Category Archives: Culture

Subject: Freedom and Accountability Part I

November 4, 2013Collaboration, Consequences, Core Skills, Covenants, Culture, Distraction, Eagle Buck-Pts, Excellence-Best You Can Do, Feedback, Guidessandefer

How do we provide Eagles with freedom and accountability?

We started the year with Evidence Tickets, individual examples of work Eagles were asked to publicly post to earn specified privileges. High quality work was praised by Running Partners, who also identified places where more effort was needed.

While this system encouraged accountability, having Evidence Tickets arrive unexpectedly made it feel to Eagles that they weren’t in control of their own schedules.

Now we’ve shifted to Challenge Envelopes, providing a week’s worth of deliverables at a time, allowing Eagles more control over their schedules (a suggested weekly schedule is provided, for reference, but Eagles can disregard this and tackle objectives in any order they want.)

Challenge Envelopes ask Eagles to check their long term Personal Learning Plans to set weekly goals for reading and Newsela (critical reading and critical thinking skills); journaling and No Red Ink (grammar) for writing and Khan Academy for math and learning badges for 21st century skills. Also included are a series of Quest related goals for “writing a bestselling book” and “entrepreneurial skills to help sell the book” once it’s written.

But how do we make sure that Eagles are doing “the best you can do” without reading and grading every assignment? That’s the subject of the next post.

Whew!

October 31, 2013Consequences, Core Skills, Culture, Eagle Buck-Pts, Energy and flow, Excellence-Best You Can Do, Feedback, Guidessandefer

Sometimes it’s helpful to realize just how much work our Eagles get done in an average day and a week.

As one of the Eagles said recently: “It’s hard to explain to friends that I get a lot more work done than they do, even though we don’t have any homework.”

So here’s a sample from today:

Check your Personal Learning Plan and SMART goals to make sure you are on pace with your Khan math, reading and Learning Badge plan for the year.
Finish No Red Ink grammar lessons 3&4 and make a 90 or above on the quiz.
Read the Newsela article on Massive Open Online Courses, score a 90 or above on the critical thinking test and participate in a Socratic discussion. A sample question: “In many countries, cell phones were such new innovation that they “leapfrogged” the old landline technology. If other countries go to “new type schools” while America clings to old style schools, could that be a threat to America?
Do independent research on Darwin; Evolution and Natural Selection and bring a great Socratic question as your entry ticket. While completing an Art lesson in how to draw with the “right side of your brain,” listen to a college level lecture on Darwin. afterwards, participate in a Socratic discussion. A sample question: “What exactly was the “turning point” about Darwin’s theory that made it so

Man is not the center of the universe;
Creatures evolve and change over time or
Those with the best characteristics survive?”

5. Answer the journal question: A rare bird is set to disappear in West Austin because of real estate developments. Given Darwin’s theories, should we pass a law to curtail development and protect this species from going extinct?

6. Write enough in your bestselling book to deliver a minimum of 50% of your rough draft by Friday.

7. Role play how to deliver warm praise and make time to go to the Elementary School and provide “warm praise” to your individual group members.

8. Be sure to clean the studio at the end of the day, since we don’t have a janitor.

Whew! No wonder the day seems to go by so fast!

Eagle Buddies to the Rescue

October 29, 2013Collaboration, Consequences, Covenants, Critiques, Culture, Eagle Buck-Pts, Excellence-Best You Can Do, Feedback, Guidessandefer

Today marked an important turning point for Acton Academy.

Ten Middle School Eagles began guiding in the Elementary School, helping the ES Eagles set and record daily SMART goals. Each SMART goal group will have a learning contract and every Eagle will work hard to remain in Socratic mode and respect the Rules of Engagement.

Most importantly – no adults involved. Eagles guiding Eagles.

Beware Eagle Buck Inflation

October 22, 2013Culture, Eagle Buck-Ptssandefer

Eagle Bucks are the Acton Academy currency. You earn them for brave or kind acts or by delivering excellent work on time; you lose them when a fellow Eagle asks for an Eagle Buck as a consequence for behavior that falls outside the community standards.

Early this year, we made an error by setting the rewards too high on the weekly points tracker. Eagles who were reading several books at a time began ten or more Eagle Bucks a week, where two had been the norm.

Now getting called for an Eagle Buck meant less, because you had plenty to spare. Community intentionality began to suffer. What to do? Just like the Fed, we decided to drain the excess reserves from the system and ask Eagles to trade in old currency for new.

When the new policy was first announced, one Eagle, remembering an economic simulation from last year, cried out: ‘But will that cause the Acton Great Depression?”

Thankfully, it didn’t. We auctioned off the rights to some special desks; Eagles bought cardboard partitions they could use and decorate; a few special Lego creations drew high bids. Inflation plummeted.

Today we exchanged the old currency for a new one, and tightened up the points system for earning new Eagle Bucks. We also adopted a “three strikes” policy, setting serious consequences for Eagles whose behavior repeatedly left them with a negative balance. Then came a Socratic discussion about why Eagle Bucks were so important in our community. some of the responses:

“So we can have our own currency.”

“To provide consequences.”

“To give us self-worth.”

“To reinforce that with freedom comes responsibilities.”

“It’s our system of rewards and punishment.”

“Motivation.”

“To keep us in check.”

“Compensation for our hard work.”

If only American Politicians understood the reasons for a free economy as well. Perhaps someday soon we’ll have a much wiser generation to replace them.

Looking Back; Looking Forward

October 22, 2013Book Publishing, Culture, Entrepreneurship, Hero's Journey, Journey maps, Launches, Questssandefer

Last session seems so far ago. Creating a Learning Community; researching Motivation Heroes; conducting a crisp debate; constructing a Personal Learning Plan for the year.

At times it felt like an all out sprint; at other times frustratingly slow. Some days the community hummed with intensity; other days Lord of the Flies seemed just around the corner. And yet, the Eagles owned it; all of it.

Perhaps it’s fitting we saw the movie Gravity the last day of the session, because looking back, it seemed an out-of-this-world experience.

Now it’s time for Session Two. The overarching question remains the same: “What motivates a Hero?” As a civilization, it seems we know so little about motivation, despite dozens of theories.

This session we tackle Entrepreneurship and Writing a Bestselling Book.

