Final Senior Exhibit Blog
I am pleased to say that I have officially reached the end of the senior exhibit process. With my application, written document, and final presentation done, all that is left is this blog. Looking back, it has not been that bad. I definitely picked an easier topic, but I wanted to have fun with this project and I can officially say that I accomplished that goal. I truly love the sport of fly fishing and I can officially say that I have reached new levels. When I started this process, I could probably cast about 50 feet of line rather consistently. During spring break I went to the Bahamas with Andrew Cooper and through working on our casts for a while, I was able to hit 75+ feet. That is a distance I truly thought I could never hit.
The application I completed was the one thing I wish I could have done better. I wanted to an instructional clinic for a few friends and then maybe have then come out to the Rappahannock. Unfortunately, the second part of that was unable to happen due to scheduling conflicts. I think everyone truly enjoyed it and although they may never fly fish again, the basics are now bestowed upon them.
I sort of have mixed feelings about my written document. I don’t want to say I thought it was pointless, but I know that I could have put my efforts towards something a little better. I did the best I could with the fly fishing manual, but I was so much more towards actually teaching people because not a single person is going to read my manual. In the end, I did what I could and it is all ancient history now.
The Senior Exhibit process is something I truly will remember. I think this is because I picked something I liked. I am going to college in Clemson next year and I can almost guarantee that I will check out the local fishing scenes. I look at some of my friends like Nicholas who did Architecture and he says that he has absolutely no future in the area of work. Therefore the process might have been less for him than it was for me. The sad part about it is that he will probably score a much higher grade, but in the end, what will matter is how much I keep up with fly fishing and I know that it will be a lot.
I am happy the Senior Exhibit process is over, but I can say with conviction that it will have a lasting effect on me and that is bigger than the grade itself.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Presentation Blog
Rehearsal and Presentation Blog
I have officially finished the presentation part of my Senior Exhibit and it feels great. Despite the fact, I still have to do a written document; I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Sadly, I did not score as highly on my presentation as I wanted too. I feel that I can be a fairly good public speaker if I am comfortable with what I am talking about. In the end, I didn’t really struggle with the talking part of it, but I think my passion for the topic got in the way of actually showing people what I learned the impact the project had on me as a whole. I guess that this point it is already done, so it doesn’t help to see what could have been.
I am not lying at all when I say that I was significantly more nervous for my rehearsal than I was for my final presentation. Prior to my rehearsal, I had a solid idea of what I wanted to do. I had a giant, very descriptive, note document that I was going to use to guide me through my rehearsal and final presentation. I went into the rehearsal with much visual aid; I simply had pictures projecting in the background. Therefore most of the attention was on me. I had a few stumbles in the beginning solely because of the nerves. In the end, I thought I gave a pretty decent presentation and I didn’t really get any feedback, so I thought that was a good thing.
Unfortunately, after my rehearsal, my laptop proceeded to crash at the schools lock in. This really set me back because I lost my detailed note document, my written document, and three blogs two days before my final presentation. I was extremely bummed about this, but with some amount of perseverance, I managed to assemble a note document similar to that of my previous one.
The only twist I added to my presentation that was not in my rehearsal was the fact that I wanted to get the audience more involved, so I went to Wal-Mart and bought so small string and some large rings to teach everyone there how to tie a fisherman’s knot. This went extremely well, I got the impression that everyone liked it and I still today have people coming up saying they still remember how to do. Also, since it was raining during the time of my rehearsal, I was not able to take the group outside and teach them a little bit about fly fishing first hand. I was able to do this during my presentation and I think the people who got to try, found out firsthand how hard it is to fly fish, but they had a great time.
I do have some regrets about my presentation. I am kind of upset that I did not get any feedback from my rehearsal because when I gave a very similar presentation on my final presentation date, apparently I forgot to talk about some of the stuff that was vital to me getting a good grade. I kind of feel that my rehearsal was kind of a waste because truly nothing became of it. In the end, it is what it is and I can’t change what happened, but I feel that I did a pretty okay job on every part of my final presentation aside the reflection part.
