To complete my Unit 2 essay, I went through several important steps. First, I researched articles about my transportation topic, the Japanese Shinkansen. While reading, I annotated the articles by highlighting key details, facts, and evidence that would help support my ideas. After finishing my research, I organized my information using a graphic organizer so my thoughts were clear and structured. Once my planning was complete, I wrote three CER paragraphs that included a claim, evidence from my research, and reasoning to explain the evidence. Finally, I revised my essay to improve my organization, word choice, and grammar before submitting the final version.
One thing I did well in my essay
One thing I did well in my essay was using strong research and evidence to support my claims. I used information from multiple articles about the Japanese Shinkansen and connected the evidence clearly to my claims. My annotations and graphic organizer helped me stay focused and organized while writing. Because of this, my CER paragraphs were clear and stayed on topic, showing my understanding of how transportation and communication impact society.
One thing I still need to learn to do
One thing I still need to learn is how to improve my reasoning by explaining my evidence more deeply. Sometimes my explanations were too short and did not fully explain why the evidence supported my claim. In the future, I want to work on adding more details and making stronger connections between my evidence and my claim. This will help make my arguments clearer and more convincing.
U: What do you understand in this unit? I really understand how to find a percentage of a number by turning the percent into a decimal and multiplying. I get how to use the “is over of” proportion to find a missing part or a missing whole, and it makes sense to me how tax and tips make a total go up while discounts make the total go down.
N: What new information did you learn in this unit? I learned about simple interest and how money can actually grow over time just by sitting in a bank account. I also learned about percent of change, which showed me how to calculate exactly how much a price increased or decreased compared to where it started. Before this, I didn’t know there was a specific formula for that.
I: What was interesting in this unit? The most interesting part was seeing how math works in the real world, like when I’m at a restaurant or a store. It was cool to realize I can figure out the total cost of something in my head just by moving a decimal point around. It made the math feel a lot more useful for my actual life.
T: What was tricky for you in this unit? The trickiest part for me was remembering to add or subtract the change at the end of the problem. Sometimes I would find the tax or the discount and think I was finished, but then I’d realize I still had to add it back to the original price to get the final answer. Also, remembering to change the percent to a decimal before multiplying was a bit tough at first.
Essential Question Chosen: B: How do our body systems work together when we play our favorite sport?
Reflection: When we play sports, our body systems work together in incredible ways. The muscular system allows us to move, while the skeletal system provides support and protection. The cardiovascular system pumps blood to supply oxygen to our muscles, and the respiratory system helps us take in more oxygen as we exert ourselves. This teamwork among systems highlights how our body functions as a cohesive one, enabling us to perform at our best.
Learning Experiences:
VR Experience: Using virtual reality to explore the human body was fascinating. It helped me visualize how different systems interact in real-time, making the learning experience engaging and memorable.
Dissections (Pig’s heart/lungs): This hands-on activity gave me a deeper understanding of organ functions and their importance in our body.
Improvements: If I could improve one thing, it would be my study habits. Creating a regular review schedule for quizzes would help me retain the material better and feel more prepared for tests.
My artwork is a poster-style drawing that shows how homework causes stress. It includes sad, damaged-looking trees with faces, broken pencils, and bold handwritten words like “HOMEWORK HURTS TREES” and “DOWN WITH HW!” There is also a red failing grade symbol to represent pressure from school. The trees act like symbols for students, showing how stress can make them feel worn down.
Intended audience: Students, teachers, and schools—especially teachers and adults who assign homework.
Message: The message is that too much homework can be stressful and harmful to students’ mental well-being. By comparing students to trees, the artwork shows that constant pressure can “damage” growth instead of helping it.
Design strategies used to make the artwork impactful
Symbolism: Trees represent students, and broken pencils represent stress, burnout, and overwork. This helps communicate the message without needing a lot of words.
Color contrast: Bright red (the failing grade and pencil eraser) draws attention and signals danger or stress, while darker lines and muted greens create a serious mood.
I understand that scale is a way to compare the size of a model or drawing to the actual object, and that the scale factor helps determine how much larger or smaller the model is compared to the real thing.
N: What new information did you learn in this unit?
I learned how to set up proportions to solve problems involving similar figures, and how to calculate actual measurements using a given scale.
I: What was interesting in this unit?
I found it interesting how scale and proportionality are used in real-life situations, such as maps and models, and how they help us visualize and understand sizes and distances.
T: What was tricky for you in this unit?
The tricky part for me was understanding how to correctly set up proportions and solve for unknown sides of similar figures, especially when there were multiple steps involved.
How do your final clay piece and name drawing reflect different aspects of your identity (Who you are) ?
My clay piece and my name drawing both show different sides of who I am. In my clay project, I focused on shape and texture to represent the creative and hands-on part of me. I like to build and experiment, so the clay piece shows how I enjoy working with materials and turning ideas into something real. My name drawing, on the other hand, reflects my personality and interests. I used colors, patterns, and symbols that represent things I care about—like my hobbies, favorite places, and the people who inspire me. Together, the two artworks show that I’m both imaginative and thoughtful, and that I like expressing myself in more than one way.
