Personal Project Exhibition 2026: H-FARM International School Vicenza

When Passions Become Real Projects

What happens when, at the age of 15, you are given the opportunity to turn a passion into a real project?

After months of research, experimentation, trial and error, the MYP5 students at the Vicenza campus presented their Personal Projects to the school community and their families. These were not simple assignments, but complete journeys built with method, autonomy and responsibility.

The Personal Project: Much More Than a Final Assignment

The Personal Project represents the culmination of the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme. It is the first experience in which students manage a long-term project entirely on their own. They begin with a personal interest, define a clear goal, plan the different stages of their work, document the process and critically evaluate the outcome.

This is where they learn what it means to work toward objectives, deal with unexpected challenges and improve through continuous revision. This is where school meets the real world.

Creativity, Storytelling and Identity

One of the most striking aspects of the Vicenza exhibition was the concrete, hands-on nature of many of the projects. Many ideas did not remain on paper. They took shape through tools, materials and the unmistakable scent of paint and workshops.

Marcello, for example, brought a vintage Vespa back to life, dismantling it, studying its mechanisms and restoring damaged parts with almost artisanal patience. It was not simply a mechanical task, but a dialogue with history and with the culture of Italian design.

In another corner of the exhibition, an old piece of furniture found a second life thanks to Pieralberto. Sanding, filling, finishing: a slow and precise process that transformed a forgotten object into something functional and aesthetically renewed. It is in these details that the maturity of a project becomes visible, in the care, in the choice of materials, in the determination not only to make something, but to understand it.

The same spirit of transformation could be seen in Leonardo’s project, where a traditional bicycle was converted into an e-bike. Here, sustainability was not a slogan but a technical challenge: integrating the motor, managing the battery and balancing performance with safety. A project that speaks about the future, yet built with very tangible tools.

Design also played a key role in several projects, often intertwined with technology. Dance garments created with 3D-printed elements, a pickleball racket designed and prototyped to be tested on the court, eco-friendly swimming costumes developed to reduce environmental impact without compromising comfort and performance. In these cases, 3D printing and digital design were not simply technical tools, but ways to transform ideas into real, tangible objects.

Yet craftsmanship was not the only language.

Alongside the technical projects, many students chose to explore the world through storytelling and investigation.

Giulia’s illustrated children’s book about inclusion showed how even a simple story can become a powerful way to talk about diversity and acceptance. Meanwhile, Alisa’s mural dedicated to peace transformed a physical space into a lasting visual message.

There were also projects that explored contemporary realities. Alessandra, for instance, investigated migration through interviews, giving voice to personal experiences and turning her project into a moment of genuine listening.

And then there was wellbeing, expressed in many different forms: from the development of a structured training plan to the design of a piece of sports equipment, and even the creation of a cooling pillow for dogs. Here too, behind the apparent simplicity of the idea, there was study, testing, adjustments and improvement.

What makes these projects truly remarkable is not just the variety of topics, but the depth with which they were approached. Each student took something personal – a passion, a curiosity, a question – and turned it into a structured journey.

This is the thread that connects them all: the ability to start from an authentic interest and build around it a serious, documented and thoughtful process.

And when that process is shared with an audience, the project stops being just an object or a product.

It becomes visible growth.