Revel Recap: March 8 - 12, 2021
Spark Studio
Mindfulness & Launch
Welcome to Week 3 of Session 5! On Monday, we continued our candle meditation practice. We incorporated a guided meditation about the rain and listened to the different sounds it made when the raindrops landed on various surfaces. The Sparks enjoyed using the candle again to focus our attention. We then wrote in our story writing books about something from the weekend that filled up our buckets and made us feel happy before sharing our illustrations during circle time. In Quest, we had learned that the Eiffel Tower is painted three different tones of brown every seven years. For colouring on Tuesday, we imagined that we could paint the Eiffel Tower any colour we wanted and got to work designing it. There were a lot of beautiful multi-coloured towers to share! Wednesday started on an upbeat and energizing note. We played a yoga freeze dance and the Sparks had fun showing off their dance moves and then freezing in a variety of yoga poses that we held for 10 seconds. Our morning meeting was very exciting, as we received a package from the Eaglets at another Acton Academy in London, Ontario! The Sparks loved reading the “All About Me” pages and learning about their favourite London-area landmarks. We are looking forward to creating a package this next week to send back! After mindful colouring on Thursday, we joined the other Rebels to watch the March Mammal Madness recap and the Sparks were excited to see how our picks turned out. Friday was a very special mindfulness activity, colour by stickers! We created beautiful animal art with numbered stickers. This activity helped us with our fine motor skills, patience, and number recognition. The concentration level was high for this activity and they worked hard to complete their pictures!
Quest
We had a great week learning about famous buildings around the world, which inspired our own creativity and building! We read about and looked at pictures of the Eiffel Tower, the Colosseum, the Burj Khalifa, and the Sydney Opera house. We spent time looking at our map to see where these buildings were located and discovered some fun facts about them. The Sparks were very interested in hearing Ms. Megan’s stories about visiting these amazing places and seeing pictures. They shared about their dreams of visiting these architectural landmarks someday, too! We especially enjoyed seeing the Eiffel Tower and Burj Khalifa pictured next to a two-story house. It really put the sheer size of these buildings into perspective for us! We talked about the materials that were used for these buildings and what we thought the process to build them was. Each day, after learning about them, we set to work on recreating them. Working in pairs or in groups, we referenced the pictures and used Lego to build the Eiffel Tower and Colosseum, Duplo to build the Burj Khalifa, and Magna Tiles for the Sydney Opera House. It was great to see the teamwork and hear the cooperative communication. The Sparks did a wonderful job sharing their ideas and working together to build some incredible creations! On Friday, we looked at pictures of other famous landmarks, such as the Leaning Tower of Pisa, The Taj Mahal, St. Basil's Cathedral, Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac, and more. We talked about the creativity behind these amazing buildings and were inspired to create our own model building out of recycled materials. While creating, we discussed the various aspects of this building, such as a pool, look-out tower with windows, and a slide to exit the building. They came up with the name, “The Leaning Tower of Pizza,” as our building was leaning to one side and its base was made out of a pizza box! Check out our studio window to see a couple of our creations. Next week we will be exploring all about bridges!
French
This week in French class we all showed Mme Marie how well we can sing the alphabet song by ourselves. She was very impressed! We continued practicing the days of the week, numbers up to thirty, and the colours of the rainbow (and more!). Here is some vocabulary we have been learning in preparation for spring: la pomme, le soleil, la feuille, l’arbre, l’oiseau. We started reading a new book called “3, 2, 1...Comptons les pommes!” and we danced to “Promenons-nous dans les bois.” We love running away from the wolf at the end of the song!
Additional Highlights
One of the studio highlights this week was exploring and constructing our new marble run. We enjoyed creating, testing, and having marble races! The Sparks are such a creative group! During gym this week the Sparks had fun playing hockey with mini sticks. They divided themselves into teams and some of the Sparks shared what the rules of hockey were, such as scoring on the opponent's net, not your own and that we couldn’t use our hands during play. It was great to see the learners leading this game and helping each other learn more about this sport! We continue to work on our sight words, this week playing a round of sight word bingo! However, probably the best moments of our week were jumping and having fun in the huge puddles at the park! They created a game of the ground is lava, jumping onto floating ice and slush. They got totally soaked, but the smiles and laughter were totally worth it!