What motivates an entrepreneur to create and innovate? How do you motivate a team? Is it really money that drives the world or the love of using your gifts?

Middle schoolers writing a bestselling book? In nine weeks? Is that really possible?

Most people would say “no.” What a ridiculous idea. But they haven’t met our Eagles.

Out of this world

October 11, 2013Celebration, Culture, Eagle Buck-Pts, Exhibition, Hero's Journey, Motivation Hero Debate, Questssandefer

Work hard; play hard. That was this session’s motto.

Yesterday we worked hard, with the Hero’s Motivation Debate and Personal Learning Plan Exhibition. Today, when the Eagles arrived we announced a surprise: We were all invited to ride the train downtown to see Gravity, a hauntingly beautiful new movie about space, with award winning cinematography.

A perfect prelude for Session 4, when we’d be studying the motivational effects of “feeling small” – standing on the edge of the universe as we build rockets, versus “feeling big” as we explore a microscopic world and perform chemistry experiments.

There was a twist with today’s trip, however. The Eagles paid for the outing, popcorn, lunch and drinks with the Eagle Bucks they’d accumulated during the semester.

A “well earned” celebration indeed.

And the winners are….

October 11, 2013Celebration, Culture, Exhibition, Motivation Hero Debate, Questssandefer

The big day finally arrives…Freud vs Jung; Machiavelli vs Victor Frankl; Plato vs Carol Dweck. Some of the world’s foremost experts in motivation stand toe to toe, debating which theory best describes human behavior.

Tension was high with last minute preparations.

The opening: rock, paper, scissors to see who goes first. The Opener has two minutes “in the box” minimum to begin; three maximum. The Challenger follows. Each then has two minutes to rebut and another one minute to close.

The pace was fast; the barbs sharp. Allegations of logical fallacies were as thick as the ethos; pathos and logos. But in the end, only one Motivation Hero would be the winner for each pair.

After the debates, each Eagle has two minutes to show his or her Personal Learning Plan, an electronic portfolio that describes an individualized learning plan for the year – created by the Eagle.

Parents and visitors then tour the studio looking at writing samples and displays of individual work.

Who won? It would be easy to every Eagle, because there was so much learning. But at Acton Academy, just as in the real world, not everyone gets a trophy. Failure is just too big a part of learning to ignore.

In the debrief, the question was asked: Do we want to equip and inspire successful Eagles or Eagles who succeed and fail? The Eagles unanimously supported the latter, and firmly rejected the idea that everyone should win an award. Our Eagles know they are preparing for the real world.

In the debrief, Eagles describe three kinds of failures:

When you prepare all you can and leave everything on the field, but come up short;
When you prepare all you can, but make some mistake that costs you a victory;
When you don’t put your heart into preparing, and aren’t ready to compete.

The first type of failure is noble; you can’t ask for more. The second is a learning opportunity. The third happens and should be acknowledged, but never excused.

Newsflash: A Guide is About to Answer a Question!

October 6, 2013Badges, Celebration, Culture, Guidessandefer

But first, a congratulatory shout out to the nine Eagles who earned their Independent Learner Badges over the past month. We celebrated them in a special school-wide ceremony Friday morning. There are only 7 pictured below because two were pursuing dreams off-campus that day; Eagles lead busy lives!

Though there will never be homework assigned at Acton, completing the missions and challenges to earn the Badge involved making time at home for things like baking bread and doing research to pitch a trip, garden or new pet to their family. These Eagles have proven their ability to work independently, analyze information, solve problems by themselves, and follow instructions carefully.

These nine now join seven other Middle School Eagles (and one in the ES!) in working towards earning the next badge in the series, the Running Partner Badge. They will learn how to help others set goals and identify and reach for their greatest dreams; they will learn how to have difficult conversations, how to set a relational covenant, and much more. Some of this work will be done while guiding younger Eagles in the elementary school, an exciting development for our student-centric community. The Badges are a crucial part of the work Eagles do at Acton. If you haven’t, consider asking your child which badge challenge they’re currently working on, which has been their favorite, which has been the hardest. The standard for “passing” each challenge is that the Eagle certifies they’ve done their very best work.

Okay, so about that question mentioned in the title. In the middle school you’ll hear, “Guides don’t answer questions,” sometimes many times each day. A bit sassy perhaps, but never meant to be discouraging or indifferent. The polar opposite, in fact: it’s a gesture of deep respect. In the studio on Friday, Eagles discussed the role of Guides. One offered that the most important thing a Guide can do is “to set up guidelines then sit back and let the classroom function on its own”. Another wrote that Guides should “ready us so we can turn the classroom into a student-run studio”. Many thought that for Guides to keep their promises to the Acton students and parents was the most important thing.

One promise we make to the families is that we believe each child is a genius capable of changing the world in their won unique way. But answering a question says that we don’t trust them to be able to come up with their own best answer, to engage in the potent thinking, research and analysis we believe each of them are capable of, or to learn from their mistakes.

Eagles, the number one reason WHY Guides won’t answer your question is…. drum roll, please…. we absolutely positively 100 percent completely respect your intelligence.

( Okay Gage, you got me. I answered that one. But never again!)

Slouching towards intentionality

October 4, 2013Consequences, Covenants, Culture, Distraction, Eagle Buck-Pts, Guides, Troublesandefer

Don’t let anyone kid you that building a self governing learning community is easy – for adults or middle school Eagles.

We’re still struggling with intentionality, and the Eagles not living up to the promises they made to each other.

Finally, noise became such a problem that it started distracting the elementary Eagles below, so we gave our neighbors the right to take 24 Eagle Bucks and a Mason Break/Charlie Break away anytime they are disturbed.

Yesterday, a “red card” signalling a violation was deliver on two occasions. 48 Eagle Bucks – ouch! We’ll see if these natural consequences from violating a neighbor’s property rights will help.

We also realized it was a mistake to make it too easy to earn Eagle Bucks, which takes away the sting of losing one for poor choices. So we’re making Eagle Bucks harder to earn in the future and asking anyone with more than ten Eagle Bucks to cash them in ( one Eagles Buck = $1) to buy something fun for their classmates.

