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ABSTRACT:

For my Capstone I made a documentary. I wanted to know how someone would go about pursuing the arts after highschool excluding the college track. It’s a question that I have personally thought about for my own future and even though I’m not going down that path in the end, I still wanted to understand this experience.

Despite the many forms of media I could have done to explore this question,I chose a documentary to challenge myself for not fully participating in our documentary DigVid unit last year. I wanted to make a documentary of my own…but it didn’t go as planned.

I got in touch with a person taking a gap year and pursuing work in the media through Ms. Ustaris. Since January I have followed Gabby, the person I based my documentary around and collected footage of them at events as well as interviews with them. I would shoot mostly on weekends and Wednesdays and Thursdays. Deviation from the original storyline was inevitable after my initial meeting with them since I had issues with a large amount of my footage being lost.

Although the quality of the documentary was not what I’d envisioned, I am proud of the skills I picked up for shooting outside of SLA. Having shadowed someone involved in the media world in Philly showed me a different side of media creation and outlets for creators not in a DigVid course which I think made up 90% of my media reaction perspective.

Music is a form of expression where people can share stories and personify their culture without interference. Representing one’s soul and what makes them, them; at least that’s how I see it. With over 1566 hours of listening last year, it’s clear that music is a big part of my life. For my capstone, I wanted to emulate my music while also showcasing the CTE engineering skills that I’ve fine-tuned over my years at SLA. I ran through a couple of ways to showcase my ideas, and the way that seemed most challenging and hands-on was building an instrument. The next step was constructing a question that demonstrated the importance of this project: how does music bring people together?

Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/13yMFAN0i-xjVBYF9NVBs51GoD47xMALAe3SxDsx4PKM/edit?usp=sharing

For this capstone, I worked on creating a stop motion animation short film. For the process I created an outline detailing the different scenes and interactions I wanted to have with each character. I wanted to create a super hero film because I always was interested in that and in stop motion. For the film I decided on using Spider-man, as he exemplifies what a true hero is and inspires me. After the outline I wrote a script in actual screenwriting format, and had it peer reviewed by several individuals. After that, I enlisted the help of my classmates to voice several different characters in my movie. Then I created all the sets and filmed each scene. The whole process took me about two months or so and was extremely difficult. But I feel as though I learned how to truly explore all my creative interests and how to be dedicated to the work I put out. Link for video down below:

Brainstorming what type of year-long project I wanted to complete was how I started my process. Part of my process was recognizing the current interests and skills I possess was the beginning of a tough process. Not only did I gain an understanding of what people I want surrounding me, but also recognized my interest in foreign languages, especially Korean. While preparing for the minicourse I had to search online for information and inspiration. I looked up, “What makes a good teacher?” and “Example lesson plans for teaching foreign languages.” During Adventuring into Korean freshman students will be introduced to Hangul, the Korean writing system. I began to create a slideshow that included all of the lesson plans for eight weeks. Eight weeks is a lot! Each week, I used two hours to teach students. I always came with a lesson plan that was ready for the students each week. Freshman completed activities using visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning. To create an interactive way of learning a foreign language. Which might seem intimidating to the young students. Together students will be able to successfully match individual Korean letters to their phonetic sound, understand proper syllable format, and recognize frequently used words/phrases.

For my capstone, I wanted to mix my love for animals, specifically cats, with my love for the arts. I originally decided to do a fundraising type project that would be raising awareness and helping the stray cat situation in Philadelphia. However, knew that I wanted to do something that made a bigger impact when it came to disability. I have bilateral hearing loss due to a genetic disorder and a tumor in my ear when I was a baby. Before highschool, I felt very normal. I went to a small private school that met my needs for my hearing loss. The classes were small and the teachers understood and adapted to my disability. When I came to high school though, things were not as easy. Despite sending in necessary paperwork, my accommodations were not always met, or straight denied. I did not get an IEP for hearing loss until I was in my last month of junior year, three years into high school. Knowing these things, I knew I wanted to do something related to accessibility for my capstone. I took a one-eighty from my original project and came up with the idea of an education conference type event to help spread awareness about DHH learning. I worked on this idea for a while, but I was still having a really hard time creating a project I was proud of. I eventually realized it was because I lost the creative aspect of my capstone which was a huge driving factor behind being able to create a capstone I loved. Finally, Leila’s Library came to fruition. My final capstone is a website called Leila’s Library. Leila’s Library is a model of what an accessible library for kids could look like. It focuses on making content easily available and accessible. The library’s accessibility is not just for DHH kids, but for all kids. It offers literature for young readers in different formats, as well other resources for young children.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HjV-qKj2PCB5prl7fqORa_XWmlnKw5QjDGVlzJ4Fz60/view