Discovery Studio
Mindfulness
This week’s yoga practice was dedicated to restorative positions and slow transitions. We worked through several different floor-series sequences that focused on relaxation and deep breathing through stretches. On Tuesday and Thursday, our mindful colouring periods were full of beautiful mandalas and special International Women’s Day-themed colouring pages.
Launches and Closings
Happy International Women’s Day! After watching a beautiful spoken-word piece we discussed ways that we too could #ChooseToChallenge as individuals and as a community. On Tuesday, we followed up with our discussion from Monday’s International Women’s Day launch. We watched the “Like A Girl,” video from the Always #LikeAGirl campaign and inquired about what it means to “take back the narrative.” Rebels had some amazing opportunities to reflect and discuss experiences where they have perpetuated and challenged “like a girl” and what we could do moving forward to change it from an insult to a statement that empowers all. During Monday’s Closing and Wednesday’s Launch, we learned some new things about France with Mme Marie. We answered the following questions: Where is France? What is Europe? Who lives in France? and What languages are spoken in France? At closing on Wednesday, we took time for a serious and necessary discussion on bodily autonomy and consent. After watching this video, we elaborated on what it really means to ask for and give consent and the importance of speaking to someone you trust if your body rights are not being respected. Thursday’s Current Events highlighted the Pandemic’s 1 year anniversary and Rebels discussed some great takeaways from the past year. We also looked at some special slugs that can regrow their bodies, a famous quote from Diane Nash, and enjoyed another round of weekly laughs from "Live From Snack Time" quotes. March Mammal Madness is back and we now have watched the Wild Card Round, and two sets of Round 1 battles! Is your Champion still in the game?
Rebel Readers & Warrior Writers
On Monday, Aim and Release Rebels absolutely crushed their Independent Spelling lists! They really challenged themselves with some of the longest words in the English language and studied vocabulary words with very complex spelling rules. Rebels also spent a really great chunk of Monday’s writing workshop working on their intro and first body paragraphs for their essays. We explored “paragraph structure” and the importance of this when writing about their animals’ adaptations. Great work, Rebels!
On Wednesday, Draw and Anchor Rebels read aloud to the halfway point of our novel study, Pugs of the Frozen North and we worked on our Pugs Story Map for chapters 1 through 6. Each Rebel selected 2-3 of the most important characters, objects or parts of the story that belonged on our storyboard and began creating the breakdown of the story through imagery. Rebels worked on their latest list of spelling words that are a part of the -oat, -ong, and -all families, as well as words that contain the digraph “aw.”
On Friday, Rebels requested a throwback to our “Friday Reader Writer Missions!” Today’s mission had Rebels working together in small groups to solve a variety of literacy-based activities. All activities were themed with International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month. Rebels created beautiful and empowering images of “Women I Admire” - a woman in their life that they either know personally or through the media that inspires them.
Math Lab
On Monday, after our Draw and Anchor Rebels worked on their Math Facts That Stick fact fluency, we learned about pi in advance of March 14th. We read, Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi while working on a few Pi Day activities.
Wednesday’s Aim and Release Rebels dove right into our early Pi Day celebration in Math Lab. After listening to the Pi song, Rebels learned about how pi was calculated through a reading of Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi. They then worked on a pi-themed word search, pi puzzles, a cartesian graph Einstein picture, and a Sudoku that required solving various equations first. With a better understanding of pi, they are really looking forward to eating some pie on Monday!
