I showed creative thinking when I had to come up with new ideas to solve problems I was dealing with. For example, I was struggling to connect pieces of my clay sculpture together; they kept falling apart and never stuck together. To fix this, I experimented with adding different amounts of water to make the clay wet. With a combination of my testing and with scoring the clay I was successful!
Another way I showed creative thinking was when I came up with ideas for my paintings. When looking at the color palette, I tried to think of what those colors could represent. Then, I looked at Pinterest for lots of inspiration!
In this The Taming of the Shew, the main plot is to try to change or ‘tame’ Katherine so that she can marry. Pertruchio compares Katherine to a wild cat and then plans to tame her as he would with a bird. Birds such as falcons can be controlled to hunt animals (obey their owners). Pertruchio also tried to control and tame Katherine when he refused to let her eat or sleep. This bird represents how Pertruchio views Katherine.
Core Competency Self-Assessment
Since I couldn’t rewatch the two movies, I struggled to find quotes. However, I did not give up. I looked up a bunch of websites to find popular quotes until I found the quotes I needed. I also paraphrased scenes that I could remember. Another challenge I faced was trying to find photos from the movies, especially the 1967 version, which isn’t very popular. To overcome that, I tried different search engines and I tried to change the words I searched. I think overall I was very successful and I am happy with how my PowerPoint turned out.
I think I did really well in my Math class. This year I took a 9/10 accelerated course. So, I struggled with many of the topics. However, I didn’t give up. I studied afterschool a lot and I asked my teacher for support. In the end I was successful and I even go an A in that class!
I think I really improved my organizational skills. This year the workload definitely increased. However, I think I was able to stay on top of my work and I think I was really successful .
I think I improved my artistic skills this year. This semester, I am taking Art 9. I really enjoy art but I was nervous to try unfamiliar mediums such as painting and especially clay. However, I think I have really improved from where I used to be and I am proud of that.
Areas to Improve
Goals
Action Plans
I want to improve my physical skills.
I am definitely not an athletic person so I found that I struggled this year in gym. So next year, I will try to practice the sports we are learning and I will ask others for tips.
I want to be a few minutes early to my classes.
I will make a plan to figure out how much time I need to get ready and get to school. Then, I will follow that schedule. I will also try to pack my backpack the day before so I can just get up and go.
I want to participate more in my classes.
Sometimes I get nervous to speak up in class. Nevertheless, I will try to push myself to speak up even when I am nervous.
This year I really enjoyed the wide variety of classes. It was nice to have a bunch of different types of classes throughout the day because it gave me a break from some of my harder classes. Overall, I think my favorite class was probably Spanish. I really enjoy learning languages and I thought this class was really fun! Another class I really have enjoyed is Art. I think it is very relaxing and I have really enjoyed learning different techniques I can apply to my own artwork.
Over this year, I think I have really improved my studying and note-taking skills. Some of my classes were really hard, but I think I was able to succeed in those classes because I studied a lot. For example, I took Math 9/10 Accelerated and that was definitely the most difficult course I took. Since most of what we learned was completely brand new to me I was constantly trying to understand what teacher was talking about. However, I spent a lot of time studying and practicing what we were learning so that I could fully comprehend what we were doing. In addition, I found it useful to write out every rule for the different types of math we were learning. So, while I did struggle in that class, I think I was really successful in the end!
I think the website I used the most in school this year was ZoteroBib, a bibliography generator. In most of my assignments, especially in ADL, I have used it to help me correctly cite my work. I think it is really useful and I will probably continue to use it for the rest of my school life.
Favorite Video
For Biology I made this stop motion video of the four stages of Mitosis. I am really proud of this video and I am really happy with how it turned out. I was not super familiar with stop motion before this project, but now; after the many hours of working on this project, I have definitely learned to appreciate this medium. I think I was able to overcome a lot of problems.
This picture is from the first ADL project I completed this year. I choose this picture because I am really proud of how this turned out. I made this image using Canva, which I had never used before. Because of this, I struggled to learn how to properly use the app. However, I didn’t give up and I kept trying until I was proud of the finished project. So, I think this image demonstrates my perseverance.
My Favorite Quote
“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
– Wayne Gretzky – Michael Scott
– Madeleine G
I think this is a well-known quote that is very useful in my schooling. I think that this can help me because sometimes I can struggle to take risks, but when I think of this quote it can help motivate me to take those risks and then have a chance of being successful!
This is my stop-motion video that demonstrates a cell going through mitosis.
