Exhibition 2013: Reinventing Romeo & Juliet
1. Provide a picture of the actual final product in this project.
(above)
2. Who was in your group? What was it like working with the group?
My group members were Natalie Boyle, Josh Chiero, and Doug Hunter. I loved my group because we worked very well together, we were friends, we were all good students, and we produced quality work. Having friends in my group allowed me to have fun and do work at the same time, and it took some stress off of the project.
3. What did you make in this project? What are a few things you learned?
In this project, we re-wrote two scenes from Romeo and Juliet, made a model of a stage, created full size costumes, drew out costume and set sketches, created a budget, made a CD, wrote essays explaining physics of a weapon, and built four model weapons (total). I learned a lot about the conflict in Israel and Palestine through this project. I have heard many things about the war going on there, but I have never looked into it or researched it. I learned to accept and listen to both sides of the conflict and not let the media badly influence my opinions of either country. Palestine has been poorly represented throughout the entire war, and I got to research their side and learn why they were fighting back. Learning about the Israeli/Palestinian war has taught me to do full research and hear both sides of a conflict before having an opinion so that I can make an informed decision.
4. What went well in this project?
The best thing about this project was my group. We had so much fun together and could count on each other producing quality work that we would all be proud of. I was able to count on my group members to help me with work when I needed it, and we all chipped in on every aspect of this project. I was glad to have a group that didn't stop working and wasn't satisfied with mediocrity.
5. What struggles did you have and how did you overcome them?
Our group did not have many struggles in this project. When we fell behind, we worked together and kept everyone on track. The biggest struggle I had was when I designed the set model with Natalie. We worked for days trying to figure out how to make the model work, and it was pretty frustrating. However, we ended up taking extra time during lunch and x-block to finish and once we figured out how to make it work, we were really proud of it.
6. What things did you do well concerning work ethic and what could you improve on?
Through this project, I think I stayed on task and worked very hard. I generally have good work ethic and when I would finish my work, I would usually just help the rest of the group with other things that needed to get done. The last few days before exhibition, though, I did not do much. I wasn't being lazy...my group had finished everything early and we really had nothing to do until exhibition. I do feel like I did my best work in this project and I am proud of our final products.
7. How would you change this project?
If I could change this project, I think it would be good if we could pick our own wars. It would be nice to write down ones we were interested in and then get assigned one of those. If groups were assigned wars that they were really interested in or passionate about, they might be more excited about the project. I did really enjoy this though and I think it was a great learning experience.
8. Describe your Humanities learning during this project. What did you learn? What will you take away with you? Is there anything you wish you could have explored more?
During the Humanities half of this project, I learned many things. As I mentioned before, researching the conflict was the best part of it. I got to learn so much about the culture of Israel and Palestine when drawing the costumes or sketches. I was fascinated by the war and how long it has been going on. One thing I will take away from this project is that if you let conflict and hatred go on, it spirals into a rivalry that lasts for generations and cannot be stopped. I wish I could have gone more into other conflicts and learned about other people's wars. I didn't know anything about anyone else's conflicts and I wish I had more time to go around and see everyone's booths.
9. Describe your Physics learning during this project. What did you learn? What will you take away with you? Is there anything you wish you could have explored more?
In Physics, I learned all about the physics of a Qassam Rocket and wrote a 14 page paper on all of the physics involved in it. I also learned about the car bomb because Doug and I made a model of one to explain on Exhibition Night. Even though the essay took hours and I didn't like it at the time, it really helped me fully understand and comprehend all the physics topics. Being able to apply them to a weapon I was studying made it easier to see and connect to real life. I wish I could have learned more about the weapons that Natalie and Josh studied, though. Since Doug and I were partners, I knew all about the car bomb and my weapon, but I didn't get to know much about the Sabra Tank and Hellfire Missile.
10. BRIEFLY answer the driving questions of the project were, now that the project is completely over: What is good? What is evil? Can good ever overcome evil? Is man doomed to repeat history or can he learn from his mistakes?
Even though we have gone over these questions over and over in class, I still do not have a firm definition of good or evil. However, I have learned through this project that, to me, goodness is having the intention to benefit others and hurt no one through all actions. In my synthesis essay, I wrote that evil is not a trait that people have. Evil does not come directly within, but rather as a consequence for the actions people take. No one is good or evil, but things that they do can lead to or be perceived as good/evil. I think that good can come from evil an evil can come from good, no matter what people's original intentions are. Evil is powerful, but I believe that good will always overcome, no matter how long it takes or how hopeless it appears. I also believe that if we take our history into consideration, we won't repeat it. We must first, however, accept our history and take responsibility for the actions we have made before that becomes a possibility.
