Fahrenheit 451- Book Club Intrapersonal Project

This is my Book Club Project for my English class. Out of the seven options I was given, I chose to do the Intrapersonal project. For this project, I had to find one scene or character in the text in which I could identify a text-to-self connection. I had to use at least one literary technique to create a short essay, drawing, or video that explores this connection. It is due on November 15, 2010, but I decided to finish the project a little early.

At the beginning of the year, I chose to read Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. As I read, I felt connected to the old woman who burned along side her books. She stood up against her society alone, and died for her beliefs. Though my belief didn't lead to my death or anything close to that, we are similar in which we stood up for what we believe in, despite our opposition. To explore our connection, I used symbolism and characterization within my video.

This video might not be much, but it took me eight hours to complete (I got distracted a LOT). I wasted my entire Saturday making this video. Today, I spent about two hours editing and editing it until it was almost perfect. Even now, I'm still not satisfied with it. I believe that it could be so much better, but I'm still getting the hang of Sony Vegas 9.0. I hope you've enjoyed my project! ^o^



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Part One: Google to the Max

This is part one of my Global Tech Final.
CLICK HERE to view.

MUN Conference May 2010

On May 13th through the15th, I participated in the MUN Conference in Manhattan, NY. MUN stands for Model United Nations. The country I was representing was Equatorial Guinea. My partner and I were in the General Assembly 3rd Committee. This committee deals with social, humanitarian, and cultural affairs. Our topic was Responsibility to Protect AKA R2P. This is the idea that all countries have the obligation to ensure the basic human rights of their citizens. However, if the country fails to do so, the UN has the right to enter the country without the government's approval, and fix the problem. My country, Equatorial Guinea, did not support this idea. It strongly believed that all countries have the right to sovereignty, which is the ability to control what happens in its own territory. Only a handful countries were on our side. In the beginning, it was very hard to find countries that were either against the R2P principle or for it but want severe limitations put on it (if that makes sense o.O). Writing our position paper for this conference was harder than finding people on our side. We could barely find any information on Equatorial Guinea. A position paper should be at least a page long, but ours was barely half a page. See, look at it -> Position Paper. In case you're wondering, the picture at the top left corner is the ceiling of the conference room the 3rd committee was in. Pretty cool, isn't it?
The picture on the left is of a room within the UN building. This is where delegates from all over the world come to debate on world issues. The opening and closing ceremony of the MUN conference also took place here.

Sophomore Year Graudate Portfolio Essays

Within the Graduate Portfolio, there is something called the Graduate Profile. This is basically traits/characteristics that each student at CSIHSIS must acquire before graduating. Freshmen, Sophomores, and Juniors have to write an essay about two of the traits we grew the most is that year. This year, I became Literate for the 21st Century and Socially Prepared and Culturally Sensitive.

Check out my Graduate Profile Analysis Essay.

The second essay was based on the themes of sophomore year. These themes are Power, Service Learning/Contributing to Your Community, Understanding Diverse Perspectives, and Community Building. Like the first essay, we had to choose which theme we believed we had grown the most in throughout the year. I chose Understanding Diverse Perspectives.

Here is my Themes of Sophomore Year Reflection Essay.

I know these aren't the best essays in the world, but they're good enough for me.

My Graduate Portfolio

For the first three years of high school at College of Staten Island High School for International Studies, all of the students have to complete a end of the year project called, the Graduate Portfolio. This is my second year making one. The picture on the left is the cover of my Sophomore Portfolio. It was made by my good friend, Lori, on photoshop. This only took her one night to do!

The Graduate Portfolio is basically a binder containing two 3-5 page essays and at least ten artifacts that display our growth throughout the year. My portfolio turned out to be 45 pages long! I worked really hard on it, and received a 95%. I had points taken off for trivial things I didn't know I needed. I was on a trip the two days my advisor went over the the requirements for it. I don't want to sound like I'm complaining or anything, I'm quite happy with my grade.

I think CSIHSIS is the only school that does something like this, but I could be wrong. Although it was a nuisance, I had fun making my portfolio. I like to write, so the essays were easy. Some people complained that they couldn't write two pages. While I was able to write three and a half pages with little to no effort. These essays allowed me to reflect on my year academically, and see how much I changed from the beginning of my sophomore year.

Digital Story 3 Rubric

CLICK HERE to see my rubric!
I finally think I deserve a 40/40. My other Digital Stories were good, but this one, I think, was the best. I added a lot of video clips and even edited the background music to fit my narration!

