Dear Acton Families,
We are excited to be starting our inaugural 2023-2024 academic year on August 14th!
Our first session will be focused on Building the Tribe. Your learner will spend their first few weeks learning how the studio works, how to come together as a team, and what role they will choose to play within the studio.
When learners create a sense of WE, they are less likely to faction off into US vs THEM. Feeling part of the team, your child will be more inclined to…
👍 Collaborate to overcome obstacles
👍 Encourage others to reach goals
👍 Engage in conflict negotiation
👍 Seek peer advice when encountering an obstacle
👍 Be authentically themselves
👍 Hold themselves and others accountable to the social contract.
During our first few weeks we will 1) play lots of team building games, 2) participate in a teamwork challenge called LipDub, and 3) create a social contract to live by for the rest of the year.
They will also be introduced to our curriculum, badge plan, and the roles that everyone will be expected to play in the studio (for example, Acton guide vs traditional teacher). All of their new knowledge and skills will be on display at the end of the session exhibition, hosted by the learners.
We can’t wait to start this journey with your learner!
Enrolled families – please check your email for important upcoming dates, the parent handbook, and updated academic calendar.
With appreciation and excitement,
Josh and Ally
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The Lip Dub requires the learners to make decisions, problem solve, and get creative together. Their first task will be to choose between two songs, offered by the guides. Then the challenge begins for them to create a music video around the song – all in one filming take, without any cuts – that will be premiered at our first exhibition. See past Acton examples by performing a youtube search “Acton Academy lip dub.” The goal of this activity is not to create a professional quality music video, but to learn how to work together. (Enrolled families: more details will be sent in email)
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The Social Contract is a living document that helps guide the behaviors and choices of our learners within our studio. During these first weeks, our learners will be adding to and enhancing the owner’s Studio Guardrails into a social contract, offering a chance to truly own and influence their studio. The Acton network has proven that learners who engage in this process are more likely to hold themselves and others accountable to standards of positive behaviors, creating a fun, cohesive and equal playing field for all. (Enrolled families: more details will be sent in email)