If you have ever created a stop motion video, you will understand how long and frustrating creating one can be. So when I was feeling frustrated, I developed multiple ways to stay more productive and calmer. One way I did this was by splitting up the project into steps. This helps me to stay motivated because I can see all the steps I have done which lets me feel like I’m successful. Another way I try stay calm is by listening to music because this helps me to tune out so that I can just focus on the project. Finally, when doing a time consuming project like this, I think it is very important to take breaks because I find that if I don’t, I tend to rush the project. However, if I take breaks, I will feel more energized so that I can do my best work.
I think one major skill I learned is perseverance. I really wanted to do a good job on this project, however, it took a very, very long time to finish. A lot of the time I just wanted to rush it so that I could just be done with it. However, I learned to persevere and continue to do a good job so that I can be proud of my work. I think this is a very important skill to learn so that I can do my best work in everything I do.
· Explain how you figured out what your Avatar would look like.
For this movie, I create the Cole Avatar. In the book, it mentions that Cole is 15 years old and looks quite young. So, I tried to make him look young. I also made him wear a hoodie because he is a teenager and that is what most teenagers wear. They never specified what he looked like so I just made him look generic, with brown hair and brown eyes.
· How did you choose the plot points?
Despite Peter Driscal having very few lines in the book, he is quite a prominent character. There were multiple scenes with him so we included all of those scenes. Also, we added some points that were only mentioned briefly such as when he goes to therapy or when Circle Justice asked Peter and his family if they thought Cole would change.
· Explain how you figured out the setting in your story. Why is the setting significant to the story?
While the setting changes repeatedly, the main setting is the Alaskan island that Cole is sent to. We learned that when Garvey, Cole’s parole officer told him he would be sent to an island in Alaska. This setting is very important because Cole learns to be compassionate and he starts to become a better person. The Island taught him that it wasn’t all about him. I think Cole realized that the island is good for him because he saw the changes in his personality and asked to go back.
· Explain what the word mood means and how/why you picked the song that you picked?
The word mood means, a state of mind or a particular feeling. So our group tried to pick a song that’s mood is calm. I think this fits because the book isn’t a very happy book so we wanted a song that wasn’t really peppy. In addition, I think this song helps the viewer focus.
Core Competency Reflection
I select images and words to create impact for different audiences by first trying to figure out what exact mood or vibe I am going for. Then, if I am trying to find words, I often use a thesaurus to try and find the perfect words. If I am trying to find images, I often scroll through google images and I also change what words I use when I’m searching so that I can get exactly what I need.
When I need to boost my mood or re-focus, I like to listen to music because I find that music can change my mood, so I sometimes will listen to music to feel happier and calmer. Also, when I really can’t seem to focus, I will take a break from what I am doing and either relax or move on to something different.
Some skills I have developed to make my creative activities better are being able to experiment. I think that this is really important because it can help me to go out of my comfort zone and try things I wouldn’t have thought of doing before. Also, I think also my ability to collaborate helps me to work with others so that we can all work together and combine our creative skills.
Over the past few months, we have learned a lot, but I think one really important thing I have learn is what Mr. Ruzycki calls, “The Secret To Life”. This secret is to find a work that I really enjoy so that it will feel like I’m actually not working a day in my life.
I want to teach others about the Bible. That is something I really enjoy and is what I will like to do when I grow up. To support myself while I do that, I want to be an Educational Assistant. I really like to work with kids, and so I think that this would really make me happy.
Traditions – Unlike my home country, Venezuela does have some superstitious traditions. For example, they believe that if you wear red on New Year’s you will find love and if you carry a briefcase you will become rich. Also, Venezuela and Canada both tend to lean to a more formal culture. It is very important to be respectful.
Sports/Athletes – Baseball is Venezuela’s national sport, it is very popular! They have eight major league teams as opposed to one major league team in Canada. They also have some traditional sports that are often played during festivals such as Toros Coleados, where a person on horseback chases a bull and Bolas Criollas, where players throw a ball as close to a target ball as possible. In Canada, we have two national sports, ice hockey and lacrosse.
Landmarks – Both Venezuela have waterfalls as a major landmark. Niagara Falls, the most powerful waterfall in the world and Angel Falls which is the tallest interrupted waterfall in the entire world! Venezuela has another incredible landmark, the Catatumbo lightning. Catatumbo lightning is an awe-inspiring phenomenon that happens 300 days a year at the same time every day! After sunset, lightning will strike Lake Maracaibo and Catatumbo River about twenty-eight times a minute! Both Venezuela and Canada are known for their incredible landforms!
