- Persisting
- Thinking Flexibly
- Questioning and Solving Problems
2. What three things are you most proud of?
- My Surtsey Island Timeline
- My Food Chains and Food Webs Task
- Global Warming Information
3. What 3 things did you find most challenging?
- My Surtsey Island Timeline - My Surtsey Island Timeline was one of the most challenging aspects of the whole Surtsey Island Task. It was quite challenging to research every detail, and it was probably the most time consuming Glog to work on - it was hard to put every detail in sequential order, and as well as including every fact, I had to get all the facts to fit on the page.
- Magisci Island Dichotomous Key (FOR CLASSIFICATION) - My Island Dichotomous Key was quite difficult to make, as I first had to try and grasp the concept of the Dichotomous Key, and then try to make a key for my island. It was hard to pick which ten animals I would use, and which biome to pick them from. This dichotomous key required quite a bit of research before I could start to make it, which prolonged the task even more. It was hard to decide which questions to use, and which categories to put each animal in.
- Magisci Island Biomes - Picking the biomes for Magisci Island was quite a task, because I really wanted to use a coniferous forest biome, and most of the other biomes I wanted my island to be home to was not going to work with the coniferous forest. Then I found the chaparral, which seemed quite appealing, and well, what do you know? It went perfectly with the coniferous forest biome.
4. What study skills/learning strategies do you think you used effectively during your Glogs? Explain your choice (list at least three eg. research skills, self - management, organisation, note-taking skills, problem solving, dealing with set backs, setting goals and targets, presentation skills).
I think that I dealt with set backs quite well, as on top of all the other homework, I had sport as well, and getting the Surtsey Island Task done felt quite rewarding. Probably the most difficult set back to over come was the amount of time sport took up after school. It seemed that using the few hours I had after school on wednesdays really helped me to be able to catch up on my work. I also think that I used presentation at least somewhat effectively, using the Glogs as the title page that would mark each new segment in my working. It made finding different segments and organising parts of my work a whole lot easier, and presenting my work neatly was not as hard as I once thought it was. I realised that instead of sticking in whole pages, I could just cut it out roughly, and as well as looking much better, it also helped me to organise things in the way I wanted them. The last thing that I thought I did well was my note - taking skills. I made sure that I took a lot of notes, and so I could completely grasp every concept without leaving room for doubt, so that when it came to doing My Island Task, I would know everything I ever needed to know, and more. Even though some concepts, like decomposers, herbivores and carnivores were quite easy topics to understand, I found that researching the meanings and what types of animals fell into those characters alone gave the words a whole different meaning. I realised that even though we learnt these words a few years back, researching the meanings and the behaviours of the animals that fell into these characters gave the word a whole new meaning. Because of this, I now not only completely understand words in my vocabulary, but know that words have brief meanings that dictionaries provide.
I think that I dealt with set backs quite well, as on top of all the other homework, I had sport as well, and getting the Surtsey Island Task done felt quite rewarding. Probably the most difficult set back to over come was the amount of time sport took up after school. It seemed that using the few hours I had after school on wednesdays really helped me to be able to catch up on my work. I also think that I used presentation at least somewhat effectively, using the Glogs as the title page that would mark each new segment in my working. It made finding different segments and organising parts of my work a whole lot easier, and presenting my work neatly was not as hard as I once thought it was. I realised that instead of sticking in whole pages, I could just cut it out roughly, and as well as looking much better, it also helped me to organise things in the way I wanted them. The last thing that I thought I did well was my note - taking skills. I made sure that I took a lot of notes, and so I could completely grasp every concept without leaving room for doubt, so that when it came to doing My Island Task, I would know everything I ever needed to know, and more. Even though some concepts, like decomposers, herbivores and carnivores were quite easy topics to understand, I found that researching the meanings and what types of animals fell into those characters alone gave the words a whole different meaning. I realised that even though we learnt these words a few years back, researching the meanings and the behaviours of the animals that fell into these characters gave the word a whole new meaning. Because of this, I now not only completely understand words in my vocabulary, but know that words have brief meanings that dictionaries provide.
5. What study skills/learning strategies do you need to develop in the future?
I think that I need to develop self - regulation, as I found that after I had started one homework assignment, I tend to swap through all my homework, and by the end of the night, end up achieving a little part of my homework done, between all assignments, but not one whole project done. I also think that organising my day would contribute quite heavily on my day, and relieve a lot of stress from doing many assignments, with not much time to complete them in. I don't really set goals and targets, though I think everyone has one main goal, in every subject - finish the assignment, try and get a good grade. Well, good grades for some. But not really anything in that goal, as in 'I will finish half of the Food Chains and Food Webs task,' or 'I will finish the whole assignment tonight.'
6. If you were to do the project again, what advice would you give yourself?
I would advise myself to not waste any time on the project, and to not pass up any spare moments. I would also say that, to be honest, to not spend to much time on the one project. An hour at the most, because otherwise, it will usually become half hearted, unless you're feeling really excited to do it. Don't wait till the holidays to do some Glogs, and send lots of your work early to dad's work (DO NOT PLAY ANY GAMES). Even though it seems that if you go into depth when studying, it is worth it, and you will understand everything clearly.
How do ecosystems evolve and change overtime?
This leads us back to the question: What is an ecosystem?
An ecosystem is a community of interacting organisms in their physical environment. But then, what is an organism? An organism is an individual plant, animal, or single - celled life form.
So, in other words, an ecosystem is a community of plants and animals in their physical environment.
So how do ecosystems evolve and change overtime? Surtsey Island is a great example when it comes to explaining this question. As the years went on, and as the island became progressively larger and more stable, it became increasingly filled with wildlife. Many new birds started to migrate to the island, and make their home their. Because of the brimming bird population, new mosses and lichens started to evolve - and so started the change of the ecosystem. Ecosystems change because as the biomes age, so does the wildlife. Eventually, parts of the land break off, and are used for sheltering animals or plants that could not once have grown there ever before. And so, since new things are happening to the land, different animals start to make their homes, which make the ecosystem a place of diversity.
