Blog 19: Independent Component 2

LITERAL

I, Ingrid Mata, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 31 hours and 20 minutes of work.

For this component, the person who helped me complete this ambitious project was my partner Alexis Crisanto. Together we envisioned a blog that included book reviews, crafts, and much more. We bounced around ideas, planned our schedules accordingly, and ultimately executed an exemplary IC 2. 

Independent component 2 Log has been updated. 

For my independent component 2, I completed an elementary school teaching and early childhood development blog, The Alexis & Ingrid Show, made possible by collaborating with my partner Alexis Crisanto. For this component, I also created a Pinterest  with a vast collection of classroom organization ideas and supplies listings. 

INTERPRETATIVE

Alexis and I developed a blog that not only represented who we are but allowed for us to further our research on our topics. Through collaborative work, I discovered how my topic, Elementary School Teaching, goes hand in hand with early childhood development. In this blog we reviewed books, referred to editorials, and created our own crafts. Below are visuals of what was done for this independent component and the links to the work can be found in the "Literal" section of this blog post.

APPLIED 

This component helped me answer my essential question with a more creative approach. By developing a teaching blog, I had to visit the blogs of actual professionals in the field in order to draw out inspiration for my own. When I did this, I found articles on my topic and was able to have more research to support my essential question answers. Since I worked with Alexis, we bounced around ideas for the blog and shared our experiences with our mentorship. It was extremely insightful to both parties to learn about the different age groups we work with and the environment they're in.   

Blog 15: Independent Component 2 Approval

The Independent Component 2 is an opportunity for you to add a dimension of creativity and/or an additional outlet for research.  The goal of the component is for you to explore your answers in more depth.  

Please answer the following questions for independent component 2 idea approval. 

1.  Describe in detail what you plan to do for your 30 hours.

Originally, my independent component one was supposed to be an additional outlet for research, meaning 30 more hours with my mentor. BUT. I was mentor-less for quite a while and had to add a mini lesson to my IC. Although I learned important communication skills during my IC one with mentorship, I feel that there was not much creativity involved and for this reason want to collaborate with a fellow I-Poly Senior (Woo! Alexis Crisanto!) to create a blog with activities for elementary school teaching.  

2.  Discuss how or what you will do to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence.

In order to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence, I will have documentation of every task completed on my senior project hours log and also have the final IC 2 blog linked to my senior blog. The IC 2 blog will be filled with visuals and videos of crafts and activities done for elementary school teaching. It will also include descriptions the importance of each activities and easy to follow instructions (if needed). 

3.  Explain how this component will help you explore your topic in more depth.

This component will help me explore my topic in more depth because I would be incorporating what I learned from mentorship and using tech to connect with other professionals in the field. I'll also be collaborating with another student and be able to share and utilize research we both came to find. By doing this component, I'll be able to rule out any answer that doesn't satisfy my new essential question. 

4.  Post a log in your Senior Project Hours link and label it "Independent Component 2" log.

My Senior Project hours link has been updated with an "Independent Component 2" log and can be viewed here.

Blog 14: Independent Component 1

LITERAL

I, Ingrid Mata, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 35 Hours and 50 Minutes of work.

My mentors AnnMarie Krall and Lesley Martin were my main sources in completing my independent component. I also used several books that contributed to the creation of the component and they are listed below. 

• Great Habits Great Readers by Paul Bambrick-Santoyo, Aja Settles, and Juliana Worrell
• The Parent Backpack for K-5 by ML Nichols
• Drawing for the Absolute and Utter Beginner by Claire Watson Garcia
• Watercolor Painting for Dummies by Colette Pitcher
• The Complete Book of Mosaics by Emma Biggs and Tessa Hunkin

My Senior Project Hours log is updated and you can view it here. 

For my independent component one, I completed additional mentorship hours with two different mentors, took an art class, and also designed a mini reading/writing unit for first graders. The unit includes alphabet practice, classroom layouts, and crafts that polish fine motor skills in young children.

INTERPRETIVE 

This component was a real eye-opener to elementary school teaching, my senior topic. I was out in field learning from hands on experience rather than through text books, giving this project most significance. The majority of my independent component was shadowing and working with students and my mentors. This project taught me how vital it is to collaborate with others and how children are sponges, seeking knowledge. I wasn't able to take pictures where children were involved because I don't have parental consent and my mentors are pretty camera shy. For these reasons, I took pictures of the environment which I worked in and included some pictures of parts of the mini unit. 

Above is the digital classroom layout I created.

APPLIED

Working with elementary school students for the past few months has allowed me to learn more about the way they interact with one another and process information. By completing this component with my mentors and designing a mini unit, I was able to observe students little quirks and see the pros and cons of certain teaching techniques. For example, during mentorship I saw a student frustrated with his work and my mentor went in. She addressed the issue by showing the student a different angle in solving the problem. It's all about working the angle. This component has allowed me to better understand the foundation of my topic because I was able to learn from modern day experts in the field.  

Blog 7: Independent Component 1 Approval

What is it? Independent Component 1 is an opportunity for you to add a dimension of creativity and/or and additional outlet for research. The goal of the component is for you to explore your topic in more depth with this component. 

Please answer the following questions for independent component idea approval.

1. Describe in detail what you plan to do for your 30 hours.

For my 30 hours, I plan to design a mini reading and writing unit for first graders and also work with my mentor as an additional outlet for research. My topic, elementary school teaching, goes hand in hand with a child's psychological and behavioral development. I feel that if I have constant exposure to the age group (first graders) and their raw potential, I'll be able to discover more about the way they think and learn. The unit will include several activities and different approaches to teaching sight words (or vocabulary) in a fun and artistic manner. An example could be shaping Play-Dough into a sight word or with yarn, outlining each letter of a word on their weekly spelling list. Endless possibilities. 

2. Discuss how or what you will do to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence.

In order to meet the expectation of showing evidence, I will be documenting what I do by taking pictures. For any activities or crafts that I do, I'll keep some of the hard copies. Other than keeping record of the time spent working on the component in google docs, I'll be able to show the unit once finished. 

3. And explain how what you will be doing will help you explore your topic in more depth.

As mentioned before, I believe that being out in the field and working with the elementary school students, would allow me to learn more about the way they process things. By shadowing my mentor and designing a unit, I'll be able to observe the students little quirks and be able to (hopefully!) determine which teaching stye would best fit their needs. By doing these fun activities, I would be reinforcing what the teacher taught them, almost like reviewing the content, allowing them to have a positive interactive experience with the basis of the arts. 

4. Update your Senior Project Hours log.

My Senior Project Hours log is updated and can be viewed here.