Projects

Find stories for puppet play and story telling (Due 9/23) 

Explorer project which includes developing a board game (Due 10/17)

Community service plan (To begin 10/20, completed 1/20 )

Bound book of compiled work (Due 12/12)

One completed perspective pictures (Due 1/13)

Great Master Project (Due 4/16)

Class Fundraiser (Due 5/29)

Research/ speech presentation on health topic of interest (Due 3/16)

Memorize Sonnet and create original (March) 

Rube Goldberg design (Due 5/3)

Country report (Due 6/7)


*Dates and projects may change or be added if needed.
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7^th Grade Great Master Project

Select an artistic masterpiece or invention created by one of the greats of the Renaissance made between the years 1350-1550. (All work must be approved by me.)  You will recreate a work of art or create a model of an invention and research the item and artist chosen and write a 1000 word (1 1/2 - 2 page) paper about the work and the artist.

Complete at least one fairly detailed rough draft sketch of your painting/drawing or invention. Bring your draft/s and the picture you are copying in to class by main lesson time, Friday, February 3 for approval and suggestions. At this time, we will determine what medium you should use for your masterpiece (acrylics, watercolor, colored pencils, charcoal, etc.) or what materials you will need to begin your invention model. 

Begin on the final copy of your masterpiece or invention. Please bring it to art class on February 6 and 13 and EML on February 10 and 17 so that you can work on it. Make sure you have the supplies you will need to work on your project.

The completed project is due Friday, March 9 during EML.

Criteria for a successful project:

1. If recreating a masterpiece, the final picture should be immaculate- no creases, tears, smears or left over pencil guidelines, etc.  The picture should be as close to the original in color, detail and proportion as possible. Take your time, draw and paint with care. Your name should be on the back of the picture along with the name of the artist you are copying and the title of the picture.

2. If making a model of an invention, the object should be as close to the original as possible and structure and material.  It should be well made with a clear understanding of the item and how it was made.  You should be able to demonstrate how your object works.

3.  The rough draft of the paper should be legible, self-edited, along with another edit  by a peer, parent, or sibling, and should be in a composition book with skipped lines.

The final paper should be typed or written in fountain pen in cursive.  The paper should be glued into your main lesson book (after prior bookwork).

Summary:

Subject chosen and rough draft sketch due by Friday, February 3

Rough draft paper due Wednesday, February 29 

Bring supplies/picture to art class Monday, February 6 and 13 and EML Friday, February 10 and 17

Picture and final paper due Friday, March 9, and Monday, April 16

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Renaissance Spirit Project

Your task is to embrace the “Renaissance Spirit” and extend out of yourself to understand and better the world and your community, as well as continuing your individual growth and knowledge of yourself.  In this seventh grade year, there are times ahead to think about and to consider who you want to be and what you want to accomplish.  In eighth grade, you will be given the task to learn a new skill.  This project is a stepping stone in helping you learn a bit more about yourself and the world and community around you.

1. A community service project in which you will participate for a total of 4-6 times: You will share an oral report (3-5 minutes) and a beautiful and neat visual display with information about your project (which may include photographs) to share with your class.  This presentation should describe your experience and what you learned from it.
2. An interview of an adult that you admire.  This adult should be selected based on the personal qualities that you hope to cultivate in yourself, not because of their job or special talents.  Attached you will find ideas for interview questions.  Feel free to write your own or add to the list.  Write up a description (1 ½ to 2 pages) of the person based on the interview and turn it in to me.
3. You will choose two qualities that you struggle with (one at school and one at home) to work on.  Where is it that you could step up and be of more help?  These can come from the goals you wrote up in September.  You should discuss both challenges with me and with your parents at home, coming up with a way to develop and strengthen these qualities.  At the end, you will sit down with your parents and with me and assess how you have fared in this task.                                                                                                     

Due Dates:
-Plan for community service- 11/4

-Discussion with your parents and with me to find the qualities you want to work on- 10/28

-A short written plan for how to develop and strengthen these qualities- 11/4 

-Interview- 11/18

-Interview report- 12/2

-Community service presentation- 1/17

-Assessment with parents first, then with me- 1/20

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Explorer Project

Your project is to research the life and discoveries of one of the 15th- 17th century explorers of the unknown lands and seas. You are responsible for finding at least  one book on your explorer to help provide your understanding of him.  Your research will be presented in three different ways:

Letter- you will write a reflection of your subject’s life as if he was writing it on the day before he died. The letter should include recollections of his childhood and/or early training and experience as a sailor. It should answer the question: “What have I really achieved in my life?”  He should be writing it to someone who he knew in historical reality such as someone he may have met along the way of his exploration.

Things to include:

a) What country and which monarch/s sponsored him

b) What was his mission/destination (if more than one, focus on main one)

c) What type of sailing vessels did he use, size of his crew, number of ships, etc.

d) Dates of his expedition (start to finish) 

e) Details of the voyage itself (rough weather, crew difficulties, loss of ship, etc.)

f) What did he discover (land, people, riches)

g) What was the outcome of his endeavor (for the natives, for him, for his country)

h) The date of the letter should reflect a time just prior to his death

This letter should be handwritten in cursive with fountain pen.  It should be single-sided so that it may be glued into your main lesson book.  It should be no less than three pages of average size font (in other words, don’t write TOO BIG or too small).

Board Game- you are to make a board game based on your subject’s adventures as an explorer. 

Some parameters: 

a) The game board should be about the size of a monopoly board (2x2 ft.) 

b) It should be designed for 2-4 players with written instructions, as needed

c) It can be either 2 or 3 dimensional

d) The background of the game board should be a map of the part of the world your subject explored

e) The path across the game board should be his expedition route 

f) Hazards should include those actually faced by your subject (lack of funds, equipment, loss of a ship, mutinous crew, getting lost, illness, death, bad weather, etc.)

g) Boons should be those he actually received (good weather, sturdy ships, money, equipment, food, discovered riches

h) You can use either dice, drawing action cards or a spinner to advance the game players

i) Game pieces could be ships, conquistador hats, or any other objects that seem appropriate (materials could include “sculpy”, plasticene, clay, paper, etc.)

Game day and presentation- you will be asked to present your game to the class. The explanation of your game should give the class a fairly accurate picture of who your subject was, what he discovered and what he had to overcome to achieve his goals. Once all of the games have been presented, we will play.

Due dates:

Explorer chosen and book checked out- 9/19

Book read- 10/3

Rough draft letter- 10/7 

(Please have parents proof read your rough draft for spelling, punctuation and capitalization) If you have questions about your entry’s content or length ask me- before this due date.

Game and final letter- 10/17