We’ve now settled into a routine here at Summer School, as students engage in a set of courses exploring broad topics through creation, reflection, and dialogue as media for learning. Please read below for some updates from our wonderful faculty!
Culture, Identity & Diversity
In Culture, Identity, and Diversity we have been exploring issues of the self and how our choices shape who we are, what we perceive, and how others see us. We have been combining linguistic and physical work in order to explore how we interpret what we see, hear, think, and do. Highlights have included a fascinating group definition of Transcend and Ludo Ergo Sum, applying symbolic and somantic knowledge to self-created performance pieces, and in-depth and thoughtful conversations about exclusion, gender discrimination, and self-identity.
IEC
In the Intensive English Course, students have engaged with the English language, both written and spoken, through various active exercises. In one of the first classes, students shared an “I Am” poem, where they described characteristics they have, which expressed who they were. Later, students presented performances of the fairy tale “Peach Boy,” where they practiced communicating to an audience. Through the class, students have engaged in lively exercises of sharing and listening in English with different partners. As they engage in other classes, students are filling their notebooks full of vocabulary that they work together to define in IEC sessions.
Mindful Mixed Media
In Mindful Mixed Media, we have used traditional paper sketchbooks and iPads for making drawings. We took sketchbooks into the woods and students were challenged to draw a picture of a twig with their less comfortable hand. We talked about what was unexpected and learned from doing something differently. As we made more drawings, students were able to concentrate in silence while drawing for longer and longer stretches of time. We challenged students to work in groups to design a class experience that would best suit our goals and the different ways they each like to learn. Students also began exploring the painting and drawing applications on the iPad, and creating original work. In the next few lessons, we’ll be back in the woods with our sketchbooks, going on photo-walks with the iPads as our cameras.
Science & Society
In Science & Society this week students have had the opportunity to ask scientific questions about topics which they are passionate about. We have prototyped and are now testing systems designed to complete the challenge ‘How might we turn coca cola into clean drinking water?’ Students will then link this concept to potential global implications of access to clean water. In the next few lessons students will work in groups to identify a problem or question related to climate change, and prototype a solution. On the final day of camp their work will be presented during the Science & Society Culmination Event.
