8P4-Keva Planks

To make my castle out of Keva planks I first had to decide how I wanted my castle to look. I settled on 3 towers and 1 main castle. I began to set the foundation of my castle and tried to be as plank efficient as I could. When the castle floor was set I started two more towers and saw a design on the box that I tried for my third. Once those were tall enough I built up my castle with a roof and some spires. After each day I used my iPad to take a picture and recorded my progress on my website.

In this project I learned a couple things that I thought were cool. The first is not as cool as the others but, Keva planks fall over very easily! The second thing I learned is that Keva planks can be made out of maple or pine wood for the best quality. Another fact is that the height of 1 Keva plank is the same as the length of 5 planks. I also learned was that 1 planks length is the same as 3 planks width. With this I was able to learn new ways to build different structures with the planks. 

Of the 7 standards that Michigan Integrated Technology Competencies for Students has set (Empowered Learner, Digital Citizen, Knowledge Constructor, Innovative Designer, Computational Thinker, Creative Communicator, and Global Collaborator) I chose the standard Innovative Designer. This is because in my project I met the following criteria required for this standard. I stayed on task throughout the entire project and was always working to build up my castle. I was able to use the design process mainly because my castle walls would always fall down and I could keep improving them to look and function better. When I tried to make cardboard roofs with Popsicle sticks glued on them it did not work but I changed my course of action and came up with something better. 

While I was building my castle the hardest thing that I had to overcome was the cautiousness I needed to have even while building. It seemed that each day I walked into class and my creation had been knocked over, sometimes I even knocked it over while working. Another challenge was the fact that when building up if I wanted to be plank efficient, I had to leave some gaps so it didn't look like the castle I thought it was going to. 

If I was given the chance to do this again I would find a more sucluded spot in the classroom so there would be less accidents and I wouldn't have to waste so much time rebuilding. I would also have liked to finish some of the roofs for my spires and towers. I am very happy with the result I came up with and enjoy looking at it but still realize I could have made the castle look a little taller if I had more time. 

The Hastings High School Career and Technical Education Program offers Agriculture, Business Management, Computer Programming, Construction Trades, Culinary Arts, Digital Multimedia, Engineering Design, Finance, Insurance, and Marketing. My project ties to Construction Trades. My project best aligns with careers such a carpentry, architect, and construction.