I have officially finished the presentation part of my Senior Exhibit and it feels great. Despite the fact, I still have to do a written document; I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Sadly, I did not score as highly on my presentation as I wanted too. I feel that I can be a fairly good public speaker if I am comfortable with what I am talking about. In the end, I didn’t really struggle with the talking part of it, but I think my passion for the topic got in the way of actually showing people what I learned the impact the project had on me as a whole. I guess that this point it is already done, so it doesn’t help to see what could have been.
I am not lying at all when I say that I was significantly more nervous for my rehearsal than I was for my final presentation. Prior to my rehearsal, I had a solid idea of what I wanted to do. I had a giant, very descriptive, note document that I was going to use to guide me through my rehearsal and final presentation. I went into the rehearsal with much visual aid; I simply had pictures projecting in the background. Therefore most of the attention was on me. I had a few stumbles in the beginning solely because of the nerves. In the end, I thought I gave a pretty decent presentation and I didn’t really get any feedback, so I thought that was a good thing.
Unfortunately, after my rehearsal, my laptop proceeded to crash at the schools lock in. This really set me back because I lost my detailed note document, my written document, and three blogs two days before my final presentation. I was extremely bummed about this, but with some amount of perseverance, I managed to assemble a note document similar to that of my previous one.
The only twist I added to my presentation that was not in my rehearsal was the fact that I wanted to get the audience more involved, so I went to Wal-Mart and bought so small string and some large rings to teach everyone there how to tie a fisherman’s knot. This went extremely well, I got the impression that everyone liked it and I still today have people coming up saying they still remember how to do. Also, since it was raining during the time of my rehearsal, I was not able to take the group outside and teach them a little bit about fly fishing first hand. I was able to do this during my presentation and I think the people who got to try, found out firsthand how hard it is to fly fish, but they had a great time.
I do have some regrets about my presentation. I am kind of upset that I did not get any feedback from my rehearsal because when I gave a very similar presentation on my final presentation date, apparently I forgot to talk about some of the stuff that was vital to me getting a good grade. I kind of feel that my rehearsal was kind of a waste because truly nothing became of it. In the end, it is what it is and I can’t change what happened, but I feel that I did a pretty okay job on every part of my final presentation aside the reflection part.
Application Blog
Application Blog
I have successfully completed my Senior Exhibit application. For my application, I went down the route of trying to spread my knowledge amongst other people. I love to fly fish and I thought there was no better way than to teach some of peers how to enjoy the sport also.
I had everyone (Raleigh, Nicholas, and Landon) arrive at my house at 1:00 on a Saturday. Truthfully, when the time came around to actually doing the application, I was still a little bit nervous, despite the fact that I was teaching three of my best friends. When everyone arrived, I started by teaching them the two basic knots that are used in fly fishing; one was the standard fisherman’s knot that is used to the fly onto the line, the other was a knot used to attach the liter to the larger fly line. It is impossible to fly fish without knowing how to tie both of those knots. As expected, everything went smoothly and all three students mastered both knots with very little difficulty.
Next came the actual fly fishing. I have been fly fishing off and on for a few years now, so I kind of forgot how hard it is to learn. When I had my meeting with my fly fishing mentor, Harry Robertson, a few days prior, he warned me not to get frustrated because it was going to be very difficult. At the time, I sort of blew the comment off, but I was definitely in for it if I hadn’t have lowered my expectations. I had an area of a field lined off at the bottom of my house with markers every 10 feet all the way until 60 feet. Mr. Robertson had warned me not to start casting before they tried because see someone good fly fish is not going to help a beginner. I took his advice and went through the basic motions of fly fishing without casting any line. After I finished my whole spiel, Nicholas decided he wanted to go first. I seeing him attempt to cast the first time, I knew I would have to try and break the cast down into a forward cast and a backward cast. After ten minutes and lot of instruction, his cast was not “good” by any means, but it was functional and for that I was kind of proud. Slowly but surely, each person came up one by one and I encountered some new roadblocks with each one, but I felt very prepared and I believe all of them finished with a solid understanding of the sport. Nicholas decided he wanted to go again, and this turned out to be a blessing for me. After some more instructing, Nicholas had a solid back cast and forward cast and was able to link them together and hit 40 feet on a good cast, I was very happy to see that.
