Last Friday in Mrs. Lewandowski’s AP Research class, students got to paint pumpkins, getting into the Halloween spirit. However, the paintings had to relate to their research topics and represent them in some way.
Saria Francis, 11, painted social media logos on her pumpkin, such as the Facebook and Instagram icons.
“My research project is on social media dependency and how students are using social media and networking sites more,” Francis said.
Francis chose this topic because she wants to survey students on how they use social media and what they use it for.
Jessica Afiat, 11, chose to do their project on late diagnosis of autism and ADHD.
“The symbol for neurodivergence is the rainbow infinity sign, which I painted, and it’s kind of a mess, so it’s a visual representation of what’s going through my mind all the time,” they said.
Mrs. Lewandowski decided to allow students this fun project because, “they work on one project all year, and this allows them to have fun amidst strenuous research, and also has them focus on the key parts of their research.” For Mrs. Lew, it’s all about the diversity and creativity in the classroom, with a variety of research topics and students alike, she really enjoys teaching AP Research.
Jadon Hill, 12, decided to research, “how traumatic experiences during childhood affect us as adults.”
His pumpkin was painted dark to represent how traumatic experiences seem to cast a gloom over some that he’ll be researching the backgrounds of.