I have been set a project where and how should I begin?

Having a plan with regards to the mark scheme is the first step before committing to any project as you can easily get lost in the creative process and then before you know it, the deadline is in a few days and your pulling all nighters on your living room table to 'tick all the boxes' in a sense retracing your steps. Sadly the way in which A-level projects are marked and the individual process of creation don't often meet eye to eye. You will be marked on your ability to show your learning and this includes 4 main criteria. First demonstration of artists that inspired your work is key, not only do you have to explain why they influenced your work but the series of work you produce should reflect their initial influences or if not at all then this should be explained. Therefore the starting point of any A-grade project will be understanding what is expected of you in the following weeks. Try not to make the mistake of using inspiration you cannot later locate. This shows that your research capabilities are poor as you can not later explain the origins of this work. Taking care when doing such research is essential as it happens too often that super talented students will excel in the practical aspect of the mark scheme and the final outcome but the poor demonstration of how they got to this final point pulls A* quality work down to B/C level. This might not seem fair, but if you are aware of this from the beginning you should have no problem hitting top marks. Making a plan for what you aim to research and what you find will help you when looking out for subject matter appropriate to your chosen topic. It is also important to document this process, even things that you might overlook as being irrelevant as this can better demonstrate your learning for the examiner later on. Projects which are accompanied by 'creative journals' are praised by examiners as they make it easier for them to see your creative journey from start to finish. If you are not a big fan of writing, do not worry such journals can be comprised of rough sketches, scrap book type images, anything messy that does not make it onto the final mount up, you can get away with providing a few brief words next to your work. Your starting point should be documented, this will be compared to your final piece and more importantly you can refer back to it if you begin to struggle with ideas and the direction in which you wish to take the work. Following these steps as a rough guide should provide you with a basic plan: -Look at the essay/coursework question set. Identify the criteria which need to be met and what they will require. -If you are presented with topics to choose from, make a list under each topic of creative buzz words that fall within that area. for example if a topic is nature a subtopic buzzword might be fungi. -Consider different methods of working such as paint, pencil, textile. -Once you have assessed the topics, rank them in order of which you would like to take on as a project. -Choose a topic to pursue and begin to expand on you current ideas, making a mind map with the topic in the centre is usually the best method to get initial ideas flowing. -Once you have thought about your chosen topic you can then begin your research.