Blog #6: Second Interview Questions

Content:

1. When did you start you business and why did you decide to start in the business of cake decorating??

2. How did you start baking?

3. Where did you get your inspiration for all your cake orders?

4. Give me an example of one of your hardest orders up to now.

5. Is there anyone in your family you look up to for inspiration?

Blog #4: Project Reflection and Working EQ

A: What positive thing happened as a result of what you have completed so far?

• A positive thing that has definitely helped me for the end is the contact that Mrs. La Russa gave me to a pastry chef she knows of. That contact is something I will surely use to improve what I already know and to learn more about my topic.

B: Pick a piece of research or your interview. How has it helped you improve you understanding of your topic?

• I think that my first interview was really helpful because she gave me 2 contacts; one to a professional pastry chef and another to a bakery worker. Both of them would also expand what I already know about the pastry chef world. Also, I learned about different classes I should consider taking, so I definitely learned more about my topic.

C: What has worked for you so far in the senior project?

• What has worked for me in my senior project is looking up specific pastry chefs in my research and seeing how their creativity made them so famous in the industry. I get really inspired by their story and seeing the images of their works amazes me so much, that it makes me more excited for my senior project to come together.

D: Finding Value: Based on your experience so far,
   - What possible question or questions come to mind regarding what you would like to study this year?
   - What is your end goal this year with your senior project?
   - Who would you like to talk to next? Why?

• One question on what I want to study this year is if I should consider taking a business major so that actually know how to own a business when I am ready to open my own bakery.
• The end goal for my senior project is knowing what being a pastry chef takes, and also concluding if I should take a business major.
• The person I would like to talk to next is the contact Mrs. La Russa gave me, Deb Swartz, because I do know that she owns a bakery and I would love to talk to her about what is like to own the business and about how she came up with the concepts behind her recipes.

Blog #5a: Science Fair Problem Statement

Topic: Pastry Art

Problem #1: How can I make the best tasting, and moist cake?

- After I solve this problem, I plan to be able to use this recipe for selling to the public and for parties that will cater for in the future. I would also like to put this recipe on allrecipes.com, which is a website that has recipes for almost any dish you could think of.

Problem #2: Does using egg substitute (ex. Tofu) change the texture or taste of a cake?

- I want to show people that we do not only have to use animal products to creating amazingly good, healthy food. I want to be able to show people this and share the recipe with the world.

Blog #3: Interview Preparation

Content:

A: 
-Who do you plan to interview?  Why?

• The person I plan to interview is my mentor, Kim Cruz. The reason I chose to interview her was because she is the one who is teaching me everything I need to know for my senior project, and the fact that I can contact her on Facebook, by phone, or by simply walking to her house, she is an easy interviewee to locate or contact at almost anytime.

B:

- You have to ask 5 questions.  What additional questions do you plan to ask?  Ask open-ended questions.  What are open-ended questions?

• Some additional questions I would ask is "Tell me how you got started in your business." and "How do you create the concepts behind your artwork?" The reason I would ask the open-ended questions are because I feel like the answer I am given from these questions will somehow help me later on in the projects to come. Also, the definition for "open-ended questions" is that of a question that can be asked in order to make the interviewee tell you more details that can help in creating anything from an essay to an article. It also adds more feeling in to what you are writing or describing.

Blog #2: Topic Choice

Content: 

A: 
- What is your topic and why?

•  The topic I choose to do was Pastry Art, meaning that I am going to look at the creative side of being a pastry chef and how they are able to create a story through cake or other confectioneries based on a certain event or party. The reason I decided to do Pastry Art was because I always enjoyed seeing cake and other types of pastries and seeing how beautiful it looked on a plate or cake. Most of the time, I could tell that a pastry chef's creation was trying to tell a story through the food they made, and I instantly got the idea that I wanted to introduce that aspect of a pastry chef in my senior project.

B:
-And what do you hope to accomplish this year with this topic?

• iPoly Citizen: I plan to create many cakes and other  confectioneries for other people, and this relates to me improving as an iPoly citizen because every time I bake something and I give that creation to someone, I always see a smile on their face, that is what I enjoy to see. I want to be able to make people smile when they seem down or sad.
• Effective Communicator: I plan to be able to listen to my mentor and anyone else I work with in this field. This will make me more effective as a learner because from those people that I work with, I will learn more and more about how to bake, work in the kitchen, and also more techniques in this form of art. I will be able to take this to school because I will need to listen not only in class, but also to others.
• Effective Learner: I plan to learn as much as I can during my mentorship. By doing this, I will become more effective as a learner because I will have to learn as much as I can for my senior project, and I also have to learn many things in my classes. I cannot just pretend to pay attention to anything, and then end up doing the wrong thing, this goes for being in both the classroom and in the kitchen.
• Effective User of Technology: I plan to help learn more about basic equipment other necessities in the kitchen, but also use technology to help my mentor's business take off. By doing these things, I will become a more effective user of technology because I need to be able to understand how the equipment works and what it is used for, but since I will also help in advertising my mentors business, I will need to use different mediums of technology for her business to rise.