Session 3: Year 8, Week 11 In Review
Session 3 Takes Flight: New Challenges, Big Ideas, and Bold Beginnings
spark studio
Sparks have been flying in our Studio as we kicked off Session 3 with lots of excitement, discovery, and growth!
This week, we introduced our third habit, Put First Things First! Each morning, learners practice sharing a goal with their running partner and then working toward accomplishing it. Our focus this session is learning to tackle challenging work first before moving on to something we simply enjoy. We're building independence, perseverance, and a sense of accomplishment!
We've also begun rediscovering the fascinating world of life cycles, exploring how plants, bugs, and even pumpkins grow and change.
With the Phoenix Games launching this week, we've started asking some exciting questions: What makes our bodies stronger, faster, and healthier? How do our bodies grow and move?
Skeletons are popping up around the Studio as we explore bones, organs, and how our bodies work together. In the coming weeks, we'll dive deeper into the physics of sports and movement, investigating pushing, pulling, moving up and down, going fast and slow, and what helps us become stronger and faster.
Building a Web of Kindness
Amid all this learning, character building remains at the heart of our Studio!
This week, we created a beautiful Friendship Web of Kindness, demonstrating how we're all connected. We explored how the words and actions we put into the world can ripple outward. When we show kindness, we inspire others to do the same, creating an ever-growing web of kindness that connects us all!
Upcoming Events & Reminders
Southern Belle Farm Field Trip
We're so excited for our annual trip to Southern Belle Farm!
All are welcome to join us, but we need at least 10 parent volunteers to help transport learners to and from the farm. Additional guests/parents will be responsible for their own entrance fee on the day of the trip.
Please use the volunteer sign-up link below.
All volunteers must have a background check on file.
Cost is $16 per person, which will be added directly to your TADS account.
Fall Parent Conferences — November 3
Please remember to sign up for our fall conferences, which will take place on November 3.
There are two scheduling links available, one for Ms. Denise and one for Ms. Maria. If you meet with Ms. Denise this fall, you'll have the opportunity to meet with Ms. Maria in the spring, and vice versa.
Please use the links below to reserve your time:
Spark Shares Are Back!
We're excited to begin our learner shares again next week!
Our Letter of the Week is "D" — as in DYNAMIC! We can't wait to see what our Spark learners bring to share.
Have a wonderful weekend!
lower elementary studio
Studio Update: This Session, we are trying out the Trust Ladder in place of Strikes & Warnings. As a Studio, we noticed that Strikes & Warnings were not always being used effectively, so we gathered Hero feedback and used it to create a new approach. The Trust Ladder helps Heroes see how trust is built, lost, repaired, and strengthened through everyday choices. For families, it offers a clearer way to talk about how choices impact others. More trust brings more freedom, and more freedom requires stronger choices.
Quest: Welcome to the Phoenix Games! This Session, Heroes are working in two teams: an Exhibition group and a school-wide team. With their Exhibition group, Heroes are solving a real-world challenge for Kids on the Move at Piedmont Wellness Center. During their user visit with Center Director Blake Burdett, Heroes practiced listening like designers and asking thoughtful questions to better understand the problem before jumping to solutions. They asked questions like:
What would make our work useful?
Why is this program important?
What has not worked yet?
How many kids attend?
What equipment is available for people with disabilities?
What would you like to add to the program?
What should kids learn from it?
What tools are available to help?
We were especially proud of how curious and purposeful their questions were. Heroes are learning that strong solutions start with understanding the user first. At Exhibition, they will also compete with their school-wide color teams in a variety of games and skill challenges.
Story Arts: Heroes stepped into the role of Data Storytellers and began learning how to use evidence to tell a clear story. They studied real-world Wrap Reports from environmental, film, and marketing examples to identify the five key parts: the question, the evidence, what changed, what the evidence means, and the most important takeaway. Heroes compared reports, defended which one communicated most clearly, checked their thinking with a control of error, and used feedback to strengthen their analysis. This Session’s Story Arts challenge is called Evidence Tells the Story, and now Heroes will put those skills to the test by creating Wrap Reports of their own.
Civilization: Heroes explored how machines transformed work during the Industrial Revolution. Through The Machine Challenge, they compared hand-powered work with factory production, designed inventions to solve time-consuming problems, weighed the choices of a factory owner, and traced how cotton became clothing. Along the way, they considered both the benefits and costs of faster production, including who gained, who was affected, and whether progress helps everyone equally.
Question of the Week: As we continue our Session Three focus, Facing Resistance, talk together about:
What is one choice you can make in the Studio when something feels hard that will help you build trust, solve the problem, and keep moving forward?
Heroes who share what their family discussed with a Guide before Morning Launch will earn 15 Work Plan points.
Reminder: Tuesday, November 3, is a Virtual Day and Learner-Led Conference Day. Heroes will only come to school with their family at their scheduled conference time. Families can use the Slot A or Slot B sign-up links to choose the time that works best.
Heroes received a conference checklist today and will spend next week preparing. The goal is for each Hero to arrive confident, organized, and ready to lead their family through a thoughtful reflection on their progress, goals, challenges, and next steps.
Conference Sign-Up Links:
upper elementary studio
The Phoenix Games, Play Pre-Production, & Industrial Steam
It was exciting to launch into our brand-new learning experiences this week! The Upper Elementary Studio kicked off Session 3 with immense energy across all core domains.
Quest: The Phoenix Games Launch
We started our new Quest with a bang! In a school-wide opening ceremony, learners were sorted into six competing teams for the Phoenix Games. Throughout this session, Heroes will step into the roles of both coaches and athletes, competing in various athletic events.