Quest
On Monday, Aim and Release Rebels used a Problem Analysis handout to better understand the problem they are working to solve. Rebels who were ready to move on then worked on a “5 Whys to the Root Cause” activity. Asking why, and then why again, and then why again, really helped to zone in on the true root of their problem. As Rebels continued to define and refine their problem and solutions, they also came up with new nature models to utilize. On Tuesday, Rebels were encouraged to find photos, videos, or articles that described solutions that have already been tried to address a similar problem to theirs. If possible, they then completed a SMARTER Design Table, describing how their solution would be an improvement to the current options. Wednesday, Rebels who were ready, used the Mapping Criteria and Constraints activity by listing the must-have criteria that will make their design a success, and the constraints that are limitations for the design process. All of these activities are high-level, however, our hope is that the Rebels get a true sense for the Design Cycle throughout this session. Next Monday, we will be meeting with the Exploration Rebels for a knowledge transfer and feedback session! The Discovery Rebels worked hard at putting a few slides together to explain their problem and biomimicry solution to their Exploration partners. Some Rebels have already finished one prototype and are looking forward to receiving feedback in order to improve for their next iteration. Our Draw and Anchor Rebels are doing their best to complete each step when developmentally appropriate, however, they have also been given alternate engineering challenges! This week they were challenged to engineer an invention based on duck feet to propel a boat across water and design a digging machine based on what they know about moles. Ms. Jenna joined us again for a Scientific Drawing workshop on Thursday! Aim and Release Rebels worked hard to draw their inventions to the best of their ability and include details and written descriptions of the features of the creation. Draw and Anchor learners chose two animals to draw and highlight the special adaptations or features in their Biodiversity Lab notebooks. Their observation skills and drawing techniques are really improving!
French
On Tuesday in French class, we solved our first “charade,” a word riddle. Then we went over the vocabulary of clothing and accessories before watching two episodes of Les Minijusticiers: Superfrileux and Superjaimepas. As usual, we discussed the problems that each Minijusticier encounters, what their superpower is, and what lesson they’ve learned. On Thursday, we solved another charade and worked autonomously on our superhero and practiced the vocabulary we learned earlier in the week.
Civilizations
This week in Civilizations, we read about life in mid-century Canada including Responsible Government, the Gold Rush, the growth of the timber industry, and the Railway Age. During our study, we strive to look at historic events through as many lenses as possible. For example, the Canadian Pacific Railroad provided trade between the four provinces of the time, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, and Ontario as well as with British Columbia who would only join Canada if a railway travelled from ocean to ocean. This expansion led to a stronger economy and increased patriotism. Building the railroad however, also forced Indigenous communities off of their land and the treatment of the Chinese immigrants building the railway was unjust. We ended our Civilizations session by learning about and questioning the fairness of the Chinese Immigration Act and reflecting on the trials immigrants often face in starting over in a new country.
PE
On Monday, several Rebels bundled up for a hike in the woods and went sledding down the forest path several times while the other learners took part in an awesome Rebel-Led Circuit! The routine was challenging and got everyone’s heart rate and energy up! Wednesday’s Tik Tok dance class took on the routine from Drake’s Toosie Slide video while the outdoor PE group went sledding at Carlington Hill. The smiles seen and laughter heard in both groups were contagious!
Exploration Studio
Launches and Closings
During Monday’s Launch with Mme Marie we continued on the theme of rock music. We listened to an interview of Alice Cooper by NPR journalist Lulu Garcia-Navarro. Alice Cooper talks about shock rock, his cover of The Velvet Underground, sobriety and how rock’n’roll is alive and well despite what KISS bass player Gene Simmons may say. At closing, we celebrated International Women’s Day! After watching a beautiful spoken-word piece we discussed ways that we too could #ChooseToChallenge as individuals and as a community. On Tuesday, we focused on consent using this video as a backbone for our discussion. While humorous, we hope that it helps bring some clarity to our pre-teen and teenage Rebels. After watching a video where a man made a latex glove into a bagpipe we issued a challenge for each Rebel to build their own instrument by next Friday. We can’t wait to see what they come up with! On Wednesday, Exploration learners then took part in a 2021-22 planning session where they gave input into potential Quests, Field Trips, mentors they’d like to meet, after-school activities, and clubs. March Mammal Madness has once again taken over studio airtime as we watched the Wild Card and half of the Round 1 battles this week. While there were some upsets, most Rebels are still in contention for the trophy. Friday morning we reviewed four-word mantras and brainstormed a series that we could use when we’re feeling anxious, frustrated, or down. For one Rebel, “I have hockey today!” was uplifting, while another learner chose, “Be a positive energy.”
