Process Paper
Introduction:
For my capstone I decided to learn the recipes of my native culture. I did this by having my out-of-school mentor be my grandmother, who on countless times has offered her assistance in teaching me those recipes. There are many reasons as to why I chose cooking for my capstone. My first reason was to enhance my cultural awareness. My second reasoning was to conquer my uneasy feelings towards cooking. My last reason for learning about my heritage was to be able to pass it down to my future children, while learning from and spending time with my Grandmother. When it comes to the SLA core values I believe that simply wishing to broaden my understanding of Puerto Rican cuisines I has shown inquiry. I have shown research and collaboration through speaking with and learning from my grandmother, but also by interviewing other Latinas of my generation. My presentation and reflections were visible though the amount of work I have put in this project as well as the finished product I have created.
Process:
For this capstone I conversed with both of my mentors to understand what I would need to accomplish for this project. I took the time to figure out what kind of schedule I would need and what exactly my process over the months would look like. I also received some point from my advisor as to what would be more visually appealing while still showcasing all of the information I had gathered. The last person, but also one of the most important in my process was my mother. My mother never let me skip out on meetings with my mentor, nor did she let down her expectations of my work. Every week, like clockwork, she would ask me about my project, how far I was, and what I had to do next. My only obstacles was having all of the ingredients at the time, and weekly having our meetings rather than leaving it to chance. My main resources were my grandmother, some books on Puerto Rican heritage, and a few websites that I found useful. Since every family changed the recipe there were not many outside resources that I could have used unless I was trying to understand the basics.
Reflection:
Through out this whole project I can say that I am most proud of the fact that I actually took the time to learn certain recipes and that after being put in an uncomfortable situation I am now more adjusted to cooking. I have even become accustomed to making things from a recipe that is written, and adding in my own decisions. Through this project I have learned that it takes time to become even moderate at any task. I have also learned that some of the best memories are the ones were you are sharing stories with your love ones over food. If I could do this project over again I would want to show how much fun, I had with my family as I learned to make the recipes that have stuck with them through the years. My feelings towards SLA, as my school, have changed only a little over the years. At first when I was asked how SLA would be made a better place by my presence I thought that I would be the one changing more than the school. At this moment in time, after four full years here, I feel that SLA was a better place by my presence because I made friends and filled the building with the laugher and passion that drives us all. I never knew that I could be so close to people until I experience what its like to be looked up to
For my capstone I decided to learn the recipes of my native culture. I did this by having my out-of-school mentor be my grandmother, who on countless times has offered her assistance in teaching me those recipes. There are many reasons as to why I chose cooking for my capstone. My first reason was to enhance my cultural awareness. My second reasoning was to conquer my uneasy feelings towards cooking. My last reason for learning about my heritage was to be able to pass it down to my future children, while learning from and spending time with my Grandmother. When it comes to the SLA core values I believe that simply wishing to broaden my understanding of Puerto Rican cuisines I has shown inquiry. I have shown research and collaboration through speaking with and learning from my grandmother, but also by interviewing other Latinas of my generation. My presentation and reflections were visible though the amount of work I have put in this project as well as the finished product I have created.
Process:
For this capstone I conversed with both of my mentors to understand what I would need to accomplish for this project. I took the time to figure out what kind of schedule I would need and what exactly my process over the months would look like. I also received some point from my advisor as to what would be more visually appealing while still showcasing all of the information I had gathered. The last person, but also one of the most important in my process was my mother. My mother never let me skip out on meetings with my mentor, nor did she let down her expectations of my work. Every week, like clockwork, she would ask me about my project, how far I was, and what I had to do next. My only obstacles was having all of the ingredients at the time, and weekly having our meetings rather than leaving it to chance. My main resources were my grandmother, some books on Puerto Rican heritage, and a few websites that I found useful. Since every family changed the recipe there were not many outside resources that I could have used unless I was trying to understand the basics.
Reflection:
Through out this whole project I can say that I am most proud of the fact that I actually took the time to learn certain recipes and that after being put in an uncomfortable situation I am now more adjusted to cooking. I have even become accustomed to making things from a recipe that is written, and adding in my own decisions. Through this project I have learned that it takes time to become even moderate at any task. I have also learned that some of the best memories are the ones were you are sharing stories with your love ones over food. If I could do this project over again I would want to show how much fun, I had with my family as I learned to make the recipes that have stuck with them through the years. My feelings towards SLA, as my school, have changed only a little over the years. At first when I was asked how SLA would be made a better place by my presence I thought that I would be the one changing more than the school. At this moment in time, after four full years here, I feel that SLA was a better place by my presence because I made friends and filled the building with the laugher and passion that drives us all. I never knew that I could be so close to people until I experience what its like to be looked up to