Elysia O’Leary

Writing a Story Book About Viking History

Global Context - Identities And Relationships

Goal - To conduct research on my family heritage and Vikings to successfully write a short book about my family history and the movement of ancient civilisations throughout Europe, specifically the Vikings.

Introduction Process Journal Sample

I wrote I short book about the Viking timeline whilst telling it through old Viking stories, myths, and legends.

Research

In this chapter I will research and write about who were the Vikings and where they came from? Who were the Vikings? The Vikings were invaders and settlers who came from Scandinavia. Scandinavia is a collective of countries in Northern Europe which includes Norway, Sweden and Denmark however authorities argue for the inclusion of Finland and Iceland due to their speaking of Scandinavian languages. The Vikings travelled by boat as far as North America in the West and Central Asia in the east from about 700 AD to 1100.

The Vikings were very well known for their plundering and invasions which makes sense considering the word Viking meant “pirate raid” in the old Norse language that was spoken in Scandinavia around the same period. However they also voyaged to some other countries to settle peacefully, or to trade with faraway lands.

Questions/Reflection

What was your inspiration for your project? My project was motivated by my fascination for history, and I believe that our knowledge of the past should affect the decisions we make in today’s society. I was especially interested in the history of my family tree, which led me to begin research on Vikings and eventually to write a book on their history. After doing my research I knew what I wanted to do with it: present it in a book in a fun and engaging manner. What did you learn about yourself as a student or a learner? After reflecting and reading my process journal I came to the conclusion that I am a physical/kinetic learner. When it came to research and reflection, I found that I sometimes procrastinated, but when it came to actually making the product, I was really involved and interested in my work. I’m happy I noticed this while working on my project because I believe knowing this will help me study and work more efficiently in the future.

What is the most important thing you learned from doing your project? The most valuable skill I gained from my personal project was the ability to efficiently manage my time. Since we had to set our own deadlines and complete the work in our own time, it was critical that I managed my time effectively. This is an ability that I certainly improved while working on my project, and I glad I did because it will most definitely come in useful in the future.

What are you most proud of with your project? What makes you say that? The physical product (the book) and the amount of research I put into this project are what I am most proud of. I am proud of the product because I put a lot of time and effort into it and tried my hardest to make it as I imagined it to be. And regardless of what mark I get I think that is something to be proud of.