Unit 4 Reflection

According to a report by Statista, there are approximately 2.34 billion social media users globally. Many consistent social media users do not know how to properly maneuver and socialize on whatever platform they chose to use, which is why it is vital that we, the future generation, learn to use it correctly. Three tasks we did this unit that heavily impacted how I use social media to my advantage are my To Kill a Mockingbird narrative, blood type lab, and unit project.

         When we were first told we had to do a narrative for the novel we had just read, To Kill a Mockingbird, I immediately felt chills run through my body because I did not feel very confident in my narrative writing skills. Despite my doubts, I decided to challenge myself by choosing to do the jailhouse scene through Mr. Cunningham's perspective, as there was more room for creativity. When I began I knew that I wanted to incorporate into my writing some original dialogue, self reflection, use different techniques to create suspense, and of course mix in as many sensory details as I could. In the beginning of my writing I found it difficult to develop my character to create an engaging narrative, but I kept pushing myself to work harder and do my best. Half way through I found that it was as if the words were flowing out of me. By the end of this task, I had developed many of my English skills such as using the sequence of events to create suspense and using all different types of narrative techniques to my advantage to produce a well written final paper.

         In science we focused on vaccines and how they affect our immune system. To begin our learning journey we first researched different types of vaccines and the mysterious ingredients they contained. We then took numerous notes regarding vocabulary we needed to know to understand vaccines, how vaccines work and innate vs acquired immunity. After doing all these smaller tasks, we then had to apply it to a larger scale: our immune system as a whole. Our innate immune system is what we are born with and when a pathogen invades the phagocytes do not know what specific bacteria it is. All it does is simply attack it not caring what it is juxtaposed to our acquired immune system which attacks specific bacteria. When an antigen enters the body, the T cells latch on while the B cells and helper T cells produce more antibodies. Some B cells and helper T cells develop into memory cells so that the next time the antigen enters the body the cells can quickly demolish it since they have done so before. To see this process in action, we did a blood type lab where we took my partner, Isaac's, blood type. For this we took Isaac's blood and amalgamated it with anti A, B and Rh serum to see which one it reacted with. Isaac's blood agglutinated with anti Rh serum, meaning that his immune system attacked the foreign antigens, causing a swarming of antibodies. Throughout this whole process I learned fascinating information about vaccines, as well as how our immune system responds to them.

  

         Now for my final piece of work: my website. Running my website taught me how to have a positive social media platform and how to develop a solution for my problem I chose. Once we were told we could select any problem that we are passionate about, I immediately knew I wanted to focus on animal testing for cosmetics. It was difficult coming up with a solution for such a massive issue, so I had to scale it down. After a lot of trial and error and emailing many professionals I finally came up with my solution: creating flyers for large companies to carry in their store as well as color coding labels visible while shopping. The flyers I have created are a list of cruelty free and non cruelty free companies so that while the consumers are strolling along purchasing their products they may see which brands are cruelty free and not. I learned through this project many people are not aware of what is and is not cruelty free, so hopefully this will enlighten them. Another idea I had was to color code labels you see when purchasing products so that green may resemble cruelty free and red may resemble non cruelty free. This project taught me to set feasible goals, as well as how to develop and employ strategies to solve problems and how to use technology to enrich my learning.

 

 

(To see my website I created and more about my solution click here)

This unit was by far my favorite because I got to deeply analyze a character of my choice, learn about the intriguing subject of immunology, and create a solution that I am very passionate about. When we began the unit I felt daunted by my problem and all my tasks, but I learned that by using technology and my tools to their fullest potential, I can create work I never thought I could accomplish.

Works Cited

* All Products Require an Annual Contract.  Prices Do Not Include Sales Tax  (New York Residents Only). 

          "U.S. Population Social Media Penetration 2017 | Statistic." Statista. Statista, 2017. Web. 31 May 2017.