Sophomore Personal Project

Introduction

The personal project at Notre Dame Preparatory School is about "learning about learning." By focusing on the process rather than the end product, students recognize the skills they use in multiple ares of work from the brainstorming stage to handling the challenges that always arise. When the focus is on the process, most students receive a sense of satisfaction in their accomplishments beyond the simple goal. They have skills to tackle any long-term activity.

Through this website, NDPMA students and parents can become familiar with the basic components of the Sophomore Personal Project. More thorough information becomes available during the school year to the current sophomores. For information not found on this site, please email the project coordinator, Mrs. Archer (marcher@ndpma.org).

Course Description

The Personal Project course, an independent assignment completed during one semester, offers a student the chance to demonstrate and further develop various skills through the process of inquiry. For this project-based learning course, the student will show principled action based on sustained inquiry and critical reflection over an extended period of time. As a student navigates the four stages of the design cycle (investigate, plan, act, and reflect), he documents actions and reflects on his skills before creating the culminating report and participating in a celebratory presentation. This course is a blended learning course that requires students to work independently on assignments by following online content and to meet during Community Time for instruction. (Students taking this during the summer semester will meet in an online forum.) This course is a .5 credit, non-GPA graded elective course for sophomores.

What is the Personal Project?

Have you ever wanted to play the guitar? Do you have a secret passion to write a novel? The Personal Project, an independent assignment, can be on a topic and format you choose. It is your project to show your principled action as a result of sustained inquiry and critical reflection over an extended period. In short, you act upon your own natural curiosity in a topic of your own interest.

What will I do?

Select a topic of interest. Make it something truly personal and interesting to you. Relevant, reliable sources as well as focus through a Global Context will shape the goal of a product or outcome. You document each step of action, including your early brainstorming. Eventually, you present your project for assessment in the form of a report. As a final celebration, each student presents his or her project at the exhibition.

What should be my focus?

The emphasize is on the process—not the product. The thing you make or the skill you acquire are self-assessed. The journal entries and report present learning about the process of a long-term project: researching, managing time effectively, deciding upon the quality of a product/outcome, and handling challenges as they arise. The project’s focus is more on the documenting of skills rather than the product/outcome created. Students who may not reach the originally set product/outcome might still score well when reporting on the process.

Who will help me?

• A coordinator oversees all students and can offer assistance at any time.
• Each student also works closely with a supervisor, a staff member who assists in defining a product/outcome and crafting a meaningful report. The supervisor also assesses the report at the completion of all projects.
• Media Specialists help locate reliable, relevant sources.
• Mentors are those who may be experts in the topic of study and can help the student with research and tasks.

Access a PDF copy of the Student Guide.

Click the Student Guide tab to view further details.