Digital Story # 3

My third Digital Story is about the Bhopal gas tragedy of 1984. I first learned about this event in my Living Environment class. On the night of December 2nd, 1984, a pesticide plant owned and operated by Union Carbide released methyl isocyanate gas and other toxins. Three hundred ninety tons of toxic chemicals were abandoned at the factory plant, and after twenty five years it still pollutes the groundwater. For more information in the Bhopal, India gas tragedy and/or to donate money CLICK HERE.
This video was my longest Digital Story so far. It was very frustrating to make for I had a million technical difficulties, but it was fun at the same time. I was able to use my creative writing skills to write a story based on these true events, and make it come to life!

Heaven to Hell - Nothing in Between ~Narrative~

It was December 2nd, 1984. Everyone was healthy, going on with their day like any other. Nothing was contaminated or deadly. They were all happy. I was happy. No one would have guessed that in less than twenty four hours all of that was going to change. The night of December 2nd, 1984 would be a night I would always remember.
I was in pain. I couldn't see or breathe. I thought I was dying. The next thing I knew, I was surrounded by death. I didn't know what was going on, or who was around me. Death, pain, and sorrow filled the air like the chemicals causing all of this. Harsh coughing, moans of pain, and people crying, praying for this to be over, could be heard everywhere. Dead bodies were being carried, white blankets were all over the ground, people laid quivering in pain... The sight was horrific.
It has been twenty five years, and that night still plagues us. Are we forever to remain in darkness? Will we ever see the light of dawn?

Digital Story Rubric

Check out my second Digital Story Rubric.

Future Now Contest Video

This video was made for the Future Now Contest. For this contest, we had to choose one theme and make a video revolving around it. The three themes were School, Community, and Dreams. The theme I chose for my video was Dreams. My Digital Story is basically about my dreams and aspirations for the future. Making this video was fun yet extremely challenging. The program I used to make this video was Sony Vegas Pro 9.0. This is actually my first project using this program, so you can imagine the amount of frustration I went through when something didn't go the way I planned. Because of this project, I was able to get a better feel of Sony Vegas.

Story Narrative 2

Konichiwa mina-san! Watashi wa Katherine desuyo! Watashi no nihongo wa amari jyosu dewa arimasen. Dewa, nokori no bideo wa eigo de okonaimasu. Saa, hajimemashou! I feel, no, I know my future is very bright. I want to have a big house for my large family, my friends, and of course my pets! I have always dreamed about adopting a Saint Bernard. I don't know why, but this breed has always appealed to me. I also really want buy a teacup or miniature potbelly pig. Weird, huh? What city-girl wants buy a pig, but not live on a farm? Anyway, I made a promise to myself about two years ago that I would buy, play, and finish all of the Final Fantasy video games ever made. I know that this is going to be a hard goal, or maybe even an impossible goal, for me to accomplish, but hey, a girl can try. I also want to buy the entire series of mangas that I adore with a passion like: D.Gray-Man, Yu Yu Hakusho, Tail of the Moon, Vampire Knight, and many, many more (believe me on that). Hmm... what are my other goals? Ah! I want to become fluent in Japanese, and at least once in my life, go to the Land of the Rising Sun, Japan. My one major goal in life is to go to college and become a doctor. After my dad died when I was younger, I made it my mission to become a doctor, and save people's lives. So other families wouldn't have to go through the pain of losing a loved one. Thanks for watching, Sayonara!

DigiTales Evaluation

The Digital Story that reflects the ISSN Graduate Portfolio is The Road Less Traveled. This video was made by the Ramapo Middle School students. The students that made this Digital Story are Skilled for Success in a Global Environment. Based on this video, the students appear to be proficient in reading, writing, viewing, listening, and speaking in English. The narration was the poem, The Road Less Traveled by Robert Frost, and it was read by one of their students. Through this project, this class expressed their ability to "use digital media and technology to... effectively communicate..." Based on the narration of Robert Frost's poem and the pictures of the students working studiously, it shows that they, as a class, are taking the road less traveled by working hard to reach all their goals. This shows that they are making healthy decisions that will enhance their physical, mental, and emotional well-being as stated in the ISSN Portfolio.

Click Here to view my DigiTales Evaluation Rubric.

Digital Story 2 Pre-Writing

**This is now scrap. I never used this.**
CLICK HERE to see my Digital Story 2 Pre-Writing Sheet

Digital Story 2 Topic

    For my second Digital Story, I'm going to make a video surrounding the Graduate Profile category, Culturally Aware. This video is going to be base on my recent trip to the Japanese Spring Festival. I'm going to focus on the many different aspects of the Japanese culture that was displayed during the festival as well as my comments and experiences. 

