1. Allison Johnson CAN AN ADULT LEARN A NEW AND DIFFICULT TASK?

2.  Research Question: Can adults learn how to do a new and difficult task?  Purpose: To see if an adult can learn a new task, knowing the saying “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” INTRODUCTION

3.  Background: People say all the time that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks and I have always wondered if that’s true. I have had some experience with learning about the brain in my Anatomy & physiology class and have been fascinated by it. I decided to challenge myself to learn how to play the guitar within 30 days. I first became interested in the guitar when my brother got a guitar for his birthday and received guitar lessons. Ever since then, I have always wanted to learn how to play the guitar. INTRODUCTION CONT…

4.  To find out if you can “teach an old dog new tricks,” as they say; I have decided to learn how to play the guitar in just 30 days by using online tutorials and my brother’s papers from his guitar lessons. WHAT?

5.  I used online lessons with a guy named Justin who helped teach me how to play different chords: http://www.justinguitar.com/en/BC-000- BeginnersCourse.php http://www.justinguitar.com/en/BC-000- BeginnersCourse.php WHAT CONT…

6.  I practiced the guitar in my dorm room most of the time either in between classes during the day or at night. When I went home one weekend, I lugged my guitar home so I could practice at home as well. WHERE?

7.  I started practicing the guitar January 30 th when the immersion project started. From then on, I tried to practice every day for at least an hour a day. Some days it was longer than an hour if I was having a good day, then other days it was less than an hour due to my frustration. March 1 st was the last day for the immersion project. WHEN?

8.  The only person involved in my immersion project was me learning how to play the guitar. WHO?

9.  I did this immersion project because ever since I took anatomy in high school, I have always been fascinated with the brain and how it ages as a person ages. I have also been wanting to learn how to play the guitar with inspiration from my brother as he took guitar lessons and played. With being very interested in these two things, this was the perfect opportunity to pick this topic for my project. WHY?

10.  The results of my immersion project did match up pretty well with what I thought would happen. I did think I would be able to learn how to play the guitar in 30 days and prove the theory, adults can’t learn new tasks, wrong. I did, in fact, learn how to play the guitar, it was just a lot harder than I expected it to be. It was very difficult learning how to play the guitar, but by the end of the 30 days, I did learn how to play and achieved my goal. INTERPRETATION

11. ANALYSIS SongHow difficult the song is How difficult it was to learn the song “Last Kiss” by Pearl Jam EasyThis song was pretty easy to learn once you learned the chords because it was the same four chords over and over again. “Kiss Me” by Sixpence None the Richer“ ModerateThis song was tougher to play because the strumming changed a little bit as the song went on. “Iris” by Goo Goo Dolls DifficultThis song was a little more difficult than the other songs because the chords you played during the verses of the song were different from the chords you played during the chorus.

12.  I encountered a couple of problems during my immersion project with finding a good website that gave good online tutorials for free. It was also kind of difficult finding a tutorial that would teach me the basics, plus all the chords, and strumming techniques, etc. I found within this 30 day immersion that it just may be possible to “teach an old dog new tricks.” CONCLUSION

13. APPENDIX Sample of the song “Kiss Me” by Sixpence None the Richer:

14. APPENDIX CONT… Sample of the song “Last Kiss” by Pearl Jam

15. APPENDIX CONT… Sample of the song “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls

16.  Justin. Justinguitar.com. June 2003-2012. 30-1 Jan-March 2013. REFERENCES