Progress Report: Spinoffs and Setbacks

        Hello everyone! It's been about a month since I began work on this project, and as I've learned, it's been quite an adventure. For the most part, I am staying on track with my production schedule, editing and finalizing my first video, "History of the Earth." The video is much more detailed and longer than I expected, with the process including ten pages of notes, a 34-slide presentation, and three pages of works cited. As a result, it has taken more time than expected, and the majority of it out-of-class, though I am satisfied with the outcome.

A video in progress

        In researching the history of the Earth, I am constantly intrigued by the sheer amount of time and events that happened before humans even began to evolve. The extinctions and evolution created a storyline that was not entirely what one might expect; this path of change was not without its ups and downs (or explosions and collisions), as is modern life. Researching also helped me gain further understanding of information mentioned in our timeline project in class. This knowledge is truly enlightening, and I intend to put it to good use. I also learned more about my own researching and working patterns as I made this video, and this has helped me better plan my schedule. For example, I have found I tend to work more efficiently if I keep at one task until its completion, such as taking notes on one large section at a time, rather than stopping in the middle of something or doing something in multiple sittings. Thus, I found myself doing the major work at home, and saving the class time for planning and organizing my information.
        As an update to my plan, I will endeavor to finish about 3 videos by the end of the project. The next two videos, however, will be much shorter, and cover less intricate details as the first; I am in the process of planning out the topics, but rest assured they will cover plenty of "mysteries of biology," with topics connected to biology and biology curriculum material. I will also make sure to point out parts of the subject that remain unknown, following my theme of exploring biology.
        A new idea I am playing with is tying in each video to an upcoming unit in my class (evolution, classification, physiology), with the main video matter "spinning off" of an aspect of the unit material. For example, in this format, my "History of the Earth" video would be spinning off of the evolution of life aspect of our current unit. Perhaps this could help supplement the unit information and provide enrichment and further material for curious students. Either way, I am looking forward to researching and drafting the next video.
        Expect the first video to be released this week, and await the next, as we continue on our journey to explore biology.