“Thank you for coming to my presentation of learning. I am the expert on my own learning. I am also responsible and accountable for my own learning. You can expect me to give an honest evaluation of my progress. We will discuss my strengths and opportunities for growth. Thank you in advance for listening and for offering feedback that I can use to improve further as a learner.”
My Journey Through PLP So Far
During the duration of the first semester I have come a long way in growth and learning. When the semester first started it felt like a lot ahead of me but as I progressed through the semester, things got easier and I grew in areas that could have improved in last year. As I was completing the projects inside PLP, I learned how to manage my time better than ever. Back in grade seven, we got close to no homework, nothing compared to this year. When I first started getting homework this year, it was stressful, but over the first month, I learned the skills to overcome this.
My Learning Plan
In my learning plan, my statement of learning intent was to get a better understanding of technology and how to incorporate it into my learning. I’m would also like to make a lot of new friends because I’m in a new school with a ton of interesting people. In humanities 8, my goal was to get extending and I wanted to grow past my comfort zone and be able to study at home more. For maker, my goal was to get accomplished and I wanted to sit with new people and cooperate with my classmates better
Projects We Did
The first major project we did was the book report on the outsiders. For this project, we read the outsiders book, one chapter a day until we were done, then we had to recreate a book cover with our read ding groups. I found this project great because it connected me with people I’ve never had the chance to get to know. I made a lot of new friends that have helped me throughout the rest of the semester. To make the book cover, we recreated a scene from the book in real life. We had costumes and props and worked together to make the picture, then edit it on keynote. Although, out of all my projects, this is the one I’m least proud of because I was new to everything and if I were to do it again, I could probably do it better.
After the outsiders project we got introduced to posting on our blog. At first, I had no idea how to do anything, I was really confused, and I wasn’t looking forward to that class. As Time progressed and I started adding more projects on my blog, I got to know the software quite well, and now I look forward to posting on my blog. Some projects that I posted on my blog, that helped me get comfortable with the software were, becoming a PLP learner, Making interesting images, and my skiing Geek Out Blog
The next project we did was on the Crusades and Middle Ages. For this project we had to create two Keynotes, one on the Crusades, and one on the Middle Ages. In this project, I think I demonstrated growth on my ability to Make presentations. Throughout elementary school, I found that making presentations was hard and they weren’t in depth. This year though, I tried to change my style on making presentations and it worked. I am really proud of these presentations and they mark a new chapter in my skill of making presentations.
Keystone 2 < Middle Ages Crusades > The Crusades
Now finally, the project I’m most proud of, Pandora’s box. Pandora’s box is essentially an environment that we build inside a box based of our theme statement. My theme statement was “when riches are at stake, humans can prioritize force over their morals”, so I made my box relate to that. During the actual presentation itself, there was a lot of standing but it was great for my public speaking skills. I met a lot of my friends parents and the transformation of the room we made was amazing. The reason I’m so proud of this project is because of how organized I was and that made the project easier and I learned a lot of new skills like, planning what materials I will get ahead of time, public presentation, and building a sick box.
What do I Enjoy and Find Difficult?
What do I Find difficult in PLP?
Despite how fun and creative the PLP program is, there are still difficult areas where I struggle. One of those difficult areas is using Basecamp. I find it really hard sometimes to follow the teacher in Basecamp because of the number of links and pages it can get confusing sometimes, and therefor, makes it harder to access the assignment that we are doing. Another thing I find difficult is the workload. PLP comes with a lot more homework than other classes and sometimes that can be overwhelming. Don’t get me wrong though, PLP is amazing and for me there are more pros than cons.
What do I Enjoy in PLP
In PLP there are a lot of things I love that my other classes don’t have. First of all, I love that PLP is textbook free and that everything is digital, I can type and draw faster and better on a iPad rather than paper. The second I love in PLP is how social it is, We almost always have a group project and we get put in random groups at the beginning of each lesson which I find great because I can meet and talk to people who didn’t go to my school before grade 8. The last major thing I think sets PLP apart from other classes, and what I like the most is how simple it is. The reason I love PLP so much is because you don’t need to go through your backpack and find textbooks and paper, instead, its all within an app or a couple clicks.
My Transition From Grade 7 to Grade 8
My Transition
My time in grade 7 compared to what I have done so far in grade 8 is so different. In grade 7 my class had 6 different teachers and a thousand substitutes. Everything was all over the place and we never stayed on one subject for more than a couple weeks, at the time, my grades weren’t the best either and as a result, my grade 7 class was very difficult and chaotic. After all the graduation parties and events it was summer and I was really happy that grade 7 was over. Throughout most of the summer though, I was worried and stressed for grade 8 because it was going to be a big new school with a bunch of new kids, but I tried to not let the stress effect my summer break. The couple weeks before school started, my mindset started to change, and I started to look forward to high school and started to think it would be interesting, new, and exiting, and I was right. Over the first couple weeks of high school, there was a lot of new subjects that I didn’t have in elementary school and it was a lot to take in. Later, I started to realize how big the workload was going to be. In elementary school, I never got much homework, and in grade 7, since I had so many different teachers, they all had different opinions on homework, so my schedule wasn’t very consistent. After I started to settle in to high school, I began to see the big picture of everything that was happening and it all started to make sense.
Why I like High School more than grade 7
I like High school more than my elementary school for a lot of reasons, Firstly, There are a lot more students then my elementary so I can make a lot of new friends. Secondly, There is a way larger variety in classes. In elementary school, we would have 3 terms with all the same subjects, in one classroom, all day. In High school, we get to go in between classrooms, have a different period arrangement everyday, and have new classes every semester.
What Does My Work Reveal About Me As a Learner
This year, I have growed an insane amount compared to last year, and I have discovered some new interesting things about me that I didn’t know before. In high school, there is a much bigger workload than elementary school and at first that was really challenging, but as the year progressed, I have developed a new skill I have never done good at before, finishing my homework. Throughout grade 6 and 7, I was never the best and handing in homework on time, or at all, I had a lot of catch up, sloppy work, rushing, and stress. At the beginning of this year, I thought it was going to be the same, but it wasn’t, I was doing my homework just fine and well. Not only was I finishing my work properly, but I was getting better grades, and everything was just working out like magic. In my opinion, the reason everything turned out great in the end, was because of the new environment, it was like a fresh start. I also had knew that high school grades mattered so I knew I couldn’t fail and I was really motivated and had really supportive teachers and friends to work together with.
Another thing that my work has revealed about myself is that, If I am organized, and plan everything, I can accomplish anything. During my time in PLP we have been introduced to so many new apps, one of them being “things”. Things is a note taking app that I have used immensely since I got introduced to it. In past years I NEVER took notes, and this year, I’ve been taking more notes then I can count. This year, I have taken notes on all my homework and other tasks I need to remember. The last major skill I have learned this year is blogging, in fact, your reading one of my blogs right now! When we first started blogging, I had no clue how it worked and I was really confused, but after publishing my first couple blogs, I got the hang of it, and I enjoy sharing my work to the world very much. So in conclusion, the skills I have learned this year are: note taking, organizing, managing homework, handing in assignments on time, and blogging, but what does this reveal about me as a learner? All these new skills I have learned this year show that, as a learner, I am adaptive, a problem solver, creative, I catch on, catch up, I am able to mange work, and most importantly, cooperate with others and take the inspiration I need to help myself grow.
Thank you for reading my mPOL! I am happy to share my journey through PLP so far and all the new skills and areas of growth I have learned and developed. I have enjoyed this first semester more than any of my years in elementary school and I believe I have come such a far way since this semester started. Thank you for reading my mPOL.