Farwell of the batch 2022 has been one the most awaiting events! In order to make this day memorable for the current batch of grade 12 decoration was really essential. I volunteered for the same and got selected to be a part of the decor team. I learned many new skills, new techniques and in the end, the decorations came out to be amazing. While demonstrating this CAS experience, I demonstrated the following Los:

LO 1: Identify own strengths and develop areas for growth

Visual Arts used to be something that I loved to do as a kid. However, for a long time, I was disconnected from this field due to studies. I attended several drawing and painting classes till grade 8, I had learned drawing and painting professionally. I remember doing a lot of Art and Craft when I was in PYP. When I received the mail regarding the requirements of volunteers in Farwell, I knew I could once again enjoy creating decorations, improve my fine motor and arts-related skills, and hence, I filled out the form. Hence, I identified my own strengths that were arts but I knew I could improve it a lot, and hence I took part in this

LO2: Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process

Certain challenges that I faced were to come early on the days I have summative assessments. In order to manage the studies and also take a productive part in the decoration, I skipped coming early on the days I have my summative assessment but I compensated and did the work in the free slot. I also learned so many new things such as creating paper fan flower hangings from scratch, making paper flowers, good knowledge about the color schemes, cutting techniques, etc. I developed a new skill every time I used to work for the Farwell.

LO4: Show commitment to and perseverance in CAS experiences:

It was difficult to give enough time to the Farwell decorations, despite my busy schedule, but I showed commitment towards this experience and somehow managed it well. There were clashes in ideas and discussions, sometimes we were not able to get the resources on time and but we demonstrated perseverance, dealt with it, and finally made it in the end.

LO 5: Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively

I am usually good at communication but collaborations skills are something I need to develop. Considering this, it was difficult for me to work with others during this experience because of opinion differences, subjects hence meeting issues, time issues, non-matching schedules, etc. However, working collaboratively did make things easier as the workload was divided. For instance, somebody did the cutting of the paper, another folded it and I did the sticking part. In this way, the work was happening more efficiently in less time. Hence, I recognized the benefits of working collaboratively.

LO 6: Demonstrate engagement with issues of global significance

The entire project is rooted in global significance. One of the most globally significant issues is “High waste generation”. We used minimal resources, waste resources for the decorations. For instance one of the decoration parts was to create a wall that matched the “euphoria theme”, so we used waste CDs / DVDs for the same. We also used existing decoration that was available in school, hence, we tried to reduce the waste and consumption as much as possible in order to connect with a globally significant issue that was a high waste generation.

Overall, I also saw myself demonstrating certain learner profiles throughout this CAS experience. I was also reflective, as in between I reflected on my work, corrected it when needed, and learned from other people, this made my craft a lot better. I was also balanced, as I successfully balanced my farewell work and my studies. These were the 2 learner profiles that I developed and demonstrated during my CAS experience.

The highlight of this experience was seeing my own commitment and passion towards art. I never thought I would enjoy myself so much why practicing arts, I discovered something new about myself. Initially, I thought, arts was just done for the sake of doing it, but it calmed me. It was so soothing and therapeutic, I really enjoyed every bit of this process. I learned painting skills, knowledge of colors, and my own interests from this experience. Overall, the entire experience was successful and fun.

Evidence is attached below:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/14WCgpNqVXIXcZx9mxK6Dz5crLtBPQ8CG/view?usp=sharing