Senior Projects--how to?

[Ruth in CA]

So I'm thinking about this a year out --my dd will be a junior next year. I wanted to know if any of you who have graduated a child did a junior/senior year project with them. I like the idea as presented in WTM and as I've seen at a public school in my area, but i'd like to hear from people who have actually done it. How did you set things up? what did you require? How did you evaluate the project? Did it take the whole year? What was valuable about the experience? What would you have changed?

[Nan in Mass]

Mine do large projects. They pick them themselves. They don't tend to be academic. They are motivated by a powerful curiousity or wish to make something. I add things to the project to make it a bit broader, normally, and I ask them to record the learning process some how or to present their findings or to demonstrate whatever skill they've aquired or to show what they have made. I don't grade, so I haven't had to figure out how to assess the project. If I had to, I would probably do it on the basis of how hard they worked, how much they learned, and how well they presented the material. The first two would be given more weight than the third piece.

-Nan

[FaithManor]

We do required senior projects here but we gear them towards what the student's interests are in terms of future educational pursuits. DD wanted to go into medicine. So, we did a lot of research and at the universities she wanted to apply to, the skills most prized were research/science/tech writing. Not that we didn't want her to write a prize essay, but that prize essay wasn't going to get her nearly as far as an amazing science research project.

 

She built a near-space weather balloon, launched by a high powered model rocket, and tracked by GPS. It achieved 75,000+ feet. Not the 83,000 she had hoped for, but we were pretty impressed. Additionally, she produced a fine research paper to go with it.

 

Ds, now 14, has a huge interest in computer program/game design but along with that, he has an amazing talent for technical drawing/graphics. So, dh is teaching him Visual Basic 6 programming as a way of learning and cementing algorithyms and then he'll begin Java and from there C ++. Dh has already assigned two senior projects to ds for him to be thinking about and working towards. One is a computer game application and the other, is a gallery show of his artwork. His gallery show will actually be tied to his homeschool graduation/openhouse, but we have also lined up two museums in Michigan that are willing to do a display of his work.

 

Ds almost 13, is completely over the moon for zoology and wants to specialize in herpatology - reptiles/amphibians (YUCK, YUCK, YUCK....trying really hard to be supportive here). His goal is to work with Komodo dragons or other lizards on the conservancy lists. (Truly, my I HATE SNAKES AND LIZARDS WITH THE FIRE OF A THOUSAND SUNS mentality is having a hard time wrapping my brain around this.) So, his senior project is likely to be rather weird and will involve exotic pet stores and volunteer work at the nearest zoo with reptiles. Still shuddering here.....I doubt that it will be overly research oriented though I could be wrong. Why can't he just like pandas or penguins???????

 

Our kids do a lot of projects and especially in science. But, they are things that are unique to each child's interests and show their creative side, yet are not "crafty". We do give credit for the work if it fits solidly within a high school topic/curriculum and we usually bring outside help in for grading and input. Otherwise, it is listed in high school extracurriculars and achievements.

 

DD's senior project took her entire senior year plus the summer between junior/senior to complete. Dh worked closely with her as a mentor, but he used the socratic method when assisting her so that he was not tempted to solve her problems for her. I mentored her through the technical writing and presentation portion. Ultimately, we had the assistance of two friends (one was a math/computer tech guy and the other, a chemist) to decide on grading and evaluation. I'd say we worked closely in setting the goals and oversight, yet she worked academically independently. We did watch safety issues with hawk eyes because there were FAA regulations that had to be met.

 

Ds's senior project is likely to accumulate across his high school years as we save the best of his technical/mechanical work. I do expect that the computer application/game is more likely to be written in his senior year as he has a load of computer programming skills to get under his belt before he can attempt the project. Since Dh works for a large computer firm, he'll bring in colleagues to evaluate ds's work.

 

Faith

[Jane in NC]

My son did his senior project in what has now become his declared college major: archaeology.

 

At the end of his junior year, he volunteered with a college archaeological field school that was being held near our home. He was supposed to be on site for a week. After two days, the director asked him to stay on until the end of the field school. This relationship with an archaeologist was key. My son then did research and wrote a paper on a topic related to the dig under the guidance of this outside professional. He also attended several public programs and lectures on topics related to the site and its history.

 

In 10th grade, my son began asking a number of questions concerning climate change which led to a project. He did some reading, listened to Richard Wolfson's lectures on Earth's Changing Climate from the Teaching Company, and participated in a climate oriented backpacking camp at a college in the NC mountains. The latter was funded by a foundation. (It just occurred to me that the application for that particular camp was a good stepping stone for college applications. My son had to write about his interest in science and discuss his previous outdoor experiences. Namely he had to sell himself.) This was followed by more reading and a research paper. I gave him a quarter credit for his work.

 

Projects are a great way for a student to follow a passion and integrate their personal interests with their academic work. I think homeschoolers have an advantage in this area.