Despite our struggles, lots of powerful learning taking place:

After hearing that we’re draining Eagle Buck liquidity from the financial system, one Eagle, remembering the “inflation game” from last year, asked: “Will this cause an Eagle Buck Great Depression?”

A parent sent this:”Last night, <our daughter> told us ‘I have just realized something so interesting and special! Did you know that so far NONE of the guides have taught me anything … It’s ME, I am learning everything on my own , all on my own?'”

Lots of collaboration in preparation for the Personal Learning Plan Exhibition and Debate next week.

Today we received a gift of some terrific books, and Eagles swarmed around the box, eager for new reading.

Next step – draft a clear contract between each Guide and each Eagle – something we should have done long ago.

Nothing concentrates the mind like a…

October 3, 2013Consequences, Covenants, Culture, Energy and flow, Excellence-Best You Can Do, Exhibition, Personal Learning Plan, Questssandefer

Nothing concentrates the mind like a public exhibition.

Samuel Johnson said: “Depend upon it, sir, when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind …”

In this same spirit, the air is sizzling in anticipation for next Thursday’s Motivation Hero Debate and Personal Learning Plan exhibition. Nothing like having to perform in public to motivate an Eagle.

Today, we upped the ante with the following Personal Learning Plan Challenge:

“Eagles,

Do you want to impress your parents and friends with your Personal Learning Plan (“PLP”)?
Do you want to “prove what you can do” to land an exciting apprenticeship this spring? or
Would you just like an Ice Cream Party next Friday to celebrate the end of the session?

Here’s the deal: If everyone meets the requirements below, we’ll have an Ice Cream Party next Friday afternoon. You can even invite the Elementary Eagles to attend if you throw in 40 Eagle Bucks to pay for their ice cream.

All returning Middle School Eagles have to send an email (vetted by another Eagle or Running Partner for grammar) to the entrepreneur or manager who sponsored your apprenticeship with a “thank you for what you inspired me to do this year at Acton” note AND a link to your PLP by next Friday at 10 AM (copy Ms Abgail).

All Eagles new to the MS need to send an email note to your Running Partner’s parents saying “look what my Running Partner inspired me to do,” including a link to your PLP.

Each Eagle’s Running Partner must certify that your Personal Learning Plan has met the minimum recommended requirements, including the Evidence Tickets for each area below, presented in a clear and attractive way:

Math deadlines for Pre-Algebra and the next math challenge (Algebra; Geometry; Trig)
Reading goals;
Writing goals, including typed versions of your three best journaling examples.
Civilization goals;
Learning Badge goals
At least eight MyHJ tickets, including: Gifts; Flow; Opportunities and Injustices; Eulogy and Epitaph; My Heroes; My Three Apprenticeships;
For your Motivation Hero Debate: at least one of the Mentor Text analyses; your final written presentation and at least one of the written video analyses.

Note: As part of the PLP Contest, every parent will receive: (1) a schedule comparing your commitments for this coming year in reading, writing, math and Learning Badges to your classmates; (2) a complete copy of all of the Evidence Tickets for the session; and (3) the minimum requirements listed above, so they can have more perspective on the work you’ve done this semester.

Please feel free to revisit and update your plans – especially for Math and Learning Badges.”

Making promises – to yourself and people you respect. Public exhibitions, even when it’s hard, because real world consequences prepare heroes for the real world. Special celebrations, because hard work and fun are not mutually exclusive.

Spotted: an Entire Colony of Bigfoots!

October 2, 2013Acton Academy Expansion, Culture, Energy and flowsandefer

Reported in today’s Edsurge is the sighting of Bigfoot – defined as “spotting kids learning at their own pace.”

According to the article, students mastering skills at their own pace is so rare that few educators can claim to have “seen it in the wild.”

Seriously? Lots of what we do at Acton Academy is hard. But convincing Eagles to soar at their own pace isn’t one of them.

So for those of you who like to chase legendary creatures, here’s an entire colony of Bigfoots.

Perhaps next we’ll go in search of the Loch Ness Monster – Eagles guiding Eagles without an adult in the room.

PS. If we went looking for educational Unicorns next, what would these beasts represent? Extra credit for the best submission. (Whoops, I forgot that Guides don’t award credits. Must be the influence of a misspent educational youth.)

The Perils of Leadership

October 1, 2013Consequences, Covenants, Culture, Eagle Buck-Pts, Town Hall, Troublesandefer

Today was the first Town Hall meeting of the new Council. Let’s just say it was a little rocky.

During the meeting, the Council gave into the demands of a few loud voices calling for the easing of standards. Allowing music back into the classroom. Voting out the existence of Evidence Tickets (voluntary examples of work designed to help Eagles manage their many commitments.)

Bread and Circuses would have come next. Except the Council doesn’t have such broad authority.

There is a signed covenant covering music – parental approval is required. Plus the Eagles already have failed to hold each other accountable for music distractions – another violation of a covenant they had promised to uphold, and already forgotten.

Evidence Tickets are a part of the curriculum, which Guides have the right to design and propose until Eagles take on the responsibility of creating their own courses.

So later in the afternoon, the Council had to apologize to their constituents for failing to do the hard work and preparation required to be leaders, and for allowing the Eagles to take that first slippery step towards a lowest common denominator.

The first real lesson of leadership.

Sleepy geniuses

September 28, 2013Collaboration, Culture, Smart Goalssandefer

Friday morning, and everyone’s tired. Yet the Eagles lean in. They show up. They do what they said they’d do- they are present and real. Fridays are a big day for the Running Partner relationship. SMART goals set on Monday are reconciled with achievements made or missed; points are tallied. Running partners sit next to each other to optimize encouragement and accountability.

We’re asking questions about motivation all year long. This morning, we opened with a look at the Latin root – “mot”, meaning “move”- and discussed whether a person is better moved by a push, from a pull, or from the momentum of someone beside them moving in the same direction.

At closing, another question: what should I blog about this weekend? “Clean-up; we’re really get good at that,” one Eagle suggested (parents please take note!).

“Collaboration. It’s been very intentional and we are a lot smarter when we work together and learn from each other,” another offered.

“The DANCE!” Lillian begged, meaning of course the Carl Rogers dance (you’ll learn more at the Motivation Heroes debate on Oct. 10th….).

