Exhibiting Success: Debates, Scandals, and Senior Milestones!

Check out this week’s updates…

spark studio

A heartfelt thank you to our incredible Spark parents, friends, and family for your tremendous support throughout this past session! The growth of our young leaders was a resounding success, thanks to each of you!

We hope everyone enjoys a beautiful and restful week off and returns ready to embrace and celebrate the Fall season in all its wonderful ways. To kick off our first week back, we have an exciting field trip planned to Southernbell Farm!

Here are a few important logistics for the day:

Please ensure all learners arrive at school by 8:30 AM. We’ll load up and aim to depart by 8:50 AM.
Volunteers, please begin lining up in front of the school starting at 8:40 AM to keep the drop-off line clear for all students.
Parents, kindly label your child's car seat and be prepared to leave it during morning drop-off.
Don’t forget to pack a sack lunch and water with your child’s name on it.
Please send along sunscreen, a hat, and a jacket if the weather calls for it.

Thank you once again for your incredible support. We can’t wait for the adventures ahead!

lower elementary studio

Lower Elementary would like to sincerely thank all our wonderful families and friends for your presence and support at our recent “Making of a Politician” Exhibition! We also extend a very big thank you to our guest judges and everyone who provided feedback for us to reflect on and learn from. We had a fantastic time sharing our “grows” and “glows" from this past session!

We encourage you to continue the conversation with your learner about the things they discovered about themselves through the successes and challenges of the session. Below is some guidance for tomorrow’s virtual day:

Session Two Lower Elementary Virtual Work Day

20-30 min. Core Skills - Lexia Lexia Core5
20-30 min. DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) - Read a Book
15 min. Brain Break (preferably involving movement outside!)
20-30 min. Core Skills - Zearn Zearn
15 min. Brain Break (preferably involving movement outside!)

Begin with the End in Mind

This is our second habit of the school year! We encourage you to discuss with your learner how to "begin with the end in mind" by setting smaller goals that lead to their final goal. One suggestion is to make creating a Dream Team the ultimate goal and discuss with your learner how they can invite others to join their Dream Team!

Dream Team Activity - This activity can be done any time over the break. Meet with a Dream Team member outside of your family. Ask your parents for help arranging this meeting on our virtual day or over the break! Share your goals and tell your Dream Team member something you want to accomplish. Ask if they know any ways they could help you make this dream come true!

Have a lovely break, and we look forward to seeing everyone back in person on Monday, October 21st!

upper elementary studio

What an incredible week! Thank you all for coming out to support our learners during their Exhibition. Your presence and thoughtful feedback truly enriched the experience, and we incorporated many of your insights during our reflection day. It was a wonderful opportunity for learners to pause, reflect, and consider how they can continue growing as independent thinkers.

As you may have guessed from our upcoming field study to Jekyll Island, our next quest will dive deep into marine biology! We can’t wait to explore the fascinating life forms and ecosystems that thrive beneath the waves. Get ready for an exciting session filled with scientific discovery as we take our learning underwater!

Thank you again for your continued support. We look forward to the adventures ahead!

middle school studio

This week was full of creativity, competition, and exciting surprises for our learners! One of the highlights was the completion of the Children’s Books project. Our learners worked tirelessly to meet the deadline, ensuring their stories were ready for Spark and Lower Elementary heroes to review. The younger learners enthusiastically provided feedback and cast their votes for their favorite books, leading to the selection of five winners. These chosen stories will be celebrated in a public book reading next week at a local bookstore, giving our young authors a platform to share their creative work with the community. It’s a thrilling opportunity for them to see their ideas come to life and receive public recognition for their hard work!

In Quest, our learners had an intense week of preparation for the upcoming Exhibition. We dove deep into understanding the policies of the opposing candidates, giving learners the chance to refine their arguments and field questions with confidence. This practice was crucial as they gear up for the live debate next Wednesday. In a special twist, we also joined forces with Forest School Online for a live virtual debate! This collaboration allowed our learners to practice debating in a real-time, dynamic environment, enhancing their public speaking and critical thinking skills.

The week didn’t stop there! In an unexpected and delightful turn of events, we were invited to meet New York Times Bestselling Author Brad Montague at a local Trilith Institute event. Montague, known for his creative work and his mission to change the world through children’s ideas, gave an inspiring talk about embracing creativity and learning from failure. Our learners not only got to meet him, but also had the incredible opportunity to ask questions publicly during the Q&A session. It was a moment of immense pride when Montague asked what questions The Forest School learners had, and several of our heroes were able to speak up and engage with him directly. His message about creativity and resilience resonated deeply, especially as our learners had just completed their children’s books.

In the midst of all these activities, learners reflected on the significance of creativity, debate, and feedback in their work. From creating imaginative stories for younger learners to practicing real-world debate skills, and even interacting with a world-renowned author, this week was full of growth and learning. As we look ahead to next week’s book reading and exhibition, it’s clear that our learners are not only developing as writers and debaters but also as confident and thoughtful individuals, ready to take on new challenges with curiosity and courage.

It’s been an unforgettable week, and we can’t wait to see where these experiences take our learners next!

high school studio

This week marked a fantastic conclusion to our session! The exhibition was a huge success, showcasing all the hard work we put in—from adapting to changes and overcoming communication barriers to mastering voice projection. In Quest, we wrapped up our debate unit with a Lincoln-Douglas style debate, complete with rebuttals and a moot court case featuring cross-examinations and legal reasoning. In Story Arts, we concluded with insights from our experts at the Trilith Institute, who guided us on how to move forward with our projects. Lastly, in Civics, we ended with a humorous look at presidential scandals, perfectly aligning with the other studios’ focus on presidential themes this session.

Check-ins will resume first thing when we return, and many transcripts have been sent out, keeping our seniors on track for graduation. Enjoy your break, rest up, and get ready to take off when we’re back!

Session 2: Year 7, WeeK 10 In Review