Around The World - Year 3, Week 15 in Review
How much do you know about the different cultures around you? How could your perspectives and relationships change by learning from those different from you?
spark studio
Traditions touch us, they connect us, and they expand us. -Rita Barrett Craig
As we dive into cultures around the world, we will discover the many traditions, languages, dress, foods, and music to begin acquiring the knowledge, attitudes, and skills needed to function in an ethically and racially diverse nation and world.
Each week, we will learn about a specific holiday tradition from around the world. We wonder how many traditions we will discover within our very own school community?
During storytelling this week we enjoyed painting the winter sky (using ice paint) while listening to The Nutcracker by Peter Tchaikovsky. We even wrote our own version of a scene from The Nutcracker. This brought so much joy and laughter to the Studio.
Blessings
elementary studio
Nothing stops the man who desires to achieve. Every obstacle is simply a course to develop his achievement muscle. It's a strengthening of his powers of accomplishment. Thomas Carlyle
Today, heroes partook in the first Badge Ceremony of the 2020 school year. This marks a time of celebration in achieving the goals one has set out to accomplish over the past few months. During the early part of the school year, we spend lots of time building community and a sense of belonging. This includes who we are as a studio and how to share our individual gifts and talents. We also begin to build our goal setting muscle and learn what it looks like to achieve our goals and sometimes even fail.
Today marks the day of celebration for our achievements. Over the course of 3 sessions, heroes have worked on Storytelling, Civilization, and Quests, as well as individual Core Skills. Each of our Signature Learning Experiences take time to achieve and focus to follow through and complete the goals you set for yourself. The culmination of seeing those goals accomplished is to earn a badge. Heroes will receive either a stamp in their “Hero’s Passport” or a stone to represent a milestone on their way to a completed badge. We encourage you to talk with your hero about the badges and milestones they earned, what that makes them think, and what their goals for the remainder of this session are.
middle school studio
Middle School heroes are trying to accomplish a lot over the next couple of weeks as the clock winds down on 2020. They're in the midst of the Around the World Quest, where they've teamed with High School learners to deeply explore a culture of their choice. They're exploring the world of mythology and folklore for Storytelling this session, and in Civilization they are marching through major world events of the 1920s. Additionally, they're seeking to stay on track with their e-learning progress in math and grammar, as well as staying on pace with their Deep Books for the year. We've incentivized heroes to finish the year strong by offering a challenge — learners that crank the most work over the next few weeks can earn pizza parties, ice cream gatherings, and Amazon Gift Cards.
As a way to pause during a season that can be hectic, learners are also reflecting over their progress so far this year by building a Mid Action Review (MAR). An MAR is more than a progress report, it's an opportunity for learner's to think deeply about their own long-term goals, their current approach to meeting those goals, and any course corrections they need to make at this point in the school year. Before the end of the session, learners will share their MARs with their parents. This is an excellent time to discuss strategies, plans, and goals for the second half of the year!
high school studio
Coats of paint don't make this house a home, but with every room we paint, we are changing it to our own. Piece by piece, wall by wall, we build a place of peace for us all until the house is a picture of the love we feel. -Eric Overby, Senses
In a moment in time when Learning to Live Together is more important than ever and just as the house comes together in the quote above, this session aims to engage heroes in inquiry-based projects that explore other people and cultures. What an exciting week it has been at The Forest School! This week, we began with the All Around The World quest in which heroes learned and took a deep dive into a culture different from their own. They learned about the art and music as well as learned how to speak their language, literally. In the High School, Heroes launched into the topic of creation versus evolution for civilization. A topic with many opinions and differences, all while handling the conversation as young adults!
In addition, the school welcomed visitors from Path Project as they learned about the Acton model and how to incorporate some aspects into their everyday practices. The high school studio would like to shout out Azaria, Logan, and Lauren who have all signed up for Dual Enrollment at Clayton State and have been accepted. Huge congratulations towards their effort and willingness to go above and beyond their badge plan to help better their future! Looking forward to next week, you are in for a treat as Heroes bring home a quest challenge for you. As a family, you will decide what you will showcase during the exhibition.
-Onward
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