Your Assignment Is...

We all know the experience of learning something new by following the steps someone has written for us. It typically works perfectly and looks beautiful or work just like we'd want when we are done. When we try to do something a little different than the instructions we were given, things do not always work as expected.

That's kind of the idea behind the Assignment part of each lesson. With the Practice you are doing work that has an expected result. When you do the Assignment you get to try what you have learned on your own. This is how you really learn and make the class content your own.

And things don't always turn out right the first time!

The good news is your instructor is just a post away! Post a message to the Questions and Comments board or post your project as it is to the Assignments area and tell your instructor what problems you are having and what you are trying to accomplish. Your instructor will help by pointing you in the right direction, find the problem or offer advice on how you can improve your work.

This is the part of the class our instructors like the most - helping you to use your new skills in a way that will benefit you!

And once your Assignment is posted, you get a chance to see the work your classmates turned in. This allows you to see many different ways to apply what you have learned to real-world solutions. Chances are a classmate will try something you had not thought of and you have a chance to learn something new. And of course your classmates will also have the chance to learn from your work.

With the feedback you give your classmates you can offer encouragement, advice or congratulations on a job well-done. And they will do the same for you.

posted by Winona Winslow @ 5:38 PM