Communication was an aspect that I went into Big Picture lacking. But over the years, I slowly became accustomed to all of the different ways one can communicate respectfully and effectively. How to format an email correctly, how to make phone calls, even how to successfully create an open environment when interviewing someone. I have communicated effectively in nearly all of my independent projects, but I think communication was the most key in my internships. I had to email or call my mentor routinely, and made sure that the work I was doing (such as designing posters or coming up with ideas for events) were aligning with the library I was interning at, as well as matching up with Keagan (my mentor’s) original ideas. Another aspect where communication came in clutch was my Camp video I did my sophomore year. Reaching out to numerous campers and counselors wouldn’t have been possible without innovative and thoughtful connections. Communication was even relevant in my major research paper, as I worked on being open and accommodating to feedback given from a variety of people. Feedback has always been something I’ve struggled with, even before joining Big Picture. I used to have a hard time keeping my emotions in check when I was given the slightest bit of constructive criticism. But now after four years of taking deep breaths and really listening to what other people have to say instead of what I think they’re saying, I confidently feel as though I am a clear and effective communicator. I plan to work on communication even more in the future and ideally go into a field of work where I am making interpersonal connections every day. Before that, though, I plan to keep my journal updated and stay in touch with the people I have networked and bonded with throughout my time in Big Picture.

Becoming a self-directed learner was the most double-edged sword in Big Picture. On one hand, I was already accustomed to being on my own from being homeschooled most of my life. On the other hand, I had to adjust to a completely different way of doing school- now I had to fill out plans and rubrics. But over the years, self-directed learning became the only kind of learning I wanted to do. I saw slowly that it bled into my conventional classes; I wanted to do more independent projects even within math or chorus, and wanted to have my own say in everything I did. Self-direction was a large part in every independent project I did, but really stuck out this past year such as the projects I did regarding quantum theory and filmmaking. It also transferred over to my work in learner-centered advocacy and the different conferences I attended. This year I attended seven different virtual conferences, and presented at four. Freshman year I remember going to maybe two conferences, and feeling extremely anxious to be presenting. I think about how this year I co-led a panel of a little under 250 superintendents, and I am so happy with how far I’ve come with being a self-directed learner.

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Self direction is prevalent in everything I did with Big Picture. From independent projects to internships to power assessments. Everything I did had at least a little bit of self direction involved. Even if it wasn't in my learning plan, I continued to demonstrated self direction in my time outside of school by diving more in depth in my projects and work. I feel so much more confident in my independence and self-direction than I was when I joined Big Picture, and I feel as though I will only continue to grow in this area throughout my post secondary education. 

Throughout my time in Big Picture, I learned not only what it means to be a responsible and involved citizen locally, but also what it is like to be a global citizen. Before joining Big Picture, I was involved in my community through volunteer work with Food for Thought and participating in church and other local activities, such as library clubs. But after joining Big Picture I realized that there was so much more to being a citizen than just participating in a community. Being an involved citizen could even just mean talking to your neighbor in the classroom, or contributing to the conversation in socratic. I also realized that community and citizenship appear so much more than you think they would in projects. In the wildlife conservation project we not only were contributing to the local nature community by tracking and marking vernal pools, but we also grew closer as a Big Picture community by communicating and making sure everyone was safe when in the field. In other projects such as Appy Days, or WDW Food, I learned about perspectives other than my own, such as how pineapple farmers are treated and why it's so hard to find actual ethical pineapple. Extended learning opportunities like conferences also helped expand my worldview and how I view 'global citizenship'. I never knew that there were so many ways to define community! I hope to bring my skills I learned over the years into my college experience by collaborating and communicating not only with professors, but also my peers and roommates. I signed up to either have 3 or 7 roommates, depending on COVID restrictions, and having the skills to recognize when we need to care for one another or communicate is going to come in handy in many circumstances related to that. Overall, I think citizenship has been a big learning curve for me not only in practice, but also in the way that I view citizenship and community. 

My journey into creative and practical problem solving started quite literally the first time I met Jim Shields. I sat down at the interview with him and Kevin Downey, and one of the questions he asked me completely threw me for a loop. I'm not even sure what the question was- time has eaten away the memory. But I remember being so completely lost for words that I didn't say anything for about a minute. We all sat there in awkward silenc until my mom chimed in, rescusing me from my lack of composure. But then Jim said, "here in Big Picture we like awkward pauses, because it means that learning and thinking is happening". That phrase stuck with me throughout my time in Big Picture. I learned that sometimes when you're working on solving a problem, you need to take a step back and think for a moment, sometimes in quiet. I have really connected with the design-thinking process we have learned about over the years, as well as learned how to think creatively about problems instead of letting them burn you out. If I had stopped a project every time I ran into a problem, I wouldn't have done a single project in my time in Big Picture. Eventually something always goes wrong, or you hit some sort of roadblock. The true colors of one's character is shown by how they manage to get out of those tough situations. I can't even begin to list all of the problems I've had to solve in the past four years, but I can give at least a couple of examples. 

In the Precious Plastics SLT, we had to figure out how to get people to actually recycle their bottle caps instead of just throwing them in the garbage. In Young Avengers, I had to twist my vision of the project because I only had two people show up for auditions. In Tuktalla Rantie, it was a constant stream of  problem solving when the players in my Dungeons and Dragons game wouldn't go through the gameplay like I was expecting. I think creative and practical problem solving has honestly been the biggest area of growth for me in Big Picture. I now feel as though no problem is unable to be handled. Whether it can be fixed is another story, but I know now that I can manage through just about anything. 

Real world experience is something that Big Picture truly excels at offering and encouraging, which you can tell by the abundance of it's presence in independent projects and internships. Learning how to take a skill from a project or research and apply it to something that will actually make a difference is a fantastic feeling, and almost an addictive one at that. Once you start to realize that the work and research you do can actually come into play, you never want to stop doing that work. While informed and integrative thinking can sometimes be the trickiest proficiency to define and achieve, it holds so much meaning behind it. Even if it didn't seem at the time that the research I was doing was impactful, I realized later on that everything was meaningful at one point or another. Through my cowboy project I learned about sustainable agriculture and marginalized voices in history, which helped me be better advocate for the world and the people living on it. With my internship I learned not only about my community, but able the different ways libraries are so key in them. And with my research paper I discovered all of these facts and data regarding climate change that I was totally in the dark about before. This eventually led me to being more involved in protests and attending the worldwide climate march last year. So while informed and integrated thinking may still be one of the trickier proficiencies to define on a learning plan, it still remains to be one of the proficiencies that helped me understand the world around me so much better. I hope to take my skills in this proficiency into college by taking lots of notes so I can fully understand the material in class. When I fully understand the material given, I can then apply it to everyday situations and figure out how the things I am learning will help me in the real world.