From the title you can tell that our instrument is called the El Banjo the only one stringed modern banjo that you will find in this world. It is, as you can probably tell from the name, a banjo. The banjo makes sounds of different pitches with strings just like a regular guitar or banjo should. Adam and I came up with this idea because we saw most of everyone making a guitar. We decided that a guitar was also a good idea but we weren't going to make the same exact guitar like everyone else was making. We thought of a banjo.

The main features of our banjo to me are the string of the banjo and the wooden dowel that sticks out at both ends of the handle. I would not see how we could make a banjo without the strings and the dowel (for us) because the strings give or let the banjo have sound and the dowel let the sound change pitches. Those are what made it musical.

I think the part of the invention I am most proud of is the "tuning dowel." It took us some time to think of how we were going to have the sound of the string change pitch. We looked around and asked Caleb and Brandon if we could use their idea and they let us. To me it is probably the most unique thing on the banjo.

One of the materials that made a huge different in our project was the drill. The drill made making the hole in the handle for the dowel to go through really fast. We didn't have to spend time carving into the thick cardboard tube with a small knife. I've tried that before and it took quite a while. Another material that I thought made a big difference was the guitar string. The guitar string was just right, it wasn't to twirly and flimsy like the floss and it wasn't to big and snappy as the lanyard was. It was easy to play with.

From this invention I learned that picking a partner who can be productive and helpful is essential to making an invention, especially when it is a project that will take some time. Another thing that I learned is that when one of our main ideas doesn't work we need to move on quickly and think of an alternative. For example, we originally planed on having three strings made of dental floss but that didn't work out.

One thing that I need to practice on is being more wise when it comes to partner choosing. I can work on this by first filling out all the slides with the letter i in yellow and then go and find someone to see if they have any better ideas or if they actually have an idea of where they are going. Alternative: I can work on my own. Another thing I need to practice on is having multiple plans for making an invention. I can work on this by thinking it out by myself or with my partner before immediately doing the project without thinking anything over.