Overall, I thought my application went well, but the main thing I learned is how hard it is to teach people knew things. I gained a lot of respect for anyone who is a teacher. It is truly so hard because it feels like fly fishing is such a simple sport, but one little thing can ruin the entire cast. Therefore, I was forced to pretty much eliminate all expectations I had and take baby steps with the new casters. In the end, I would call my application a success and I think everyone thoroughly enjoyed fly fishing and maybe one or two of them will try to continue to learn.
I have successfully completed my Senior Exhibit application. For my application, I went down the route of trying to spread my knowledge amongst other people. I love to fly fish and I thought there was no better way than to teach some of peers how to enjoy the sport also.
I had everyone (Raleigh, Nicholas, and Landon) arrive at my house at 1:00 on a Saturday. Truthfully, when the time came around to actually doing the application, I was still a little bit nervous, despite the fact that I was teaching three of my best friends. When everyone arrived, I started by teaching them the two basic knots that are used in fly fishing; one was the standard fisherman’s knot that is used to the fly onto the line, the other was a knot used to attach the liter to the larger fly line. It is impossible to fly fish without knowing how to tie both of those knots. As expected, everything went smoothly and all three students mastered both knots with very little difficulty.
Next came the actual fly fishing. I have been fly fishing off and on for a few years now, so I kind of forgot how hard it is to learn. When I had my meeting with my fly fishing mentor, Harry Robertson, a few days prior, he warned me not to get frustrated because it was going to be very difficult. At the time, I sort of blew the comment off, but I was definitely in for it if I hadn’t have lowered my expectations. I had an area of a field lined off at the bottom of my house with markers every 10 feet all the way until 60 feet. Mr. Robertson had warned me not to start casting before they tried because see someone good fly fish is not going to help a beginner. I took his advice and went through the basic motions of fly fishing without casting any line. After I finished my whole spiel, Nicholas decided he wanted to go first. I seeing him attempt to cast the first time, I knew I would have to try and break the cast down into a forward cast and a backward cast. After ten minutes and lot of instruction, his cast was not “good” by any means, but it was functional and for that I was kind of proud. Slowly but surely, each person came up one by one and I encountered some new roadblocks with each one, but I felt very prepared and I believe all of them finished with a solid understanding of the sport. Nicholas decided he wanted to go again, and this turned out to be a blessing for me. After some more instructing, Nicholas had a solid back cast and forward cast and was able to link them together and hit 40 feet on a good cast, I was very happy to see that.
Overall, I thought my application went well, but the main thing I learned is how hard it is to teach people knew things. I gained a lot of respect for anyone who is a teacher. It is truly so hard because it feels like fly fishing is such a simple sport, but one little thing can ruin the entire cast. Therefore, I was forced to pretty much eliminate all expectations I had and take baby steps with the new casters. In the end, I would call my application a success and I think everyone thoroughly enjoyed fly fishing and maybe one or two of them will try to continue to learn.
2nd Senior Exhibit Blog – The Update and major change
My senior exhibit presentation is approaching faster than I would like it too. It is about a month until everything goes down and I have a major change in my Senior Exhibit. Prior to now, I was going to be giving a presentation on my experiences in Alaska and Alaska itself to the 7th Grade Class. I had always been a little bit skeptical of this plan, because I was kind of clueless on how I was going to do it. I initially started the Senior Exhibit process with the concept of fly fishing on my mind. Also, it is still the main part of my presentation; I don’t really feel like I should get away from it that much. It is what I feel comfortable doing and my initial goal was to spread my passion for the fly fishing to some of my peers. Also, I just didn’t feel like the 7th graders geography class was a good fit, I know that they would have really wanted to hear what I had to say, I am truly was drawing a blank on how I could change that.
