Project I-57

• After learning more about Fisher and students from there this year, what do you now feel are the good and bad points about life in small Central Illinois farm towns?
• Describe what you now think the people who live there are like.
• Which place do you now think is a better place to live: Fisher or Chicago?  Why?

 
(write at least two paragraphs using complete sentences)

N.B.  M  and F on the line following each essay refer to the student author's gender.

I think that the people in Fisher are the same as any other place.  In the pictures that we saw they dressed the same.  The picture that we saw we could tell that not many cultures attend in Fisher.  I think that Chicago is a better place to live because a lot more cultures are here, it noiser, and more chances to meet new people. The small things that I saw about Fisher is that not many nationalities are there and I don’t think that’s good because they won’t meet other people.

- F who never communicated with Fisher Grade School

I now know that Fisher is a very small school with less than almost 200 students there.  At least all there students can fit in our gymnasim.  Also a small town. which there are some bad and good points to that.  I like that when you live in a small town you know every body there.  There like your famaily.  You have alot of room there.  What I really don’t like out there is it is boring. a very slow place. not much to do there then there is in Chicago.  The town is very predictable, and with a small town every body knows about your whole life.  That’s why I would rather pick Chicago over Fisher.

- F who never communicated with Fisher Grade School

I feel that a bad point about living there is that there is a fast food restruant about 10 miles away from this school.  A good thing would be that you could get exersise & lose some weight if you wanted to.  I don’t think I would mind living there.

I think that the people there are nice.  They don’t wear the same type of clothes as us.  I also think that the people would be tired from doing some walking.

I like Chicago better because it has lots of sites you can see.  Also, in Chicago you don’t have to walk to far to go to a fast food place.  In Fisher there doesn’t seem to be to much activities to do or play.

- F who never communicated with a specific Fisher Grade School

The good things are that the kids are going to be growing up in a clean coutry.  Like no pollution, freash air, ect.  The bad things are that they’re going to be growing up dumb, not knowing how the real world is.  The thing I really don’t like is that you have to walk 10 miles to get to the nearest fast food restarant.

I imagin the kids in overall, straw hats, and dirty finger nails.  I think the kids in Fisher have a very hard life compared to ours.

I would want to live in Fisher because I have always like the wild life.  Riding on horse to work, rasie [raise?  race?] lots of animals.  I don’t know why but I perferr Fisher.

- F who who never communicated with Fisher Grade School

(no post-survey)

(in small letters near question:  The good part is that its more peaceful and the bad part is that you don’t get to hang out with your friends.)

I feel that the good part about life in small Central Illinois farm is that there is more peace and quiet and I think that there would be less violence.  Now the bad part of living in a small town is you dont get to hang around with your friends in the mall or even in a MacDonalds.  I believe that the people in the small towns are more friendly and like to make convercation with everybody.  Unlike the people over here in the suburbs of Chicago.

Living in a small town would be great if you’re a nature kind of person.  Personally I would perfure living in Chicago because I like to meet new people and just chill with my friends.  Chicago is a better place to live because its more exciting.

- F who e-mailed a Fisher student once (couldn’t remember name)

The resons I think are good about living in a small central Illinois is that, there school is more peaceful and their still young.  Since their school is smaller you could tell that they are nice and well educated people [< bien-educado = polite?] and don’t start any problems as much.  But then the bad thing is that their schools are very diffrent from ours and that they don’t have as much fun.  It’s seems so boring.  Plus you could tell that they don’t have as much as we do.  Of course I would rather live here in Chicago.  Because it’s better.  Because if I want something I could walk or be at a store in five minutes  If I lived in Fisher it would probably take me 5 mil.  Plus all my friends are here and it’s just better because Im used to Chicago that’s probably also why I like it here in Chicago!

- F who communicated with Fisher Grade School a few times, but not with specific students

By looking at some pictures I saw that they are like us.  They dress just like we do.  Before I thought they were going to be dressed up like cowboys.  Well with overalls.  A better place to live would be in Chicago, because we have a lot of places to have fun.  I am not saying that is boring at Fisher but that we have a lot of buildings and more technology.  I hadn’t been to Fisher maybe that is why I think it would be better in Chicago.  Fisher people might say that it would be better to live in Fisher.

- F who never had any correspondence with specific Fisher students

I think Chicago is a better place to live in.  In Chicago there are more stuff, activities you can do.  There are more events going on here than in Finsher.  Chicago has good schools & great teachers.  Also there are more people living here than there.  Which you can make more friends.

I wouldn’t like living in Fisher.  The way I think of it is that Fisher is a small country town.  I don’t think there are a lot of things to do there, for fun of course.  Yes, there might be some nice people living there & great schools for kids to go to, but for now I think I’ll stick with Chicago.

- F who corresponded a few times with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

The students of Fisher school are great to talk to.  They all seem to like living on farms and raising their own animals!

I think I would rather live in Chicago because my friends are here and I don’t know if I could handle all the farm work.

