Falling in Love with Reading
(Year 5, Week 33)
Written by Adri:
HERO OF THE WEEK
This week the hero of the week is Andrew. We have noticed he has been working hard and also having fun with his friends.
He also finished a badge book and has been very intentional. He is a great friend in the studio.
Journaling
Since we had the new system a lot of people like to journal.
Sorry this week is short since editing committee has been gone a lot.
Written by: Adri
Adventure Studio Pitches
This week 5 Discovery heroes pitched in front of the Adventure heroes and some of their parents. They believe they are ready to take on the challenge of the Adventure studio.
Last week they submitted portfolios of their best work, their badge plans, and their 360 reviews from their peers for review by the Adventure heroes. They then signed up for a slot to give their pitches. They were all very nervous, some having trouble sleeping the night before! Most of them were relieved and feeling positive after pitching, while a few felt nervous they didn’t do their best.
After pitching, the Adventure heroes shared warm feedback and character callouts for those pitching, along with some tough questions to better understand what they were hoping to get out of moving forward to the Adventure studio. It was a really positive experience for everyone who pitched, with the adventure heroes demonstrating the important warm-hearted and tough-minded nature of real leadership.
The following day the Adventure heroes discussed the pitches and offered all 5 spots in the Adventure studio, with two being conditional on finishing specific badges. The two with conditional challenges are facing a lot of effort but are excited about proving themselves to be ready. The standard is a high standard and it’s a great opportunity to learn to dig deep, be gritty, and persevere through challenge.
Diamond Art
On Thursday, several heroes took on a fun art challenge called Diamond Art. The art is hundreds of beads that get placed on a canvas in a specific pattern. The outcome is a really beautiful piece of art made of hundreds of tiny beads. Example below.
Several heroes took the diamond art kit home and worked throughout the evening. Many came in Friday and got started before Town Hall Meeting.
Zoology Art Challenge
This session’s Zoology quest has been a lot of fun. This week consisted of the final challenge of the quest, which was a fun clay art challenge. The heroes are sculpting a model of their animal.
The quest will culminate with an exhibition of learning next week, and a day of delivering their animal enrichment tools to Babby Farms the week after.
Reading
Two sessions ago the studio experimented with a realignment of core values, particularly in inspiring each young person to take more responsibility for their learning on their journey to become a curious, independent, life long learner (one of the promises we make).
Learning has exploded in the studio, reading included. At many moments of the day a random hero can be found tucked away in a corner, reading a great book.
This picture was taken of Marquita after she was found in a solo room for over an hour just enjoying a great book. The goal of the Discovery studio is to fall in love with learning, and the heroes have agreed that they have found more joy in reading over the last few sessions than with freedom levels and hero bucks that were offered in previous systems.
This is a picture of Navy who was found this week tucked away in a corner in the front entrance diving into her book. These young people really do love learning, and if given the opportunity to think critically about their choices and where they want to go, they’ll choose it regularly. There’s less need to force learning than most of us are often able to imagine.
Friday Funday
This Friday the heroes had a blast playing a new game that the Adventure heroes often play, Chair Soccer. It’s simple. You can’t use your hands, and if it hits your chair then you are out, but you can still get others out. Some heroes left frustrated with tough decisions, but all in all the heroes had a blast.
Wrap Up
The heroes are having a blast as the end of the year approaches. There is a lighter atmosphere, more people in and out for family activities, and lots of fun learning each day. Here’s a few final pictures on the week.