Therefore, I felt that it would be much more beneficial for me to switch gears and go down the teaching people how to fly fish. I think that it would be better for me because it is something I want to do and I feel that I could really make some people love the sport of fly fishing like I do. I am very heart set on this idea and am going to pursue it despite the lack of time left in my Senior year. Also, I written document was going to be the lesson plan I used to give a presentation to the 7th Graders, but since that is no longer happening, I am either going to do a paper on fish preservation in Alaska or a fly fishing manual in paper form. I guess I need to figure that out very shortly. Despite this change, I am feeling pretty comfortable with my Senior Exhibit right now. I am working on scheduling a date for my application and when that is over with, I came put all my efforts into coming up with the outline for my presentation
My senior exhibit presentation is approaching faster than I would like it too. It is about a month until everything goes down and I have a major change in my Senior Exhibit. Prior to now, I was going to be giving a presentation on my experiences in Alaska and Alaska itself to the 7th Grade Class. I had always been a little bit skeptical of this plan, because I was kind of clueless on how I was going to do it. I initially started the Senior Exhibit process with the concept of fly fishing on my mind. Also, it is still the main part of my presentation; I don’t really feel like I should get away from it that much. It is what I feel comfortable doing and my initial goal was to spread my passion for the fly fishing to some of my peers. Also, I just didn’t feel like the 7th graders geography class was a good fit, I know that they would have really wanted to hear what I had to say, I am truly was drawing a blank on how I could change that.
Therefore, I felt that it would be much more beneficial for me to switch gears and go down the teaching people how to fly fish. I think that it would be better for me because it is something I want to do and I feel that I could really make some people love the sport of fly fishing like I do. I am very heart set on this idea and am going to pursue it despite the lack of time left in my Senior year. Also, I written document was going to be the lesson plan I used to give a presentation to the 7th Graders, but since that is no longer happening, I am either going to do a paper on fish preservation in Alaska or a fly fishing manual in paper form. I guess I need to figure that out very shortly. Despite this change, I am feeling pretty comfortable with my Senior Exhibit right now. I am working on scheduling a date for my application and when that is over with, I came put all my efforts into coming up with the outline for my presentation
Friday, October 17, 2008
Senior Exhibit Journal #1 - Summer Activity
My summer activity was a fly fishing trip to the wonderful state of Alaska. While there is participated in a couple tutorials involving fish safety and my own safety, from bears. I fished for five days straight, and ate fleshly cooked Salmon or Halibut from the ocean each night. Although I learned a ton about Alaska and its rich environment, it is fair to say I also had a ton of fun on my trip. My trip started from Washington D.C. and after three plane rides I had finally made it to King Salmon, Alaska. My first experience was indescribable. No disrespect to the Alaskan because they are incredibly nice people, but it was as if I was in another country. My first five minutes included watching a middle-aged lady verbally assault an airport official in broad daylight, an act that would have led straight to prison if done in the continental United States. I knew it would be a good week.
I went on the trip with my father because we both have developed a strong passion for the sport of fly fishing. The second morning we left King Salmon in a small airplane and headed 120 miles into the wilderness. I mean this literally. After the hour long fight we landed on a tidal flat where I would spend one of the most incredible weeks of my life. We were met but six grizzly looking men that escorted us to the camp. It was easy to see they were well adjusted to the environment. My dad and I shared a tent that simply had two cots and two lamps. We were living the simple life. After unpacking and taking to short tour of the camp, we were all dying to try out the fishing. After we suited up, we walked down to the large streams and there were fish everywhere. Much to our dislike, the guide told us to keep moving because there are “too many” fish in that area and he didn’t want to disturb the environment. Never in my life had I passed up fish, this is how I knew it would be a good week. We eventually settled in to various spots and tied on our flies and were ready to cast. I begin to cast and saying mine was bad would probably have been an over statement. It had been a while since I had casted and it was very noticeable. After numerous unsuccessful false casts I let the line go and it landed a mere 30 feet in front of me compared to the 60 foot casts the other guests were making. Luckily for me within 5 seconds, I yelled “Fish On”.
After the first afternoon, I attended two tutorials on the preservation of fish and bear safety. Caring for the fish was the #1 priority. None of the fish were close to or going endangered, but still, the small population of fish we caught, we learned how to take off a fish carefully. The main point in the tutorial was not to fish in one place for too long because it can destroy the natural habitat. The bear talk was something we all knew was coming long before we arrived in Alaska. In our valley there were sixteen humans and over twenty bears, so safety was a big issue. We learned never to surprise a bear, so we literally walked around all say yelling. “HEY BEAR” or “HO BEAR”. There was actually an incident where two men in my group were charged. They were fine but it was the first time since the camp opened that it has happened. Lastly, for safety all the people in the camp, the guides carried high powered rifles everywhere.
