It was a week of exploration, learning, and surprises in Spark!
We kicked off the week with a Hero Spotlight of author, Maya Angelou. Heroes explored her resilience, courage, and creativity.
Our whole school community enjoyed a memorable field trip to the Madison Children’s Theater to see “Life Doesn’t Frighten Me.” The play is based on the book of the same title by Maya Angelou, and illustrated by Jean-Michel Basquiat, another hero the children learned about earlier in the year. The play was captivating and interactive.
This week, the heroes also engaged in Socratic discussions about the various ways people communicate with one another. From verbal and non-verbal cues to different languages and modes of expression, learners explored the rich tapestry of human communication.
After Town Hall last week, the heroes decided they wanted to move from a group “bee hive” to individual bee hives. We use the bee hives to track accountability for earning each week’s Friday rewards. Now heroes are individually accountable. This week, we spent Friday reward outside to enjoy the warmer weather!
The heroes are looking forward to next session’s quest, Detective Science, when each learner will take on a secret identity while exploring science, problem-solving, and teamwork!
Children need twice the amount of free play as structured experiences for mental and physical health
At Acton Academy Madison West, we intentionally provide myriad opportunities for unstructured play indoors and outdoors. Recent research suggests that children should experience twice as much unstructured time as structured play experiences. Yet, according to Dr. Peter Gray, researcher and author of Free to Learn, children’s opportunities to engage in free play have been declining for decades, with deleterious effects on children’s well-being.
Below are some of the undisputed benefits of free play:
Creativity Unleashed: unstructured play is fertile ground for creativity. Children explore their imaginations, invent scenarios, and express themselves freely. Building forts, creating intricate worlds, or designing fantastical stories foster a space where creativity flourishes.
Problem-Solving: negotiating roles in a game or figuring out how to build a tower with blocks contributes to the development of critical thinking skills. These experiences lay the foundation for effective problem-solving skills useful throughout life.
Social Development: unstructured play is a social playground where children learn interpersonal skills. Engaging without strict rules allows them to practice communication, cooperation, and conflict resolution, fostering emotional intelligence and positive relationship skills.
Physical well-being: outdoor free play promotes physical activity and overall well-being. Spontaneous movements help develop motor skills, coordination, and strength. Exposure to the outdoors contributes to a healthy body and mind.
Self-regulation: unstructured play teaches children to self-regulate behaviors and emotions. Without external guidelines, they learn to manage impulses, share, and understand consequences, laying the groundwork for positive behavior in various life situations.
Rather than filling children’s lives with adult-supervised and adult-structured extracurriculars, sports activities, homework and screen time, let’s champion unstructured play, recognizing its pivotal role in shaping resilient, imaginative individuals for the future.
Acton Academy Madison West is an innovative, learner-driven elementary school. We believe that learning to learn, learning to do, and learning to be, are more powerful than knowing alone.
Watch the videos below to learn more about what real parents are saying about Acton Academy Madison West. From self-paced learning, character and leadership development, to encouraging curiosity and accommodating different learning styles, we at Acton Academy Madison West believe that every child is a genius. Our learning design allows each child to discover their unique gifts and talents.
Self-paced learning, multi-age classrooms, problem-solving, embracing failure and practicing resilience in a supportive environment, and FUN! – these are just a few of the things valued by parents at Acton Academy Madison West:
Go Deeper: Hands-on learning, goal-setting, leadership development, accelerated learning, flourishing!
The highlight this week was the launch of Robotics to cap off the last two weeks of our 6-week Coding & Robotics Quest. The heroes have completed a 19-lesson course on Code.org to learn block coding. They also engaged in guide-led group “unplugged” challenges and games to learn more deeply about specific programming concepts like events, variables, conditionals, and how exactly the internet works.
This week the Discovery heroes put their newly learned coding skills to work through various mBot challenges. But first, they each had to build their mBot. It was a wonderful lesson in careful instruction reading, trouble-shooting, and trying again. Some challenges were: switching wires to the left and right motors so that the mBot would only more backwards, not forwards; mis-inputting the wires connecting the obstacle and line sensors; not using nuts on the screws attaching the wheels so that they loosened and blocked the mBot’s motion; and of course the learning curve of utilizing the MakeBlock software.
