Driving Question:

How might I promote gender equality to a young population using traditional African tales?

Project Summary:

Yeli K, a senior from the United States, has written a children’s book titled “The Farafina Tales” aimed at promoting gender equality in West Africa. The book addresses critical issues such as child marriage, female genital mutilation, and violence against women, which are prevalent in countries like Senegal, Guinea, and Liberia. Through interviews with experts across the continent, Yeli K identified factors contributing to these issues, including lack of legislation, ineffective law enforcement, negative cultural perceptions of women, and lack of economic opportunities.

Inspired by a study showing how children’s literature can shift gender perspectives in Rwanda, Yeli K sought to promote gender equality among young West Africans through literature. This led to the creation of a 30,000-word novel manuscript for 8 to 12-year-olds, which won a Scholastic Gold Key for the New York region and a National Silver Medal in the Scholastic Art and Writing competition.

The story follows a 13-year-old girl named Mariama, who, with the help of a secret society of African heroes, saves her school from developers aiming to turn it into a mall. To write this book, Yeli K undertook a 150-hour course on writing for children, receiving a distinction. This was followed by detailed world-building and character development, guided by feedback from mental health and gender-based violence experts, children’s book authors, mentors, and the target audience of children.

Yeli K wrote 1,000 words daily during November, utilizing National Novel Writing Month resources and community support. After completing the initial drafts, the book was distributed to eight children aged 8 to 12 in Lagos, Nigeria, for critical feedback, which was incorporated into the final draft.

Through this project, Yeli K aims to inspire young people globally to use art to ignite profound social changes, demonstrating the power of literature in addressing pervasive societal issues.

Driving Question: How might we use blockchain technology to create future innovative ventures?

What were your goals for this module?

My goal for this module was to design a decentralized app, token/coin, or NFT collection based on a concrete understanding of what blockchain is. I achieved my goals by being particularly attentive with our guest speakers and asking many questions to understand what blockchain is.

What new things did you learn about yourself?

I learned how interested I am for the potential impact of Web 3.0 on our world.

What are your big takeaway lessons from this project?

Blockchain is the future.

Driving Question: How might I build an app that uses music therapy to improve the emotional wellness of teens?

Module Summary: Music therapy is a unique form of rehabilitation that helps people of all ages deal with emotional, physical, and mental ailments by creating and listening to music. For her first TGS mastery project, CM1 Student Yeli K. coded an app that uses music therapy to help teens deal with emotional issues and created a corresponding pitch video to showcase the app.

Student Reflection: “I am doing this project because mental illness has affected so many of my friends and me, and I believe that music therapy is an amazing non-invasive solution for adolescents. This project could bring about true change in our society. Additionally, this project introduced me to advanced coding concepts, which I would eventually like to pursue as a career.” -CM1 Student Yeli K.

Driving Question: How might I create a product that allows me to practice essential martial arts skills on the go?

Summative Product: A useable punching bag/device that I can take with me to term.

What are you passionate about that led you to choose this project?

I have been an avid martial arts fan since I was young, practicing arts from kung fu to boxing. Unfortunately, when I travel I’m not able to work on my skills. Losing valuable practice time while traveling greatly affects my performance when I get back to the ring. To remedy this, I hope I can create a product that allows me to travel and continue to hone my fighting techniques.

Making the conscious decision to dedicate myself to martial arts within the past year has positively affected my physical health. I constantly feel more energized, my stamina has improved considerably, and I’m able to channel my negative energy in a more positive way. This project will provide the tools to maintain these habits even while traveling.

What was your initial idea and what did you want to do/learn with this project?

My initial idea was to use a hat with a punching bag, but that didn’t work. I initially wanted to learn more about using different 3D platforms to create prototypes.