has to go through experiences that the average 10 year old girl would never have to go through during their life. She experiences war, protesting and committing violent acts. A great example of this would be shown on page 76. 

This is one of the comics in the book when Marji decides that she wants to join a protest and help to defend her family and friends. This is not the kind of activity that a child should be dealing with, Marji is forced to grow up way too fast in my opinion because of the situations she is dealing with where she lives. If she had been growing up in Iran during a different time I'm sure she would have had a much more normal childhood but because the revolution is going on she has to deal with things that no child should have to. Marji shows a knowledge that is rarely seen in kids her age. She knows a lot more than any other 10 year old girl would about the world, war and even God. I feel bad for Marji because she does not get to have the experiences and the worry-free life that the majority of the kids in the world have. 

Discussion of Exemplary Blogs: Unit 1 

http://costaricatravelblog.com

    Costa Rica is one of many different places that I would like to visit when I am older. I came across a blog completely dedicated to the sights and sounds of Costa Rica. This blog essential tells you everything there is to know about traveling to Costa Rica. She includes many different posts about the culture, things to do, when to travel there, places to eat and even airport information if you ever want to go there. 

     I think this blog author did a good job of setting up this page about Costa Rica. The blog is only one page but includes many links leading you to everything there is to know about this place. This blog is very colorful and enjoyable to look at. I like how she doesn't include all of this information on one page and you do not have to continuously scroll down to find what you would like to know about. If you are interested in learning about one specific thing about Costa Rica you are able to go through the menu and choose the post that has to do with what you want to know. Pictures are included in just about every post which helps to catch the reader's attention and keep them interested. A lot of the blog posts are relatively long but I think this is okay because you do not have to scroll past all of this to get to the information you are interested in, you can just go back and skip to a different post without doing as much work. 

     All of her posts are very interesting and give accurate information about everything having to do with Costa Rica. She includes just about everything you could possibly want to know if you are planning a trip to Costa Rica and even if you are not planning a trip it is still very interesting to learn about. She also includes a lot of her experiences in Costa Rica which is really cool to see and learn about especially if this country is one that is of particular interest to you. I think this blog author did an excellent job getting down all of the information about Costa Rica without making it so overwhelming for people to have to read every single thing.