Graduate Portfolio Reflection - Story 1

    My Digital Story reflects my thoughts on my generation as well as my identity. Instead of making a normal and boring report on this topic, I made a video that was visual and entertaining. This ties into the Graduate Portfolio that each CSIHSIS student, for the first three years of high school, must complete. Within the Graduate Portfolio is something called the Graduate Profile. This is basically a list of characteristics and abilities that students from CSI must achieve before graduating. My first Digital Story has helped me grow to be a 21st Century Thinker. Technology is a massive part of the 21st century, and through this project, I was able to use my computer to create a video that was both informative and entertaining.

Digital Story 1 Rubric

Digital Storytelling Rubric

CLICK HERE to see my complete rubric

Digital Story # 1

This digital story revolves around my generation and my identity within the 21st century.

Being that this was my first Digital Story, it was quite hard at times. It was also my first time using a Mac laptop and the program, iMovie. I think I did pretty well describing what I thought about my generation. However, I should have made it longer. This video was mostly about my identity and only had a few slides about my generation. Over all, making this digital story was really interesting and fun.

Story Script 1

    I believe that this generation is the laziest. However, we are also the fastest. We are constantly creating new shortcuts to make life quick and easy. With all the advancements in technology, I can get almost everything I need delivered to me quickly via Internet and/or mail. I can do this simply with a click of a button. Because of this, technology has really shaped my life.
       I am one of the four daughters my parents had. My close family consists of ten people: my mom, my three sisters, my aunt, my uncle, and their three kids. My aunt, uncle, and cousins were the only family I saw or had any communication with. When my aunt and her family lived in the US, we would have Thanks Giving at my house then Christmas at their's, or vise versa. Ethnicity wise, I am both black and white. All of my family on my dad's side are Jamaican. My mom's side is mostly Jamaican, but her father was German and British. 
       I belong to a middle class family. We don't have enough money for a lot of luxuries, but we have enough. I love writing short stories and listening to international music. I mostly listen to Japanese and Korean music. I love reading books with a lot of suspense and/or tragedy. Stories with happy endings bore me. Almost all of the books and stories I've read, I read them online. I'm not very athletic, and I dislike playing almost every sport.
       I have a few abilities. I consider writing as one of my talents. When it comes to my stories, I am a very detailed writer. As technology is becoming more and more advanced, I'm starting to post many of my stories online. One of my hobbies other than writing is cooking. I also consider it as another talent of mine. Instead of wasting time looking through a cook book like I used to do, I now search for recipes via Internet. I also watch videos on how to make it too, so I know what I'm doing. I cook all the time at home and I really enjoy it. 
       I belong to very few social groups. I, currently, belong to the Japanese Club and Model UN. I'm currently not in a special group. However, this summer I'll planing to volunteer at a hospital and/or animal shelter. I care about many issues. In particularly, animal abuse, global warming, and cures for different cancers and birth defects.
       I have many plans for my future. I plan to fly to Japan, see the sights, and explore the culture. By then I should be able to speak Japanese. I plan to go to college majoring in medicine and becoming a pediatrician. After a few years of working, I want to go to poorer countries to provide cheap or even free health care.

Identity Worksheet

Gender: Female
Economic Class (Upper, Middle, Lower): I belong to a middle class family. We don't have enough money for a lot of luxuries , but we have enough.
Race/Ethnic Group: I am both black and white.
Abilities: I am a very detailed writer when it comes to my stories, and I'm very good at cooking.
Likes/Dislikes (music, books, arts, sports, etc) I love writing short stories and listening to international music. I mostly listen to Japanese and Korean music. I love reading books with a lot of suspense and/or tragedy. Stories with happy endings bore me. I'm not very athletic, and I dislike playing almost every sport.
Social Groups You Belong To: I belong to the Japan Club.
Special Groups (Volunteer, etc.): I'm currently not in a special group. However, this summer I'll planing to volunteer at a hospital and/or animal shelter.
Issues You Care About: I care about many issues. In particularly, animal abuse, global warming, and cures for different cancers and birth defects.
Family Characteristics (size, occupations, family traditions, stories, etc): My close family consists of ten people: my mom, my three sisters, my aunt, my uncle, and their three kids. My aunt, uncle, and cousins were the only family I saw or had any communication with. When my aunt and her family were in America, we would have Thanks Giving at my house then Christmas at their's, or vise versa.
Dreams & Future Plans (careers, places you want to explore, etc): I have many plans for my future. I plan to fly to Japan, see the sights, and explore the culture. By then I should be able to speak Japanese. I plan to go to college majoring in medicine and becoming a pediatrician. After a few years of working, I plan to go to poorer countries to provide free health care to all.