The Discovery Heroes wrapped up their Acton Athens quest this week! As with every thing we do at Acton, it was an opportunity for the children to “learn to learn.” They choose from myriad “doing” challenges each day: knit a hat, build an abacus, create a wax tablet and write your name in Greek, make a sistrum (ancient musical instrument), engage in a “Socratic Smackdown” and many more! The children enjoyed the hands-on nature of this quest, as well as the freedom to “choose their own adventure” each day. The greatest learning though, was building the knowledge and confidence that they could learn to do things on their own, either by reading through and following step-by-step instructions or watching curated YouTube videos. And they built new skills through “doing.”
How many times have you looked up a recipe online? Or a new cooking technique? Taken a class? Humans never stop learning and children at Acton begin to see themselves as agents in their own learning, rather than empty vessels dependent on teachers and adults to fill them up with knowledge.
Another fun element the heroes explored this week was drama! They engaged in “partner plays” as an active way to learn Greek myths. Two heroes have been inspired to work with the rest of the school to put on a play!
The exhibition was a success! For the first time, the heroes created feedback forms which all attendees completed. The average rating was a 4.5 / 5. After every exhibition, the children reflect on what went well, and what they would like to do better next time. They realized there is a need for an emcee and more clear instructions for the attendees.
At the end of the week, the heroes competed in their very own Acton Winter Olympics! The children have been planning the Olympics since September when they began practicing new sports like the biathlon, hockey, snowboarding and bobsled! We are so grateful to Ms. Kathryn who volunteered as our PE specialist and brought in so much cool equipment as well as creativity to simulate these sports without snow! One the heroes’ favorite days was “bobsled” races with scooters outside!
The children also completed their “pitch-a-pet” persuasive writings! They voted for a mini-loop rabbit as the class pet. Next step: develop a plan for a rabbit’s care and commit to it via a contract to address things like, who will feed and water the rabbit each day? When can they play with the rabbit? Who will care for it during breaks and over the summer?
Looking Forward
The heroes are looking forward to next session after the holidays. Some things to expect:
Core skills and S.M.A.R.T. Goals: with the Guide, they will reset their core skills S.M.A.R.T. goals, and lead journey meetings engage in journey meetings (our version of parent-teacher conferences) in January
Quest: Coding and Robotics!
Communications Challenge: Letter to a Hero
Focus on Math: Lots of fun math-focused storybooks and a “Be Sal Khan” teaching video challenge!
