Introduce parents to teachers

“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 as a learner.”

First Semester Projects/ Mpol Recap:

In the first semester of school we did many projects, the themes of those varying from japanese internment, to the BC gold rush. We did however only have Humanities as a PLP subject, when this semester we had Humanities, Maker and PGP.

Ology of Apology:

We had a project called “Ology of Apology” taught by Ms. Pitches (or Alexis) this year. It involved analyzing past wrongdoings by the Canadian government against foreign individuals, focusing on racism. We watched apology videos regarding racist acts from the early 1900s and assessed their adequacy. We then chose one of three tragedies in BC, such as the Chinese head tax, Japanese internment during WW2, or the Komogata Maru. I researched Japanese internment and discovered the government’s racist and greedy actions. The project aimed to answer how we can keep apologies for past wrongs alive to prevent their repetition. Public awareness is crucial in achieving this and presenting our learnings during the exhibition allows us to reach a broader audience.

BC Gold:

BC Gold (or Gold Digger) was a project about the BC gold rush from 1851-1898. We went over all the different groups that were involved in the gold rush, like Europeans, Americans, African Americans, Chinese, etc. We went over the bad conditions that they had to face and all the racism at the time. But in the end I found the project to be very informative and it definitely expanded my learning on the history of the province that I grew up in. This project also forced me to research for projects in more depth, which would ultimately help me for my Power Of Imagination project.

Loon Lake Vol.2:

This year we went back to Loon Lake for another field study, but unlike last year, I actually enjoyed it. This time around It was introduced to us as a leadership training boot camp. But on the bus ride up there nobody had high expectations, besides the teachers. Another thing that was different compared to last year is that we started doing “work” right away when we got there. Now the basic run down of each day when we were there is the following. 7 am wake-up, basketball for 20 mins, breakfast, workshop, lunch, activity, workshop, dinner, workshop, basketball, sleep. Some days we got more free time than others but I would still just play some basketball in the gym. The highlights of the trip were the meals, building better bonds with some of my friends, watching the movie “Killer Bean” and the last night time workshop with Jono.

Romeo and Juliet:

Our last project of the semester was Romeo and Juliet, which I was excited about. However, it didn’t meet my high expectations. Instead of a full live performance, we did a modernized scene from the play. Despite this, the project was still enjoyable. We read scenes from the original play and explored adaptations like Gnomeo and Juliet and Romeo + Juliet. We documented the connections of the movies in a theme book. My group chose to modernize Act I, Scene V, reenacting the Party scene with a Future vs. Past twist.

Second Semester Proejcts:

Unlike the semester prior, we were doing multiple projects at a time, so the timeline is a little hard to go through. However, the first project we did in Humanities and Maker were the best ones that I’ve done in my whole highschool experience.

Power of Imagination:

This and the maker projects that we were doing simultaneously, were the two best projects that I’ve ever done. I’ve aways been a big fan of Disney movies, Disney parks and Walt Disney himself, and when I heard that we were doing a project about it, I exploded with joy. To start the project we researched the Disney corporation as a whole. Learning about Walt Disney’s early days, his struggle in the movie industry, his early successes, and much more really broadened our perspectives on the Disney corporation. Soon we found out that our final product would be a short documentary about an aspect of the Disney parks, and I hoped that I would be able to make one about animatronics. That dream soon became reality when my group chose to do just that. Everyday after that we would get togther in class and prepare scripts, call sheets and story boards for our decumentary, which would be filmed in the actual Disney Parks at DisneyWorld. For a few weeks we were researching all things about animatronics and special effects at all 4 DisneyWorld Parks. We planned out every shot we wanted to film, we made everyone’s scripts, and we assigned who was doing what in post production. So then it was time to leave for DisneyWorld, my all-time favourite field trip. While we were there, we got togther a few times to make sure we were on track, and everyone was doing their role perfectly. We got all the shots we needed and all the interviews.

Disney Trend Videos:

In grade 8, I noticed a TikTok logo in my PLP class, which made me think things would get weird. However, the current TikTok project turned out to be enjoyable. The final product involved creating short trend videos, but with a unique twist: they were filmed in Disney World. This project became the most fun one in PLP so far, combining TikTok and having fun with friends. Initially, I found the project confusing, but when our teacher showed us a TikTok titled “Gas or Ass,” I realized she was serious. We researched potential trend video ideas, which allowed us to browse TikTok in class. I quickly generated a list of ideas and prepared for filming in Disney World. Additionally, we were tasked with creating a checklist to ensure timely completion. While there were a few videos I wished to redo due to lighting and rushed circumstances, overall, I was satisfied with the final videos. This project taught me that I’m not always going to get the result that I want, but I have to make the most of what I have if there’s not option for a redo.

Mr Harris PGP (basically a normal careers class)

My friends have been talking about Careers classes since grade 8, and this unit lived up to my expectations. I wanted to learn about resumes, cover letters, budgeting, and universities. Before this unit, I had no idea about my future school options, costs, or savings required. The first assignment, Craft Opportunities, made me consider my career choices and the university programs needed to achieve them. It made me realize the competitiveness of schools like Western and the variety of career paths available. Creating resumes turned out to be enjoyable, and I made two versions, one with a headshot. This exercise helped me view myself positively and reflect on my achievements and extracurricular activities. Making business cards, including funny ones, was a long-time desire of mine, and this assignment allowed me to fulfill it. Lastly, the job interview preparations, filmed in a fun and comedic way, were the most enjoyable part. They showcased my creativity and allowed me to explore humor while maintaining professionalism. Overall, this Careers unit has transformed my perspective, equipped me with valuable skills, and boosted my confidence in pursuing my future career goals.

After my Mpol, I had a conversation with my parents about what I can do to achieve a goal of mine, getting a 90 in Humanities for semester 2. The whole ride home, and even once we got into the house, we were still “planning for my future”. But this conversation with my family was definitely a big help for me looking back on it. I finally got real with myself, and tried to get my grades higher to show my teachers that I can be the best version of myself. Yesterday I got a notification on my iPad during class, and it said that my humanities grade was updated to a 90. That might have been the proudest moment of my life. My highschool-life at least. 

In the last paragraph of my Mpol blog post, I talked about some strategies for achieving some learning plan goals of mine. I wanted to reach profile 5 in Communication, and I also wanted to get to profile 5 in Creative, Critical and Reflective Thinking. Thinking about it now, I can say that I achieved a profile 5 while on the Florida trip. I stepped out of my comfort zone there on many occasions. I started talking to more people in my class that I didnt usually, when trying to convince my friends to go on “Journey Into Imagination With Figment”, I was able to confidently persuade them into going on the ride with me using strategies that I learned in my humanities class. That was yet another sign to myself that I was growing as a student and becoming the best version of myself.