- F who communicated once with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

 (no post-survey)

From my point of view the people from Fisher are nice people.  And easy to talk to.  They enjoy haveing fun and expression what they feel about where they live.  Maybe not many people live there.  The ones who do live their get along and have good communication.  Also people who could live in a a farm towe maybe are good workers, or hard working people.  Also they seem to like it over there very well and maybe they have good education given to them in Fisher.  Benevolent people and I have nothing bad to say so thats about it.

To me the place to live is Chicago.  I think this way because I am not used to live around farms.  I love to be out alot party and we have more apertunities then they do.  Everything is closer to us: stores, jobs, schools, people and many other nessasary things.

For me it would be hard to have a job or to live were I didn’t have to see new faces new people around.  I don’t know how it is down their but I would like to visit sometime.

Maybe its not that bad after all and I would like more the quiest places ralther than the loud places.  One thing that would make me omove [?] would be that in Chicago we have a higher crime rate than they do.  It would be safer over their.  I have all my family in Chicago, and my friends, a job and school places to go and many people to meet each day what else could I ask for?  I would stay in Chicago rather than Fisher

- F who never communicated with Fisher Grade School

I think it would be nice to live in a place that has less population, because if there are less people, there would be less trouble.  Although I also think that it would be not good to live in a place with less people, because that would cut out many of your opportunities.

I would rather live in Chicago then in Fisher.  This is because, when I am ready to jump into my career I would have more job opportunities.  On other hand in Fish you wouldn’t have as many choices.

- F who communicated once with a specific student at Fisher Grade School

I think that it’s nice living out there but I wouldn’t like to live in a farm town.  They have a-lot of animals they probably help out on the farm.  I like it in Chicago still because you have more things to do then be on a farm.

- F who communicated a few times with Fisher Grade School , but not with specific students

They are normal school like the once in Chicago.  They are kids that work with technology & have fun in what they do.  Chicago is a nice place live.  I got achance to to know these people.  And I am use to the environment.

- F who never communicated with Fisher Grade School

 (no post-survey)

The good points are the small towns look nice and would be a pretty neat place to live because you are surrounded by farms.  Another good point is you get to have a quiet road cause not many cars go by.

Bad points are it’s located out of no where + you could get lost.  The town is small + if the population is big that isn’t good.  The people are possibly just like me + the people that live in other parts of illinois  It really depends on where you want to live +  what kind of town you want to live in. so either places are good.

 - F who communicated once with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

After researching on the internet stuff about Fisher, and the students, it’s not so bad.  At first I thought that the kids were going to look like, and dress like farmers, but they wear clothes kids here in Chicago wear.  They have silos where they storage the grain; and the houses are similiar.  I think that they are more conservitive, than the people here in the city.  Althoug it’s very nice in Fisher, I wouldn’t like to live there, because it’s too deserted, and there’s hardly any cities nearby.  I would like to visit for maybe a week, I think that farms are nice.  Besides that it’s nice.  the fresh air, and the starts at night, the crops, but Chicago is a better place to live.

Chicago has been my home for about six years now.  All the places you can go to there just is enough to do everyday.  There’s parks, theaters, stores, Lake Michigan, and the schools are good.  The schools are air conditioned, there’s a lot of people everywhere you go.  I imagine that Fisher doesn’t since it’s farther down South.  Here in Chicago you can go to baseball games, out dancing on the weekends, there’s the Michael Jordan Restaurant.  Besides places, the people, their cultures, oh ... it’s just incredible to see in Highschool different faces, everyday.

Chicago is definetely better, and you have more opportunities, and as a teenager a lot more fun!

- F who communicated a few times with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

I feel that living in Illinois farm towns are really boring and peacefull.  First, say you were really hungry and you don’t have a car.  Say your craving for some mcdonalds the kid in Fisher school said that 10 miles away their’s a mcdonolds.  Would you whant to walk to miles just to eat or live by the city were fast food restaurants are just around the corner.  The good part of living their is that it’s so peaceful and quit.  It isn’t like over here where their is alot of crime being commited.

I think people over their must have a diffrent accent and maybe dress diffrent.  I would rather live in Chicago because it’s just fun over here.  you can take people out and go to places and over by Central Illinois it seems so boring and dull.  More people come outside then over their.

- M who never communicated with Fisher Grade School

After learning about the students and city Fisher I still have the same feeling about them.  The bad points about living out there is they can’t really enjoy themselves and can’t do what you can do in Chicago.  I don’t think there is any good points except that it’s quiet and no one bothers you.

I think the people who live there are really relaxed and layed back because they don’t have a lot to worry about.  I think Chicago is a way better place to live because there’s more to do and there is so many people to meet and talk to.  In the summer you can go to the beach and kick back and enjoy the nice weather.

- M who communicated a few times with Fisher Grade School, but not with any specific student

I learned that they are not as modern as us and it is not so bad.  I think that we have much more access to fast food restraunt and other things so we have a much easyer life.  They propible live a hard life and work alot around the house.  They also have better thins then us like they probibly dont have to worrie as much as us about crime.

I think it is pretty peacful out there and people get along with one another.  If I had the choice to live eather Fisher or Chicago I woald live in Chicago because I don’t think I could get use to living like them.

