Hard at Work

Here is Paul building model of a Hindu temple.

Presentations

We spent some time this week talking about presentations skills. We all know it can be difficult to get up in front of your peers and share your work and ideas. In FN the kids are all working on projects that they are passionate about and it is important that they learn how to effectively communicate their knowledge and enthusiasm. Often a dynamic student presentation inspires other Nesters to want to learn more about the subject at hand. Some of the presentation techniques we discussed were maintaining eye contact with the audience, using voice modulation, the importance of visual clues and how to effectively use interactive questions to engage your audience. After going over the many aspects of a successful presentation one brave student stepped up and showed his work. He did a great job of sharing and explaining his topic with passion and enthusiasm. We are fortunate enough here at HES to have terrific technology so this presentation was particularly impressive using one of our SMART boards. This was the first of many presentations we will be having in the Nest in the months to come. It is wonderful to witness the culmination of all that hard work. And once again, at the end of the day I left impressed with this group of kids. They were without exception a thoughtful and enthusiastic audience. The students provided positive feedback as well as tips on how to enhance the presentation. They are a truly supportive community of learners who appreciate each others idiosyncratic interests. If only our world were filled with adults who behaved as compassionately and intelligently as the Nesters.

A good leader is...

I asked the Nesters how to define a good leader. This is what they said...
Respectful
Responsible
Trustworthy
Helpful
Can change things for the better
Nice
Knowledgeable
Strong
Confident
Courteous
Competent
Friendly
Determined
Independent
Instills a little amount of fear
Has there own ideas
Charismatic
Courageous
Positive
Mrs. Chapin

Group Activities

Wednesdays in the Nest are spent working on group activities. Last week Jen Chapin was a guest speaker as we showed the kids the "Fish" video. The FISH! Philosophy video tells the inspiring story of the Seattle's Pike Place Fish Market and the workplace environment they have created. The positive message in the FISH! video is that it is up to you to choose your attitude and make the most of your day. Jen uses this video and philosophy here at HES to inspire the entire staff to make this school a terrific place to work and learn. So we decided to share the FISH! Philosophy video with the fifth and sixth grade FN students. The kids loved it! We talked about how to translate things they learned about in the video into each of our lives. Already some of the kids are interested in doing a community service project so that they can make a positive difference in the lives of others. I will be sure to update you on the good works that come from these terrific kids. Check out www.charthouse.com for more information on the FISH! Philosophy. And feel free to ask Jen about how the philosophy is implemented here at HES.

Spaces

Working in the art room has already begun to influence the Nesters. More and more students are making creative displays to demonstrate their area of study. Already this year we have a number of kids working on 2D and 3D projects utilizing the materials that are readily available. It will be exciting to see these pieces start to take form. This past Wednesday we worked on some group activities geared towards creativity and team building. For one activity I split the kids into pairs and gave them paper, tape and straws. With these meager supplies they were asked to work together to build a bridge spanning two tables. This bridge needed to be both sturdy and aesthetically pleasing. When the bridge planning and building time was done the kids were asked to select a spokesperson who would represent the team and explain their work. The Nesters did a fabulous job! The bridges were terrific, but what really impressed me was their teamwork. Not only did the kids work well in their small group, but when they came back together with the larger group they soared. They were happy for each other, complimentary to one another and truly enjoyed each others successes! Well done Nesters!

The Beginning

Falcon's Nest is in full swing! Many students have already selected project topics and are beginning their research. As always we have a wide array of interests and styles represented in the Nest. A sculptor has begun making a prototype for her recycled materials person, a scientist is designing a game using measurements and weights, and a linguist is beginning to study common phrases in multiple languages!
We are also continuing to do group activities geared towards critical and creative thinking skills and team building. In order to help nourish the Nesters creative sides we will be talking a lot about unique talents, perspectives and skills. You may have heard that the first few days of FN were spent getting oriented and doing a lot paperwork. One of the questionnaires that the students filled out was an Interest-A-Lyzer. The Interest-A-Lyzer is a tool developed at the University of Connecticut that is used to help identify an individual student's academic and creative interests. As I read through the responses I was thrilled to see all the passions and talents the FN students possess. I can't wait to see how the Nesters flourish this year.

Start up

I hope all the students are getting back into the swing of the school year. It has been a great beginning here at HES and we are looking forward to Falcon's Nest starting up. Letters will begin going home next week. Falcon's Nest student enrollment is ongoing and will continue through out the school year. For those of you whose students are returning you will notice a few changes. The biggest change is our room move. We are now located primarily in the art room. This will provide great access to a wide array of materials and inspiration. We also have six new laptops in the Nest for student research!
It would be great if you could help your student to start thinking about topics that they want to learn more about. A good place to start is to think about what they enjoy doing in their spare time. Does he play piano? Maybe he would want to write music, do a research project on Mozart or build an instrument. Does she love to ride her bike? Maybe she would want to organize a community bike ride fundraiser, study kinetics, or design an new kind of bicycle altogether. The more creative, out of the box thinking you can help inspire in your kids-the more fantastic projects they will create. I can't wait to see what lights them up!