This week, I worked on (and finished) the NVOL Science 8 Learning Guide! And I finished unit 5 and unit 6 of math (also NVOL). Other than Math and Science, I did some Current4Kids and News4Youth about a variety of things. And to top it all off, I worked on the new articles for Science News about viruses!
Other than studying, I had Taekwondo from Monday to Thursday, and on Thursday, I got to volunteer at a younger white belt class! It was fun because the kids are tiny and cute, and they don’t listen, LOL.
I did Violin class on Tuesday, and Swimming on Friday, which I don’t really like because I get WET :S.
And I had Orchestra on Saturday, where we didn’t do too well (kept missing notes, playing out of tune, etc.), 😛 So that was interesting because I had to play loudly and correctly so that everybody heard what it was supposed to sound like.
And Leadership class, where I got to lead the group in warm-ups, which was fun, but scary because I had to stand in front of everyone and lead. 0.o I had to go through all the warm-up exercises and pretend to be excited so that everyone else was excited. But I don’t think I was excited ENOUGH, so next time, I can be more excited.
These days, NVOL is quite fun and exciting, because I get to experience what learning at an actual school is like, and it’s quite difficult to keep up with work, but I think I’ve been managing well. It’s interesting and helpful for my learning to go back and review some subjects in math.
It was fun because I got to use my brain to imagine 3D shapes.
I also worked on unit 6 for NVOL about 3D shapes.
Hi Ethan and family,
It’s wonderful to hear that your efforts in your math and science courses are continuing to feel valuable to you, and that you’re finding the courses a good challenge and good learning experience. It’s exciting you could finish up the math 8 by spring break. I think whether you can enroll in math 9 this school year will depend on NVOL; usually you’re only allowed to take two courses at another school per school year. I’m interested in the structure of the Science 8 class where you spend weeks doing the learning guide before embarking on assignments; do let me know what you think of this structure for the course later in the year. I hope you do get the chance to go do experiments in the school lab; that would be an amazing opportunity. It’s great to hear you’re getting to learn about cells; that’s one of my (many) favourite areas of science. What did you find most interesting to learn about cells and bacteria? There’s a Building Blocks of Life: Cells and Genes topic in the Learning Experience Library that might have some resources if you’d like to follow up on anything, or you’re always welcome to ask me any questions you have and I love giving or finding answers.
You’re taking on many leadership responsibilities lately, and I think helping the little kids at taekwondo would be so much fun. It sounds like you stepped into a leadership role in your orchestra too, taking on first and second violin parts and playing more loudly to model the skills for others. How are you feeling about the new orchestra responsibilities — are they completely welcome, or do you have mixed feelings?
I’d heard that Sesame Street is introducing its first Asian muppet. For a show that is regularly praised for its representations of diversity, this seems long overdue. I think it’s good that Currents 4 Kids’ coverage of current events includes pop culture news like this, because popular children’s tv shows really do have an impact on society. Can you think of anything you saw in children’s media as a younger kid that you think influenced your perception of the world (in either positive or negative ways)?
Thank you for your Observing for Learning.
Best,
Shannon
We wanted to share some observations from the past couple of weeks.
Online Math 8 and Science 8
As Ethan has shared in his weekly observations, he’s been taking Math 8 and Science 8 courses. We’ve been quite pleased with how much he seems to enjoy the classes, as they have been challenging but also rewarding for him.
Recently, we had a meeting with both the Math 8 teacher and the Science 8 teacher as it was time for the first semester’s reporting period.
We found out from the math teacher that Ethan is ahead of schedule in the course and could potentially complete Math 8 around Spring Break. Ethan can enrol in Math 9 when he has completed Math 8, and it seems like he is eager to do so.
Science 8 has taken more time to get through because it is quite detailed in terms of the topics. Once Ethan completes the Learning Guide, he can then move onto the actual course work. The course work will follow the Learning Guide that Ethan is making, but will include assignments and quizzes.
The science teacher mentioned that there will be an opportunity to do in-person science activities in the school’s science lab, which is very exciting. We have been wanting to find a way for Ethan to do science experiments or activities, so hearing that this would be possible was great news.
We have quite enjoyed seeing how much Ethan likes taking these school courses. We feel that the courses have been a great complement to what Ethan is doing with SelfDesign.
Taekwondo Leadership
The taekwondo leadership program has been a great way for Ethan to do something different from his daily routine and he has been really enjoying the program. He was very excited to volunteer for the first time to help the younger students. We can see how proud he is to be a leader.
He is also excited that there will be a Christmas dinner for the leadership team members, as it will be the first time he will be attending this type of event.
Concert Strings
We have been hearing from Ethan that during rehearsals, the teacher has mentioned to the group that they should watch how Ethan plays in order to play the correct way. Ethan has also been asked to switch between playing first violin and second violin so that the other members can follow how Ethan plays.
The online courses, taekwondo leadership program and what’s happened lately at his symphony program have been good for developing Ethan’s self-confidence. These experiences have also helped him stay motivated and want to continue learning and improving.
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