Bailey+Myers

Learning Journal #5 10/28/15 Our goal coming into this week was to decide on a single idea since we had completed the matrix. Our meeting with Parth definitely helped us to do that. He saw that the brake light "won" and told us to forget all other ideas and focus only on the brake light. He did this to help eliminate any personal or emotional bias in our selection process. He also helped us to drive forward now that we have selected our project. He told us how we should stay on topic and research effectively in order to design and build our device in the future. In the coming weeks we hope to begin our research on various electrical and mechanical systems present in braking and lighting systems. Then we will begin to design on paper our device and then build an actual prototype. All the while we will be meeting with Parth and he will help us organize our research and prepare a presentation to present at the competition.

Nice summary Bailey! Learning Journal #4 10/15/15 Our goal coming into this week was to continue research on the brake light. However, we met with our community sponsor since the last learning journal and he expressed interest in many of the ideas that we had given little consideration. He also presented us with an interesting idea for selecting a device that we will use for the competition. He told us about a matrix that gives each idea a value based on certain criteria such as feasibility, safety, and effectiveness. The scores are then totaled and then we will consider the idea with the highest scores and will eventually select one of the devices. While we have not completed the matrix, we are working on it and are close to finishing it. Before the next learning journal, we hope to complete the matrix in order to narrow down our candidates to two or three potential ideas that we could do for the competition. Then we will have to select one of those ideas and build it for the competition. We will also continue to meet with our sponsor to see what ideas he has to select, design, and build our device. Also, we will have a series of team building exercises after school to prepare us for the project in a box portion of the competition.

Keep up the good work with your group Bailey!

Learning Journal #3 10/5/15 Our goal coming into this week was to meet as a group and discuss the ideas that we had created in the hopes of choosing one idea. As a group we have discussed our ideas and the idea of the brake light indicator appears to be the best one and the idea we will use in the competition. We will also meet with a community sponsor soon and see what support they could give us as we design and build our device. In addition to this, we will research brake and light systems in order to design and later build our device. Also, we will do a series of tasks similar to the project-in-a-box competition in order to prepare for the competition. Now that we have identified our problem and our solution, I believe we are on schedule to complete our device by the time of the competition.

Nice synopsis Bailey. You all have been giving your best effort. I hope to have a mentor for you soon.

Learning Journal #2 9/23/15 We have begun to develop a schedule for our group to meet. On A Days all of those in our group have second lunch and we meet in the library to discuss our project. We are still discussing possible problems which we will solve using our device. Jake and Mike, the two newer group members have brought some new ideas to the table and help us evaluate our existing ideas. While we have a couple of ideas, we have not definitively decided on what we will choose as our problem. In the next couple of weeks, we will select a problem to solve and begin designing the device that will help to solve that problem. After we have identified our problem, we will also find a company in the area that will sponsor our project and help us if we need help in making our project.

Learning Journal #1 9/11/15 After the first two weeks of independent study, we have officially formed our group of five people that the STEM competition requires. Also during the first couple of weeks we have been brainstorming various problems that we could try to solve by building our device. In the near future we will continue to brainstorm ideas and do research on each possibility in order to determine if any similar device has already been invented. If a similar device has been invented, we will try to figure out potential improvements could be made in order to solve a problem in Pennsylvania. Then we will begin to design and create our device that will solve this Pennsylvania problem.