9th Grade: 2022-2023

Freshman Year English: 

• Thomas Ralston II

• Artifact Title: Odyssey Project

• Date: March of 2023

• Teacher: Mrs. DePriest

• JAGS Pillar: Investigate the World

• Assignment:

This project impacted me along my JAGS journey because it created the friendship I have with my friends today in JAGS. Allie Putnam, Zach Ledoux, Kevin Behn, and I were working on the project together. We knew each other before the project, but only a little, but as we worked on this project together, we got to know each other, which then led to the friendship we have today. So, in a way, it helped our friendship grow. Fast forward to today, I am still friends with these people, so it definitely was a memorable project in the way that it impacted me. 

The artifact relates to the first JAGS pillar of Investigating the World, as we learned about Greek culture through the Odyssey. The Odyssey by Homer is an epic about Odysseus, so it will, of course, involve the old Greek gods, titans, and monsters. It was a lot of fun getting to expand my knowledge on this topic, as I already knew most of what they were talking about from my fascination with Greek culture. Although some people didn't like the Odyssey, I thought it was a very fun and interesting book. This made me a better Global citizen by expanding my knowledge and respect for the Greek culture and life. I also learned skills that will stick with me throughout my life, like learning how to look through more than one perspective. I learned this through our discussion after we read the book about what we thought of Odysseus, and I got to see two very different sides of the story of how people viewed Odysseus. It helped me realize that not everyone thinks the same, and others view things differently from me. Through the Odyssey, I investigated the World and learned about Greek life.

Freshman Year Extracurricular: 

• Thomas Ralston II

• Artifact Title: Heifer Global Village

• Date: May of 2023

• Teacher: JAGS Freshman Teachers + other JAGS Teachers

• JAGS Pillar: Recognizing Perspectives

• Assignment: 

This artifact impacted me on my JAGS journey as it was my first ever trip with JAGS and with the high school in general. Just like the Odyssey project, I got to strengthen my friendship with Zach, Allie, Kevin, and Ellianna Spears. I may have also made some enemies as I had a little too much fun and killed around 3 babies by myself, and 5 as a cabin, but nevertheless, it was a wonderful, memorable experience. Besides this, however, it also impacted me because of the simulation we were in, which involved us living in real-life living situations in third-world countries like Guatemala, Mozambique, Tibet, etc. It opened my eyes as I never pictured what people had to go through to live in this world each day, but it made me even more thankful for the experience. 

This artifact most closely aligns with the second JAGS pillar of Recognizing Perspectives. This is obvious due to the fact of the simulation, as I already said in the paragraph above. During the simulation, you were given a country that you were "from" along with a family of random JAGS freshmen, maybe your friends, maybe new people to you. You were given very minimal supplies and would have to trade and harder with other countries to make sure your family had something to eat for the night. It was a challenge, not only because some countries were reluctant to trade with you, but also because you had to work together with everyone, which was difficult as tensions arose between certain countries and members of those countries. It was a trip I will never forget and have a lot of memories from, and I'm very glad that I was able to be a part of it. Heifer taught me to be a better World citizen by having a greater appreciation for those around me, who have a more difficult life than me. I also learned useful skills from this trip, like how to use different forest items for a firestarter. I would recommend dry leaves or mulch if you can find it. From all of this, however, you can see how it aligns with the second JAGS pillar of Recognizing Perspectives. 

Freshman Year World Language: 

• Thomas Ralston II

• Artifact Title: French 1

• Date: 2022-2023

• Teacher: Madame Browne

• JAGS Pillar: Recognizing Perspectives

• Assignment: 

This artifact is the whole class in general, because not only was it full of so much, but it also didn't have a lot of projects to determine one artifact for it. This class impacted me on my JAGS journey in so many ways, but mainly it was because it was my first ever world language, not including English, that I learned. This class was full of memories and friends that I got to enjoy class time with. Throughout the class, I learned a lot about French culture, cuisine, etc. I found out a lot of things I didn't know and how to say a lot of things beside that as well; it was a very good learning experience for me.

The JAGS pillar of Recognizing Perspectives seems to align well with the artifact above. Through learning about French culture in this class, I learned to recognize the perspectives of those who live in France and other French-speaking countries. I learned how similar and different French schools are, French cuisine, French transportation, and so much more. I found out a lot of things that I didn't know before about France. It was a great learning experience to have as a Freshman in JAGS. Taking French turned me into a better World citizen by having a greater recognition and respect for a different culture than my own. Because of French, I learned helpful skills as well, like how there are pickpockets in France and they're sneaky, though, because they're little kids with backpacks and quick hands. Because of taking this class, I was able to Recognize Perspectives. 

Freshman Year Science: 

• Thomas Ralston II

• Artifact Title: Frog Dissection

• Date: May of 2023

• Teacher: Mr. Preston

• JAGS Pillar: Investigating the World

• Assignment:

This artifact was such a mix of emotions for me, but one thing is for certain: it was a very impactful moment along my JAGS journey. In Biology with Mr. Preston, at the end of the year, we were given a frog that we were to cut up and examine the insides and learn about the anatomy of the frog. Of course, my experience was very memorable, as I had Dylan Hull as my partner. It was entertaining, to say the least. But, we went through with the dissection and I learned a lot of things I didn't know before, like how similar the anatomy of a frog is to the anatomy of a human, and how muscular frogs are. The dissection wasn't just memorable because of what we did, but also because of the smell, which will never leave me as long as I live. I don't think I can ever forget the smell of wet dead frogs.

The closest JAGS pillar that relates to the artifact shown is the first JAGS pillar, Investigating the World. Through this dissection, I investigated the insides of a frog and their anatomy. I found out that a frog's legs are insanely muscular, especially in the thighs, and that frogs have a great core as their abdominal core is extremely defined. I also found out that their intestines kind of look like ramen noodles balled up tightly on the side of the stomach. From the dissection, it made me a better Global citizen because I learned to have a greater expansion of knowledge about where these frogs come from and how they live in their habitats. I also learned useful skills like how to make an incision and how to perform carefully, even if it was on a frog. Finally, I found out that the bone structure, especially the jaw, of a Frog is much more fragile than people realize. The jaw of our frog broke after minimal pressure was added, which Mr. Preston warned us about, but still, it was interesting to see just how little pressure was needed to break bone. As you can see, however, through the frog dissection of my freshman year, I investigated the world.