This project was fun, especially with my group members, Paulina Sanchez and Zulema Maldonado. We got along well as were able to work hard together. Splitting the work, listening to each other, helping, we all did everything for the project together. Zulema took more interest and work ethic to the actual roller coaster, Paulina focused more on the worksheets for Physics, and I put a lot of work and effort into the CYOA in Humanities. We did work a lot, we helped each other so much, and we always talked with each other before doing anything. For growth, I would think I need to be more flexible, work more harder, and to push myself to go outside what I normally am good at.
In Humanities, I learned more about organization as well as a choose your own adventure type writing with fiction in a historical event. For my presentation, it was messy and long, but after the critique as well as everyone else's presentation, I learned more about what to bullet point, what to add, etc. Our Choose Your Own Adventure was a new experience and it was fun to practice a different theme as well as write fiction during a historical event. I had to use analytical, reading, and writing skills to research, write, and learn about the revolution we chose.
In Physics, I learned a bit about energy and the equations to figure out Gravitational Potential Energy, Kinetic Energy, and Mechanical Energy. For our roller coaster, I used the equations to input the information for the energy audit. It showed a little about whether or not the marble would actually be able to pass through certain parts, as we weren't sure due to the rollercoaster being more artistic than functional.
In Engineering, I learned more about the prototype of a product and the actual creation of it. I was able to create a low-res prototype made out of cardboard and tape with my group members, complete with a dual track, wall, loop, funnel, camel back, etc. We had to fix it again for the final version but it looked nice. For our final, we worked a lot with brazing the connecting pieces to the heavy gauge wire for our track before one of my partners, Zulema, had a brilliant idea for a different type of track and it worked. We used paper mache and chicken wire for the wall, and we used fake flowers, glitter, and broken CDs for the decoration. It's a very pretty product and we were able to use a lot of the tools, such as the laser cutter and the scroll saw.
Exhibition was really fun! I really enjoyed being able to be out of school, with my classmates, and sharing the very products we worked on for three weeks, some not even finished. The people were nice, and everyone looked like they were enjoying themselves. Our final product was definitely more artistic and aesthetically pleasing to the eye than fully functional, but there was one part that worked. We weren't able to finish the blueprints in time for the exhibition but I really liked the sign, the decoration for the roller coaster, the mini brochures, and the CYOA. I worked really hard on all of them and most of my work was in those products bu I felt like I could've worked a bit harder or helped more in the actual track for the roller coaster. With our five 9th grade learning outcomes: work ethic, collaboration, oral communication, written communication, content knowledge in mind, I would probably grade myself an A-. I worked really hard, putting every big and little thing into account; I worked very well with my group members, there were no fights and we helped each other out; I researched and wrote so much, from the revolution and the presentations to the Choose Your Own Adventure, but I really need to improve on oral communication. My presentation was sloppy and I didn't really bullet point correctly, and I was more toward the paper than the audience. But I tried to improve by the time of the exhibition and I did get a little better, I got a lot of information to the audience and I was able to talk about our project to total strangers. Though, I learned a lot about my revolution, the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, I wasn't able to learn much about modern time and the ideas that still exist. Especially with Trump and outside of the US, I would like to know more, and I would like to have more recognition for the CYOAs, because a lot of people worked long and hard fro that but we weren't really able to show it for the exhibition or otherwise.