Throughout this summer, I have tried to come up with an idea of what I want my senior project to be. I have brainstormed many different ideas; many of which seemed great at the moment, but were thrown out the window the next day.
This continued to happen until my classmate Alan reminded me of this tournament during our 8th grade year. During this year, Cory Anglin organized a tournament which included all of the boys that lived on campus. Everyone was divided into four groups and each group faced of another one in different games (one of which, ultimate dodge ball, was my favorite). This happened at least once a month, and at the end of the year, the winning team was rewarded. I can still remember the excitement I had during these games. This excitement came from the fact that I was doing something different. I was doing something that wasn’t part of the usual chinquapin routine of classes, chores, study hall, and bedtime. I was doing something out of the norm that involved all of my friends. This activity also helped me release some stress from school that I’ve been holding on to. At the end of each game, I was much more relaxed and hoping that the next games would happen soon.
After recalling this event, an idea hit me; what if I try to bring back these games. What if I get every male student living on campus to participate in these games and invent my own tournament similar to the one Cory made. I started to ponder upon this idea and realized that it was possible. All of the games can be held in the pavilion, gym, or outside during the 9 to 10 free time. I can also try to bring back some of the games that is now played less often than they used to be (such as ultimate frisbee at night, hockey, capture the flag, etc.)
The purpose of these games shouldn’t just be fun. The purpose should also include building better bonds between students, releasing stress from the daily school life, and keeping the students content about living on campus. Since everyone will be divided into groups, everyone will be with people they don’t usually interact with on a daily bases (this can be helpful for new students who don’t know anyone else other than their classmates).This can also help release some stress from school. Everyone will be able to focus on the games instead of thinking about school work or other relative maters. This can make the student more content and relaxed which will lower the chances of the student feeling homesick.
This is the idea I came up with for my Senior Project. I don’t know if it’s a good idea or not, so feel free to guide me and comment on anything that I have just posted.
This continued to happen until my classmate Alan reminded me of this tournament during our 8th grade year. During this year, Cory Anglin organized a tournament which included all of the boys that lived on campus. Everyone was divided into four groups and each group faced of another one in different games (one of which, ultimate dodge ball, was my favorite). This happened at least once a month, and at the end of the year, the winning team was rewarded. I can still remember the excitement I had during these games. This excitement came from the fact that I was doing something different. I was doing something that wasn’t part of the usual chinquapin routine of classes, chores, study hall, and bedtime. I was doing something out of the norm that involved all of my friends. This activity also helped me release some stress from school that I’ve been holding on to. At the end of each game, I was much more relaxed and hoping that the next games would happen soon.
After recalling this event, an idea hit me; what if I try to bring back these games. What if I get every male student living on campus to participate in these games and invent my own tournament similar to the one Cory made. I started to ponder upon this idea and realized that it was possible. All of the games can be held in the pavilion, gym, or outside during the 9 to 10 free time. I can also try to bring back some of the games that is now played less often than they used to be (such as ultimate frisbee at night, hockey, capture the flag, etc.)
The purpose of these games shouldn’t just be fun. The purpose should also include building better bonds between students, releasing stress from the daily school life, and keeping the students content about living on campus. Since everyone will be divided into groups, everyone will be with people they don’t usually interact with on a daily bases (this can be helpful for new students who don’t know anyone else other than their classmates).This can also help release some stress from school. Everyone will be able to focus on the games instead of thinking about school work or other relative maters. This can make the student more content and relaxed which will lower the chances of the student feeling homesick.
This is the idea I came up with for my Senior Project. I don’t know if it’s a good idea or not, so feel free to guide me and comment on anything that I have just posted.
Young Richard, this sounds like a great idea. There are a lot of things that I can see go wrong in this project so I would like to list them for you so that you can think of them and find a way to solve them. First, with a project like this you're going to need money to help fund some of the equpment for night frisbee. You will also need teacher power because I'm sure that some kids are going to choose to do other stuff during their freetime then to play the games. The teacher would also be useful for being a ref for the game and making sure everything is fair.
ReplyDeleteOverall I think it's a great idea and I hope it works because I also miss these games. I'm sure it would be a great way to get all of the boys to interact with each other. That reminds me, What about the girls?
-Alan Rodriguez
Richard, I think this is a great idea. I have always been a firm believer that physical exercise reduces stress, such as running a couple of laps around the field. It has worked for me everytime I am stressed out about a particular assignment or drama. It is the perfect way to get new students to interact with old students. Sports have always been the great unitor in the world, such as the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics. It would be great to see the tournament once again at Chinquapin.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting idea. Why don't you contact Cory and get his feedback on this? Let me know if you need help finding him. He had the idea of having "house games" after going to a conference on Residence Life (ie., the boarding side of boarding school). Carl went to the same conference. Both would be good resources and possible panel members for you.
ReplyDeleteI recall there being a lack of interest from the student side of things -- and Cory put a great deal of effort into the program (with very little help from other teachers, who were already overburdened with other things). What went wrong? Why didn't it take off? Find out before you start, so you can address these problems up front.
How did Drive figure in your thinking here?