TO REACH THE POLE!
Dear Parents, Teachers, and PEAKers,
It was great to have all the students back after the winter break. They were excited to start
again! We began by finishing the last piece of business in our Island Exploration unit – saying Thank
You. Students were given an opportunity to thank the people who participated in their final event.
They also wrote Thank You notes to our wonderful guest speaker, Kenton Rowe, a photographer for
National Geographic, who gave an amazing presentation on his expedition to the Galapagos
Islands. Students also learned much about the Arctic, the people who explored and settled it, as well
as the great race to be the first to the North Pole.
In the afternoon, we spent a great deal of time looking at an interest topic list. This is a very
complete and broad look at topic possibilities for the individual study unit. After brainstorming
possible ideas, sharing those ideas, and much discussion, students narrowed their list down to a select
few they thought would be interesting. Homework this week is to think about their selections, discuss
topic ideas with parents, and come to PEAK next week with a single topic idea. It will be this topic
that will become the individual study that students will explore, research, and create from.
This week we will be taking the next step in our expedition. With broad topics selected,
students will spend some time webbing ideas. Webbing is a creativity activity that narrows the focus
and breaks down their topic into smaller and more manageable aspects. For example, History can
be split into World, Ancient, North American, etc.; North American History can be separated into
subtopics like The Revolutionary War, Presidents, Famous Explorers, etc.; Famous Explorers could be
then narrowed to Admiral Robert Peary and his multiple attempts to reach the North Pole. It is here
where students will end up with a functional and feasible individual study topic; something they can
use begin gathering resources and start their research.
Students will also be learning about the internet and using it successfully for research purposes.
They will also get creative as they design a dogsled or pair of snowshoes they will then use to track
their progress on our classroom map. It should be a busy and fun week!
This Week’s Activities: (Jan 11th – Jan 15th)
Creativity
Research
Webbing Student will begin to narrow their topic idea down into a more specific
and functional aspect, using a technique called webbing.
What do I want to explore? Students will start the research process for their
focused topic by learning how to do detailed internet research.
Creativity/Intrapers. A Sled of my own! Students will draw/sketch/create a personalized sled that will
be put up on our big expedition map in the classroom. This map will allow
students to gauge their progress in the individual study process.
Heading into the unknown,
Mr. Currier
PEAK Calendar 2016
11
Jim Darcy
Jefferson
Warren
12
Smith
Central
Kessler
13
Four Georgians
Hawthorne
Bryant
14
Broadwater
Rossiter
15
18
19
Smith
Central
Kessler
Jim Darcy
Jefferson
Warren
26
Smith
Central
Kessler
20
Four Georgians
Hawthorne
Bryant
Broadwater
Rossiter
21
22
No PEAK
Early
Dismissal
Records Day
No School
27
Four Georgians
Hawthorne
Bryant
28
Broadwater
Rossiter
29
Feb
1
Jim Darcy
Jefferson
Warren
2
Smith
Central
Kessler
3
Four Georgians
Hawthorne
Bryant
4
Broadwater
Rossiter
5
8
Jim Darcy
Jefferson
Warren
9
Smith
Central
Kessler
10
Four Georgians
Hawthorne
Bryant
11
Broadwater
Rossiter
12
15
16
Smith
Central
Kessler
Jim Darcy
Jefferson
Warren
23
Smith
Central
Kessler
17
Four Georgians
Hawthorne
Bryant
18
Broadwater
Rossiter
19
24
Four Georgians
Hawthorne
Bryant
25
Broadwater
Rossiter
26
Martin Luther
King Holiday
– No School
25
Jim Darcy
Jefferson
Warren
Presidents
Day
– No School
22
Jim Darcy
Jefferson
Warren