To best represent what I can bring to this class, I brought a computer mouse. I know that's kind of silly and seems like a pretty haphazard selection, but I ended up putting a lot more thought into this than I expected I would. It was difficult for me at first to select an object because everything I considered was either too limiting, or not necessarily accurate. For example, I considered bringing in a small maze game that I got a number of years ago with a $20 bill embedded inside of it. When you complete the maze, the $20 is released. Not only might it be a little strange to say “I can contribute analytically, like with maze-solving, to this class,” it'd be a little embarrassing to show that I couldn't really even contribute that, seeing as the $20 was still inside, waiting to be claimed (I haven't played with that thing for a number of years, let alone spend considerable time trying to get that $20, but I still haven't been able to complete the maze).
I brought a mouse because one of my strengths is working with technology. What that contributes varies from class to class, but it's certainly been nothing but beneficial. I've been fortunate enough to be in a number of unique situations when it comes to what I have accomplished with technology, and that area is definitely one of my stronger passions. This mouse is nothing more than a mini-computer – an incredible piece of technology, and so ultimately I think it is appropriate to consider it a representation of what I can hopefully bring to this class.