CWW

Monday, February 25, 2013

I woke up on Monday morning thinking it was going to be a great day. I headed to school ready to serve. I arrived here and waited for about an hour. We headed up to the buses and there, no one knew where or how we were going to Best Buddies. I googled the address and we got on the bus. It took us a long time to get there as nobody knew our destination. Once there, we were stuck in a boarding room. A friendly guy explained us what the foundation was about and what are jobs were in the place. Some of them included filing papers and cleaning out a closet. We felt disappointed as we realized we were not going to work with children. We managed to talk to the people there. The arranged a visit to a school. The rest of the day we planned on the activities and protocols we would follow the next day. This created new expectations in us, we were now going to interact with disabled kids.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

I knew that the day was going to be better than the previous one when I woke up. I smiled and dressed up in my positive attitude to work with the kids. As we got to school, we received the sad news that we were not going to be able to go to the foundation. As a group we decided that we were going to split up. Half of us would go back to the office work while the others would stay at school preparing material for when we went to the children's school. I went back to the office. We filed papers for a few hours and then headed back to school knowing that for sure, we would have more fun on Wednesday.


Wednesday, February 27, 2013

It all started on a cloudy morning. One of those you usually get in Bogota. I woke up when it was still dark and fought with my alarm clock for some extra time in bed. It had been two days of intense office work. I arrived to school wishing that the day was a better one than the ones in the past. At school, we realized we were finally going to give some of our time to those who needed it. It was a long bus ride there. After asking a few people and getting lost on a few streets, we were there. A small tour around the place allowed us to realize that this was going to be a different experience than what we live every day.

I was an exemption; well disabilities make up a huge part of my daily life. My brother is a disabled child and learning to live with him under the same roof has been an issues my whole life. This was an advantage for me within my peers. I knew how to interact with these people and this forced me to become a leader among the group.

The time came. We were there with those who would become our friends for the next three days. Getting to know each other was the goal for the day. We were all willing to learn from them but also, teach them something. We all had deep conversations with at least one of the kids. We got to share our talents and hobbies. I personally talked to Miguel Angel. He gave me an important lesson on how there is no one who can stop you from reaching your goals. I also talked to Luisa. She was diagnosed with Down syndrome and loved to sing. She even sang a song for all of us.

Spending time with these kids was a really grateful experience that pulled up a smile in each of our faces. We are all grateful for the opportunity and I bet we were all willing to go again and give some time and love to these faces that really appreciated.


Thursday, February 28, 2013

Back at the foundation, everyone was excited to see us. We were also excited to be there. We had planned several learning activities for the kids. We divided ourselves in three groups. I had to teach the ABC's. The kids were excited at first. Learning a language was fun for them. About and our later, we were all hungry and tired. We went out to the back yard to have a snack together. After a while, we came back in. We decided that it would be fun to have a singing contest with all the children. We had a lot of fun while everyone sang. Thursday I had a nice opportunity to talk to both Sonia and Jessica. Jessica is a sweet little girl that is always willing to learn and have fun. Sonia is pretty amazing. She has lived through 54 surgeries and yet, she is still interested in learning about medicine. She even taught me the name of a muscle. Thursday was really nice, just like Wednesday.

Friday, March 1, 2013

Friday was sad; it was our last day with the guys at Cepytin. We had planned the most fun activities for the end. We also divided ourselves in three. Each group of CNG students was assigned an activity. Some girls played with play dough while other kids colored. My activity was building paper airplanes. Even though it wasn’t that easy, most of them managed to make one. They were really excited as there airplanes flew. They even competed amongst them. I talked to Miguel Angel again. I had a special gift for him. As I knew he collected coins, I brought some foreign ones for him to keep. He was really thankful. To end our activities of the week, we read a book together. This book was about how it’s okay to be different.

Saying goodbye was sad as we knew that we were probably not going to see these kids again. We had learned a lot from these kids. Their life isn’t easy yet, they manage to bring out a smile. They are always fighting for their goals and usually achieve them. There way of looking at things is way different that how we live. We are usually not even thankful. I bet that in each and every one of our hearts, there is something that we learned from the kids at Cepytin.

Sonia and Cindy smiling at the camera.

Happy boys after learning how to make paper airplanes.

 Helping Miguel Angel learn the body parts in English.

Sonia and me after I had an intense anatomy class. 

Design Project-Day 3

CHOOSE PHASE
1. Our game will follow all of our requirements if we decorate it well and have attractive prizes.
2. We want to keep the prizes on our model. We are sure this is going to catch everyone's attention.We are still keeping the set of instructions in our model.
3. Our hook will have a more simple design. Instead of being a grabber, it will be a simple hook (similar to a fishing hook). This will require a string on the prizes in order for someone to win.

IMPLEMENT PHASE
1. To build our model: (M=Maria, N=Nicolas)
-Create a cardboard box that has a clear side (in order to see the prizes).  M&N
-Cut the top part in order to make a pathway for the hook. M
-Make a hook that is strong and stable. N
-Make a hole in the box where the prizes can exit. N
-Put a string on every prize. M
-Paint the box to make it pretty. M
-Write down the instructions and paste them in the box. N

2. Materials:
-Box M
-Tape N
-Glue gun M
-Box Cutter M
-Prizes: Candy and small toys. M&N
-Clear contact paper M
-Scissors N
-Paint M
-String N
-Metal Wire M

Design Project-day 2

PROTOTYPE PHASE
1.

• My Prototype:

     Negative: It is not colored nor attractive. The grabber's path isn't efficient.
     Positive: It has a set of instructions. It can stand on it's own. Prices aren't enough.

• Nicolas' Prototype:

     Negative: Not is not stable. There are two different boxes with different prices. 

     Positive: Structure is clear. Arrows guide the player.

-We think Nicolas' Prototype is better because it shows things more clear. 

-We want to include decorations and a base. 

-We will only  have one game, not two.

2. Prototype:

3. Class Feedback

Positive:
-Every third grader likes the game and the prize.
-Calls you to play, attractive
-Easy to win
Suggestions:
-Create a hook in prizes
-Create a strong hook.
-

Design Project-Day 1

My Partner is Nicolas Triana.

DEFINE PHASE

1.  We will make our game for elementary students, both boys and girls.
2. Our game's difficulty will be medium.
3. Our game will be successful or fun if:
-There is a way to win.
-You can play it many times.
-It has a popular theme.
-It involves prices.
-Visually attractive.

RESEARCH PHASE

1. Speed ball : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYRZcWa0zJI&playnext=1&list=PL92539D6D66668E09&feature=results_main

+: One good thing about this game is that it can be used by everyone and it is easy to play a second time.
-: One bad thing about this game is that it is too easy.

2. Tilta' Ball: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DM8gyHhV8K0

+: This game is creative and it can be played by anyone at any age.
-: One disadvantage of this game is that the balls can easily get lost, and it requires a lot of human intervention for it to work.

3. Carboard Arcade: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8P03PeFuywg  (first game in the video)

+: This game is easy to make and it also requires certain skills for those at a short age.
-: This game requires you to go all around the game in order to get the ball and play again.

IDEATION PHASE

1. We are making a claw game that includes prizes. This prizes will be based on elementary kids likes.
2. It will be fun because:
-Prizes are atractive
-It is visually charming.
-Easy to play
-Has a little challenge.

3. Some of the things that may go wrong are:
-The prices could run out.
-Who would give out super prizes?
-How will the hook return to the beginning.
-Prices could get stuck.