But the number one most popular answer to “what should I blog about?” was….. Poker!!! Have a great weekend, and try not to lose too many eagle Bucks to Jack.

Dad, can I go back to school? It’s boring at home.

September 26, 2013Culture, Hero Story, Hero's Journeysandefer

Today an Eagle broke her collar bone. It was a simple game of tag; then feet tangled, followed by an awkward fall and a cry of pain.

After an hour or so at the emergency room, it was time to go home. Except the young Eagle asked: “Dad, can I go back to school?”

“Back to school,” the father replied, “but you need to go home and rest.”

“It’s boring at home. And I don’t want to miss something important.”

So back to Acton it was. Only this time, no tag. At least for a few weeks.

Working ourselves out of a job

September 26, 2013Guides, Socratic, Uncategorizedsandefer

At closing, Eagles responded to the question: What’s one thing you want to make sure any observer at Acton takes away, one thing they must keep in mind if they plan to open their own schools?

Several alumni volunteered “Our intentionality when we’re working; we can work hard and focus and get into flow”. One 6th grader said, “Children must not be underestimated!”. “They should get a council,” an 8th grader offered, quickly clarifying that he meant that the students should organize their own government immediately, and not that the observers should hire attorneys. Then a new Eagle spoke up. The most important take away should be… “Guides are not teachers!” she declared. So what’s the difference? “Guides don’t answer questions.”

Really? Is that the only difference? Another Eagle added, “Yeah, new Actons shouldn’t even hire Guides. We can go there and show the students how to make their schools work.”

A show of hands to gauge interest in how many Eagles would be interested in actually doing that, perhaps as a pre-requisite for graduating from middle school or as a project in high school yielded a practically unanimous, very enthusiastic, yet notably serious and almost somber “Yea”.

After that, The Eagles played poker to determine who’d get to be the first Acton Ambassador to help open a new school. Okay…. not; this was during a Charlie Break. Parents, those are Eagle Bucks, not Benjamins.

Though Guides don’t say much, we do listen, and when we hear, “I see your five and I’ll raise you thirty,”

Can We Try an Experiment?

September 25, 2013Culture, Hero's Journey, Independent Learner, Sciencesandefer

Today an Eagle asked if he could try an experiment about motivation (Our overarching question for the year is: “What motivates a hero?”)

Our Eagle was was curious how caffeine and sugar affected motivation. So with the permission of parents, he wanted to offer each Eagle a six ounce cup of coffee at the start of the day.

In a blind test, some Eagles would get caffeinated coffee, others decaf. Some Eagles would get natural sugar; others artificial sugar. Eagles would be asked to track their motivation levels and accomplishments during the day. The results would be discussed and published.

Suddenly the questions began. About getting permission. Setting up the trial. Whether subjective or objective results would be more important to track. Whether their was a large enough sample size.

A curious twelve year old. Proposing a real experiment. Debating the structure of the experiment and the questions that should be asked of classmates.

This is how real scientists are equipped and inspired.

Life Isn’t Fair

September 24, 2013Consequences, Core Skills, Culture, Energy and flow, Excellence-Best You Can Do, Guidessandefer

We’ve got a new way to encourage excellence at Acton.

Eagles manage several projects at once, with “Evidence Tickets” and deadlines tracked by various Eagle Champions (Math, Reading, Writing, Projects.)

Today we began asking each individual Eagle to post his or her Evidence Ticket on a board, choosing whether they believed it belonged in the top, middle or lower third of the class in terms of quality. Running Partners then either affirmed this judgment with a “check mark” or used an arrow to indicate whether they believed the work deserved to be ranked higher or lower.

This way, all work is displayed publicly. There’s no place to hide. And Running Partner judgments are displayed too. While it’s acceptable to be in the lower third on an assignment, by tracking such self rankings over a long period of time, a Running Partner can ask classmates for support if his or her partner is struggling.

One new middle school Eagle was near tears when his Evidence Ticket wouldn’t print and he missed the deadline, so his ranking wasn’t recorded on the tracking sheet.

“It’s just not fair,” he complained. No, it’s not. Sometimes the dog really does eat your report. Sometimes you get a flat tire on the way to an important interview.

It would have been easy for a Guide to intervene “just this once” and allow the distraught Eagle to post. Instead, we shared stories about how sometimes you do get unlucky and life isn’t fair, but that hard work and perseverance almost always triumph in the end for true heroes.

Real consequences. Even when it’s hard. Even when unfair. Because a caring adult won’t always be around to “fix things,” so you need to learn to pick yourself up and try again.

Time for an intervention ?

September 23, 2013Consequences, Core Skills, Culture, Distraction, Feedback, Guides, Troublesandefer

Friday, not so pretty. Guides are prone to slip, under certain circumstances, into parental mode: almost as if our own parents are about to arrive, and cast judgement upon us.

For one thing, there was rain. What a joy! (Later in the weekend, neighborhood children reported on how their schools went into “lock-down” or that it was an “emergency”… I’m keeping mum on this).

Another thing: on Friday, work that Guides felt should be getting done was not getting done, or more precisely, it was not being logged as accomplished in the ways we expected it should.

So, at Acton, we know that our role as Guides is to very much step back, and hoping that we’ve modeled the standards the Eagles have themselves asked for, give a nod to the Eagles and their huge accomplishment in putting together a set of guidelines for the Studio, and trust that this will all play out in a manner that’s ultimately beneficial to the community.

But Guides are human, and we make mistakes. Mistake number one: neglect to trust. Trust the Eagles, trust yourself.

Mistake number two: don’t rectify mistake number one.

Friday, with concern that the standards of excellence were heading south in a way that would impact the whole Acton community (and affect the plans for the rest of the session), Guides had a quick pow-wow while the Eagles had lunch. Should we re-launch the afternoon and draw some new lines in the sand about what’s necessary and what’s optional? Eagles that hadn’t chosen to set their own goals or deadlines were putting the community at risk, and it might be time for Guides to step in. We should outline the consequences of choosing NOT to to do the work that we’ve asked them to do, and within the time-frame that we’ve created. Right?