https://sites.google.com/view/leilaslibrary/home

My capstone project is a 7 track album fitting into the crust punk genre. Half of the songs on my album are covers, while the other half are original instrumental tracks that I wrote myself. Along with writing my own original songs, I designed and made my album cover. I chose to make a short album for many reasons. My main reason for taking on this project is because while I have played guitar for over 9 years I have never recorded and released my own music. When I was faced with this project and the ability to do whatever I wanted, it seemed like a perfect motivation for me to finally start to record my album. Throughout my capstone I have worked with three different people to reach my end goal. First is my mentor, Foster. He played the drums for most of my songs, as well as teaching me how to use Studio one. Studio one is an audio editing software that was vital in completing my project. I also worked with my girlfriend Charlotte. Similar to Foster she played bass for many of my songs. Lastly I worked with another friend of mine, Val. When Foster was not available to record Val stepped up and helped by drumming for three of my songs. The process of making my capstone has been difficult at times but I am more than happy with the result and I hope others are too.

“Bonded” is an 8 track ambient and experimental instrumental album meant to ask the question “What does it mean to make something that is truly of yourself? What does it look like?” This album was made for many reasons. From reflecting on the themes of true expression during the time of contemporary uniformity, captivating the different parts of myself and how I’ve grown and changed, and being a milestone in my music making career. This album will be the first cohesive project recorded and presented to my peers, it will also be my first album recorded on a physical medium (cassette). Recorded over the majority of the school year, This wasn’t a one-man show. With the help of my classmate Valeria Escobar on drums and my mentor Mr. Clapper to keep me on track, this album wouldn’t be in the place it is now.

Annotated bibliography

For my capstone, I made a teaching module to help guide students through peer mediation. Peer mediation is a process in which two disputants, people having conflict, and two mediators, unbiased students, navigate a conversation to help come up with a solution that both disputants are satisfied with. In order to make this happen, I researched peer mediation heavily in a variety of ways. I used online resources, found in my annotated bibliography. I also decided to contact people who work in the field to inform my project and you can see the influence of the resources they gave me in my project. Lastly, I used the knowledge my peers had around me since I knew someone who had participated in a peer mediation program in the past. Using my resources was a big part of the project. In the end I am able to present free a training module, presentation, and training video for future use. Reflecting on this process gave me a huge insight into problem-solving and how to teach people who have never had experience with this type of program. Of course, some tweaks can be made, but when the module was tested for a scenario, the training module did an excellent job informing the people involved.

I decided to use a minicourse to educate a group of ninth-grade kids on the principles of practicing self-love and placing a high value on self-confidence as my capstone project. People frequently disregard their own needs for self-care and instead prioritize other people and things over themselves. This leads to a lack of self-care. To begin the whole process of he initial start of my mini-course, my main goal was to influence the younger generation of students to begin to think more about themselves. Allowing them to thoroughly explore their journey of not just their favorite pastimes but also their triggers and activators. Having them be able to differentiate the difference between their different feelings and speaking up without feeling bad about what they have said. This process has taught me a lot, It has taught me how different people retain information as well as how different people use the information that they were given to the best of their abilities. I also learned the the role of time management as well as the role of being in charge of everything, Having that responsibility to call the shots, is a lot to handle and maintain when you’re not completely familiar with doing so. Once I was able to regulate that and have full control and understanding of what I was doing, it made it easier for me to stand up in front of a group of kids and present and influence them into wanting to participate.

