Year 2. Session 1. Week 2
The Eagles continued strengthening their tribe as they hit the ground running in week two. This week saw the heroes navigate team building challenges as an entire studio and in squads, the launch of Writers’ Workshop, and the introduction of important systems that will guide them towards creating a fully learner-driven environment. The group also enjoyed “kicking” off their first days of Physical Development (PD) with Coach Alicia!
Early in the week, the group navigated an invisible maze by devising ways of communicating other than verbally. The teamwork necessary to accomplish this goal set the tone for the squad challenges that took place the following days. One of the challenges saw the Eagles set out on a rescue mission to save Fred, an adventurous gummy worm whose boat capsized while exploring the great lakes! They worked together to recover his life preserver (a gummy lifesaver) that was trapped under the boat, while Fred clung to the top of the boat for dear life by utilizing paper clips to deliver the flotation device to the top of the boat.
Other challenges asked each squad complete a 6-cup pyramid by using string tied to a rubber band and the entire studio coming back together to see how well they know their fellow travelers by “Guessing the Eagle”. More team challenges are on the horizon in Week 3 but this group of young heroes has laid a strong foundation.
This session’s Writers’ Workshop was introduced on Tuesday, setting the group on an adventure to find their voices in the world of Poetry. As they venture through this part of their journey, they’ll compose Haikus, Odes and Free Verse poetry, bringing their art to life by focusing on Word Choice, the focus trait this session, and creating visual art to accompany their poems. Going forward, each session will focus on a different genre and a different writing trait.
To help a truly learner-driven environment to fully thrive, learners were introduced to SMART goals to help them focus on earning their Core Skills badges. This method guides goal setting by ensuring that they are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Tough. As the group wrapped up their Tech Tools challenge and earned their Chromebook privileges, they utilized setting SMART goals to guide their work throughout the week.
The first town hall of the session took place on Friday. This first town hall was guide-led, however this will quickly be handed over to the Eagles to conduct on their own. This weekly meeting allows an opportunity for Eagles to bring up questions, concerns and suggestions to the group and propose solutions that will help them mold the learning environment to this group’s specific needs.
Finally, this week saw the introduction of Physical Development (PD) with the wonderful Coach Alicia! This session, the Eagles are playing kickball on Tuesdays while focusing on skills and exercises on Thursday that will help them grow their mind and bodies. The burst of energy and movement early in the day led to high levels of engagement all the way until pickup!