(above)
2. Who was in your group? What was it like working with the group?
My group members were Natalie Boyle, Josh Chiero, and Doug Hunter. I loved my group because we worked very well together, we were friends, we were all good students, and we produced quality work. Having friends in my group allowed me to have fun and do work at the same time, and it took some stress off of the project.
3. What did you make in this project? What are a few things you learned?
In this project, we re-wrote two scenes from Romeo and Juliet, made a model of a stage, created full size costumes, drew out costume and set sketches, created a budget, made a CD, wrote essays explaining physics of a weapon, and built four model weapons (total). I learned a lot about the conflict in Israel and Palestine through this project. I have heard many things about the war going on there, but I have never looked into it or researched it. I learned to accept and listen to both sides of the conflict and not let the media badly influence my opinions of either country. Palestine has been poorly represented throughout the entire war, and I got to research their side and learn why they were fighting back. Learning about the Israeli/Palestinian war has taught me to do full research and hear both sides of a conflict before having an opinion so that I can make an informed decision.
4. What went well in this project?
The best thing about this project was my group. We had so much fun together and could count on each other producing quality work that we would all be proud of. I was able to count on my group members to help me with work when I needed it, and we all chipped in on every aspect of this project. I was glad to have a group that didn't stop working and wasn't satisfied with mediocrity.
5. What struggles did you have and how did you overcome them?
Our group did not have many struggles in this project. When we fell behind, we worked together and kept everyone on track. The biggest struggle I had was when I designed the set model with Natalie. We worked for days trying to figure out how to make the model work, and it was pretty frustrating. However, we ended up taking extra time during lunch and x-block to finish and once we figured out how to make it work, we were really proud of it.
6. What things did you do well concerning work ethic and what could you improve on?
Through this project, I think I stayed on task and worked very hard. I generally have good work ethic and when I would finish my work, I would usually just help the rest of the group with other things that needed to get done. The last few days before exhibition, though, I did not do much. I wasn't being lazy...my group had finished everything early and we really had nothing to do until exhibition. I do feel like I did my best work in this project and I am proud of our final products.
7. How would you change this project?
If I could change this project, I think it would be good if we could pick our own wars. It would be nice to write down ones we were interested in and then get assigned one of those. If groups were assigned wars that they were really interested in or passionate about, they might be more excited about the project. I did really enjoy this though and I think it was a great learning experience.
8. Describe your Humanities learning during this project. What did you learn? What will you take away with you? Is there anything you wish you could have explored more?
During the Humanities half of this project, I learned many things. As I mentioned before, researching the conflict was the best part of it. I got to learn so much about the culture of Israel and Palestine when drawing the costumes or sketches. I was fascinated by the war and how long it has been going on. One thing I will take away from this project is that if you let conflict and hatred go on, it spirals into a rivalry that lasts for generations and cannot be stopped. I wish I could have gone more into other conflicts and learned about other people's wars. I didn't know anything about anyone else's conflicts and I wish I had more time to go around and see everyone's booths.
9. Describe your Physics learning during this project. What did you learn? What will you take away with you? Is there anything you wish you could have explored more?
In Physics, I learned all about the physics of a Qassam Rocket and wrote a 14 page paper on all of the physics involved in it. I also learned about the car bomb because Doug and I made a model of one to explain on Exhibition Night. Even though the essay took hours and I didn't like it at the time, it really helped me fully understand and comprehend all the physics topics. Being able to apply them to a weapon I was studying made it easier to see and connect to real life. I wish I could have learned more about the weapons that Natalie and Josh studied, though. Since Doug and I were partners, I knew all about the car bomb and my weapon, but I didn't get to know much about the Sabra Tank and Hellfire Missile.
10. BRIEFLY answer the driving questions of the project were, now that the project is completely over: What is good? What is evil? Can good ever overcome evil? Is man doomed to repeat history or can he learn from his mistakes?
Even though we have gone over these questions over and over in class, I still do not have a firm definition of good or evil. However, I have learned through this project that, to me, goodness is having the intention to benefit others and hurt no one through all actions. In my synthesis essay, I wrote that evil is not a trait that people have. Evil does not come directly within, but rather as a consequence for the actions people take. No one is good or evil, but things that they do can lead to or be perceived as good/evil. I think that good can come from evil an evil can come from good, no matter what people's original intentions are. Evil is powerful, but I believe that good will always overcome, no matter how long it takes or how hopeless it appears. I also believe that if we take our history into consideration, we won't repeat it. We must first, however, accept our history and take responsibility for the actions we have made before that becomes a possibility.