Link To Full Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EHoaQ74qCl86jiX9XPz3-yVNksYSkZaXwh4N3g8TYDI/edit?usp=sharing

Hello, my name is Jasmine Young, and I am a current senior at SLA. Not many people know this, but I am a legacy my brother attended school here when Mr. Lehmann approached many families and asked them to give him a chance in his vision for a new school, resulting in my brother becoming a member of the first graduating class. I began the manufacture of alumni tiles, which instructors and former students can purchase to memorialize their time at SLA. I charged $50 for each tile, with the profits going back into the alumni fund. I was inspired by the desire to leave a legacy here and provide individuals with a physical representation of their accomplishments. SLA does not believe in ranking and making others feel excluded, hence there are no rewards for student achievements. This made me think of the tiles where you may write your name and graduation year so that students can look back and reflect on their time here.

Throughout my senior year, I started a task to educate our school’s students about the knowledge of CPR and performing it. My capstone main focus was making and putting up two posters around the school. One poster was aimed at clearing up popular misconceptions about CPR among students, while the other offered a clear instruction guide with illustrations for doing CPR with just your hands.

I knew very little about CPR before beginning this project, and I assumed it was mainly about mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. But I discovered through my research and building my capstone that CPR is not all that there is, especially when it comes to hands-only CPR, which is easier and sometimes just as successful.

After facing the difficulties of CPR techniques, I became capable in hands-only CPR and learned how versatile it is for a range of age groups. The journey also made it clear that I needed to give my capstone project the serious attention it required. By working with my mentor, teachers, staffs, and family members who are involved in the field, I was able to get important guidance and advice that improved the progress of my project.

Although there were challenges along the way, especially when it came to changing the project in response to feedback, everyone’s support eventually led to a positive outcome. My capstone is the good example of how important it is to raise awareness of basic CPR techniques so that people can be prepared to act correctly when presented with emergency situations.

Link to Annotated Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1S7z38J3-3ruLcQiSS538J_2u9zmEKkfx-VW1wjEwrls/edit

For my capstone, I painted a collaborative mural that allowed all students interested in participating to add their own unique touches and a lasting impact on SLA. Over the course of one week, I began painting this mural and had countless SLA students add their own additions and flowers to it. I began the entire process by hosting a “Plant and Paint” event with a few fellow students. Coming from an environment that hindered my growth and happiness, I came to SLA in search of an environment that not only challenged me but supported me even when school was extremely demanding. My mural is a perfect example of what it means to change your environment when it doesn’t allow for your own personal growth. I was able to create another space that supported students despite the academic demands of being an SLA student. I learned a lot about the positive effects greenery and just seeing flowers have on one’s mental health as well as the many negative and dangerous effects school can have on a teen’s mental health. I also learned more hands-on skills, like how much longer it takes to paint a mural than expected, as well as how to create large stenciling, even with limited materials. Overall, I am very proud of how my capstone turned out and can’t wait for future generations of students to benefit from the bright energy it brings to the outdoor terrace space.

As my capstone project, I decided to teach kids the essentials of financial literacy. This subject is not taught to every student. Understanding your finances is important, particularly as you age and gain independence. Thus, I choose to conduct a mini-course. As a result, I strengthened my students’ knowledge and enhanced my communication skills. No courses, workshops, or after-school programs were provided to teach students financial literacy throughout my time in the Philadelphia School District. However, I was lucky enough to have parents who helped me understand financial literacy, answered my questions, and explained debt, student loans, student loan repayment, credit card vs. debit card, savings account vs. checking account, and credit.

I chose a senior project topic that I knew would engage and be enjoyable for the students. There is a large number of students at SLA who play soccer, but there isn’t a space where they can play when in the winter. So to see if they would be interested in having a futsal league or after-school club, I hosted a futsal event. Students from different grades and with mixed skill levels attended this event to play. After the event, I interviewed some of them, to ask if they would like to see more of these events in the future, as well as to know why they thought it would be a great idea to have a futsal team and give the SLA gym more uses then just normal indoor sports. They all seemed to have a positive attitude towards this idea and wanted to make it a club. I chose this project because I was part of the soccer team during my senior year, and noticed many of the students with amazing skills, as well as those starting. After the season came winter, many didn’t know or had access to indoor facilities to play, and practice. So I wanted to give them a place where they could practice, Futsal is a great version of soccer that allows players to improve their skills according to the environment that they are playing in. SLA would be doing a lot of kids a favor by allowing them to utilize the gym to improve their soccer skills, we have a lot of great soccer players.

