THIS WEEK IN IB AT OI
What do our scholars have to say about the personal project?
What is the personal project?
The personal project is a culminating Middle Years Program (MYP) project to develop the student's personal interest and to show and apply the skills, which are developed through the MYP's Approaches to Learning. This project is based on the student's interests and talents, resulting in a product or outcome.
Kat Madonia
Kat designed and sewed a Tardis dress inspired by the show Dr. Who.
Elisa Rojas
Elisa explored the painting technique "Dirty Pouring" in which layers of acrylic paint react to form bubbles and patterns in her art.
Gillian Birmingham
Gillian taught herself a challenging piece that built upon her prior knowledge of the instrument.
All sophomores will be participating in the personal project and you can already hear the excitement as they discuss their ideas and project goals! I interviewed several scholars and here’s what they have to say about the personal project.
What about the personal project excites you?
- Learning how to follow my passion.
- I am excited to expand my knowledge and be able to learn what I want to learn about.
- Learning or developing a new skill, and getting my own choice to choose what to make our project on.
- Learning a new skill, Time management, Getting to choose what we want to do, Find out what we're passionate about
- I'm excited to have the chance to do something I've wanted to for a while and to have the motivation and push to do it. I have a hard time dedicating myself to a goal and this project will help me to do that.
- Jewelry making, learning a new language, making music/ learning new music with piano, doing something with animals.
- I want to learn American Sign Language or learn a really difficult piano piece.
- Swim clinic/camp where I will have to research the different strokes.
- Starting a high school Ragnar team
- Learning how to properly type on the keyboard-also improve wpm.
- Producing and releasing one of my songs/albums.
- I will be a risk taker by trying something that is really hard but could effect me in a positive way.
- I'll get to focus on time management and exploring new ideas.
- I think the personal project will help me grow as an MYP scholar because I'm going to get to control and create a project that I'm excited about so I think it'll be an opportunity to learn and grow.
- I think it will help me communicate better with others, help me learn to manage my time better, and be able to think outside the box more often.
- Time management, too much work, failing, not getting in the DP Program, all the anxiety
- I am scared I will procrastinate.
- Getting a bad grade and not meeting my goals
Advice from scholars that have completed personal projects
What advice would you give to those that are just starting their personal projects?
- Set personal guidelines for yourself. It’s better to be finished early than be rushing at the end.
- This probably won't resonate with you until January rolls around, but: Keep trying, don't worry about the essay, persevere, and do it for yourself.
How did the personal project help you grow as an MYP scholar?
- More than all you learn on your topic, you learn how you work when you are given more freedom. Use this as a learning experience to figure out how you best work. Procrastinating is NOT a working strategy.
- The project itself helped me organize how I was going to approach a big task. I didn't rush myself to do it all in one night and broke it up into little sections. This project set the infrastructure I needed to complete similar tasks within 11-12th grade, especially within the IB classes.
What did you find most difficult about the personal project?
- The most difficult part about the personal project is formulating an idea. Once you've identified a project that is meaningful to you, the rest falls into place. It makes the hardships and roadblocks you face less difficult to overcome, because you know that this project is about proving something to yourself, and not to anybody else.
- The project I had chosen could not be rushed because when it comes to art, it's very hard to get a good result when you are forcing yourself to draw. I had to be in the "mood" to say the least, in order to go through with my project or else I wouldn't have the mental strength to push through the rough sketches, accidents, and mistakes. In other words, sometimes it was hard to continue, and do so in a limited amount of time.
What did you find most rewarding about the personal project?
- If you put the work into the project, you will be so proud of your final project. It is very rewarding to look at your trifold at the presentation and be amazed at what you accomplished all by yourself.
- The end product was one of the most euphoric moments anyone could have experienced. Seeing all my drawings completed to perfection made me feel like I was capable of doing anything. I never imagined being able to get to the point I did and seeing that point was a huge confidence boost.
OIAIS
Email: bquigley@topamail.com
Website: odyprep.com
Location: 1495 South Verrado Way, Buckeye, AZ, USA
Phone: 6233271757