Holidays/Traditions – Venezuela has many holidays and festivals which involve dancing, music and other special traditions. In Canada, they don’t really have many holidays and festivals, especially in British Columbia.
Music/Art – In Venezuela, music has always been very important historically, one of the two most popular genres of music are El Polo and Joropo. In Canada, a lot of people like rock. The guitar is very common in both of these countries.
As you can see, Venezuela and Canada are quite distinct, but they do have a lot of similarities!
Core Competency Reflection
I can ask open-ended questions to gather information. This project required a lot of research, but I feel that I was fairly successful in learning about Venezuela. I tried to divide what I wanted to learn into sections and then use those questions to ask open-ended questions. This helped me to find information that I wouldn’t have expected to learn.
I can take on roles and responsibilities in my group; I do my share. For this country project, I worked with a partner. There was a lot research to do so we divided up subjects to research by taking turns choosing ones we wanted to learn more about. Also, we each took a day to bring our poster board home to work on it. I think that we successfully divided up the work so that we each had an equal share.
I can understand and share information about a topic of interest in a clear, organized way. I think that I did a really good job sharing the information in a clear way. When writing my paragraphs, I tried to organize them so that they flowed really nicely. Also, we took a lot of time to think about how to place our paragraphs on the poster so that it would make sense. We put similar topics on the same side so that it would be easier to read.
I can persevere over time to develop my ideas, and I expect setbacks and failure, but use that to develop my ideas. Sometimes I was struggling to find the right information. For example, I was struggling to find accurate information about their money. There was a lot of contradicting information but I didn’t give up. I tried to ask my questions in a different format and eventually I was able to find accurate, up to date information!
I need to work on showing a sense of accomplishment and joy. I need to take pride in my work and myself. Sometimes I can be really down on myself and I think it is important to see how far I’ve come in the past semester. I will try to look for accomplishments I have, even if they are small accomplishments. This will help me have a positive attitude.
This is the down payment if there was some downturn in the stocks.This is the down payment plan if there was no downturn in stocks.
Justification
I think that this solution was a pretty good way to approach this project. I don’t like to risk a lot so I put about 60% of my money into the GIC to keep it safe. Then, I put the rest into stocks. Even if the stocks went down a little bit, I would have enough to cover the cost as shown above. This solution could have the potential to earn a lot more money but if the stocks completely crashed, I would only be about $900 short which I could either borrow or take out of any backup savings. I think I would be willing to take that risk. When comparing this solution with the other options my group came up with, I choose one that is perfect for my risk tolerance.
Collaboration and Communication
I think I worked pretty well with my group. I would rate myself a 4 in my collaboration because I participated a lot. I listened to others ideas and I shared my own. I helped calculate our answers and I also helped writing out the answers. I think my partners and I all did a good job working together. In the end, I did not use the ideas we came up with because I felt that the risk was too high for me personally. However, I did put some of my money into stocks just like we had done in our original ideas because I learned that the stocks can earn a lot of money fast.
Core Competency Reflection
I can work with others to achieve a goal.
I worked with my group by trying to help the group have clear communication. I listened to my groups ideas and I added my own ideas to come up with a good solution. We also worked together when we were trying to figure out some problems we were experiencing. One problem was that our ideas kept being $100 too short. After looking at other ideas, we were able to achieve our goal of coming up with a successful solution.
I seek, develop and weigh options as demonstrated by…
While working on this project my group and I came up with multiple ideas. However, none of them worked for me. But, when we came up with these ideas I was able to develop my understanding in this subject. For example, I learned how useful stocks are and so I put a part of my money into stocks which allowed me to get more money overall. So after looking at the results of the options, I weighed my options and choose a safer route.
I consider more than one way to proceed in an investigation.
In this project we were asked to come up with multiple solutions for this project, that way we could find the best one that would work with our own personal risk levels. When we worked together, we tried multiple options that were quite different such as, putting our money into GIC, or all into stocks, etc. While there were a few options I considered, I ended up choosing a fairly safe one that worked for me since I prefer not to take large risks.
When it seems the good ideas just won’t come to me, I …. to help calm myself or create space in my mind to…
Sometimes I find it difficult to come up with ideas. To deal with that, I will sometimes take a step back and try to approach it from a different angle. This is really helpful since I can get too focused on the issue that I can’t see the other sides of it, but when I take a step back I can see all the other ways I can approach it. Another way I try to find new ideas is to ask for someone else’s viewpoint. That is why I appreciated the fact that we got to work together in a group; then we could see everyone’s different viewpoint which is super helpful in projects like these.
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