Thankfully, wrong.
The intervention needed was actually a guide-to-guide huddle, a quick re-set of the most basic tenets that we adhere to in contract and in spirit, but that can slip without accountability. So after we egged each on to come to the conclusion that it was, surely, time for guides to get parental… we realized that we were suggesting that it’s time for guides to get parental. And the real intervention was Guides using each other as a checkpoint, to make sure that never happens.

Trust, trust, trust.

It will or it won’t be okay, but your best chance to make it work is to TRUST.

The Results Are In

September 21, 2013Culture, Town Hallsandefer

Ten candidates. Ten speeches. Each making promises. Each putting their hearts on the line. Not an easy task during middle school, especially when only three could win.

A few speeches were pedestrian and could have used more work. A few were stellar, even moving.

In the end, it was close, but three leaders were elected by their peers: Mason, Anna and Sara.

Now its time to hand over even more of the responsibilities to the Eagles, because they are ready to lead. The hardest time of the year for Guides is behind us.

An Election Update

September 19, 2013Culture, Eagle Buck-Pts, Town Hallsandefer

Since Eagles run our Studio, Council elections are much more important than at traditional schools. Energy is high as preparations continue for Thursday’s speeches and election.

Today, we combined our overarching question of the year, “What motivates a hero?” with the campaigns by asking: “Can an Acton election be earned or bought?”

The ten Eagles running for office were charged with collecting Eagle Bucks from classmates for violations of the Rules of Engagement or Community Standards (“Can you ask for an Eagle Buck while still being encouraging?”) and allowed to award Eagle bucks for extraordinary acts of kindness or accountability. (“Can you resist the temptation to try and bribe your classmates?”)

The results were impressive. Only a handful of Eagle Bucks were collected or awarded, but the room hummed with energy during Core Skills and Project Time. One Eagle accumulated 35 skills in Khan Academy in a single day.

The Eagle Buck tally was tabulated and displayed along with campaign slogans.

Campaign posters continued to proliferate.

One group began to offer political consulting advice – for an Eagle Buck fee. Another took a poll of likely voters – again, charging for their service.

All of this while still working hard on reading, reading, arithmetic AND finishing writing a Eulogy and Epitaph. Civil society in action. Alexis de Tocqueville would be impressed.

Motivating Voters

September 17, 2013Consequences, Core Skills, Culture, Feedback, Town Hallsandefer

Motivation remains the hot topic at Acton Academy.

We started the day discussing the Personal Learning Plan each Eagle will build for the year. Is it more for Eagles, their parents, those who will hire them for apprenticeships or the world?

Next came a posting of Evidence Tickets, deliverables from the Motivation Hero Debate project. What motivated Eagles the most: a public display of work; force ranking from the top third to the bottom third or having your Running Partner sign off on the quality of your work?

Finally, a discussion about the upcoming Council elections. Since Eagles run the studio, Council members have a critical role. Immediately after ten Eagles were nominated, campaign posters began to appear.

The final question of the day: “What advice about motivating voters would you give to those who are running for Council?” Suggestions ran from the Machiavellian to the mundane.

During Thursday afternoon’s campaign speeches, we’ll see how well the candidates listened.

Inspiration, Intentionality and Excellence

September 17, 2013Consequences, Covenants, Culture, Eagle Buck-Pts, Guides, Town Hallsandefer

The high end prep school of the late 1990’s featured a didactic curriculum and a cadre of well trained teachers. Today that seems, well, so “old school.”

Given the resources available on the internet, crafting a world class curriculum today is more about curation than creation. There’s simply so much great material to choose from, and quite a bit of it is high quality.

Even better, you can equip students to choose challenges for themselves, and order the experiences in a way that appeals to their individual learning styles.

Teacher training is an anachronism too. Peer-to-peer exchanges are far more powerful than having a gaggle of lecturing adults hanging around the teacher’s lounge.

What remains difficult is keeping our Eagles inspired, intentional and aiming for the highest quality work.

Today we tried something different. Taking volunteer Champions, Eagles who would take responsibility for different parts of the studio and learning areas.

Just another experiment in helping young heroes take control of their education.

“We mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our Sacred Honor.”

September 14, 2013Consequences, Covenants, Culturesandefer

On July 4th, 1776 the Founding Fathers sparked a revolution with: “We mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our Sacred Honor.”

Today, our Eagles dedicated themselves to their own revolution, a revolution that promises the freedom to use your own gifts, in a way that brings great joy, to satisfy a deep burning need in the world.

It was not an easy path. Earlier in the week we debated the views of John Locke and Thomas Hobbes, fundamental beliefs about human nature and whether men and women are capable of governing themselves, and if so, what form the self government should take.

The Eagles continued the creation and debate over four documents:

A Contract of Promises that contained their pledges to each other;
Rules of Engagement to encourage healthier Socratic discussions;
Community Standards to create a more civil society; and
A Governance Plan that describes the political contract that will bind them.

The path was not easy, and as the Eagles witnessed in a video about the Declaration of Independence, neither was the founding of America.

At the end of the day, Eagles voted to ratify the covenants and gathered in silence for a signing ceremony.

Each Eagle rose as his or her name was called, placed a sacred object into a community keepsake basket, carefully read each document and added his or her signature.

After the last Eagle had signed, the room erupted into applause and cheers. Our Eagles understand the seriousness of giving your promise and the significance ratifying it with a signature.

It was indeed, a pledge of Sacred Honor. Perhaps even the start of a revolution that will change the world.

Democracy…. it’s complicated

September 13, 2013Collaboration, Consequences, Covenants, Culture, Town Hallsandefer

Democracy. Power to the people! It sounds pretty, but it’s pretty messy.

This week, the 24 (plus a 25th in and out of Skype range) Eagles revisited the Governing Documents created by the very first crop of Middle Schoolers at the beginning of the last school year- the Contract of Promises, the Rules of Engagement, the code of Community Standards and the Student Governance Plan – and took on the task of refining them, revising them, or even tossing them away and starting over from scratch.

They divided into pods of 8; each pod elected a leader; and the leaders listened, took notes, added their opinions judiciously, withheld their opinions judiciously, and provided a calming base for the intense disagreements that frequently arose.

Claire, Nikita and Sarah won deep appreciation (and an Eagle Buck apiece) for their willingness to take on those leadership roles, and their elegance in carrying them out.

