This week ended pretty well for me! I started looking into my Inquiry Block questions (Why do those that discriminate against a marginalized group believe the way they do?) and found some odd facts and holes in ideas. I've also been touching this website up a lot and am really happy with how it's turning out! There was another topic that I'm working on right now and it involves odds and probability for popular poker games. It's astounding that so many people gamble with odds stacked against them so much.
Marginalized Groups...
September 9th, 2016
Reflections
My week was completely crazy! I had so much going on that I barely had time to think. Now that school’s starting back up, I’ve began picking up some projects from last year and start some fresh ones that are brand new. I finished my bolt about probability and odds, started a new one focusing on some more math, began my “Invisible” Homeless students project again, have been working on my portfolio, and had the chance to present at the Mosaic Family University. I was very eager to do that and it went even better than I thought it would! I answered some parents questions and just talked about my work and the processes I go through for some of them.
Next week, I’m hoping to finish writing my precis paper on the homeless population problems throughout Douglas County and my portfolio. I only have a few little things left I want to change on that and I want to add another page that talks about some of the smaller projects I’ve done.
September 16th, 2016
Problem Precis...
This past week I got the chance to go to the Denver Art Museum with some other students. It was not anything like I was expecting it to be and every piece was truly beautiful. I found that my favorite floor was the Asian art one. All of the artwork was detailed and intricate. It all looked like it took a while for it to be crafted and was a time-consuming process. It also stood out to me because it was unique from the other floors. It was less color and more black and white; which I liked better.
I also continued with my research questions and looked into how the Constitution is interpreted. I found that there are two main ways. The first is as a "living" document. Which means they're constantly changing to meet our culture's beliefs, practices, and knowledge. The second way is as a "fixed" document. That the Constitution means the same as when it was written and doesn't evolve with society.
September 29th, 2016
Denver Art Museum...
A demonstration of learning is a night where every Mosaic student presents something they've been working on for the past nine weeks. It's usually presented in a variety of forms that range from formal presentations to discussions. For mine, I presented with a friend on our "Invisible" Homeless Population project. It's still a work in progress, but we got great feedback and many contacts to reach out to and further our research.
While doing the demonstration of learning, I also got the chance to see what some other students are currently working on. I got a few ideas and found some that I would like to work with on another subject sometime this year.
October 5th, 2016
Demonstration of learning...
As I was looking for some place to intern, I began to realize that I just wasn't qualified enough for the places that I wanted to learn about. So, I decided to create my own using the connections I've already made within my community. I reached out to the Douglas County homeless liaison and asked for the chance to help her with her work. Based on the research I had done on her job and what she does, I knew an extra person there would be helpful. After reaching out to her, I got her response very quickly and she said yes! We met and went over what I would be doing for her and began to plan out a schedule. Our first meeting is next week and I'm extremely excited to see where this might take me.
October 27th, 2016
Internship Opportunities...
While starting this internship, the liaison has already given me some ideas she's been thinking about that she'd like me to oversee. She has also connected me with a man that runs the non-profit, Hide in Plain Sight, for me to work with. I have a meeting with him next week to learn about an event he's willing to let me run for him. I'm thrilled to see where else this will take me and how many more connections I'll be able to make.
November 3rd, 2016
More Possibilities...
The past term I've been working on my "Invisible" Homeless Population project and it's evolved quite a bit. Currently, the solution I'm working on is putting clothing banks within DCSD high schools. The idea began about two weeks ago and so far I've reached out to a couple different foundations to help with research. The founder of DenverWorks sat down with me today to answer all of my questions and help give me pointers on what works and what doesn't. The next step is to go visit them and a place called Urban Peaks. Once that's done, I'll begin to lay out what needs to be done for it to happen and who I need to talk to.
I've also been working on my math and learning about personal finance, interest, and spending habits. I just started the process of looking into stocks and bonds while also touching maybe a little on taxes.
I've started working with a non-profit based in Douglas County called Hide In Plain Sight (HIPS) that grants scholarships to homeless teens. The foundation is running for MAD (Make A Difference) Week in Castle View High School and if HIPS win, they want to start a student committee that works directly under their board of directors to distribute the money raised to CVHS students. Currently, Joe Roos, the founder, has been working with me to help with my homelessness research and has given me incredible resources to utilize.
For the past 18 weeks I have slowly been working on AP Lit. as well. I decided to start with the poetry aspects since I knew it'd be my least favorite. I'm working on writing about the topics provided in a limited time and interpreting them the way I need to in order to take the AP test.
My internship has been one of my favorite projects. The homeless liaison has let me take the lead on collecting the donations for the Strive to Thrive event in January.
The last main thing I've been doing was a Bolt run by Mr.Schneider on tragedy. This has been quite difficult for me because my definition of tragedy doesn't quite match the one used for a classroom study of it. Because of this, I've had a hard time arguing one side or the other with that definition but am making some progress with that.
December 13th, 2016
Clothing Bank within CVHS...
Today I met again for my internship and Ms. Searcy referred me to help on another project. One of her co-workers is planning a resource fair and the need help organizing and running it. Ms. Searcy gave him my name and he wants my help running the event. I'm super excited to see where this can take me and how many new people I'll be able to meet!
January 12th, 2017
More Opportunities...