The children were encouraged to use three ways to problem solve:
Compare their mBot to a friend’s that works – what’s different that needs to be corrected?
Google for troubleshooting forums
Re-review the assembly instructions and diagrams in detail
By the end of the session, all mBots were fully functional! The children also noticed a quirk that a single remote control used the same frequency for all the mBots, which was a pretty cool discovery!
Over the next few days, the heroes were given increasingly difficult mBot coding challenges. The first was to program their mBot to follow a track without touching the sides. The second was to follow a track and make lights and noises along the way. Their final challenge will be to program their mBot to follow a line, and also explore:
What happens when an obstacle is in the way? what does the mBot do? Can they program it to go around obstacles and then return to the line?
What happens if the line is thicker than the mBot (like a road)? How does it behave? Can they program it to follow a right or left edge?
All of this coding work is helping to prepare the Discovery Heroes for their final exhibition when they will engage in a friendly robotics coding challenges with their friends and family in attendance!
The Spark studio has been buzzing with creativity and collaboration! The children spent the week putting final touches on their tree houses, robots, and large structures. But shh, this next part is a secret! Parents and family will need to wait until next week’s exhibition to discover the giant, collaborative structure on which the children have been working.
In math, we introduced a new game called “Shut the Box,” which helps children learn counting, addition and number bonding.
After not earning Friday Reward last week, the Spark heroes buckled down to earn enough Bees for this week’s Friday Reward! We focused on the line in our mantra that states, “Today is a new day.” This means what happened yesterday will not be brought back today (unless of course, it is a celebration). Everyone will learn from the day but not let it create a cloud on a new day. Mistakes happen, and we will embrace them and support each other through them.
The new week also brought a new tool called “Factory Reset” in Spark. When things get a little hectic or overwhelming in the studio, we can now initiate a “Factory Reset.” During this reset, everyone lies or sits on the ground with their eyes closed as we listen to a quick two-minute meditation. It’s a wonderful way for us to reset and refocus, ensuring that our creative energy continues to flow.
The children are looking forward to next week which will bring a field trip and the session-end’s exhibition!
We welcomed a new hero to Discovery this week! In order to prepare to welcome him, the Discovery heroes discussed what makes a successful tribe, and what the role of leaders within that tribe is. They decided that it’s important to help tribe members and to act as servant leaders. They also remembered back on what it felt like on their first day of a new school, and the ways in which they have grown since joining Acton Academy Madison West. One hero said he is better now at persevering through challenges. Another said she has been able to step up as a leader. And another said he has become more responsible for his own learning.
Math Exploration
We have been exploring math throughout this session. This week, we launched the “Be Sal Khan” challenge. One of the best ways to learn is to teach, and in this challenge, the heroes have the option to create a video lesson (like one they would find on Khan Academy), explaining a challenging math concept. In order to win the prize, they need to present their video at the upcoming exhibition. Let’s see what they create!
Core Skills
The heroes completed their journey meetings with parents this week and returned to school fired up to set goals and create their weekly work plans. The heroes work with a guide every two sessions to set end-of-year goals, and break those goals down into session goals and develop a work plan they can follow to stay on track towards those goals.
The guides also launched a “Session Four Core Skills Challenge” at the beginning of this year, which has helped the heroes re-focus on their core skills goals. Specifically, if each hero in the studio can move up two freedom levels, or top out at Soaring, the entire class will earn a reward.
Coding & Robotics
The Discovery Heroes have been exploring coding for the last four weeks, completing a challenging block coding course on Code.org. They have also explored the internet, conditionals, loops and events through “unplugged” games. This week, they got to learn from a real-world software developer who came and talked with them about her hero’s journey learning myriad computer languages and navigating a career in Silicon Valley!
Next week, they will begin building and programming Mbots in preparation for a friendly programming competition during the exhibition.
Art
This session, we are exploring math in art. Last week, the children explored symmetry through snowflake art, and this week, the children worked with watercolors to create “hidden numbers.” They will also explore patterns and geometry.
