Saturday, February 23, 2019

Week Four - Back to work folks - due Friday March 1 by 11:59 pm

Cairnes, Queensland, Australia (photo-Bent)
Week Four is here, and that means when we come back from February vacation, you will only have another seven (7) weeks of "seat" time in class.  YIKES!  You are beginning to think more deeply and looking forward towards the horizon, or at least I hope you are.

1. Where does the project and the research paper overlap? Tell me about it. 

2. Make a plan for yourself for the month of March....write a real plan on your calendar.  Make time for the research, the reading, working on your project proposal, and making project connections. Use this month wisely because it is your LAST FULL MONTH of high school.  Accomplish what you will be proud of and what you want others to be proud of you for. Take a picture of the calendar and paste it here.

3. Tell me how I can help....what do you need from me? Share that here. 



You do not want to be caught...out of breath and in a knot, just hanging around waiting for the work to be done... (Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, Australia. (photo Bent)

Monday, February 11, 2019

Week Three: Perspective,Time Management, and Challenges due Friday February 15th by 11:59 pm

Looking at the world through different perspectives, Narragansett, RI ( photo credit Bent)

Perspective:

Have you thought about how you look at things, or approach tasks?  If you notice this beautiful stone structure above has a variety of windows.  They all look out over Scarborough Beach in Narragansett, but each window provides a different view.  What I would like you to do this week is work on different ways to approach your tasks....find a different "view".  For example, when you are researching the topic for your paper, try a variety of sources.  Do not just stick with one, shop around the data bases, and see what you can find.  Yes, you will have to do a little tedious work, meaning reading so that you can make an informed decision as to whether you will use it or not.  No getting around this folks. 

1.  Respond:
How do you approach data base searches?  Be honest here.g
How much time have you and will you spend on these searches?
Which data bases did you use and why?
How was/is the frustration level during your search?
If you change the way you search, would that alleviate your frustration? Explain what you can do....
Be honest, how much progress are you making on acquiring journal articles to read?

Time:

It is one of those things that we either think we have a lot of it, or we think we do not have enough of it.

2. Respond:
How do you manage time? Think about this questions in terms of "activities you like"and activities you must do".
Give me a typical day, and how you designate time before and after school?
Where and how can you improve your time management? Be realistic, and be truthful.
What does time management look like to you? Show me a picture......What I want here is YOUR CALENDAR filled out...yes, the one I gave you.


Challenges:

Dana's (my daughter) roommate, Emily,  is a member of the Bristol Fire Department.  When I asked her, (Emily), how and why she joined the department, she said that she had the same type of opportunity you, (yes you my class), had when she was a senior in high school.  At the time she could not imagine joining a fire department.  After some consideration, and a willingness to do something so far out of her comfort zone, she joined a junior fire academy in her home town as part of her leadership class.  Fast forward to college:  she liked the experience in high school, so she joined the department in Bristol., and has been a member for the past three years.  In addition, she added EMT to her resume because of an opportunity in the Bristol Fire Department.

How one connection leads to an opportunity....

My daughter, pictured in Emily's firefighter outfit, is also part of the Bristol Fire Department.  Because of Emily, she too decided to go WAY out of her comfort zone last year.  She is now in her second year as a member of the rescue squad.  She is an ambulance driver/first responder.....she too took a chance, challenged herself, and chose to do something really out of her comfort zone.

By the way, Emily is a public health major, and Dana is an education major...neither one wants a career in fire fighting, but they wanted something new and different for the experience.  My point is, make yourself uncomfortable, and try to do something that challenges you in this class.


Taking a risk, trying something new...getting out of your comfort zone (photo credit Bisanti)


Bristol Fire and Rescue giving back in the Bristol-Warren School District (photo credit Bristol FD)

3. Respond...think about Emily and Dana stories.
What will you do that is challenging and out of your comfort zone during this class....or what do you think you will do?
What might scare you about this challenge? (Being uncomfortable is good....it means you are challenging yourself)
What sounds exciting and do able during this class?
What might hold you back?

Initial responses due by Friday February 15th by 11:59 pm, with secondary responses due Sunday February 17th by 11:59. 

Sunday, February 3, 2019

Week Two-Digging deeper into ideas....formulating plans Due Friday February 8 @ 11:59

Heading into week two should not look as relaxing as Ollie's pose...(photo credit Bent)

By the end of week two you will need to have a basic idea of a project and a basic idea of a research topic. This does not mean that you need to have the whole thing hammered out, but you will need to be able to show effective progress.  This will look like:

1. A simple plan born of your original idea-written out and uploaded to Google classroom

  • In a sentence or two, put your project plan here, so we can all see it and be excited for you.

2. A book that you will be reading connected in some way to your project.

  • Show me a picture of your book, and tell me why you decided to read it-your thoughts might help others to find a book.

3. An idea for a research paper that connects to the project and the book you are reading.  For example if you are interested in landscaping, you might have a plan to do some landscaping, and you have decided to read a book about a famous landscaper.....your research project could be about how the history of professional landscaping or how flowers and plants improve people's moods
  • What is your idea? Tell us, and share a picture that connects to your research

4. How are you feeling week two? Be honest-we are all in this together and are here to help one another.  You might be surprised how many others share some of your feelings of success or frustration in week two of this class.

5. As you have already discovered, there is time on your own in this class.  How are you going to commit to "time used wisely" here?  Explain








Week Fourteen - No response needed, I just want to share my reflection on this class

Photo Credits Bent: The Welcome Rock, St. Patrick, Grenada, British West Indies I chose this picture because it was a hike my daug...