It was intense this afternoon. (Picture the Second Constitutional Convention, but with women and a/c. )

The values the Eagles have already adopted- of making clear points in as few words as possible, avoiding repetition, listening respectfully and building on each others’ statements- kept this community forum from turning into an after school event.

(And they actually did have time to clean up afterwards; the resulting Studio was, according to our Clean-Up Champion Anaya Mehta, “almost pristine but with room for improvement”).

Try to get 24 people to agree on anything – anything important, that is, that affects their ability to do the work they’ve chosen and pursue the calling of their choice, to be on their own Hero’s Journey and support those of their Fellow Travelers- and it gets complicated fast. Most adults understand how hard it, even with the perspective of maturity, is to mesh one person’s Journey gracefully with that of another, let alone several or a dozen or two.

At the end of the day, they succeeded- they unanimously passed a set of documents: drawn up by Eagles, argued about by Eagles, approved by Eagles- that they will ceremoniously sign, and sign off on, tomorrow afternoon.

How nice it will be to live under the rule of a benevolent majority… until dissent, the threat of mob rule, and potential tyranny bring everyone back to the Town Hall for another argument. Probably sooner rather than later.

These are times that try Guide’s souls…

September 11, 2013Culture, Guides, Troublesandefer

To steal a line from Thomas Paine: “these are the times that try Guide’s souls.”

The early euphoria of the first week is wearing off. Some students are working hard; others are not. Some are too noisy. The studio is messy, getting messier and beginning to have a slight, unidentifiable, yet sour smell.

If only an adult would step in and bring some order. We need an expert to teach. Eagles need some direction.

Eagles long for such authority, especially the new ones who keep pestering Guides with questions, even if reply is always the same: “Sorry, I’m a Guide, I don’t answer questions. I bet you can figure that out yourself.”

Teaching and learning are not the same thing. Barely correlated most days. Learning requires struggle. And failure. Even when it’s hard to be patient.

A Guide has four important tasks:

1. Applaud great effort;

2. Hold others accountable for their promises; and

3. Design challenges that are difficult and fun, including world class examples and the rules of the game.

The fourth task? That’s the most important one of all. To transfer the first three tasks to Eagles. If we step in as experts or answer questions or solve problems, we destroy the chance for Eagles to learn their own lessons.

Today we’re going to call for Champions, Eagles who are willing to step up and assume a leadership role.

Stay tuned.

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions….

September 10, 2013Culture, Launches, Questssandefer

Work hard. Play hard. What comes next?

Decisions. Or better put, decision strategies.

Having a toolkit of decision strategies – different recipes for solving unstructured problems in different ways — is similar to a carpenter having a hammer, a screwdriver and a saw.

If all you have is a hammer, the whole world looks like a nail. If you have different decision making tools, it increases your chances of solving a difficult problem. And it widens your perspective, so you see more of the world that’s in front of you.

Examples?

Seeing how many “big rocks,” ping pong balls, sand and water you can fit into a container delivers lessons about limits, time, scheduling and the need to decide whether a problem is urgent, important or neither.

Playing a game where you have a limited time to scoop up low and high dollar poker chips from piles located around the room gives you a visceral sense of the 80/20 Pareto rule, and the need for busy entrepreneurs to “focus and shift.”

A challenge that simulates defusing a bomb teaches that some tasks must be done exactly right, requiring an entirely different approach to these types of problems.

Core skills like reading, writing and arithmetic. Fundamental. That’s why Eagles spent three hours this morning in Core Skills “flow.” But in the 21st Century, having a toolkit of decision making skills is every bit as important as mastering Core Skills for heroes who expect to change the world.

Celebrating a Milestone

September 8, 2013Badges, Celebration, Culturesandefer

Friday morning, we gathered along with the Elementary School to mark an big milestone achieved this summer by four Middle School Eagles (and one highly motivated fifth grader!)- the completion of the Independent Learner Badge.
While Eagles don’t suffer homework “assignments”, at Acton they must teach themselves to manage their time, juggle projects, and prioritize. The work involved in gaining the Badges is completely up to the Eagles to organize, and make time for, or not. One aspect of our over-arching Motivation Question for the year will be to explore what motivates them to work so diligently to accomplish the Badge Challenges.

One prediction: witnessing the pride on the faces of those who’ve mastered the Challenges, and the wonder and honor on the faces of their peers as their efforts are applauded by the whole community.

“This is important.”

September 6, 2013Core Skills, Culture, Energy and flow, Feedback, Mathsandefer

During three hours of Core Skills you could have heard a pin drop. The room was alive with energy – directed, serious, purposeful energy.

Likewise the room was humming with intentionality during Project time, as Eagles worked individually and in squads on The Contract of Promises and Rules of Engagement that would govern our learning community.

There was even time for a team building exercise and some reflective reading.

When asked to rate the day, it wasn’t as “fun” as Tuesday and Wednesday, but the results were a solid “5” for importance.

When we asked “Why?,” the response was immediate and unanimous.

“This is the foundation for everything that follows.”

“This school matters.”

“This is the beginning of my Hero’s Journey, so I need to focus and work as hard as it takes.”

Our Eagles understand that what they do matters. A lot. There’s no more important foundation for a learning community that will change the world.

Our first battle cry for 2013-14: “Work hard, play hard.”

September 5, 2013Culture, Launchessandefer

Battle cries for each session at Acton Academy are important. We post them on the front door and refer to them often. Today the Eagles chose our first battle cry: “Work hard, play hard” in a close vote (“Soar” and “Dream ” were popular too.)

We started today with an evolutionary game of Rock, Paper, Scissors, where winners progress from eggs to chickens to dinosaurs to (finally) kings and queens, acting out each part with wild gestures and animal noises.

Why such a silly game? Because it’s OK to be yourself at Acton, and sometimes that means acting with great abandon, even if it risks looking silly.

If Eagles are having fun and know it’s OK to be themselves, they’ll do anything to remain at Acton. Even work harder at learning than they’ve ever worked before.

Next Eagles worked in teams to build the tallest, most profitable and most beautiful Lego tower (reportedly the most popular experience at Harvard Business School orientation.)

Why such a challenge? To learn that teamwork matters. And to experience making difficult cost-benefit decisions under time pressure. Because someday, our Eagles will have to make these decisions when real lives are on the line.

