Process Paper
When I heard that the NHD topic this year was turning points in history I was very excited because there are lots of interesting topics among that genre. The first thing that came to mind was the polio vaccine. This is because I read "small steps" in 5th grade and since then it had been one of my favorite books. Small steps is a first hand account of a girl my age who developed polio an fought it. After reading small steps I always had a specific interest in the disease. Then when I heard that the NHD topic was to be turning points I was especially intrigued because the development of the polio vaccine definitely was a turning point and changed the way people lived. Having my topic as polio let me explore something that I was truly interested in, which is not always common for school projects.
To conduct my research on the polio vaccine, I first went to the downtown public library. There I found over 6 books that had first hand accounts of what it was like to contract polio and the way of life. I skimmed each of them to understand the main idea of the story and what was to be gained from reading it. After exhausting book sources I began searching online to learn About the different types of polio , how it affected people, and the methods of fighting it. Well researching on the computer I discovered many videos relating to polio. I found interviews with a woman who had been in an iron lung for 50years. I also found documentaries and many people's accounts of what life was like back then. I conducted my research by using resources available at the public library and searching for websites and videos online.
I decided to do a website because I like that you can always change something or edit easily. You also don't have to buy glue and paper or waste time cutting things out and gluing them on a board. I chose a website instead of a exhibit, documentary, performance , or historical paper for different reasons. I decided not to do an exhibit because you often spend too much time cutting and gluing , and whether you board looks neat or not is a big part of the grade. do not know how nor would i have anything to videotape to create a documentary. I chose not to do a performance because I am not talented in performance nor am I interested in group project. I feel that historical papers are often quite boring and there are no visuals which is important for me. I like that a website is interactive and i can incorporate videos on it. That's how I decided that a website would be the best fit for me. I created my project first by deciding what pages I would want to include on my website. I decided to include sections on “What is Polio,” a Timeline, “Salk & Sabin” (about the vaccine), “Life before Polio,” and “Life after Polio.” Once I decided what information I was going to have on the website, I filled in the pages with things I had learned from my research.
My project relates to the NHD because the development of the polio vaccine changed many people's lives. Polio was a horrific disease that caused many people to live in fear. Contracting the disease could lead to paralyzation or even death. People seldom let their kids out of the house besides to go to school out of fear that their children would contract the disease. In the early 1900's when many kids were becoming ill with polio, the country was in turmoil. After the vaccine was developed, people felt more secure and their lives changed. My topic relates to the NHD theme because there is a clear difference between life before the polio vaccine was developed and life afterward.
When I heard that the NHD topic this year was turning points in history I was very excited because there are lots of interesting topics among that genre. The first thing that came to mind was the polio vaccine. This is because I read "small steps" in 5th grade and since then it had been one of my favorite books. Small steps is a first hand account of a girl my age who developed polio an fought it. After reading small steps I always had a specific interest in the disease. Then when I heard that the NHD topic was to be turning points I was especially intrigued because the development of the polio vaccine definitely was a turning point and changed the way people lived. Having my topic as polio let me explore something that I was truly interested in, which is not always common for school projects.
To conduct my research on the polio vaccine, I first went to the downtown public library. There I found over 6 books that had first hand accounts of what it was like to contract polio and the way of life. I skimmed each of them to understand the main idea of the story and what was to be gained from reading it. After exhausting book sources I began searching online to learn About the different types of polio , how it affected people, and the methods of fighting it. Well researching on the computer I discovered many videos relating to polio. I found interviews with a woman who had been in an iron lung for 50years. I also found documentaries and many people's accounts of what life was like back then. I conducted my research by using resources available at the public library and searching for websites and videos online.
I decided to do a website because I like that you can always change something or edit easily. You also don't have to buy glue and paper or waste time cutting things out and gluing them on a board. I chose a website instead of a exhibit, documentary, performance , or historical paper for different reasons. I decided not to do an exhibit because you often spend too much time cutting and gluing , and whether you board looks neat or not is a big part of the grade. do not know how nor would i have anything to videotape to create a documentary. I chose not to do a performance because I am not talented in performance nor am I interested in group project. I feel that historical papers are often quite boring and there are no visuals which is important for me. I like that a website is interactive and i can incorporate videos on it. That's how I decided that a website would be the best fit for me. I created my project first by deciding what pages I would want to include on my website. I decided to include sections on “What is Polio,” a Timeline, “Salk & Sabin” (about the vaccine), “Life before Polio,” and “Life after Polio.” Once I decided what information I was going to have on the website, I filled in the pages with things I had learned from my research.
My project relates to the NHD because the development of the polio vaccine changed many people's lives. Polio was a horrific disease that caused many people to live in fear. Contracting the disease could lead to paralyzation or even death. People seldom let their kids out of the house besides to go to school out of fear that their children would contract the disease. In the early 1900's when many kids were becoming ill with polio, the country was in turmoil. After the vaccine was developed, people felt more secure and their lives changed. My topic relates to the NHD theme because there is a clear difference between life before the polio vaccine was developed and life afterward.