Children’s Business Fair
(Year 4, Week 26)
The heroes were in for a huge surprise on Monday. In 2020, Due to Covid-19, Heroes had to cancel the Children’s Business Fair. That left a lot of devastated heroes. It looked like 2021 would be the same. The heroes were challenged to make lemonade stands instead and were focusing on building out their best drink shop. That all changed after the first week back. Over the weekend, the guides were informed that the Children’s Business Fair was back on!
The heroes found out on their day of quest and the studio filled up with applause! They were so excited to get started on their own mini businesses. Within just an hour, the heroes had picked out their business models and decided to get started on crafting them from the ground up.
When the heroes circled back to share at the end of the day, here were a few of the businesses that they had come up with:
- Lemonade Stand
- Bakery
- Wood Tables
- Puppy Products
- Candles
- Bath Bombs
It was amazing to see their motivation and drive to build something amazing. They spent that first day crafting their marketing materials and developing their products by researching their competition. They were excited to show their families when they got home and to help one another with their company launches.
Graphic Novels
Since Quest was going in a new direction, Writer’s Workshop had to also. They were no longer going to be making cookbooks and instead were going to be drafting out their own graphic novels!
Graphic novels have been on a rise in popularity over the past few years. Classic books have been turned into graphic novels and have received amazing praise. So many children learn by seeing pictures and retaining information by correlating the pictures to words, even advanced readers! These are not to be confused with comic books, which also have a great value to readers. Graphic novels have a full narrative and can range throughout any type of genre. A full chapter book could be reinvented into a graphic novel.
Needless to say, the heroes have a lot on their plate this session. Their graphic novel has to meet the following criteria:
- Base the story around a main character who reminds yourself of… YOU!
- Any genre you want.
- Have an ‘adventure’ theme.
Some heroes ran off in excitement while others were a little more concerned. After all, they are faced with a big challenge of not only writing but finding a program where they can create real life photos! This is no easy feat. Yet, they are up to the task. They are creative, hardworking and so imaginative. While some were worried about failing, it didn’t stop them from grabbing their computers and getting to work.
Stepping Up
Years of transitions can be some of the most challenging. Maybe someone is facing a career move, or finding themselves moving far away. Any type of transition can be challenging and in the studio, there are so many happening. Heroes from the Spark studio all the way to the eldest in the Adventure studio are going through some big changes.
Do they try out high school here or somewhere else?
How do they get their badges done to move into the Discovery?
Is the middle school right for me?
Throughout the past few weeks, the guide in the Discovery studio has been listening and watching to the heroes tackle these big questions. One of the biggest transitions is moving from fifth year to sixth. Leaving their comforts behind and opening the doors to a new adventure.
This challenge has been met with excitement and resistance. With questions like these being asked:
What if I’m not ready?
What if I don’t want to?
I don’t want to leave my friends, can I just stay another year?
The fear of the unknown is huge. The anxiety around transitioning from an elementary aged child to a middle schooler can feel like one of the biggest leaps. Their fears are valid but not challenge is too big for a hero.
One day, the guide decided to share a quote from this video:
In it, Maha Harqoo is seen as saying, “If an amazing opportunity presents itself, I will first take it and then figure it out.”
The heroes found the quote so funny. They chatted about what it means to just take the chance and learn it later. They talked about how many times they had seen their parents take chances and how much they have even overcome in their young lives.
“I mean, I guess I traveled the world. I could probably go to middle school.”
“I lived on a mountain top, middle school shouldn’t be bad. I didn’t even know how to talk to people when I first met them!”
If we think back to all of the chances we have taken. How many of these risks did we even know how to navigate? Probably not many. Just because something is scary and hard doesn’t mean we can’t at least try it. The heroes ended the day really considering what chances they want to take and if it is really worth it to let go of fear and just jump on in.
Friends
The heroes work on amazing and cool projects all week but one of their greatest successes is their development of friendships. There was a moment during the week when a hero was incredibly overwhelmed with one of the challenges. They were visibly shaken and had a hard time expressing their pain. That’s when the guide walked away to give them some space but still sat close enough to see the moment unfold.
A hero, who always prefers to work alone, walked over to the upset hero and extended their hand. Saying, “I would love to help you.”
The hero who was upset got off the floor and took her hand. He then followed her into a room and she grabbed his computer. After about 30min, the guide walked over to check out what they were doing. She was met with smiling faces and lots of stories on the type of graphic novel they were developing. Come to find out, the hero who always prefers to work solo, offered to help this hero write a story. This was so powerful. Two individuals not known for working with one another and one hero only known for choosing to work solo, had found their way to one another.
As chaos ensued and the heroes in the studio got restless for more outside time. These two could be seen in the corner, with their heads together, discussing their story. One deep in thought while the other drew the photos. In a traditional setting, a teacher may have stepped in and tried to calm the hero with logic. Maybe the teacher would have even asked the upset hero to leave. But, not here. Allowing heroes to have personal space and giving that space helps open up deep friendships, it helps to offer helpers a chance to help and most of all, it helped offer a hero a chance to work their way through something so challenging and hard.
Leadership
Along the lines of the same theme, Friday ended with helpers abound! From studio maintenance to town hall, the heroes could be seen leaning on one another in ways they hadn’t before. Standing up for one another and even calming the flames of an argument.
During town hall there was a disagreement about what was to be expected out of core skills. Some believed it should be loud while others thought that it should be dead silent. One might think that a group of young people might fight and yell over their disagreement. Not here.
There was a sense of respect and calm that washed over them right before the disagreement got heated. The leader of town hall leaned over and said, “I know everyone is upset, but please, let’s remember that we are friends first.”
Everyone sat up a little straighter and quiet filled the studio, a vote was taken and not a single hero objected. Seeing their leadership and kindness is something to truly be in awe of.
Wrap-Up
Heroes started the week pivoting with their quest. They jumped for joy knowing that they would be able to take on the challenge of the Children’s Business Fair. They then learned about the new Writer’s Workshop and stepped up to the plate with their graphic novels. Two heroes developing a deep respect and friendship through the process. The week ended with the heroes leaning into one another, respecting one another and choosing to do the right thing even when it felt hard. This definitely spilled over into studio maintenance at the end of the day, with heroes helping one another out.