Finally, we introduced Running Partners to affirm and hold each Eagle accountable during Core Skills work in journalling, choosing favorite books and which books to read next and bearing down on math with Khan Academy. Because hard work matters too.

As we learn to work in Running Partner pairs of 2 to 3; Squads of 3 to 4; Discussion Pods of 8; Teams of 12 and a Tribe of 24 Eagles, important and complex 21st century collaboration skills are being absorbed, as if they were a natural part of life.

Having fun is job #1. Working hard follows. So does having a Running Partner who cares enough to hold you accountable and affirm you, through those inevitable dips and struggles. All basic building blocks for a healthy learning community.

Still lots to do, but a great start for our 2013-14 Eagle adventure.

Ready for Liftoff

September 4, 2013Celebration, Culture, Launches, Socraticsandefer

Today was the launch of the new Acton Academy campus, complete with 25 middle school Eagles (of course, counting Ellie, who is on an around-the-world adventure, and will be joining us by Skype.)

So what did we accomplish today?

An icebreaking exercise where Eagles quizzed each other, one-on-one about personal Portfolios and asked their favorite “What motivates a Hero?” question (our overarching question for the year.)
A “comfort zone/challenge zone/panic zone” hands-on experience.
A competitive egg tossing contest, complete with complex cost-benefit calculations.

What, no reading, writing or arithmetic? Well, as a matter of fact, we did work in some Core Skills practice, including starting to re-evaluate Khan Academy’s new dashboard and some journal writing and “reading aloud” to group members (a brave task for some who had never before read their inner thoughts aloud.)

Plus, we practiced launches and Socratic discussions in groups of 24, 12 and 8, just to test the dynamics.

And finally, Eagles self organized for their first (messy) clean up, since they’ll be responsible for most janitorial services (including scrubbing toilets.)

Lots of work for a first day, but our goal these first few weeks is laser focused: To make Acton Academy so much fun that no one ever wants to leave, while setting sky high standards for being a member of the the learning community.

Because once you get this magic right, the rest is easy.

First, you have to want to be here

July 14, 2013Culturesandefer

What’s the first priority when you start a new school? Your students need to love being there.

Acton Academy runs on an (almost) year round schedule, with five or six week sprints, followed by a week off for Eagles and their families. This isn’t a week off for Guides, who are busily preparing curriculum for the next sprint, but I thought I’d use the time to reflect on “lessons learned” so far.

Lesson number one: incarceration is a poor motivator. That means in is that buy-in from students and their families is critical; and especially buy-in from the students. We are blessed to have courageous families who believe in what we are doing, and are willing to live with a “trial and error” approach that corrects mistakes as fast as they (inevitably) occur.

Laura, Abigail, myself and the other Guides do believe that each and every one of our students is a genius, a hero on a hero’s journey, and we’ve taken every opportunity to show students we believe in them.

Students have created the “rules of engagement” and governance procedures for the classroom and contributed many good ideas on scheduling and curriculum. They take pride in knowing that the learning experience belongs to them.

Christmas in July?

July 13, 2013Culturesandefer

Lots of wrapping going on in the classroom today. First, the Eagles got back down to business regarding creating their own and their Running Partners’ portfolio boards for the next session.

That work session was interrupted by a flock of second-grade Eagles, flying in from the ES to demonstrate the best way to wrap electrical cords.

today was only penultimate

July 12, 2013Culture, Eagle Buck-Pts, Hero's Journey, Socraticsandefer

…yet kind of hard to top.
This morning we decided to add an additional mile to the Official Summer Session Tues/Thurs 2-mile outing. An extra mile on the water, that is- paddling around the mysterious island in the wide, easternmost part of Ladybird Lake.

Energized by their morning adventure, the Eagles set to making portfolio boards for themselves and their new Running Partners, to help insure that the new Studio will be a welcoming, joyful space to come together in again this September.

Then it was time for a final bit of reckoning- which Eagle had accrued, and maintained, the highest number of Eagle Bucks this school year? The top three winners got to choose music for the party tomorrow, the flavor of cake we’ll enjoy (thank you, Ellie!) and one other surprise.

This penultimate day of the academic year day ended with a surprisingly rigorous (a guide was surprised, anyway) Socratic discussion about the Hero’s Journey and how best to introduce the concept in a meaningful way to our incoming Eagles in the fall. This penultimate blog post will end with a less Socratic question: can you tell exactly who is tipping whom into the lake??

The Charge of the Acton Brigade

June 29, 2013Culture, Ranch tripCharlie, Hayes, Masonsandefer

After the sunrise ceremony and breakfast at the ranch, it was time for one more round of fun.

The male Eagles had decided to play a game of capture the flag; the female Eagles would be armed with paint guns, laying down a murderous field of fire.

We assembled to read Lord Tennyson’s famous poem:

‘Forward, the Light Brigade!’
Was there a man dismay’d?
Not tho'(though) the soldiers knew
Some one had blunder’d:
Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

The defenders took their position. The cavalry prepared to charge the artillery, even though they knew it was suicidal.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volley’d and thunder’d;
Storm’d at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came thro’ the jaws of Death,
Back from the mouth of Hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.

The slaughter was difficult to watch. Brave Hayes stormed the beach and fell.

Then Brave Mason would grab the flag before falling in a hail of gunshots, that seemed never ending. (Apparently “cease fire” sounds a lot like “keep firing” if you’ve never been to a firing range.)

Brave Charlie would capture the flag too.

Following paintball, more swimming and sack races and watermelon eating down by the swimming hole, until a tired band of Eagles gather up to go home.

It would be the last time the original cast would be together as one; next year we will add twelve new Eagles to the original band, and the following year twelve more.

It was a fitting celebration for our original band of pioneers, one that none of us will ever forget.

Beautiful Souls

June 29, 2013Culture, Hero's Journey, Ranch tripsandefer

After a hayride, Eagles gathered by fireside for s’mores and the first of two ceremonies to close out the year.

Eagles had been asked earlier to draw avatars of themselves. One by one, each Eagle placed his or her avatar in the fire, a act signifying that a mask prepared for the outside world was far less important than your true self.

Just before dinner, each Eagle was asked to collect five objects that stood for a role that mattered to them: Son or Daughter; Brother or Sister; Dancer; Athlete; Actress; Friend. They carried their sacred objects to the campfire.

