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Activity - 4/4/22 (Learning Outcome 1)

 Recently for our schools A-term program I went on a 2 week trip to Panama. The goal of this trip was to study Spanish and to be able to practice it in real world context. While we were there I was able to do lots of studying of the city and exploring the new places. I went to many museums to learn about history, culture, biodiversity and the Panama canal. I also tried local cuisine and leanred about the style of food that is there and why it is as diverse as it is. Close to Casco Viejo, the neighborhood I was staying in, there was a roadway that was going over part of the ocean called the Cinta Costera. One morning, I decided to wake up early before my classes to go on a run on the Cinta Costera. This allowed me to see the sunrise, look at the beautiful flowers that were growing there, and see the city from a different persepctive. This run was so much better than I had expected, even with the warm weather and I was able to push myself to go farther and also look at Casco Viejo fr...
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Activity 2/28/22 (Learning Outcome 4)

      We had our first track meet of the season over the weekend, and at the end I was so proud of how it ended up going. The track meet lasted two days, with Friday being mostly field events and long running races, then Saturday being the shorter running events. Because I had decided I wanted to throw shotput in addition to running, I had to go for both days. On Friday I arrived after school and after finding our coach promptly began warming up for the shotput. I got four throws to see how far I could throw. In the end I ended up placing last, and most people might think I would be disappointed about that--but I wasn't! This wasn only the second time (in my entire life) that I had thrown I shotput. I haven't mastered the form, and I could also do with some muscle building. So even though I wasn't great, it was still fun to try something new and I was proud of myself for stepping out of my comfort zone and being willing to try something new. On Saturday morning I arr...
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Service 2/17/22 (Learning Outcome 4)

As a part of being a senior in National Charity League, it is our job to put together a senior project. For my classes project we decided to throw a dance/social event for the West U Senior Center. We called it the "Heart Hop," and made it a Valentine's themed event where the senior citizens could dance, enjoy food and homemade baked goods, play games, make valentines, and just get a chance to hang out and catch up. Leading up the the event there was a lot of planning that had to happen, and it was pretty stressful because it didn't seem like all the decorations, food, and invitations were going to come together. However, we were all pleasantly surprised by how well the event went! While there weren't too many seniors who came, the 15 or so who did stayed for the entire 2 hours and raved about the treats and raffle prizes, loved learning the cupid shuffles, and made adorable valentines cards with poloroid pictures and cute decorations. I had so much fun dancing an...
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Activity 2/2/22 (Learning Outcome 1)

 Yesterday was our first day of track practice and I was both nervous and excited. When we arrived there I wasn't really sure what to expect, but I was excited to see how many people we had signed up. Especially girs-enough so that we could have a relay. We started the practice by laying out the plan for the semester a little bit, then got straight to work with a 10 minute warm-up run. As someone who is used to running this wasn't too challening for me, although it is a little difficult to run in small circles inside our small gym. Nonetheless, we finished up the run then did some thorough stretching to make sure we all avoid injuries. After stretching we worked on form, because good form is the foundation of a good runner. These involved running through ladders and making sure our hands were in the right position. This took up most of the rest of practice time as we focused on making sure each person knew the corrections they needed so they could practice at home. The final pa...
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Service 1/29/22 (Learning outcome 4)

 As a part of being  in National Charity League, we have to complete a senior project. For our project we decided to through a dance called the "Heart Hop" for citizens of the West U Senior Center. We wanted it to be a Valentine's themed dance where we could all interact and just have a good time. Unfortunately, the planning for this was going slower than excpected. So during our last meeting we made a little bit of a change of plans because we were worried about the dance coming together. We decided to keep the idea of the heart hop, but add baked goods, crafts stations, and other activities to the mix. This way, if seniors are worried about covid they can come and go and don't have to stay for too long, but they can still have valentine's treats to bring home, they can participate in a raffle, and just have a good time, even if it's just for a little bit. At our last NCL meeting we did a lot of planning to make sure this would be able to happen. We worked on...
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Activity 1/14/2022 (Learning Outcome 5)

 Each year my school has a 2 week course intensive as we come back from winter break called J-term. This year for J-term I participated in a backpacking trip in Big Bend Ranch State Park in West Texas. While there were several parts to this trip, my favorite was the 3 day backpacking adventure we went on in the park. We took the Rancherias loop trail which ended up being about 22 miles in 3 days. While it was super fun and rewarding, nothing about it was easy. We were carrying heavy packs, there were steep uphills and we had to carry lots of water with us. At the end of each day we would arrive at our campsite exhausted but also proud of what we had accomplished. During this hike there were times when I thought I wasn't going to be able to take another step. But then I did. And I kept going and I ended up sticking with the front of the group. While I felt super duper tired by the end, I was so proud of what I had accomplished because it was way more challenging than I had expected,...
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Creativity 12/1/21 (Learning Outcome 1)

Yesterday I tested another recipe for my baking business to prepare for our holiday treat box and also some special orders we have received. I wanted to stick with the holiday theme so I decided to try chocolate cupcakes with peppermint frosting. I wasn't sure if the cucpakes should be chocolate or also have peppermint so I decided to do half and half to see which I liked better. Unfortunately, when adding the extract I added way too much for the small amount of batter I had which was a little too much. After making my batter and making the cupcakes I realized I had made a few mistakes because I had halved the recipe leaving me with weird proportions that were hard to measure. This lead to the cupcakes having a slightly strange texture and sticking to the pan. Despite this, they tasted absolutely delicious especially when paired with the tasty peppermint frosting. Even though they didn't look great, they tasted super delicious and I know they will make a great addition to our h...
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