- M who communicated only once with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

(no post-survey)

After talking to the students at Fisher school I learned that the good points to living there is the corn maze [maize?].  I think the bad points are that the nerest McDonalds is 10 miles away.  Another good point is the people.  The people who live by Fisher school seem really nice.  A Bad point is they probably don’t have cable.

I think Chicago is a better place to live.  I think so because Chicago has more places to go and things to do in a smaller area.  This is good because you get a lot of choice.  I wouldn’t like to live in a small town because all my friends would live really far away and I couldn’t go to their houses as often.  Finnally I love all the lights in the city.

- M who communicated only once with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

Well the bad thing is that there in open farme land so a tornado can come through, And yo have to work more.  The good thing about small farme towns is you have more fredom because you have more rome then in the city.  The people who live in Fisher are nice Probebly more fun to hange out with.  I thinke Chicago because there are males [malls] and lotse of stores.  But I thinke Fisher because it’s quiet and there are more people to hang out with probely.

- M who communicated a few times with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

Some bad points about living in asmall Central Illinois farm town are that there is not a big population.  The students don’t live near a big city.  People that live their have great manners, go to church, and have fun.  Even though some kids have to work on the farms, they still enjoy life.

I personally wouldn’t have a problem living in either place.  Sometimes I like to just be around many events and have no peace from the big population of people.  Other times I enjoy peace when I want to relax outside. When I want peace, I would prefer to live in a small town like Fisher, when I want to have no peace, and many things to do, I would rather live in Chicago.

 - M who communicated a few times with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

After learning about something about them I can see that they have a some what different life.  I now know that they don’t have the convinenece of having a Mcdonoals at ever[y] stop.  They might not have all the stuff we do but they seem to be fine.  During our connection we didn’t learn much, because we lost comunication, but we go[t] some idea of how it is over their.

Being in a small town may have it[s] advantages and its disadvantages, but it [is] more of a nice town to live in.

 - M who communicated once with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

(no post-survey)

Was not here.

- M who was missing when class communicated with Fisher Grade School

After learning more about Fisher or other different suburbs in South Illinois, I learned that even if there farm land suburbs they are not always as boring as people say.  By communicating with this people I learned the different activitys they do.  I also learned that people like music that we like, not country.  I also learned that they dress decent just like we in Des Plaines do.

Even though I learned the different thoughts that I use to think about Fisher school, I would never like to live there because I am use to the life here in Des Plaines.  The reason I would not move is because here there is more places to go to and I like how the life style is here, and how I already know the city real well.  Now I am not saying Fisher is boring but I don’t think I would get used to living over there.  Thats the reason I thingk Des Plaines and Chicago is a better place to live then Fisher.

- M who communicated a few times with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

I think that living in Chicago is a better life then living in a small Central Illinois farm towns, because schools are better in the city then a farm.  In (Mexico) [my homeland] I used to live in a small ranch it was fun but not as much as the city.  In a small  town kids don’t have a lot of places to go to.  In the city you could go to the park, mall, theater, ect.

- M who communicated a few times with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

I think that there is a lot of bad points of living in a small central Illinois [town].  One thing is that they have small schools.  Another is that they might not have many fast food resturants around the area.  Finally there is alot of work to be done there.  Therefore I think that Chicago is a better place to live because of all ther advantages we have like fast food resturants and stores.  There is more things to do over here in Chicago during your free time.

- M who communicated once with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

I feel that the good points are that you are free and get to do what ever you want.  The bad points about living in a small town, there are not a lot of places to go to.  There are not a lot ofast food places and sporting events.

I think people are farmers and work out side for a living.  Some might work inside as a teacher.  Schools are small.

I feel Chicago would be a better place to live.  There is a lot more to do and a lot more to eat.  More job oppertunties and more schools.

- M who communicated once with specific students at Fisher Grade School (no names given, however)

(no post-survey)

I was interesting learning about some of the countries they studied and researched about.

- M who never communicated with Fisher Grade School but communicated once with Benton

Now that I know more about Fisher school. I know that they have siritan privliges such as they can go run in a fild.  They have nothing to worrie about like for example ganges.

I also learned that they lack of privliges for example thing that we talk for granted like a McDonals.  There nerest McDonals is about 10 mils away and we have one on every other block.  People over there are more seren[e?] and have time to just think.  I would rather much live in chicago than in Fisher because I like to live where the action is.

- F who communicated once with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

(no essay)

- M who communicated once with Fisher Grade School, but not with specific students

The bad points about the life in small central Illinois farm tows is they don’t have access to most of the electric appliances that we have, such as electric powered elevators.  The have grain elevators.  I am not sure if they have telephones, but we have them.  They might not have or make as much money as people in the Chicago land area.  The good points about the life in small central Illinois farm towns is it is very quiet and peaceful.  not that many people around.  I bet corn is inexpensive in that town because there is so much of it growing.

I wasn’t here to see what the people looked like or are like but people told me that the[y] basically wear the same clothes or dress just like us and not like farmers.  I find that very interesting.

In my opinion, I think it would be better to live right where I am now because there are store[s] that we could get our food from that is very close to my house.  We have more people in our community and possibly more opportunities to make money then they do.

- M who was missing when class communicated once with Fisher Grade School