April 18-22

This week, Eagles setup ant habitats to observe how ants live and interact over the next 3 weeks.  They had to read and follow the instructions; carefully pouring in and tamping the sand, watering it the correct amount, and feeding the ants a sunflower seed.  

 

Sadly, one team failed to follow the instructions carefully and their ants didn't make it.  Each habitat is completely different- with one set of ants building complex tunnels and another simply gathering around the top.  The Eagles have loved checking them out each morning! 

 

Friday, Eagles were challenged to create their own insect.  They invented their common name, scientific name, habitat, diet, and special abilities.  Next week, they will gather materials and build a 3D model of their insect.  These will be displayed at the Exhibition! 

  

Eagles are enjoying learning Sign Language during Creative Arts time and now know many new words. One day at Free Time they met a young boy who used sign language to communicate! What an awesome way to practice their new skills! 

This weekend is our Acton Children's Business Fair! We hope to see you all there! 

Session 6- April 11-14

Welcome to Session 6! 

Monday morning, the Eagles started with a team-building challenge.  They were challenged to work with their team to build the tallest, free-standing house of cards.  At the end of 10 minutes, only one team was able to complete the challenge and build (a very small) house of cards. Afterwards, we discussed what held the teams back.  Most expressed a frustration with the cards, as opposed to an issue with teamwork. 

 

In Quest this session, we are diving deep into Entomology.  Many Eagles are facing their fears head-on and exploring the world of insects. 

Eagles started the week by researching.  One squad learned there are 2 types of bugs; arachnids that have 8 legs and insects that have 6.  One of their members let us all know spiders are aracnids, and therefore, not something we would be studying this session. 

  

Wednesday, they were challenged to draw and label an insect.  We learned an insect has 3 body parts and 8 legs.  There was a great discussion about rather ladybugs are considered insects or not, because you cannot see 3 body parts.  

 

In Writer's Workshop, we are exploring Science-Based Fiction.  Think Bugs Life!  Eagles are weaving scientific facts into their fictional stories.  A sofisticated sloth who learns about DNA testing, a rainbow-puking cat, human DNA infused animals , and an exploration of Russia.  Our Eagles are working hard this week on researching their topic and using Pixar's Story Spine to create their story's outline. 

This week the studio was challenged to each earn 4 math points to celebrate with a Fun Friday!  This includes 4% in ALEKS, 4 coins in Dreambox, or 4% in Khan.  Thursday our friends banned together and collaborated with those who had not earned their points.  Sadly, as a whole the studio was not able to meet the challenge.  A great lesson on stepping up at the beginning of the week to assist friends who need extra help! 

During our Creative Arts block, Miss Karsen is immersing Eagles into various cultures.  On Tuesday, Mr. Brooks came to share the importance of learning about and respecting other cultures. (We even got to see some awesome magic tricks!) Thursday, Eagles learned about Deaf Culture, how to sign the ABCs, and how to introduce themselves to someone in American Sign Language. 

 

Mar 28 - Apr 1

Our writers worked hard to finish up this session’s Technical Writing Writer’s Workshop. Several friends earned their badge along with learning something about the writing process. Several friends published their work in the Acton Academy Big Book of Instructions. We look forward to adding more in the future! Our Eagles were able to share their work with their guests during Exhibition Friday morning. They were excited to demonstrate their learning this session - some Eagles earned other writing badges in addition to Writer's Workshop. Most of them were also involved in the script writing process for Drama. Twelve Eagles earned a total of 27 badges this session and many of the Eagles moved up a Freedom Level at least once this session. So much hard work goes into earning a badge. It is a beautiful celebration of their dedication to learning and growing in the Studio. The Eagles were also able to visit with Miss Ashley and meet baby Remi after the Exhibition. What a fun morning!

The Eagles blew their Badge Book reading challenge out of the water this week reading a group total of 2,111 pages! Their challenge as a group was to read 5 pages each and a group total of 500 for Fun Friday. The reward they received was Karaoke during DEAR time. What a fun celebration of all their hard work this session! 

As always, the Eagles designed, directed, and executed an incredible Exhibition this week. They were able to showcase their simple machines and arcade games to their guests, guests had a ton of fun playing the games and spending their tickets, and the winners were able to share their ice cream party with everyone. In addition to their hard work in Quest, they spent the last two sessions writing, presenting, and acting in their drama plays. 

Fun Friday was a blast this week! The Eagles worked hard as a group to read all their pages and spend time together singing Karaoke. Some of their song choices included “We Don’t Talk About Bruno”, “Roar”, and “Shake it Off”. After everyone got to participate in the ice cream party, we sang, danced, and had a great time finishing studio maintenance. Each Eagle got a light up balloon of their favorite color, they got to pick their song for Karaoke, and we partied hard. To finish off a great day and session, a generous parent rewarded all the Eagles with Boba Tea! 

After spending the past two sessions on their Drama plays, two teams were voted to present their plays during Friday’s Exhibition. One was titled “Void Wars” and the other was “Plane Crash”. Even the Eagles on different teams were absorbed into the presentations with parts written just for them. Everyone had an amazing time writing, practicing, acting, and finally demonstrating their hard work. We are planning for and looking forward to play performances by the Eagles in future sessions. 

We hope everyone has a wonderful Spring Break!