Theme of the Week: Intentionality
We’ve been noticing distracting behaviors in the studio. For instance, a hero might sit next to another hero and begin touching them or talking to them while they are working on core skills. Or during Quest or Writer’s Workshop, heroes will choose to play instead of work, and actively draw others into their play. One tangible result this session is that the heroes have not been able to complete all their team Quest work (we will see if they pull it together for the exhibition).
So, this week, our morning launch discussions were focused on “intentionality” which means doing things on purpose, or setting a goal and choosing to take actions towards that goal. The heroes brainstormed ways that they can create the conditions for intentionality, like having a core skills plan, sitting apart from each other during individual work time, and choosing to work (e.g. write or revise during writer’s workshop), and not distract others. We also talked about when and where intentionality is important (launch, core skills, quest, WW, makerspace, closing) and where it is less important (free time, lunch, outdoor time, Friday reward time).
Some questions to ask your hero:
- Do you find it harder to be intentional when you are tired, or when you are super-energized/excited?
- What did you do yesterday that impacted you today? (e.g. enough sleep? food? water?)
- What’s your core skills plan at school? Are you sticking to it? Why or why not?
- What is one badge you are close to completing? What do you need to do over the next few weeks to get it over the finish line?
- When you are feeling distracted, what are some ways you can get yourself to focus again? (e.g. take a movement break? eat a snack? take deep breaths?)
Town Hall
Interestingly, the guides weren’t the only ones noticing the distracting behaviors.
A hero submitted a suggestion for a system to address “not participating and distracting others” for Friday’s Town Hall discussion. The heroes landed on the idea of giving the distracting hero a warning and if the distracting hero continues the distracting behavior, he or she will spend 10 minutes at the reset table to re-focus and come back to work.
We will see how that goes next week!
D.E.A.R.
The heroes have been asking for more D.E.A.R. which is very cool. This week we saw heroes using their free time to read books (especially Dog Man). We love seeing this because it means we really are fulfilling our promise to create an environment where children will develop a love of reading. It is happening!
Quest
The heroes researched and designed a butterfly garden this week. They were so into it! The first challenge was to agree to a design they liked. They found designs online. Rather than vote on a design, they took extra time to make sure that every hero was excited about the design. Next, they researched what flowers attract butterflies and each chose two they liked. Next, they drew, colored and labeled their butterfly garden. The heroes demonstrated strong teamwork and enthusiasm through this project and it was impressive to see them navigate ways to work together towards a goal. This is an area of growth!
The children also conducted a field study to learn about insects and other arthropods that live in Wisconsin and in our backyard! The goal was for each of them to catch an interesting insect and to research it using UW’s WI insect identification database.
Initially, they measured an area in a sunny, grassy spot outside the school. After not finding any insects, they decided it could be more fruitful to look under rocks and other dark spots. They brought their arthropods (are earthworms an arthropod? ask your hero) back to the studio and worked to identify them. We learned that one was a blister beetle that we should NOT handle. Another hero decided to keep his millipedes as pets and researched what they need for a habitat and food and is now caring for his “pet” millipedes at home 🙂
Civilization
This session we created civilization badge which includes a mini-quest to research, design and build an ancient technology. The heroes helped brainstorm what questions were needed to fully research a technology, including “what civilization/people invented or used it?” “what does the technology do?” and “why was it important to that civilization?” Next week, they will complete their research, draw a design and figure out what materials are needed to build a model in the makerspace.
Art
The heroes continued work on their symmetry exploration through butterfly art! Next week, they will paint and finish up their work in preparation for the exhibition.
Writer’s Workshop
This week the focus was revising and peer critiques. The children used the A.R.M.S. framework for making changes (Add, Remove, Move, Substitute) and practiced giving each other warm, cool, warm feedback on each other’s work.
Ending the Week on a High Note
The heroes told me that this week’s Friday reward was the “best ever!” We had a pajama and stuffie day, then got out the bean bags and popcorn at the end of the day, and settled in to watch Microcosmos, a 1996 award-winning documentary on the life of insects. To top it all off, one of the butterflies emerged from its chrysalis, so we made sure it had plenty of fruit and nectar to eat over the weekend while the other emerge before we release them on Monday.