Communications Challenges
Given we have a new friend in the studio, the Guides shifted the communications plan to focus on social-emotional challenges. This week we played “curious conversations” which is a get-to-know you BINGO game that supports children’s conversation skills and ability to get curious and dig deeper when meeting a new friend.
We’ve also been using morning launches to re-visit some of our systems like freedom levels and points. We are slowly introducing hero bucks and re-introducing the studio job board – both of which are highly motivating to the heroes. They can use their hero bucks on Fridays to shop at the school “store.” We can create a lot of fun challenges and games using hero bucks as prizes!
Why So Many Games?
Games are fun! The heroes love challenging games and an important role for guides is to be gamemakers. Through games and challenges, children work hard, focus, have fun, and develop a love of learning.
In our quest for knowledge and fun in Spark, we’ve had an amazing week filled with adventures, new challenges, and important lessons. Let’s dive into the highlights:
In our quest this week, learners have been busy constructing wonders! From magical tunnels to majestic boats, castles, and mighty forts, the Makers Space has transformed into a sea of cardboard, creativity, and imagination.
Exciting news in our core skills journey! We’ve introduced a fantastic new computer app called Lexia, which focuses on reading. Our learners are eagerly exploring the wonders of words and letters with this engaging tool.
We’ve spiced up our Fridays with optional math games during the last 30 minutes of core skills. But here’s the catch – each learner had to strike a deal at the beginning of the week with me on the number of reminders they get during core skills. If they surpass that number, it’s back to our regular Montessori math options. Success means joining the group for fun math games like this week’s favorite, Sleeping Queens.
Our hero spotlight this week shone on the incredible Billie Jean King. We delved into her inspiring journey, learning about determination, resilience, and the importance of standing up for what’s right. We ended with a question on the concept of fairness. We explored different situations and how that may impact what fair truly means, our learners discussed ways to rethink situations and empathize with others when faced with the feeling of unfairness.
Our learners came together after a few days of our studio resembling a creative storm. They decided to take turns checking each other off to ensure we are keeping our promise of leaving places better than we found them. Teamwork makes the dream work!
While earning marshmallows during core skills was a breeze, our learners faced a challenge with our “Bees” this week. For the first time, we didn’t quite reach our Friday reward goal. Although disappointing and frustrating, Sparkers made a plan for change so that next week we can earn our friday reward!
This week was filled with excitement, a dash of chaos and some extra cups of coffee and deep breathes, teaching us that not every journey is smooth, but the lessons are valuable.
Acton is growing! And with that comes change. On the one hand, I believe we (parents, heroes and founders) all want our school to grow and thrive. At the same time, change causes uncertainty. Even positive change, is still change. New children have joined and may join. One Discovery hero made the choice to move to Spark last week. We have had a couple of potential guides come into Discovery to give hero talks. And we have new people in the hallways here for school tours. Plus we have a new massive gaga pit 🙂
One the one hand, I had the realization this week that we have successfully fostered a “tight-knit learning community” which is exactly what’s promised by Actons across the world. Let’s celebrate that. On the other hand, now we have the challenge of growing that community and successfully bringing in other heroes, families and guides. It’s a new stage in our hero’s journey as an Acton Academy and for all the members of our tribe.
Our Guides are both excited by all the personal growth opportunities we are seeing around us and we are talking all the time about what’s going on, and implementing strategies for supporting everyone in the community. Here are some ways you can support your child(ren):
Questions to ask:
Have you used the peace table to manage conflicts with other heroes at school? Did you feel like you had a better understanding of your friend at the end? Did you have a better understanding of your own actions at the end?
Do you ever refuse to go to the peace table when a friend asks? Why? Does it feel uncomfortable? silly? take you away from more fun things?
Do the benefits of the conflict resolution process (good feelings and friendships) outweigh the cons?
What’s the “five-second filter” in Spark? Should you use it only when a person is near you? or away from you also (i.e. filter gossip)?
What do you do or where do you go when you need to get away from distracting friends, reset or take space? Are the blue boards in Discovery helpful? Would you like to set up your desk somewhere else? Are there ways we need to change the studio or systems? Can you bring those ideas up to the group?
