Capstone Project plan
Looking for a capstone project plan? This roadmap is designed to culminate and showcase knowledge and skills gained. Students investigate a potential career path, engaging in research and experience. Students will present their growth and learning in a final portfolio and presentation. Use this capstone project plan for genius hour, a beginning of the year or end of the year project. This project guide for students takes students through a typical senior capstone project.
ROADMAP
Stage 1 - Choose Topic
"What do you want to be when you grow up?" Consider your future and what you're interested in exploring as a potential career. This could be an industry, a profession, a cause or a passion. Narrow down your topic to one that is most meaningful and relevant to you and where you want to go in life.
Pathway 1 - Discover Topic
Identify interests: academic, professional, and social topics. Suggestion: make a list or mindmap. Keep in mind transferable skills you want to develop, careers you might want to pursue, a topic you want to learn more about to be future-ready.
Identify goals: academic, personal, professional and social. What do you want to learn more about? What skills are you interested in developing? What do you think is important for your future? Consider: I want to… learn / develop / improve / explore / prepare for / understand / know how to / create / plan / affect.
Find connections to create project topic(s). Look over your interests and goals. Find common themes or ways to combine ideas.
Conduct a “pre-mortem" as a feasibility test. Identify all of the ways the topic might not be achievable, all the reasons your project might fail. More eyes on this is helpful. Run your ideas by others (particularly mentors) and have them identify areas of concern. Ask: “Can this work? Can you come up with reasons it wouldn't? Why shouldn't I pursue this?”
Stage 2 - Create Proposal
Capstone projects are complex culminations of your experience as a student and proof that you are future-ready. Demonstrate your readiness by having a well-thought out plan of action. Include purpose, timeline, goals, tasks, mentors, research, anticipate challenges, and identify supports to put in place (resources, mentors, etc.)
Pathway 2 - Proposal
Identify your goal(s). Turn your goal(s) into one overarching driving question or statement. Eg. “I want to understand the positive impact of social media for companies beyond marketing” or “Does social media have a positive impact for companies beyond marketing?” Turn your question or statement into a SMART goal.
Identify relevance. Explain why your goal relevant and meaningful to you. What do you hope to learn or accomplish? (gain knowledge? develop skills? get experience?).
Identify gaps in knowledge. What further research do you plan to do to deepen your understanding of this topic? What are the big questions you need to answer? How will you research, read, locate information, talk to experts, interview, attend info sessions/workshops/classes.
Determine final product. Who is the audience? Why this product and why this audience? What will this product help this intended audience to do? Eg. Pitch your product to local company. Suggestions for final products: design a product or service, conduct an experiment, plan an event, create art, write a speech.
Outline a "to-do" list. Be specific about the actions you will take: practice, attempt, shadow, volunteer, work experience, assemble, create, achieve, decide.
Establish a timeline for your To Do list. Create a timeline with deadlines for major tasks.
Identify challenges. What major challenges do you foresee? How are you stretching your learning? How are you challenging yourself?
Gather support. What supports will you put in place to address the challenges you've identified? These are people, programs, or resources who will assist you with the project. Describe the role or expertise you're looking for in a mentor or program and how you plan to acquire them.
Develop mentor meeting cadence. For your initial meeting with your potential mentor, be prepared to outline what you need from them and why they would be a good fit. Consider: what does this mentorship mean for them? Benefits? Opportunities? Suggest meeting cadence, feedback loops, general expectations. Confirm details of mentor-mentee relationship. Consider: draft a contract.
Stage 3 - Do Research
Knowledge is power. It is also one way to set yourself apart from the competition. Undoubtedly there will be others pursuing your career of interest. Knowledge of your field boosts your chances of being a credible candidate in the eyes of employers.
Pathway 3 - Research
Identify your goals for your research and determine what you want to learn from it.
Determine your method(s) of research and explain why. Eg. Interview, Survey, Observation, Participation etc.
Organize your research. Decide on 1-3 areas to research further and create headings for each area. List key ideas/general content under each heading. Knowing more about these areas should start to answer your driving question.
