Blog 22 - Independent Component 2

• I, Cheyenne Medina, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.
• The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Mouth." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 Aug. 2014. Web. 22 Apr. 2016. http://www.britannica.com/science/mouth-anatomy.
• Updated Senior Project Hours Log 
• For my second component I sculpted the basic anatomy of the human mouth.
• The part of this component that I struggled the most with was the base for my clay. I tried paper mache in the beginning of construction. That turned out to be very messy and it did not make it easy to sculpt the clay. I decided to try several types of foam before deciding to use plain white foam. I then started to sculpt the gums to the foam. The next step in this process was to shape the teeth as well as the tongue and uvula. Another challenge of creating this project was having to mix together certain shades of clay in order to achieve the look of certain colors. I was able to use toothpicks to hold the mouth open.
• The component helped me understand more of my topic overall. Besides doing more project hours, this was the next best thing I could think of to help me understand my topic better. My mentor recommended I try working with clay to understand the manual dexterity that dentists use everyday in dealing with small things and spaces. So, overall I would say that this did help me understand my topic in some way. 

Independent Component 2 Approval

1. For my 30 hours of Independent Component 2, I would actually like to do what I had originally planned to do for my Independent Component 1. I would like to build a model of a human mouth out of paper mache, clay, etc. 
2. I will meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence by taking pictures of my progress and keeping an hour log. 
3. This will help me to be able to demonstrate the part of my answer about demonstrating proper oral hygiene. For example, how to brush and floss properly and what plaque looks like on the teeth. I would like to display this at my final presentation. This will help me make my explanations throughout my presentation more interactive and hopefully more interesting in my final presentation. 
4. Link Posted

Independent Component 1

• Literal
• "I, Cheyenne Medina, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work."
• My mentor, Chris Chen, DDS, and dental assistant, Julia Gaytan, at Puente Hills Dentistry helped me complete my independent component. 
• Senior Project Hour Log
• For my 30 hours for Independent Component I completed more hours at Puente Hills Dentistry, where I did my mentorship. I thought this would be a good way to spend my 30 hours, because my essential question has a lot to do with doctor-patient-interaction. The office was the best place for me to observe this.
• Interpretive 

• For the most part I was doing the things that I would normally do during my mentorship like watch most dental procedures and interact with the dentists and patients. This was significant to my project because it helped me to be able to further study and find answers for my essential question, "What are the best ways for a dentist to ease a patient's anxiety?".
• Applied
• This helped me understand the foundation of my topic by allowing me to watch doctor-patient-interaction. In my topic, I am focusing on a patient and how the dentist can best ease his or her anxiety. Many patients do feel anxious when going to the dentist and it is noticeable with many patients that I see that go into the office. Even the dentists tell me that they deal with anxious patients on a daily basis. This is so common and it is important to see what a dentist can do to help ease the patient and what methods work best and which ones don't.

Blog 8 - Independent Component 1 Proposal

1. Describe in detail what you plan to do for your 30 hours?
• I don't yet have a solid idea on what I would like to do for my 30 hours. Through my project I really want to focus on accessing things like what makes people afraid of the dentist and/or how to get people to be more aware of the importance oral hygiene. I was hoping I could make some dental care packages (filled with things like information, toothbrushes, floss, toothpaste, mouthwashes, etc.) and give them to the homeless shelters. I was hoping I would be able to go and talk with those people about proper oral hygiene and maybe find out if any of them have fears of the dentist or maybe bad experiences. Another idea would be to build a mouth out of paper mache. The whole structure would include the gums, teeth, nerves, etc.
2. Discuss how or what you will do to meet the expectation of showing 30 hours of evidence.
• I could document it with pictures, a video log, and even actual logging of hours on paper. 
3. Explain how what you will be doing will help you explore your topic in more depth.
• By making dental care packages I would be able provide help for people who don't have access to a dentist or maybe who don't have proper supplies to maintain good oral hygiene. I would be able to talk to those people about their past experiences with the dentist (if any) and their oral hygiene. 
• By building a paper mache mouth I will be able to learn about the anatomy of the mouth such as things like nerves, bones, blood vessels, placement. 
4. Update your senior project hours log.