How did you demonstrate persistence while creating these two works of art ?
I demonstrated persistence by not giving up when things didn’t go as planned. With the clay project, I had to redo parts of it because the clay cracked or didn’t shape the way I wanted, but I kept working until it turned out how I imagined. For the name drawing, I had to be patient with the details and careful with color choices. Even when it took longer than I expected, I stayed focused and kept improving my design. Both projects taught me that persistence means continuing to work through challenges instead of giving up.
What are some pieces of feedback that you received and then incorporated into your work?
Some feedback I received was to make my headlines sound more confident and attention-grabbing. I also got comments saying that my pictures clearly showed the theme and emotions of the topic, which helped make my front page more powerful. Based on this, I made small improvements to my layout and made sure the tone of my headlines matched the strong emotions shown in my visuals. I also tried to make my main article more detailed and confident so that the overall message came across clearly and persuasively.
Explain 1 thing that you are proud of from this unit.
I am proud of how much I improved at recognizing and explaining bias in the media. Before this unit, I didn’t always notice how much word choice, camera angles, or even the order of information could affect how a story feels. By studying the Israel–Gaza war coverage, I learned to look at news more critically and question where information comes from. I’m also proud that I handled such a sensitive and emotional topic in a respectful and thoughtful way. I made sure to focus on how media represents events rather than on who is right or wrong. That helped me stay objective and analytical, which I think made my final project stronger.💪🏻
Explain 1 thing that you want to keep working on.
One thing I want to keep working on is my ability to explain the techniques that create bias in more detail. Sometimes I can spot bias — like when a headline uses strong emotional words — but I want to get better at breaking down why that’s persuasive and how it affects the audience’s emotions or opinions. I also want to improve my ability to include more diverse and reliable sources, so that I’m always considering multiple sides before forming an opinion. Being able to do that will make my arguments more balanced and credible in future projects.
In your own words, explain what Bias is.
Bias is when information is presented in a way that unfairly favors one side, idea, or group over another. It means the message isn’t completely neutral or objective — something influences it, like personal beliefs, political opinions, or cultural background. Bias can appear through language, tone, images, or even what information is left out. In the media, bias can shape how people think or feel about an event without them even realizing it. Understanding bias helps us think critically and not just accept everything we see or read as the full truth.
Explain 1 positive outcome of people having the same perspective might be.
When people share the same perspective, a positive outcome is that it can bring unity and cooperation. For example, if many people agree on the need for peace or humanitarian aid, it can lead to collective action and faster results. Shared perspectives can make it easier for communities to support one another and work together toward a common goal. It can also create a sense of belonging, because people feel that others understand and share their beliefs or experiences.
Explain 1 negative outcome of people having the same perspective might be.
A negative outcome of people having the same perspective is that it can lead to narrow thinking. When everyone agrees, it can stop people from questioning ideas or considering other sides of the story. This can make discussions less open and cause people to ignore important facts or viewpoints that don’t fit their beliefs. In conflicts like the Israel–Gaza war, this can make understanding and peace harder to reach, because people only listen to information that supports their side. It’s important to have different perspectives so that people can think critically, stay informed, and make fairer judgments.🧐
U (Understand): I understand that proportionality describes a consistent relationship between two quantities, and the constant of proportionality (CoP) allows us to calculate one value when we know the other. I also understand how ratios, unit prices, and variables can be used to model these relationships in real-life situations.
N (New): I learned how to calculate unit prices to compare products, how to create and interpret graphs that show proportional relationships, and how to use formulas involving the CoP to solve problems efficiently. I also learned how variables can represent unknown values and help organize calculations.
I (Interesting): It was interesting to see how proportionality applies to everyday life, such as determining the best deal when shopping, or comparing quantities in recipes. I also enjoyed seeing patterns emerge in graphs and tables, which made abstract concepts feel more concrete and practical.
T (Tricky): The tricky part for me was setting up ratios and equations correctly at first, and making sure graphs accurately reflected the relationship between variables. It took practice to always check that lines on graphs passed through the origin and that calculations were consistent with the CoP.
During our table tennis unit, I learned a lot about the game and about myself. At the beginning, I didn’t have much control with the paddle, and it was hard to keep the ball on the table. With practice, I got better at keeping rallies going and aiming my shots. I also started to understand how much footwork matters. Instead of just standing still, I learned to move side to side, which made it easier to return tricky shots.
One of the coolest parts of this unit was learning to use strategy. At first, I was just trying to hit the ball back any way I could. Later on, I started noticing how my opponent played and tried to place the ball where they weren’t ready. This made the games way more fun and competitive.
I also had to work on patience and sportsmanship. Sometimes it was frustrating to miss an easy shot or lose a point, but I realized that getting upset didn’t help. I learned to shake it off and focus on the next rally. Playing against different classmates also showed me how important it is to stay positive, respectful, and encouraging.
Overall, I feel like I really improved in table tennis and gained confidence. I know I’m not perfect yet, but I’m proud of the progress I made. If I did this unit again, I’d like to get better at serving and adding spin to my shots. This unit taught me not only skills for the game but also how to stay focused, keep trying, and have fun while competing.
