Preschool My Dream House

In Sprint 6, the PS Eagles explored the world of architecture and design. They analysed what makes a building ‘cool’, then decided what they wanted in their own Dream Homes – would it look like a fantastical forest dwelling or an urban oasis? In making these decisions they had to make hard choices – if I want this, then I can’t have that, and this honed their decision-making skills.

The PS Eagles went through the stages of bringing a building to life – from conceptualisation to visual planning to construction. How can I get what’s in my mind down onto paper and, later, into a 3D model? The process showed the PS Eagles the importance of planning in order to make execution smoother.

In sourcing materials to build their Dream Homes, the PS Eagles practised resourcefulness and the understanding of the properties of materials … what makes cardboard suitable for large construction as opposed to paper?

Finally, as this is another virtual Exhibition, the PS Eagles once again presented their exhibits in a video format, which meant that they wrote or formulated a script to follow and kept videography in mind – prop positioning, hand positioning, voice levels and so on.

For the My Dream Home Exhibition, some Eagles decided to show their plans instead of their models:

Most Eagles showed their models and took us on tours through their Dream Homes.

AR’s Dream Home had a piping system … or does it double as a tank?

AD’s Dream Home is suited for European climates with a chimney.

AZ’s Dream Home had many parts to it and was very intricate.

K’s Dream Home was minimalistic and haunted!

M’s Dream Home was well thought out and full of details.

On Exhibition Day, the PS Eagles watched each other’s videos and provided feedback for their fellow Eagles’ work. Their feedback was:

AA: “I like D’s house because it is scary.”

MY: “I like AL’s house because of the door.”

Some PS Eagles gave honest feedback to help their fellow Eagles improve:

AD: “J and S’s house is the best but their voices were very soft.”

Some PS Eagles gave general comments:

D: “Everyone copies my house.”

AS: “Everyone’s house is dirty.”

Elementary School Art Challenges

Having explored famous artwork, artists and a bit of their history in the Art Sprint, the ES Eagles took Art into their own hands this time around. In the ES Art Challenges Exhibition, the ES Eagles explored what creativity meant to them. They were encouraged to put their own spin on Art and experiment with more contemporary techniques and materials, ultimately bringing themselves into the artwork in order to bring the artwork to life.

Challenge: Take a picture, cut it in half and complete it. K: The right half is my picture. I worked hard to find the right shape that match the picture…

Challenge: Take a picture, cut it in half and complete it. AR: It is a Harry Potter creature in his pot shaped house in the woods.

Challenge: Create a Zentangle J: It honestly took a long time to do and I really like it. There is a hidden shoe and pizza in there.

Challenge: Recreate a painting – The Scream by Edvard Munch AP: For this, we used clothes and our model was my brother.

Challenge: Collage C: I took 2 days to do this because the glue stick on my hands on the first day.

Challenge: Recreate a painting. J: I found this picture and looked for some apples and oranges then I created this.

Challenge: Create a picture using chalk. XA: This is my chock drawing!

They also explored some functions of art – art as therapy, art as commentary, art as comical relief, art as entertainment, and art as a form of technical mastery. In this, they realised that art can mean many different things, so there was a decision to be made about what Art meant to them.

Challenge: Mandala XV: This is my mandala!

Challenge: Colouring E: I used acrylic paint to do this it’s more challenging and it was fun.

Creativity also carried into the ES Eagles’ Journal Writing Writers’ Workshop. With weekly imagination prompts, the ES Eagles let their creativity run free and see where it took them. What came out were fantastical time travels, what-if daydreams, new and weird product marketing and even social commentaries. Being their own best judges, the ES Eagles voted on the best piece of writing for each prompt and the winning entries were compiled as a showcase.

What would your experience be like with Yoda as your teacher?

You are charged to market a weird new frappuccino flavour. What’s your pitch?

Reflection through time travel. What would you change? Would you change anything?

If you could give yourself one piece of advice, what would it be?

Your greatest weakness is actually your greatest strength? Flip your perception and see where that leads you.

Middle School Apprenticeship Preparation

The MS Eagles have been preparing for an important Hero’s Journey this Sprint – that of Apprenticeship. The MS Apprenticeship Preparation Exhibition showcases the processes that they went through to secure an apprenticeship at a company that the were inspired by, and the self-reflection and growth that went alongside the processes.

In securing an apprenticeship, the MS Eagles had to first reflect on their gifts and skills, as well as their inspiration and motivators. Some also examined what demotivated them, as it is important to see what doesn’t work, in order to see more clearly what does.

H’s gifts and flow. In showcasing your talents and what makes you tick, you are reflecting on it too, to yourself.

R’s heroes and anti-heroes. Acknowledging what demotivates you and why is crucial to finding what works for you.

AQ: Heroes can come from anywhere and be for any reason. Do you have Heroes around you in your life?

Choosing a company to apprentice at involved deciding what motivated the MS Eagles the most. Their gifts and skills were also factored in and a choice of 3 companies was made in case their first choice was not available.

D: Shortlist a few options so that you have fallbacks in case your top choice doesn’t work out this time.

The next step was to send an Apprenticeship Email to the prospective companies, The MS Eagles had to craft emails that would engage potential employers and show their personalities a little, while not bombarding them with detail. They had to entice potential employers to see their value as apprentices.

E: The composition of the email must show knowledge of the company and reasons why you wish to apprentice there, as well as why you are a good fit.

G: Crafting an email – it is important to establish what to do and what not to do as this is the first point of contact that you are sending out to your potential employer.

Finally, upon Apprenticeship acceptance from the company, the MS Eagles outlined the roles and responsibilities that they would be carrying out as an Apprentice.