I spent a good time at SLA thinking about the different ideas for capstones I could do when I became a senior. I narrowed my ideas down to having events where people could come together and plant whatever their hearts desire. Like all projects, my capstone idea had to start with research. As a person who was so interested in basing a huge project on planting, I had little to no idea of how planting life really worked. During this process of planning, my ideas clashed with some of my peers that would be working on the terrace at the same time as me. There, we decided to combine our capstones in a way that could come together and become a bigger event involving more people. I view the greenhouse as an achievement and a safe space where I can go, whenever I feel the heaviness that comes from being a student.I’ve spent a huge time at SLA finding my people, and sophomore me wished we had small places like the greenhouse to meet people with the same interests. With this capstone, I was able to learn so much about not only plants, but the importance of time management and the importance of planning. As I found balance with my time, planning everything came next, my weekly research, responsibilities, and the final details to my capstone. I hope that other students can look at my projects, and see that they don’t need to change themselves to have a place at SLA.

Link to full annotated bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yPbp-1W69CUIKXuAYtezLXEFmn4aUZHtPJXmu-ABZsc/edit?usp=sharing

As part of my capstone project, I undertook a position in a three-person team to carry out Rocketfest, a film and photography festival. In this project, I was the chair of Submissions & Selections and Media Production. Which meant that I was responsible for handling students’ submissions, selecting the final films to be shown at the festival, and editing the film reel for screening.

Throughout the process, we focused on equity, collaboration, and presentation. Some challenges I came across included refining communication skills and designing certificates for Rocketfest’s’ winners, which I overcame through persistence and teamwork.

The final product was a successful event, made possible by the Philadelphia Free Public Library, that showcased students’ talents and encouraged community engagement. As for my personal growth, I improved my editing skills, improved how to communicate with others, and learned valuable time management effectiveness.

Reflecting on the experience, I realized the importance of successful communication and collaboration when taking part in managing a project. Additionally, I gained a deeper appreciation for media production as a way of bringing people together.

Overall, organizing Rocketfest was not only a fun event to be a part of, but also a meaningful experience that strengthened my skills and improved my understanding of teamwork and community involvement.

LINK to Bibliography: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Cu4GaxE5oVBXLwyB0Kcq5eq4QShzlb_5ZEKEuqxteaQ/edit?usp=sharing

LINK to Rocketfest’24 Films: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rf8JLeTsjd_eppE4TxbVGo44DwTQGo_r/view?usp=sharing

(Screenshot from experimental film “Eyes Wide Open” by Jet Muhammad from CAPA submitted to Rocketfest)

For my capstone, I wanted to learn about the industry behind environmental science, while also giving back something to the place that helped me. This resulted in me creating a birdhouse for The Discovery Center at the Audubon of Philadelphia to create a home for the birds that migrate through their premises. While working at the Audubon I got to do several things, some of which included working the front desk, making the trail safe to travel, and shadowing an interview process for someone looking to work at the Audubon. This process taught me a lot about not only the environmental science business but also time management skills and working past/around the several roadblocks in my way. I also learned more building and engineering skills, especially skills that would be useful for doing things in my future.

The first link provided is my presentation which shows my work, and the second link is to my annotated bibliography which shows some sources I used/intended to use throughout my capstone process.

“Song of The Heart” is a book that aims to teach students how to songwrite. The book features basic music theory, song analysis, my personal experiences, and writing prompts and tips to help students navigate the songwriting process. To create this book, I had to plan the chapters and their order, listen to and analyze songs, read sources, find images, and write everything comprehensibly. I spent time editing, creating the covers, planning the format, creating a template for song analysis, and structuring the information. All of my hours were spent creating an over 130-page book. Most of my ideas about how to create the book were run by my mentor, Mr. Speaks, to see if it would help. I also relied on what I thought would be helpful to think about as a songwriter.

Through creating this book, I learned about the history of the different genres I covered. Each section was prefaced with a summary of the historical background of the genre in America that contributed to its evolution through several decades. It helped me gain a clearer sense of the connections between different genres of music, despite how different they sound. I also learned a bit about how music theory can be applied to song analysis. After learning about music theory, specifically chord progressions, I noticed the same concepts in the songs I listened to. If I listened for long enough, I would also be able to hum the progressions.