Turn key ideas/content into more specific questions: ones that you can find facts about and get answers to. The answers to these questions should help you come up with an answer to your driving question.
Assess your sources of information. Are all of your resources credible and reliable? Look at the information you got from those sources. Are they fact-based? Biased?
Analyze findings: look for common themes, patterns, connections between ideas. What have you learned overall? Revisit your research goals. Did you meet them? Have your findings moved you closer to achieving your project goals? Do you need to do more research or try another approach?
Stage 4 - Write Paper
Put it all together. Keep in mind, this paper reflects more than knowledge gained. It also demonstrates a number of critical skills: conducting research, synthesizing information, defending an argument, assessing credible sources and communicating effectively.
Pathway 4 - Write Paper
Identify your driving question. Use the one from your proposal or modify if your thinking has changed.
Create a works cited page. Keep track of websites and other resources. Include any research done up to this point (interviews, surveys, etc.). Check with your teacher on how which format to follow (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.)
Determine your thesis. This should be the answer to your driving question that your paper will defend.
Draft your paper. Run it by your mentor, peers, and/or parents. Get feedback.
Edit and polish. Ensure it’s formatted correctly before submitting (ex. spacing, font, citation method, cover page requirements, etc.).
Stage 5 - Develop Final Product
Knowledge is power, but without action is useless. You've learned more about your topic of interest. "So what?" Consider your future resume and cover letter. What experience would set yourself apart from other candidates? Take on a leadership role and design, build, plan, conduct, or perform something to showcase your uniqueness.
Pathway 5 - Develop Final Product
Double-check: is your proposed anchor experience still relevant after having done your research? Ensure your anchor experience will help you achieve your goals, build desired skills, showcase your learning in the best way. If appropriate, what will you tweak or change or add based on your research findings?
Make a plan. This could be a list of tasks and deadlines or choose a structured process that will help keep you on track. Eg. if your anchor experience is to conduct an experiment, consider using the Scientific Method as a planning structure.
Seek feedback. Whose feedback will help inform your process? Suggestions: talk to your mentor, your intended audience, experts in the field.
Final touches. Knowing that the results of your anchor experience will be shared, consider finishing touches to make it showcase/public-ready.
Stage 6 - Develop Portfolio
Time to showcase all of your amazing work. Your portfolio should speak to your entire learning journey. Draw attention to moments you want to highlight. Choose a format that is representative of who you are.
Pathway 6 - Develop Portfolio
Create a list of artifacts. What do you need to collect for your portfolio? (ex. proposal, paper, final product).
Determine display. If asked to showcase, how will you share your final portfolio? (physical - binder, scrapbook; electronic - blog, website, folder of documents).
Look back and summarize the experience. Consider: Did you learn or accomplish what you intend to? What was challenging? What are you proud of? What would you do differently? What was valuable? Include reflection in your physical or electronic portfolio.
Look forward and consider: How are you more prepared for your future? What will you takeaway from this experience? What more could be done to further your work? How could you apply your research or skills in another area? Include reflection in your physical or electronic portfolio.
Create a list of post-capstone products. What would be valuable for you to have? (Suggestions: Letter of Recommendation, Resume, Cover Letter, LinkedIn profile).
Create post-capstone products. Include these in your physical or electronic portfolio.
Stage 7 - Prepare for Presentation
This is a culminating experience. It acts as a bookend to your life as a student. Your presentation should exude confidence, pride, and professionalism. Be prepared to tell your story: identify your narrative, draft your speech, and create visual/auditory aids to supplement your presentation.
Pathway 7 - Prepare for Presentation
Draft your narrative. What’s your overall story? Highlight the important parts of your journey: your goals, your plan, your execution, your challenges, your accomplishments, your takeaways.
Draft your speech. Take your summary and write a conversational script. Test it by reading it aloud. It should read like you're telling your story in a formal, yet personal way.
Create visual or auditory aids. These should supplement your story. They shouldn't tell the story for you.
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