Year 1 Session 3 (12/18/20)
Hello Aim Academy Families,
What a delicious (and exciting) end to Session 3! The Eagles challenged themselves to cook their most complex dish yet— Chicken Noodle Soup. A classic cold weather staple!
The week began with a series of recall votes— for the House Heroes and Time Keeper. After being unable to uphold the Standards of Excellence in the prior week, each leader was given a chance to appeal to their peers to stay in their position. Ultimately, all were voted to stay in, although the Time Keeper would face another recall later in the week.
On Tuesday, each House began Movie Making (formerly Drama) by performing a familiar exercise— acting out a group scene without using any words. Both houses tried to guess what scene the other House was acting out, but to no avail. To aid in this endeavor, the Eagles were challenged to design sets as backdrops for their group scenes. After they had done so, they hung them up on the whiteboards and acted out the same scenes again. This time around, both Houses guessed the other House’s scene right off the bat! Thus highlighting the role of the set designer in movie making. The Eagles cannot wait to continue Movie Making next session! They really enjoy this form of expression.
On Wednesday morning, Mr. Daniel’s partner Kira came into the studio for a Hero Visit. Kira has a bachelor's degree in Kinesiology and Nutritional Science— for her senior thesis she implemented a nutrition intervention program at an elementary school in Los Angeles. She presented on nutrition and healthy living. The Eagles learned about macromolecules, vitamins, minerals and digestion. She tied all of these concepts into the MyPlate resource that we have been using throughout Session 3. We are grateful for the time she spent with us in the studio!
Wednesday also saw the Eagles solve riddles during Quest Time. After officially deciding to take on the Soup cooking challenge for the Exhibition, the Eagles set off to solve three riddles to earn the Soup recipe. Both houses were successful, as they ultimately found the recipe behind the Hero’s Journey map in the studio. With time running out to earn their Cooking Quest badge, the Dragons went back into the kitchen to take on the Omelette Challenge. The Wolves chose to earn Ingredient Bucks to prepare for the Exhibition.
Erica Stewart came into the studio on Thursday to lead a gift making demonstration. The Eagles were visibly happy for another opportunity to give— this time to loved ones. Each group of siblings worked together to create a special gift for their parents. You could feel the Christmas spirit in the air! Thank you Erica!
Later in the day, the Exhibition Planning Committee of Hailey and Luke presented their ideas for the Exhibition to the studio at large. After discussing and voting on the final details— the Eagles set out to work. Abi, Salomon, Lucy, Hailey, Neva and Luke designed the banners while Logan and Ethan collaborated to create the schedule.
On Friday, the morning began with a Town Hall meeting. This week— topics included too many people talking during Core Skills, designating a quiet room, adding an additional Town Hall meeting on Wednesdays and the issue of people not erasing their whiteboards at the end of each session. The Wolves and Dragons chopped and boiled their way through the rest of the morning— as they prepared the veggies and noodles for the Exhibition. When the parents arrived— Neva and Abi delivered the welcome, the Eagles showed off their art and then went right back to cooking. Both Houses worked hard and were able to successfully complete the Soup Cooking Challenge. Afterwards, one representative from each family taste tested the soups. While some voted in favor of the Wolves— the Dragons ultimately won the challenge thereby cementing their victory for the House Cup. Later, the Wolves carried on the tradition of the House with lesser points awarding the House with more points the House Cup. A vivid illustration of their promise to win with honor and lose with grace. During the Badge Ceremony, Israel was awarded the Reading Badge while Neva, Lucy, Salomon, Abi, Layna, Hailey, Ethan, Logan and Luke were awarded the Cooking Quest Badge. We want to congratulate all of these Eagles on their hard-earned achievements! This quest was difficult— and each one of these Eagles rose to the challenge.
A friendly reminder that all photos from this week will be uploaded to Bloomz!
Merry Christmas! We wish all of you a wonderful holiday. Looking forward to starting the New Year off with a big time Quest! “Game on!”
Till then,
Mr. Lance and Mr. Daniel
