Week 3 of Second Semester

 This week we had 8 new pages due for thesis. I was excited to actually get started on writing the paper, but I unfortunately had some technical issues and did not get to write as much as I hoped. The writing process was a bit slow going because I needed to go back to a lot of my sources and do more research, which was beneficial, but took more time than I had anticipated. I learned so much more by actually going through and really reading my sources, and it was thrilling to learn things about my topic that I didn't even know! I need to fix my abstract and my introduction, but for now, I am focusing more on the body of the body and then will go back and refine the parts that need changing. 

research research research

With the first big thesis deadline of the semester, I'm solidifying how I enjoy organizing. I work better when I can physically move around my sources and the paragraphs I've written. When writing my literature review, I took notes on my sources on index cards. I've continued to do this and it's been so helpful to be able to line them up to see where I'd like to highlight them in my thesis. I also printed my literature review before adding to it to cut out each paragraph and test out where they might work better and flow smoother for my thesis. Hopefully this style of organization will continue to help me as we move along!

Thesis Second Semester: Week Two

     Tomorrow is the first major checkpoint of this paper -- eight new pages due. I'm excited to finally start putting my ideas down into these cohesive sentences, but also worried as well. I think what I'm struggling with the most right now is correctly and smoothly incorporating my sources. I find myself wanting to write a bunch of sentences that need to be backed up by a source, and just add a note that says "find and add a source later." However, I know that will make the work a lot harder for later me. All that being said, I'm trying to remember that these eight pages are a first draft. They don't have to be perfect; they're not going to be perfect. Just getting them done is a huge step.

Thesis week 2 (second semester)

 Since going on winter break, I've been a little slow to get started on really diving into this project because school started. I felt like I got a lot of research done over break and had a break through with what direction to go in in terms of the exhibit concept I am working on. Now, I want to start developing that concept through poster selection, developing a theme for the exhibit, and label copy. I have been working on including a timeline into the exhibit.