What's Sofia Thinking About?

 Do you study with or without music? Personally for me, it kind of depends on where I'm at and what subject I'm working on. I'll listen to music while taking notes or completing some assignments, but with things like writing a paper or studying flashcards, I have to have quiet. I see people all the time with earbuds or headphones on while the study and do homework, but I really want to know if it helps increase productivity. What do you think? While music can put us in a better mood, thus increasing productivity and motivation to get things done, it can also be distracting and make us procrastinate. It really depends on the type of music you listen to. Many studies have been created to analyze this concept, which has lead to interesting finds and theories about the relationship between music and studying. For example, research has shown that listening classical music such as Mozart actually improves test scores, and this was backed up by the evidence found in the study, whi...

  I'm pretty sure were all familiar with different type of clinical rehabilitation. If you're an athlete, you may have ended up in physical therapy once or twice due to an injury. There's occupational therapy that helps aid in daily physical and cognitive skills. Speech therapy helps aid the development of speech and language. But there's one branch of therapy that not many people know much of, and that's music therapy. Music therapy is a way to reduce stress and improve mood and self expression. It can be used sometimes in clinical settings, and I feel most people have little understanding of how it actually helps people. What is Music Therapy?     As previously mentioned, music therapy "involves the clinical use of music to accomplished individualized goals such as reducing stress, improving mood, and self-expression". It provides treatment to everyone, but is especially beneficial to those who suffer with depression and anxiety, and it can also help imp...

 I saw online this journal prompt, and it was, "If you could relive any day but only pick 1, which one would you pick to relive one more time?". Well, here's my answer: I want to go back to the day March 12, 2020. While it's a rather recent date, it's a day that I will never forget and will always be held close to my heart. It was a day I realized who I was, and I let go of a part of me that should've been gone a long time ago. This day was day #3 of my senior year retreat; we had no phones, no technology. It was just me, my friends, and the world around us. Our brains were turned off from the chaotic mess we left at home, and we just spent time in each others' presence. During the retreat, we laughed, we cried (and I mean bawled our eyes out), we goofed off, we got serious, we got to know each other more, and we learned more about ourselves than ever before. The self-realization we experienced was unreal, and I will forever be grateful for that. There was...

 So I've mentioned in the beginning of the semester that I am a soccer coach. As a recap, I'll repeat that I work for a franchise called Soccer Shots, and it's a non-competitive soccer program in which I teach kids the very basic fundamentals of soccer. I started coaching in December 2019, and it's probably one of the best things I look forward to all the time. I get to work with the kids and teach them about my favorite sport, and I'm getting paid to do it (lol). But seriously speaking, I genuinely love interacting with kids because of their wild imagination and the pure joy they have every time I see them.  There are three age groups that I coach, each having a fun name along with different levels of learning. Each age groups interacts with me so differently and uniquely, and I just find that so interesting. The first age group is the "Mini's" (2-3yrs). Now I know that seems a little young to start a sport, and the common thought is that they really ...

 Over these past couple of weeks, my English/Composition class got in groups and worked on a project in which each group picks an organization to support. Once the organization was picked, we had to find an area in which we can help them out, whether it be funding, awareness, etc. It was a rather interesting project because each group was able to come together and uses their different skills and abilities to create a project from scratch. There were many parts of this project, including conducting an interview, creating a deliverable, and present out proposal to an audience. To be able to see each project unfold into its own unique thing was very cool (and also satisfying) to see. In writing aspect of it, I feel like it opened my eyes to a new style and format writing, and I found that I like to write in the context of spreading awareness of something.  As a writer, I can say that I saw some improvement in my writing style during this project. By writing up a memo, I became fa...

  "What is something you'd like to experience, but don't think you ever will?" I want to experience the celebration of Día de los Muertos in Mexico. It's just a beautiful celebration, with an even more beautiful meaning. I hope to one day experience it with my favorite people, so that they too can see the beauty in this part of Mexican culture. To provide some background, Día de los Muertos is a two-day holiday that honor our beloved that have passed away, and this day essentially reunites the living and the dead. It's a day to celebrate your passed-on loved ones, and remember all the good they have done. One tradition on this holiday is the creation of an "Ofrenda". Translating to "offerings", this is an altar created by family to set up pictures and treats for their late families. These altars also include Marigold flowers, and the purpose of these altars are to encourage visits from the land of the dead. Another ubiquitous tradition of D...