FAQ

How do I come up with an idea?

NO IDEA: brainstorming process. I really like the idea of having these students identify the following things: (a) areas of greatest interest to them in their personal life (sports, cooking, art, etc) and (b) projects at SLA that have inspired/interested them the most (I had this type of conversation with Vienna and she seemed to have some ideas of some sort at the end, as opposed to zero idea). Since there is only one advisor and a bilion advisees, it would be nice to pair them up with another person in the advisory (possibly someone in the same boat) and provide them with some probing questions:

a) why do these things interest you?

b) what did you learn in the projects that you wanted to learn more of?

c) what do you do outside of school that you would like to dedicate more time to learning and exploring more deeply or in a different way?

What should I do if I have a half baked idea?

Some idea: pair/group up with someone else who is in the same boat. Students share what they wrote at the beginning, and provide feedback (you could go with the "I notice. . . I wonder. . . What if. . ." style of questioning. Students in this group (and the next one) can write down a list of next steps and questions, and identify the person/resource they need.

What should I do if I have a very good idea?

A very good idea: These students should take a closer look at the Description and Timeline, and develop their own list of next steps and questions. For each of the next steps and questions, they should identify the person/resource they need in order to accomplish that.