Weekly Updates
Preschool / Spark Studio (PS) Update
Increased Momentum
The work momentum has picked up even more in the Preschool Studio, and more of the PS Eagles are now tackling increasingly difficult challenges on their own. They are taking more ownership of their work and enjoying the challenge, so keep up the momentum, PS Eagles!
Clean-Up Challenge
Although the PS Eagles are stepping up more when it comes to their Studio, there are moments when it’s a question of time management. On Wednesday, they were challenged with cleaning up after their Outdoor Play Session. Clean-up time went past Snack Time into DEAR time, and they had still not finished cleaning up. They finally finished cleaning up just before Work Time.
A quick Huddle (Circle Time) in front of the Schedule Board was held for some praise from Guide Mr. Daniel for completing the Clean Up. The PS Eagles revealed that they were not happy to have missed their Snack Time and DEAR, and decided that in order to get to do those things, they had to clean up faster. Suggestions were brought up to reduce the play equipment so as to lessen the time needed to put them all back. S and A (this week’s Outdoor Play Managers) agreed to implement this suggestion the next day.
True enough, the next day’s Clean Up Time was much faster, the PS Eagles did not miss Snack Time, and they were, in fact, early!
Build a Tribe Quest
This first Sprint of the year is dedicated to building tribes, within the individual Studios and throughout ActonKL as a whole. In the PS Studio, the Eagles were challenged to build Boats to travel across the Ocean asa fleet. The question was … could their Boats withstand the test of rough waters and rain?
Most of the PS Eagles did not know how to fold a boat, but they did their best. Some PS Eagles tried to stick the paper together with tape. Others decided to use the tray on which the challenge materials were arranged! Talk about thinking out of the box!
The PS Eagles reflected on the challenge:
S: I learned that I can put more tape on my boat because tape is waterproof.
AD: The boys copied us.
AA: Next time we can use a container because it is able to float. Paper cannot float.
Gardening
The rooftop garden is doing well, with so many hands to tend to it. The PS Eagles pitch in to weed and harvest.
Elementary Studio (ES) Update
Circle Time Discussion – Hero’s Journey – Mulan
In one of the morning launches, we talked about the Hero’s Journey. the Guide read the story of Mulan to the ES Eagles and asked them to think about the different parts of the Hero’s Journey.
The ES Eagles were enthralled by Mulan’s story and how she answered the call to adventure to embark on a road of trials before finally going back to the ordinary world as a celebrated hero and a changed person.
Most of the ES Eagles were already familiar with the Hero’s Journey, but, to the new Eagles, it was the first time being introduced to it. They now had a different perspective towards facing their challenges.
Contract Discussion
As part of the Build A Tribe quest this Sprint, the Eagles will be playing the Contract Game every week. In the Contract Game, ES Eagles get to come up with ideas for promises that they would like to make to each other to keep the Studio space sacred and bind the Studio together as a tribe.
The ES Eagles voted on which promises they thought were important to keep. As a process, the ES Eagles will continue to try out these promises throughout the Sprint. Many agreed that they had not been working hard enough to uphold their promises to each other, but have come to realise that they all want to be part of a tribe of ‘givers’, where everyone helps each other.
Some of the ES Eagles’ quotes:
“We don’t have to be intentional about being kind because we do it anyway. But we haven’t been encouraging each other enough.”
“I think it’s important to treat everything inside the Studio with care.”
Project / Team Building
Lip Dub
This week the ES Eagles worked on their Lip Dub. MS Eagles are leading this Sprint’s project as part of their badge. The Eagles worked on
- Selecting a song
- Creating a rubric
- Memorising the lyrics
The ES Eagles were excited to begin their Lip Dub project, and the MS Eagles were very responsible in leading them through the different challenges. This made for great energy in the Studio.
Hula Hoop Lift
The objective of this team building activity was for the ES Eagles to experience look out for each other in the Studio – as a tribe and as squads or buddies.
The game was playing in two groups. One group played the game differently based on their memory of how it was played before, while the other group followed the instructions given to them.
The ES Eagles found this game challenging even though they said that they had done it before. Eventually, the game was paused and we had a debrief. The ES Eagles said they were confused, but they probably needed to listen to instructions and not assume what needed to be done. They aso shared that they needed to ask questions to seek clarity.