What changes are you excited about? What new friends could join? What leadership opportunities are there for you to help new friends feel welcome?
Would you like to learn to give school tours?
How long do you think it takes to get to know someone? What’s changed for you since joining Acton? Are you the same as you were five months ago? Or a year ago?
What are all the things that are likely to stay the same in the next six months? (routines, your goals, current friends, learning, core skills, quests, etc)
What are the benefits to your learning of a larger community in your studio? (more friends to collaborate with, more options for groups, higher-quality discussions, more ideas)?
Although it was a short week, the Spark Studio learners were unstoppable, achieving and surpassing their goals with a SPARK of brilliance!
This week’s quest: ROBOTS!
Embarking on an exciting quest, Day One saw our young explorers diving into the realm of creativity and innovation. Armed with Magnatiles, nuts, bolts, and paper clips, each learner evolved into a master builder, crafting their own unique loose parts robots. It was a day filled with imagination and tinkering as metal and paper friends came to life in the hands of our enthusiastic learners!
The adventure continued on Day Two as we ventured into the Makerspace, uncovering so many hidden treasures. Equipped with cardboard and found pieces, our Spark learners worked their magic, turning ordinary items into extraordinary robots! The studio buzzed with excitement as creativity flowed through every corner.
In our quest to understand heroes and civilizations, we delved into the incredible life of Martin Luther King Jr. Together, we created a special “I Have a Dream” board, where each learner shared their unique ideas on making the world a better place. Witnessing the diverse perspectives of our youngest leaders warms my heart and inspires hope. One of the many notable dreams was, “I have a dream that everyone can choose what school they want to go to” and “I have a dream that a princess would give magic to everyone!”
Chilly weather couldn’t put a damper on our recess adventures! Indoors, the new gaga ball pit became the highlight of our week, turning our playtime into a FLURRY of laughter and fun. Dodging, ducking, and diving made every moment memorable!
To conclude our week of quests and adventures, we celebrated with a special Friday reward – Cloud Dough! Soft, fluffy, and oh-so-fun, it was the perfect way to end our week on a creative and sensory high.
A big round of applause to our architects, engineers, dreamers, and cloud dough sculptors! Your enthusiasm and creativity WARMED this ice-cold week.
Diligently preparing for his Journey Meeting with his parents.
Journey Meeting Preparations
This week, the Discovery heroes worked diligently to prepare for their journey meetings with their parents. Journey Meetings are Acton Academy’s version of parent-teacher conferences. However, rather than parents and teachers meeting to talk about a child, at Acton, we support the process of parents talking with their child. This is part of what it means for children to “take responsibility for their own learning” at Acton Academy Madison West.
What does this look like in practice? We launched the week with a discussion asking the heroes what they want their parents to come away with from their journey meeting together. Would they like to share their pride in their progress? Would they like to show how hard they are working? Or would they like to show their parents that, hey, I got this and I’m taking ownership over my goals and learning?
Next, they completed a progress report detailing how they are faring in each of the subjects on their badge plan, and set S.M.A.R.T. goals for the next two sessions. They created a meeting script and practiced it with a partner. They also read through a “question bank” of potential questions parents could ask so they can prepare.
The final step next week will be to draft an email to their parents, inviting them to the meeting and setting a date and time. Very real world and wonderful practice in the life skill of leading and engaging in a meeting.
The Discovery heroes continued with their marine science quest this week! First, they examined a couple of real fish specimens. The heroes were fascinated by their scales and eyes. The next day, they explored marine food webs. Some were surprised to learn that humans are at the top of the marine food web, and explored Read more…
This week’s focus was growth mindset. We explored questions like are you born smart or do you get smarter with hard work? We also discussed the word “yet” and explored how powerful it can be when we encounter a challenge, as in “I can’t do this……YET.” We’ve continued to explore weather through books and activities. Read more…
This week, our Discovery heroes dove even deeper into the mysteries of the ocean with an exciting project on light and how it transforms underwater. They started by cutting out deep sea glasses and taping them onto file folders. Next, they taped blue film over the eye holes, allowing the glasses to filter light similarly Read more…
