by: Ted Hamm
First Day of School
This is my view of the first day of school. Quiet hallways, empty classrooms; not a teacher or student in sight. But, wait! It is the first day of school! The first day and two weeks are an important part of Étude. We use it to intentionally establish our community and culture for the school year. Today is all about culture, building a safe culture.
Our core mission is to help students to think critically and engage creatively in issues and topics they study as school, but our mission goes on to talk about a human connection. It is a strong emphasis in our schools. We see the human connection as the fundamental aspect of our school mission that provides the foundation for critical thinking and creative engagement. The establishment of it is intentional and as many businesses do, sometimes we need to get people away from the normal setting to establish it. We can’t afford the corporate retreats and high price consultants. For us it's the John Michael Kohler Arts Center or Kiwanis Park and prepping our teachers/advisors the week before, but it still works.
Today our middle schoolers spent most of the day at Kiwanis Park working as an advisory in activities such as Blind Hunter where they guide blindfolded participants to put together a puzzle. The point is to use verbal and non-verbal skills to communicate with one another. Advisories also worked as a team to build a luge course for marbles among many other activities.
Our high schoolers used the JMKAC, Mead Public Library and various parks as resources to explore how they can build a strong culture in their advisories. Through various activities, they developed their advisory cultures. Why? Our high school advisories are the backbone of supporting everyone in our Habits of Professionalism and Habits of Mind, they support each other as they grow in these habits to earn credits, and finally, they support each other as they transition to college or work. Building a cohesive identity is the first step supporting one another and working as a team.
At the end of today, each school reflected on the day. Much was said about the activities, but then other points were made. Walking around the city created time for new friendships to be made. Time was created for teachers and students to connect, and new students started to find a community to belong in.
This is why I like our hallways to be empty on the first day. A school needs time away from the classroom to create a community.
by: Ted Hamm
Sheboygan Makerspace
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by: Ted Hamm
National Arts Education Week: A Look at Dance
Our school is fortunate to be one of the only schools in the area that offers dance as a content area taught during the normal school day. We teach dance Kindergarten through grade 12 and use dance/movement as an art form that used to communicate ideas, as well as, a tool for calming students through our yoga and Movement and Learning work. As people become more sedentary in general, it is important that we find ways throughout a students’ school career to remind them of the powerful impact of movement.
by: Ted Hamm
National Arts in Education Week: The Arts at Étude
As I write this blog, I am surrounded by the sounds of students creating music, the sight of students creating their own dances, and drama students working through their own scripts and improv pieces. At first look, it is a bit chaotic, but after further observation, it is productive chaos. Each student is engaged in doing something; not tacitly learning, but involved in thoughtful dialogue with other students and teachers. The arts inherently do this. The arts engage a child in a holistic approach to learning unlike other subjects. This is why the arts are core to what we do at the schools of the Étude Group. As we kick off National Arts Education Week[https://www.americansforthearts.org/sites/default/files/images/2015/by_program/networks-and-councils/arts_education_network/BILLS-111hconres275enr.pdf] I want to use this week to share with you the transformative impact the arts have played within our schools.
by: Ted Hamm, Director
Revised Daily Schedule at Étude Middle & High School
Dear Étude Middle and High School Families:
by: Ted Hamm
Student Engagement & Academic Growth at Étude Elementary
One cardinal rule we live by in the schools of the Étude Group is Engagement Over Compliance. Engagement a result of our investment in creating inclusive school culture, creating relevant curriculum, and building solid relationships with kids. Compliance, on the other hand, requires kids to follow the rules of others without question or voice. We strive for engagement, and where some compliance is required for schools to function properly, our students participate in developing the rules.
by: Susan Griffiths
ReBlog:Why Kids Need to Move, Touch, and Experience to Learn
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Jacob Olmedo Residency | Winter 2018
by: Ted Hamm
Giving Tuesday
We are forever grateful for the continual support our school community shows us. Today is a day is a day internationally recognized as a day of giving. As you consider participating in Giving Tuesday, we ask that you consider a few ways to support the schools of the Étude Group. As always, we accept donations that help our Expanding Horizons fund. At its core, this fund helps us ensure that all students, regardless of socio-economic status, can access opportunities to further their educational goals. This includes funding for college vis 22852135 10155935150184124 2781729095894290688 n2 its, field experiences that integrate with student projects partial scholarships for international travel, after school programs that support college persistence such as ACT Prep, and opportunities for our students to work with high level professionals. All of these experiences build off of the work done in our school to help our young people after school.
by: Ted Hamm
ReBlog: What Makes a Great School
This blog is part of a monthly series titled ReBlog sharing out articles that speak to the work we are doing in the schools of The Étude Group. Through these reblogs, we want to connect the work being done here in Sheboygan to the national conversation about education.