Our typical day was very simple. It consisted of a 7 am wake up with breakfast at 7:30 am. By around nine, we were all ready to fish. We packed sandwiches every day and walked down a hill and we were already at our destination. We had some of the best fishing in the world right in front of our fingertips. We fished all day and usually retreated back to the camp at around 4:30. While there I would usually use the telescope and bear watch until dinner. The camp I was at is completely self sustaining, so the cook went out every day and caught our food. Meals were delicious and after a long day, everyone usually went to bed very early. The last two days on the trip were my favorite because a helicopter would show up in the morning and take us into new terrain that had never been touched, with that the fish were even more populated then I had every seen. Since we were away from camp, we broke the rule of not staying in the small for too long because I literally did not move all day and caught around 60 7-25 pound pick, chum, or silver salmon. It was one of the most incredible things I have ever done.
At the end of the trip, I was definitely sad to leave. I had had one of the greatest weeks of my life; my fly dishing skills improved dramatically and my knowledge on the area I was in was vast. My summer activity was a success and the information o learned is going to help me go through my senior exhibit with much less harm.
I went on the trip with my father because we both have developed a strong passion for the sport of fly fishing. The second morning we left King Salmon in a small airplane and headed 120 miles into the wilderness. I mean this literally. After the hour long fight we landed on a tidal flat where I would spend one of the most incredible weeks of my life. We were met but six grizzly looking men that escorted us to the camp. It was easy to see they were well adjusted to the environment. My dad and I shared a tent that simply had two cots and two lamps. We were living the simple life. After unpacking and taking to short tour of the camp, we were all dying to try out the fishing. After we suited up, we walked down to the large streams and there were fish everywhere. Much to our dislike, the guide told us to keep moving because there are “too many” fish in that area and he didn’t want to disturb the environment. Never in my life had I passed up fish, this is how I knew it would be a good week. We eventually settled in to various spots and tied on our flies and were ready to cast. I begin to cast and saying mine was bad would probably have been an over statement. It had been a while since I had casted and it was very noticeable. After numerous unsuccessful false casts I let the line go and it landed a mere 30 feet in front of me compared to the 60 foot casts the other guests were making. Luckily for me within 5 seconds, I yelled “Fish On”.
After the first afternoon, I attended two tutorials on the preservation of fish and bear safety. Caring for the fish was the #1 priority. None of the fish were close to or going endangered, but still, the small population of fish we caught, we learned how to take off a fish carefully. The main point in the tutorial was not to fish in one place for too long because it can destroy the natural habitat. The bear talk was something we all knew was coming long before we arrived in Alaska. In our valley there were sixteen humans and over twenty bears, so safety was a big issue. We learned never to surprise a bear, so we literally walked around all say yelling. “HEY BEAR” or “HO BEAR”. There was actually an incident where two men in my group were charged. They were fine but it was the first time since the camp opened that it has happened. Lastly, for safety all the people in the camp, the guides carried high powered rifles everywhere.
Our typical day was very simple. It consisted of a 7 am wake up with breakfast at 7:30 am. By around nine, we were all ready to fish. We packed sandwiches every day and walked down a hill and we were already at our destination. We had some of the best fishing in the world right in front of our fingertips. We fished all day and usually retreated back to the camp at around 4:30. While there I would usually use the telescope and bear watch until dinner. The camp I was at is completely self sustaining, so the cook went out every day and caught our food. Meals were delicious and after a long day, everyone usually went to bed very early. The last two days on the trip were my favorite because a helicopter would show up in the morning and take us into new terrain that had never been touched, with that the fish were even more populated then I had every seen. Since we were away from camp, we broke the rule of not staying in the small for too long because I literally did not move all day and caught around 60 7-25 pound pick, chum, or silver salmon. It was one of the most incredible things I have ever done.
At the end of the trip, I was definitely sad to leave. I had had one of the greatest weeks of my life; my fly dishing skills improved dramatically and my knowledge on the area I was in was vast. My summer activity was a success and the information o learned is going to help me go through my senior exhibit with much less harm.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)