8th Grade Projects - Virtual Presentations
Updated Monday, May 18th, 2020
Our 8th grade class is soon to embark on a new adventure as they graduate and move onto high school. In their last year at the Waldorf School of Palm Beach, they were asked to choose an area of interest to go deeper with and to learn a new skill. They had to find a professional mentor in the community and an expert outside the community who would guide them in their independent explorations. They had to dedicate time outside school to form questions, research them, keep a journal of their experiences, develop an artistic piece, and write a research essay.
All eight of them worked diligently through the length of the school year. For many of them, new questions arose along the way and the project evolved into something they could not have imagined in the beginning. While learning about their area of interest, they deepened their understanding of themselves, too:
How do I respond to setbacks?
What are some strategies that aid me in moving forward?
Is it helpful if I take a break sometimes and re-evaluate, or let the idea rest for a bit?
Where can I find help when I need it?
How do I give feedback and how do I feel about receiving feedback?
8th Grade Project Presentation
The crowning of the project is the 8th Grade Project Presentation. The 8th graders now have to come before the community to show us what they have learned. For many of them, this means stepping out of their comfort zones. This year's 8th grade class has the added challenge of having to present remotely.
In the past two weeks, each student had to acquire the skills to record and edit videos and images, and do all of this with minimal help. They have been supporting each other with feedback and advice as they prepared the recorded presentations to send to the parent community.
I am extremely proud of this group of students. It has been a real pleasure and honor to work with them. Their passion and perseverance clearly show in the work that they have accomplished.
PROJECTS
Isaac Dash, The Power of Learning Computers
Nicholas Hansen, The Violin
Isa Dencker, Cats
Aliza Tilson, The In’s and Out’s of Skincare
Peter Domokos, Pen, Paper and Dice - The World of Games
Andros Linnell, Composing Music
William Hupp-McDonald, Easy and Healthy Breakfast Recipes
Noah Johnson-Routhier, Music Production and Song Writing
COMMENTS/QUESTIONS
After viewing the videos, we encourage you to please share your comments with appreciations and questions! To leave a comment or a question, simply click on the video below and leave the comment on YouTube in the comments section under each video. The students would love to hear from you and this will be the only response that they will receive.
MONDAY PRESENTATIONS
Isaac Dash, The Power of Learning Computers
Issac Dash - The Power of Learning Computers
Isaac learned how to teach a computer to look at thousands of renaissance paintings and based on the attributes of these paintings, generate images that look like pictures from the renaissance. Along the way, he learned to program in Phython, a popular programming language. In his presentation, he will talk about the challenges he faced and why he believes that machine learning is going to shape our future.
We encourage you to leave your comments/questions! Please click on the button below to go to YouTube and leave comments on this video.
Nicholas Hansen, The Violin
Nicholas Hansen - The Violin
Nicholas learned about the history of the violin and sharpened his violin playing skills this year. Nicholas is a very talented woodworker. He demonstrated this skill in class, and for this project he built his very own violin. Listen to Nicholas tell you about the queen of musical instruments and show you his finished violin.
We encourage you to leave your comments/questions! Please click on the button below to go to YouTube and leave comments on this video.
ISABELLA DENCKER, Cats
Isabella Dencker - Cats
Isa volunteered at a local cat shelter and learned about cats. She promoted the shelter and raised funds for it at Winter Faire. Isa used the funds to buy new cat beds that were much appreciated by her hairy friends. Isa learned about the anatomy of cats, their diseases, how shelters work, fostering and adopting cats.
We encourage you to leave your comments/questions! Please click on the button below to go to YouTube and leave comments on this video.
Tune in tomorrow at 6pm to see the next three presentations from our 8th graders!
Isa Dencker, Cats
Peter Domokos, Pen, Paper and Dice - The World of Games
Andros Linnell, Composing Music
Tune in on Wednesday at 6pm to see the final two presentations!
William Hupp-McDonald, Easy and Healthy Breakfast Recipes
Noah Johnson-Routhier, Music Production and Song Writing