Getting into flow (Year 2, Week 4)

Have you ever been so focused on something so hard that an hour seems like only a few minutes? Some people call this “being in the zone”, but the scientific term for this is “flow.”

This week began with the heroes discussing flow during Monday morning’s launch. They identified times they had been in flow like playing baseball, climbing a rock climbing wall, doing core skills, reading, and playing video games. They also talked about distractions in the studio that can stop them from getting into flow or break their flow.

After setting a goal in their challenge zone, the heroes focus on getting in to flow quickly during core skills time. At the end of the day a “Flow Hero” —someone who was in flow throughout the day — was nominated and celebrated in close group. Congratulations to Olivia and Tyler for being Monday’s Flow Heroes!

As the year gets started, the heroes are taking more and more responsibility for their learning. In particular there has been a significant bump in focus during core skills as the heroes are more familiar with contract and working toward their goals.

Scavenger Quest

During the final week of the quest the heroes had the opportunity to choose to work either individually or with a partner on a “scavengebot”. After scavenging recycled items and natural materials, the heroes went to work making a creature or sculpture. They then had a chance to write their last story about their bot.

As the quest drew to a close on Friday afternoon, the hero’s reflected on their quest experience this session, below are some of their reflections:

“My biggest lesson learned was that trash really can be treasure.”

“I learned about how paper waste each day could circle around the whole world.”

“My ideas change over time. The idea I started with wasn’t what I ended up making.”

At Heroes Academy, we believe taking time to reflect opens up the opportunity to discover new passions and new skills which help on their path to finding a calling and changing the world.

Asking for Help in the Studio

Many heroes have discovered how to be more resourceful with less help from an adult. And while figuring things out on your own is a valuable and less than common skill, collaboration is a key part of the hero’s journey.

As part of this, the heroes decided on a collaboration system that would help serve them as they learn to figure things out and seek help when they need it. This systems opens up a path for each hero to first try (3 before G means 3 before asking a guide or fellow traveler), then request help, wait for someone to offer assistance, and then get that help at a “collaboration desk” during core skills.

This system has already been under use and will be a valuable part of the studio going forward.

The Challenge Donut

During Wednesday morning’s launch the hero’s were introduced to The Challenge Donut. The Challenge Donut breaks down experiences into three zones: comfort, challenge and panic. The goal for heroes is for them to discover and work in their challenge zone…the zone when you are pushing and challenging yourself but not to the point of feeling overwhelmed.

These terms are also helpful for the heroes to identify and find language for how they are feeling during different experiences. Some of their reflections on studio experiences in the different zones included:

“I was in my panic zone during the lip dub filming because I was really worried that the end video wouldn’t be very good.”

“I was in my comfort zone during the lip dub because it was really fun and not very hard.”

“I am in my challenge zone playing Prodigy because it’s really fun but the math questions are kind of hard.”

Town Hall Meeting

Town hall meeting has become a staple of the weekly schedule in the studio, where the heroes bring questions, ideas, announcements and solutions to the group for discussion and action.

As the heroes become more familiar with the Town Hall process, the meetings are become more important and valuable for improving the studio culture and processes.

This week the heroes Town Hall Meeting included the following discussions and questions:

• Should more than one person be able to work in the reset room at a time?
• Not taking other people’s toys when they are left in the toy space (a designated area to leave distractions during Core Skills time)
• Should hero’s who arrive late to school be allowed to join the morning launch?
• Let’s have a nerf war party!
• We shouldn’t have slime in the studio — only outside during a designated time.

Parent Night

Thank you to everyone who was able to join the parent meeting this Thursday night. The discussion revolved around the questions: are we born knowing how to be a good parent? and; do you rely more on your internal compass or outside resources to guide you as a parent?

The discussion was lively as parents unpacked the layers and complexities of these questions. It was inspiring to be part of a room of heroic parents committed to supporting their children on their Hero’s Journey.

Wrap Up

A hero can accomplish incredible things on a hero’s journey, but doing it alone is not easy, some would say it’s impossible. Fellow travelers are valuable as heroes struggle, fail, and dig deep for the courage to get up again. Heroes Academy is grateful for the many heroic parents and students that courageously lean into their challenges each and every day. It’s these fellow travelers that are paving the way, showing the world that children can truly change the world.