Welcome to My Digital Portfolio!
My name is Tony Williams and I go to Animas High School. I was born in Munich, Germany and I speak German fluently. I enjoy playing piano, soccer, and snowboarding.
Now let me tell you why I came to Animas High School!
I am primarily an audio/visual learner. I have a great capacity for memorization, but I would rather take concepts to a deeper level to challenge my thinking in new ways. Most other models of school are primarily textbook-based. I would probably excel in these environments, but that just sounds boring to me! I would rather learn a narrow range of topics in more depth than a broad range of topics, but only brush the surface. My teachers also help me to push forward and to find topics that interest me and challenge me. In this way, Animas allows me to push my education further than I would otherwise be able to, so that I can learn more and so that topics "stick" in my head for longer times.
Another great thing about Animas is the culture here. Everybody likes everyone else and respects each other as classmates and resources for learning. I know that I can go to any of my classmates and ask their opinion on my work and get an honest, thoughtful response that will help me improve. Similarly, I can go to any teachers and just have a conversation with them! We get to call teachers by their first names, creating a professional but comfortable environment. For example, I spent 45 minutes one period just talking to Steve Smith, my chemistry teacher, about things varying from the Higgs Boson to socialism! This is very different and much cooler than what happened at Miller, where I went to middle school.
Personality Reflection
The other day, we took personality tests to determine what personality types we have. I came out as an expressive analytic. This means that I learn things very well and like to analyze, but also have a creative side. I basically have two sides; one side of me is very open, outgoing, and doesn't like to be in the box. The other side of me likes peace and quiet, organization, and has an exceptional capacity to get things done. This means that I can thrive both in noisy and in quiet environments culturally, but need to make sure the right side of me is mentally present at all times.
I can be pushed in academics very well by Animas High School. In a normal learning environment, my expressive side would have a hard time coming to the forefront. Throughout middle school and even up until this year, I never went the extra mile to get a creative piece of work done, but I've been writing cool and interesting songs for projects recently. AHS helps me by nurturing both contrasting sides of who I am, both the musician and the intellectual within me. Similarly, Animas has changed the way I view my teachers. I used to think of them simply as grading machines, but here they help me brainstorm great ideas for projects and expand my understanding of topics.
My name is Tony Williams and I go to Animas High School. I was born in Munich, Germany and I speak German fluently. I enjoy playing piano, soccer, and snowboarding.
Now let me tell you why I came to Animas High School!
I am primarily an audio/visual learner. I have a great capacity for memorization, but I would rather take concepts to a deeper level to challenge my thinking in new ways. Most other models of school are primarily textbook-based. I would probably excel in these environments, but that just sounds boring to me! I would rather learn a narrow range of topics in more depth than a broad range of topics, but only brush the surface. My teachers also help me to push forward and to find topics that interest me and challenge me. In this way, Animas allows me to push my education further than I would otherwise be able to, so that I can learn more and so that topics "stick" in my head for longer times.
Another great thing about Animas is the culture here. Everybody likes everyone else and respects each other as classmates and resources for learning. I know that I can go to any of my classmates and ask their opinion on my work and get an honest, thoughtful response that will help me improve. Similarly, I can go to any teachers and just have a conversation with them! We get to call teachers by their first names, creating a professional but comfortable environment. For example, I spent 45 minutes one period just talking to Steve Smith, my chemistry teacher, about things varying from the Higgs Boson to socialism! This is very different and much cooler than what happened at Miller, where I went to middle school.
Personality Reflection
The other day, we took personality tests to determine what personality types we have. I came out as an expressive analytic. This means that I learn things very well and like to analyze, but also have a creative side. I basically have two sides; one side of me is very open, outgoing, and doesn't like to be in the box. The other side of me likes peace and quiet, organization, and has an exceptional capacity to get things done. This means that I can thrive both in noisy and in quiet environments culturally, but need to make sure the right side of me is mentally present at all times.
I can be pushed in academics very well by Animas High School. In a normal learning environment, my expressive side would have a hard time coming to the forefront. Throughout middle school and even up until this year, I never went the extra mile to get a creative piece of work done, but I've been writing cool and interesting songs for projects recently. AHS helps me by nurturing both contrasting sides of who I am, both the musician and the intellectual within me. Similarly, Animas has changed the way I view my teachers. I used to think of them simply as grading machines, but here they help me brainstorm great ideas for projects and expand my understanding of topics.