After regrouping, the ES Eagles were challenged to repeat the game again as a Studio. The game quickly escalated into frustration when they couldn’t complete it – they were supposed to lift the hula hoop with one index finger and they all had to be touching the hoop at the same time. The challenge was that some Eagles were not touching the hula hoop and they had to repeat the activity again and again.
The activity ended with the ES Eagles gathering in the Closing Circle to express how they felt about not being able to complete the activity. They mentioned that they were annoyed and mad. The conclusion was that if they were to ever do it again, they would have less people do it at the same time, they would be calm, and they would listen to each other’s ideas.
Happy Birthday Kotowa!
Kotowa celebrated her 10th birthday with her fellow ES Eagles with a sweet and pretty cake and surprise gifts. She was very happy about her gift, and her fellow Eagle was so excited to present her with it. The ES Eagles enjoyed the delicious cake and even shared it with the PS Eagles who came calling for some. Happy birthday, Kotowa! Stay happy and strong as you enter into a new decade of your life!
Fun Friday – Water Balloons!
The ES Eagles had been looking forward to this for the whole week, and after a long week of hard work, frustrations and breakthroughs, they were eager to check in to make sure that each and every one of them would qualify for this week’s Fun Friday … water balloons!
Thank you Arjun for giving a pre-event reminder to everyone to bring an extra change of clothes and towels that day, and for Apsara for leading the circle before the water balloon play to lay down the ground rules for the play.
The ES Eagles worked together to figure out how to fill the balloons (low water pressure). Some decided to use the water from the ladies and gent bathrooms and asked for some help from an MS Eagles to carry the filled balloons up.
The ES Eagles had immense fun with the water balloons and spray guns! They built a fort and divided themselves into teams. What a great way to end the week!
Middle Studio & Launchpad (MSLP) Update
This week, the MSLP Eagles’ journey was about understanding customers, and themselves. They stepped into the shoes of the customers, literally, and asked the question, “What event would attract ActonKL families to come together?”
The MSLP Eagles put up a menu and activities and had to market an event for their fundraising. There were considerations about costs, dietary restrictions, logistics, and so on. They set the individual milestones based on market response, a.k.a. the real world, as their feedback mechanism.
The MSLP Eagles caught themselves going off-track and off-schedule. They came to the solution to do push-ups and sit-ups as a way to remind themselves to be on time.
Other than that, each individual MSLP Eagle is still exploring possible routes. The goals is a clear badge plant hat serves their calling.
The Callings and future are filled with Questions:
- Can I build myself up to be a Concept Artist solely from online courses and a suite of Next adventure tools? Is Acton the right environment or would a co-working space with other artists work better? If the full independence and struggle of going out on my own too much, should my path be one of a diploma from a top-notch art school?
- Can I prepare on my own to enter an Ivy League school, along with a small, dedicated group of individuals. What do I need to do to exercise the high level of freedom and resources available, and yet have the rhythm to persist for 3-4 years?
- I have a plan. My goal is to enter college with scholarships. And I am firm on taking the US high school diploma route. I still need to decide on my major. I am not sure what lies ahead, but it’s somewhere along the lines of the environment. Do I really need to dive so deep into my Next Great Adventure?
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I once wanted to be an audio engineer, and the mentor/apprenticeships process helped me realize it is not what I want. My family has expectations and I want to defend my path. I need to come up with a solid plan. Period. And work hard to realize my dreams of being someone who works with designs, marketing, and branding. Do I have that passion, zest, and discipline to take this hard path?
5. Ice hockey opened doors to Finland. How do I connect all the dots to get there?
6. My next adventure is college prep via IGCSE. I know my passions, but I doubt the idea of putting a stake in the ground for my Next Great Adventure.
The Next Great Adventure (NGA) tools consist of:
– Finding your NGA
– Stars and Steppingstone Interview and finding Mentorships
– Apprenticeships
– Deep books about a chosen industry/area of expertise
– Doing industry studies
– Deliberate practice of targeted skills
– Guerilla tactics to get a great first jobBut the challenge with these powerful tools and freedom is dealing with the ambiguity. Hence, Acton encourages finding avenues for feedback from the real-world—getting paid for freelance work, mentor critiques, and landing job opportunities, etc.
There will be setbacks, which will test one’s trust of the process. It is time to enter the abyss in this particular Hero’s Journey.
The next three to four months will determine if this version of Launchpad works. The MSLP will be challenged to embark on mini adventures that will determine their coming years. Ones which are based on Callings that will change the world.