To power their performance, they will apply sports science—leveraging guidance and training techniques from Piedmont Wellness trainers—to optimize team builds, conditioning, and athletic movement.
Story Arts: Play Pre-Production & Lore Building
Pre-production design work for our upcoming Studio play is officially underway! Heroes took on hands-on creative roles this week, diving into:
Scriptwriting & Character Building to flesh out the story and cast.
Music Composition & Sound for the performance backdrop.
Set & Prop Design to map out physical stage elements.
Worldbuilding & Lore, where all learners are creating rich backstories and history for the people and places in our story.
Throughout Session 3, learners will design, build, and rehearse everything needed to put on a great final show!
Civics: The Industrial Revolution & Steampunk Design
In Civics, we began exploring the origins of the Industrial Revolution in Great Britain. We traced how early mechanization shifted from manual textile weaving to steam power—a breakthrough that transformed global industry forever.
Connecting history with design, Heroes learned how this era inspired the "steampunk" aesthetic and began designing their own water- or steam-powered factory concepts based on authentic 18th-century engineering principles.
Field Trip & Exhibition Notice: Sogility
We are gearing up for an exciting field trip to Sogility, which will also serve as our Session 3 Exhibition site! Sogility offers specialized sports equipment that our Heroes will use to measure and track their physical performance metrics.
Chaperone Request: Please let us know if you are available to help chaperone this trip! We will send out a separate announcement shortly with the finalized schedule and timing.
Reminder: Learner-Led Conferences
Remember to sign up for Learner-Led Conferences on November 3rd!
middle school studio
We were all excited to see everyone returning from break and to have the opportunity to continue coming back to work together. Our first task was to nominate and elect a new council, which we accomplished, and outgoing veteran members were also able to meet with and mentor the incoming representatives. We are looking forward to what this new leadership group will bring to the Studio.
Build the Tribe activities have been a special focus this week, with special friendly competitions where Heroes challenged each other to “not smile” as they took turns being “statues” face-to-face with funny friends. Five learners were able to make it through all of the rotations and remain undefeated. We also did a quick 5-minute “Rock, Paper, Scissors” tournament. The Studio divided into four teams and played until only two participants remained. Ms. Lana won the final one-on-one! As each person was eliminated in one-off turns, we cheered loudly for the opposing team. We had great fun bonding over being silly together!
Another bonding experience was with our school-wide Launch of this session’s Quest. Wednesday, as we started preparing for the exciting “Phoenix Games,” we had a torch pass with a representative from each Studio level, from Spark all the way to High School, and got to meet our other team members with team cheers. The fun and learning continued as we worked together within our in-Studio rainbow color groups to measure jump distance using different biomechanical techniques. We also looked over the details of our User—Piedmont in Trilith—to assess the needs in supporting their plans for expanding awareness of the teen sports skills development opportunities they provide.
Civilization for this session started with an exploration of acceptance versus judgment by examining a real-world example of rumors and accusations during the trials in 1690s Salem. We looked at how the experiences of early Puritan settlers to North America could be similar to or different from our own now in 2026. Story Arts challenged us to ask ourselves, “What’s in a logo?” when considering how images can be essential when telling a story or communicating a clear message.
As a final note, Tuesday, November 3, is a Virtual Day and Learner-Led Conference Day. Heroes will only come to school with their family at their scheduled conference time. Families can use the Google Calendar appointments to choose the time that works best. The goal is for each Hero to arrive confident, organized, and ready to lead their family through a thoughtful reflection on their progress, goals, challenges, and next steps.
high school studio
We kicked off Session 3 with creativity, expression, and plenty of excitement! This week, our High School Heroes dove into Story Arts with a special focus on poetry, giving them the opportunity to explore their voices, experiment with language, and discover how powerful words can be. From finding inspiration in established poets to crafting original pieces of their own, Heroes embraced the challenge of expressing ideas, emotions, and perspectives through poetry.
We wrapped up Story Arts with a Poetry Slam, and it was wonderful to see the creativity and individuality on display! Each Hero brought something unique to the experience, whether through vivid imagery, thoughtful word choices, personal reflections, or an unexpected perspective. Poetry gave our Heroes a chance to step outside the usual academic format and communicate in a way that was uniquely theirs. It was a powerful reminder that learning isn't just about what we know—it's also about how we interpret the world and share our ideas with others.
Next week, we're shifting gears and moving into Civilization! Heroes will begin exploring historical events, people, and turning points that have shaped the world we live in today. We're excited to see the questions they ask, the connections they make, and the perspectives they develop as we begin this next area of learning.
And while we haven't officially begun working through our Quest content just yet, we were thrilled to experience the school-wide Quest Launch this week! If the energy and excitement surrounding the launch are any indication, we are in for something special. Quest is one of the most exciting opportunities for Heroes to take their learning beyond the classroom, tackle meaningful challenges, collaborate with others, and apply their skills to real-world problems. We can't wait to see where this Quest takes us!
Throughout all the excitement, we also stayed intentional about the routines and structures that keep our Studio moving forward. We protected our Core Skills time, ensuring Heroes continued making progress in the foundational skills that support their learning across every subject. Our regular check-ins remained an important part of the week, giving Heroes opportunities to reflect on their progress, communicate challenges, and stay accountable to their goals. And, of course, our Launches continued to be as engaging as ever, bringing the Studio together through shared ideas, meaningful discussions, and opportunities to learn from one another.
All in all, it was a strong start to Session 3! Between creative expression, consistent routines, and the excitement of what's to come, our Heroes are building momentum for another great session. We look forward to sharing more as Civilization gets underway and our Quest adventure begins!