Open the plan for your big project and its milestones, which are the smaller steps you planned to finish. Today is a checkpoint, a time to stop and see how far you have got. First you will label each milestone honestly. Then you will name the biggest thing still missing before you have a solid draft, which is a first version someone else could understand. Last, you will set a clear target for what to do next.
Give every milestone one of these four labels.
- Done: finished, so you will not reopen it
- In progress: started, and still moving
- Not started: not begun yet
- Set aside on purpose: you chose not to do it, and you can say why
Be careful with in progress. If all you have done is make a file or open a page, the milestone is still not started.
Remember, for now you are aiming for a solid draft, not a perfect project.
As a class, choose a label for each made-up milestone below and say why.
1. You gathered 6 links, but you have not opened any of them yet.
2. You started an outline, which is a plan of the main parts, but so far it only has headings.
3. You chose not to do the interview because there was not enough time, so you are using archive footage (old video that someone else already recorded) instead.
Use your own plan and your research log, which is your notes on what you found. If your plan is missing, copy the five lines below onto a fresh page and use them as your milestones.
Choose a topic and an angle (the side of it you will focus on)
Find sources, meaning the websites, videos and people you get information from, and decide which ones you can trust
Plan the order of the main parts, or start writing the opening
Build the main piece
Check your work for mistakes and save it
- List every milestone from your plan.
- Mark each one done, in progress, not started or set aside on purpose. For any you set aside, write one short reason.
- In one sentence, name the single biggest gap between you and a solid draft.
- Write your next target. This is one thing you will finish before the next checkpoint, written so you could tick it off, such as "finish the three-part outline and choose the facts for my opening" rather than "work on my project".
- Save your status check with your plan and log the class way. Then start on your next target straight away.
You do not have a clear order for the parts yet.
You have found sources but have not checked whether you can trust them.
Your opening is not finished.
Some video you need is still missing.
You have not decided what main point you want to make.
Every milestone should have a label, you should have one gap and one next target, your work should be saved and your target should be started. If you copied the five lines today, it is enough to make a start on your target.
Start the work your next target names. Your teacher will come round and give you one quick comment on your status check, or read your saved page later, so keep working and do not wait for them.
- Open the part of your project that your target is about, such as your outline, sources or a draft section.
- Work only on that target, and do not jump ahead to the finishing touches or to publishing.
- If you get stuck, write what is stopping you in one line under your status check to bring to the next checkpoint.
- Save everything the class way before you leave.
You are done for today when your status check is complete, you have made real progress on your target and your work is saved.
Stop work on your project for a moment. Your teacher has written on the board the kinds of gap seen around the room, like problems with sources, the opening, or time. As a class, and without naming anyone's work, say which one is most common today, and listen for any you did not expect.
A checkpoint works when your labels are honest and your next target is small enough to finish. Until the next checkpoint, your job is that target, not the whole project at once.
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