Module Reflection 2

                 I had the experience of creating a book in a pair. Although I initially struggled to find a partner for the project, my teacher quickly helped me, and thanks to that support, the book creation process turned out to be not as difficult as I expected. My partner was a classmate. Through conversations and online communication, we reached a consensus and divided the tasks. I was responsible for writing the storyboard and designing the book and its illustrations. Lan, my partner, worked on the story mountain and the sound elements of the book. Since we both have unique skills and experience, it all helped us create something more meaningful than either of us could have done alone. 

                 Since it was a collaborative task, I learned several important lessons. For instance, I realized that everyone has their own opinion and vision—in our case, their vision of the book. It’s important to consider your partner’s perspective because they can offer valuable advice or spot issues we might miss. We all tend to get used to our own work and overlook details. Also, challenges are inevitable in teamwork. For example, we disagreed on the illustrations. I wanted the images to follow a consistent color palette to avoid distracting from the story's meaning. Lan, however, wanted colorful images, arguing that it’s a children’s book, and bright visuals are more engaging for kids. For her, the visual appeal was the priority; for me, it was the message behind the story. In the end, through discussion, we reached a compromise: I added more colors to the images. 

                 Creating the book also involved using tools like ChatGPT and Book Creator. I used ChatGPT to generate illustrations. Honestly, it was challenging. Although AI is quite advanced nowadays, it still has limitations. ChatGPT often changed the appearance and clothing of our main character, Lina, and the same happened with Milo the squirrel. I had to ask for numerous revisions to maintain visual consistency. Since I didn’t have a paid subscription, I used multiple accounts to bypass the 5-image daily limit on the free plan. At one point, I even considered subscribing, but I kept going without giving up. This experience taught me perseverance and creativity in design and in solving problems with limited resources. It also gave me patience with other people and the creation of images. 

                 The most meaningful parts of this project for me were the collaboration and the storyboard. I understood the importance of working as a team—listening, being open to feedback, and applying suggestions can all impact the final result. The storyboard helped me develop a sense of visual harmony. I learned how colors, positioning, and the characters’ emotions can change the entire perception of an image and the story. This project also shifted my mindset as a future language teacher. I now know that I want to include more collaborative and creative projects involving technology in my future teaching, because such skills are more important than ever today.