Discovery Year 8. Session 1. Week 3.
In Week 3, Discoverers continued building the systems and habits that will shape their year while beginning to explore some of the bigger questions behind their Hero’s Journeys. Across the week, they considered what it means to master a skill, how people enter a state of deep flow, what makes a community strong, and how they can help one another along the way.
Writers’ Workshop
Writers’ Workshop this week had the Discoverer poets experimenting with two different forms of poetry.
They began with haiku riddles, studying how poets use precise word choices, adjectives, verbs, and sensory details to create a small but vivid picture. Discoverers then drafted their own haikus.
Later, they explored the ode, a poem written to honor and celebrate something meaningful. After reading Pablo Neruda’s Ode to My Socks and identifying poetic devices, the group created an ode together before beginning their own. They experimented with metaphors, descriptive language, and playful ways of expressing appreciation.
Work Cycle
Work Cycle continued to evolve and strengthen this week as Discoverers built the habit of setting SMART goals, working toward them, and reflecting on their progress.
A relaunching of the badge plan gave this work a larger purpose. Rather than viewing badges as simply a list of tasks to complete, Discoverers were challenged to think about what mastery looks like and to set goals based on achieving that mastery. The larger goal is for each step of the journey to build skills and confidence that prepare them for what comes next.
Montessori Works were also relaunched this week, with a focus on how Montessori Works and online practice complement and strengthen each other. The two pathways are designed to support one another: Montessori Work develops understanding and number sense, while online work provides practice, challenge, and fluency. Curiosity was sparked with the conversation, and the Montessori area was full all week.
And to bring more intention to their work time, Discoverers discussed flow, the state of being deeply focused, energized, and engaged in an activity. After sharing their own experiences with flow, they identified factors such as concentration, distraction management, curiosity, and a desire for mastery as things that support flow in the studio.
Community Projects
This week also marked the launch of community projects. Discoverers were introduced to four ways they could contribute to the campus and studios: Library Management & Book Rebinding, Community Garden Revitalization, Studio System Design, and Gamemaking and Idea Creation
Discoverers were then challenged to individually rank the projects from most to least desired, then build an argument for why they are the right choice for their most desired project. Next week, Discoverers will start planning their approach to bettering their community.
Mindfulness and Trust
Mid-week mindfulness gave Discoverers a chance to pause and reset. They practiced box breathing and considered how a simple breath might help them move from frustration or overwhelm back toward a challenge-ready state.
Later, a trust walk gave them a chance to put their community contract into practice. Working in pairs, one learner was blindfolded while the other guided them around campus. The activity required the learners who were guiding to pay close attention and provide enough information to keep their partners safe without overwhelming them.
The debrief connected the experience back to the promises Discoverers make to one another through their contract: being honest, persevering through challenges, and helping one another know when they are on or off course.
Contract Building and Studio Systems
Throughout the week, Discoverers continued strengthening their relationship with the studio contract. They played the Contract Game during closing groups, giving them repeated opportunities to think about the promises they have made and what those promises look like in everyday studio life.
These discussions are beginning to reveal the culture that Discovery is building this year. An example of this is when squads were given the challenge to write and submit a contract line idea to the studio. Working independently, the five squads created two cohesive lines: “I promise to never give up”, and “I promise to respect all beings.”
This week gave Discoverers a glimpse of the larger adventure ahead. They are learning how to use their badge plans as maps, how to enter a state of flow, and how to notice opportunities to make their community better.