Quest
In Quest this week all of the learners began their Climate Change projects. Throughout the week Rebels spent much of their time researching the different aspects of their projects and to help narrow down the focus of their topics, they generated a list of questions, big and small, that they would use as a guide moving forward. On Monday everyone consolidated their learning by discussing the various topics we covered related to climate change. The learners took collaborative notes together and started discussing what they were thinking for their project before Deagan showed over thirty different projects that could be developed. On Tuesday, the learners were introduced to a process called “huddling,” where they meet with a small group and check in on each other’s progress as a form of accountability. For each Quest work session, the learners will start and end the period by checking in with their huddle group, seeing where they made progress and if they need any help to move forward. The art of note-taking was then introduced! We weighed the pros and cons of five different note-taking strategies and the situations that would be best for each. We looked at a study that shows that learning is done best when notes are taken by hand because it forces the learner to synthesize information instead of copying things verbatim. The tech-aged learners were not impressed with this study and decided they would create their own study for a younger audience…more to come on that. Ask your learner how they spent their week! Some created presentations, others planned out videos, a couple wrote blogs, and one was even making an eco-friendly dollhouse! On Monday of next week, the learners in Exploration studio will be showcasing their progress to the learners in Discovery. The Discovery studio will provide feedback to the Exploration learners' projects and then they will go back to work for another week of project development!
Big History
Our two hours of Big History this week were spent writing, editing, and finalizing our Creation Myths and most of the learners were able to complete and submit their stories. Next week we will be starting our own version of March Mammal Madness, called “March Phanerozoic Madness” using only extinct creatures! Each of the learners will be tasked with choosing an animal, learning everything there is to know about it, and battling it against the other chosen animals.
Math Lab
After listening to the Pi song, Rebels reviewed how pi was calculated and they too listened to a reading of Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi while working on a pi-themed word search, pi puzzles, a cartesian graph Einstein picture, and a Sudoku that required solving various equations first. With a better understanding of pi, they are really looking forward to our Pi Day celebration with of course some pie and ice cream on Monday!
French
This week we earned our yellow stripe for La Créativité by creating a self-portrait with a technique of our choosing and writing a museum label for it. We began on Monday with a PowerPoint that Mme Marie made about the art of self-portrait, or “autoportrait.” After we were done with our yellow stripe assignment, we practiced the verbs of the week at our own pace on Conjuguemos while French music played in the window room. Those of us who were staying in the window room got to hear a Celtic rap song that is very popular in France!
PE
Monday, which may prove to be our last hike in the snow-covered hills, was filled with sledding and sliding through the trees. We may have to put the hikes on pause to let the ground and our boots dry. The other learners took part in an awesome Rebel-Led Circuit! The routine was challenging and got everyone’s heart rate and energy up! Wednesday’s Tik Tok dance class took on the routine from Drake’s Toosie Slide video while the outdoor PE group went sledding at Carlington Hill.
Potential Discussion Ideas or Questions to Ask your Rebel:
Exploration: What are you showcasing to Discovery on Monday for Quest?
Exploration: What are the next steps of your project after Monday?
Discovery: How will you #ChooseToChallenge in order to bring about gender equality?
Discovery: Is there a way as a family that we can further support your bodily autonomy and ask for consent?
Spark: Which famous building would you like to visit and why?
Spark: What would you like to include in the package for the pen pals?
Upcoming Events & Special Dates:
Session 5 Discovery Exhibition: Wednesday, March 31st at 1:30 pm
Session 5 Exploration Exhibition: Tuesday, March 30th at 1:30 pm
Exploration Field Trip: Thursday, April 1st
Last Day of Session 5: Thursday, April 1st
Session 6 Begins: Monday, April 12th