Song of The Heart: A Guide To Songwriting https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GpTgKHfGaFufm11YPa2ISMoKYDML6OpX/view?usp=sharing

ABSTRACT

For my Capstone, I created a podcast, titled the Rocket Record. The podcast has a total of twelve episodes, constituting a first season. Every two weeks, a new original theme would be announced in the Advisory Memo, after which I would go around during lunch periods to interview students, making sure to have diversity of grade level; each episode would be around three minutes long. On Fridays, I would publish something called the “Friday Spotlight”—where I would interview a single senior on the same topic, in a more conversational manner; these would be around ten to fifteen minutes long.

LINK TO PODCAST: https://www.slamedia.org/?s=Rocket+Record+Podcast

LINK TO BIBLIOGRAPHY: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1q1TQxj8-xBtGqHKBltPIo50Jw9dO5pUwNHTR0tuSnCo/edit

BELOW: Photo of the average format of a podcast episode (top to bottom: title, podcast logo, episode player, podcast summary)

Due to Keystone Testing, SLA will follow the below schedule for the Weeks of May 13th and May 20th.

MONDAY, 5/13 & 5/20 – CLASS SCHEDULE

11:00-11:45 X1 Band

11:45-12:25 Y1 Band

12:30-01:10 A1 Band

01:15-01:55 B1 Band

02:00-02:40 C1 Band

02:45-03:25 D1 Band

03:30-03:45 Advisory

TUESDAY, 5/14 & 5/21 – CLASS SCHEDULE

11:00-11:40 Y2 Band

11:45-12:25 X2 Band

12:30-01:05 E1 Band

01:10-01:45 A2 Band

01:50-02:25 B2 Band

02:30-03:05 C2 Band

WEDNESDAY, 5/15 – NO CLASSES, WORK PERIOD IN COMMONS/CAFE

THURSDAY, 5/16 – REGULAR CLASS SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, 5/17 – REGULAR CLASS SCHEDULE

Due to the School District of Philadelphia half days for Staff Professional Development, SLA will follow the below schedule on Friday, 5/10:

Friday, 5/10

08:15-08:55 B2 Band

09:00-09:40 C2 Band

09:45-10:25 X2/Y2 Band class

10:30-11:10 D2 Band

11:15-11:55 E2 Band

12:00-12:30 Lunch/Dismissal

Due to the solar eclipse event, SLA will follow the below schedule on Monday, 4/8:

08:15-09:15 A1 Band

09:20-10:20 B1 Band

10:25-11:25 X1 Band

11:25-12:25 Y1 Band

12:30-01:30 C1 Band

01:35-02:35 D1 Band

02:40-03:45 Advisory

Due to the School District of Philadelphia half days for term 3 report card conferences, SLA will follow the below schedules on Thursday, 4/4, and Friday, 4/5:

Thursday, 4/4

08:15-08:55 C1 Band

09:00-09:40 D1 Band

09:45-10:25 X1/Y1 Band class

10:30-11:10 E1 Band

11:15-11:55 A2 Band

12:00-12:30 Lunch/Dismissal

04:00-07:00 Advisory-Based Conferences (please schedule in advance)

Friday, 4/5

08:15-08:55 B2 Band

09:00-09:40 C2 Band

09:45-10:25 X2/Y2 Band class

10:30-11:10 D2 Band

11:15-11:55 E2 Band

12:00-12:30 Lunch/Dismissal

12:30-03:30 Advisory-Based Conferences (please schedule in advance)

Due to the Students of Color Association (SOCA) Cultural Showcase, SLA will follow the below modified schedule on Thursday, 3/21:

08:15-09:15 C1 Band

09:20-10:20 D1 Band

10:25-11:25 X1 Band

11:25-12:25 Y1 Band

12:30-01:30 E1 Band

01:35-02:30 A2 Band

02:35-03:45 Cultural Showcase (Auditorium)

Due to the School District of Philadelphia half day for Staff Professional Development, SLA will follow the below schedule on Friday, 3/8:

08:15-08:55 B2 Band

09:00-09:40 C2 Band

09:45-10:25 X2/Y2 Band class

10:30-11:10 D2 Band

11:15-11:55 E2 Band

12:00-12:30 Lunch/Dismissal