Heroes often have to make difficult choices and tradeoffs. This night, one by one, Eagles were asked to choose the least important role and throw it into the fire. Then, the second most important role; then the third. With each completion of the circle, the decision became more difficult, as roles like “Friend” or “Brother” that were precious, had to be given up.

The mood was somber; the decisions were being taken very seriously, by serious people, who understood that their lives would matter. Finally, it was down to two roles, one of which had to be thrown into the fire, before declaring the most important role you held in your hand.

Which role was left? For two Eagles, it was “servant to God.” For another: “Compassion.” Still another: “A meaningful life as a hero.” We heard the pledge to be “a good fellow traveler” and another to “make a real difference.” Each Eagle held in his or her hand a role that meant the world to them.

The words were beautiful to hear. Nothing you would ever expect from a group of young adults. After it was over, both Guides were speechless, blessed to have been observers.

Later, one Guide turned to the other: “I have tried to convince myself that these are just ordinary young people – but after what I saw tonight, there’s no way I can still believe that.”

Later that night there would be poker, wagering with points earned earlier in the day, learning more about probabilities and human nature. Plus watching Jurassic Park and playing pranks late into the early morning hours.

Then up at 6 AM for a silent sunrise reflection on a nearby mountaintop: the steep climb reminding each Eagle of how far he or she had come in the last year; the forty mile views a preview of how far each could go.

Each Eagle would leave his or her final symbol on the mountaintop, as a promise to themselves and their fellow travelers of what they would hold most dear.

Acton Academy is open to all students; Acton Academy accepts only gifted students; gifted students with beautiful souls.

Closing Out With a Celebration

June 29, 2013Collaboration, Launches, Psychology Quest, Ranch trip, UncategorizedClaire, Ellie, Hayes, Jack, Sarahsandefer

On Thursday and Friday, we symbolically closed out the year as we started, with a ranch trip.

The first activities were three real world math experiments, designed by Eagles to introduce trigonometry, algebra and geometry.

For trigonometry, teams competed to solve a surveying problem that required calculating the hypotenuse of a right triangle, in order to earn the right to solve a trigonometry puzzle, which revealed the first clues of an algebra puzzle, that involved creating a human Cartesian grid to unearth buried treasure.

Next came a geometry challenge that led new meaning to the term Pi – as contestants had to find the real life area of an apple pie with one slice removed.

Did the math challenges go smoothly? No.

One of the challenges fell apart when a mistake was discovered and the instructions turned out to be confusing. A shouting match broke out between frustrated Eagles, leading to tears.

A disaster? Not at all. Everyone quickly made up and all was forgiven. But what wasn’t forgotten was the importance of prototyping field experiments before introducing them into the wild.

Next came competing on an obstacle course designed with input from the Navy Seals.

Two rules: “no person left behind” and “no one can re-enter the course after finishing.”

These rules put Eagles under stress, because after most had crossed the finish line, one Eagle sat down, “paralyzed” (following secret instructions from the Gamemakers.)

Would the Eagles listen to an adult and refuse to re-eneter the course or go to help their fallen comrade? Of course, most disobeyed the authority figure and rushed to help their fallen Eagle, the same Eagle who had bungled leading the math challenge, carrying him to victory.

Next it was time for swimming and watermelon eating by the river.

After swimming, time to gather five special objects, eat hamburgers and hot dogs and tour the ranch on a hayride looking for wildebeests, buffalo, elk, deer and other wildlife.

In the next post, our final ceremonies.

Heroes and Toilets

June 27, 2013CultureMasonsandefer

Today we reenacted the end of year Hero Celebration for an Eagle Middle Schooler who was out of town for the original ceremony.

We also faced a difficult decision with regard to the new campus. It seems the lowest bid to have daily janitorial service was over $18,000 per year, far above earlier estimates.

The cost could be reduced to $6,000 annually if the complete cleaning was only two days each week, enough savings to offer partial scholarships to several Eagles in the future or keep tuition affordable for everyone. But who would clean bathroom floors and toilets in the interim? The Guides?

Yes, occasionally Guides will be asked to clean, as members of the community. But the bulk of the dirty work between professional cleanings will be done by the Eagles themselves, as part of their ownership of the new studio.

Moms clean toilets. So do entrepreneurs in one person start-ups. So do Heroes-in-Waiting who know that answering a calling requires hard work.

Who knows, maybe a few dorm rooms and apartments will have cleaner bathrooms a few years from now. Or perhaps that’s hoping for too much.

A Dress Rehearsal

June 25, 2013Culture, Portfoliossandefer

Today each MS Eagle presented his or her portfolio to a group of Elementary Eagle volunteers, as a dress rehearsal for showing the portfolios to parents.

Hard individual work. Multiple repetitions and drafts. Doing something that matters to you.

In the end – a new skill. Showing the world what you can do, using an electronic portfolio.

Critiques

June 22, 2013Critiques, Culture, Portfoliossandefer

Next to public expositions, peer based critiques are the most important tool we have to inspire higher and higher standards.

Today the Eagles assembled to critique end of session electronic portfolios.

First the group established the target audiences (potential apprenticeship employers, friends and parents) and criteria by which portfolios would be judged on a 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent) scale:

1. Include examples of excellent work – “the best you can do.”

2. So easy to use that a third grade Eagle could navigate.

3. Lots of variety – Hero’s Journey; Passions; Core Skills; Apprenticeships; Projects and Fun.

4. Multimedia – images, text and video.

5. The five words you’d want the audience to say about you after seeing the portfolio.

Next the Eagles split into two groups, where each presented his or her portfolio and received a 1-5 rating and warm (positive) and cool (“I’d suggest this”) critiques.

The entire group then assembled to listen to the finalists present their portfolios again, provide more warm and cool critiques, and vote for first, second and third place.

The creator of the top rated portfolio (left) spontaneously congratulated the second and third place finishers.

All portfolio creators then returned to the drawing board to use what they had learned to improve their presentations.

Setting their own criteria. Giving and receiving critiques. Choosing the “best work.” Taking what you have learned for another round of improvement. A far better approach to 21st century mastery than having an adult award “A’s” to those who obediently regurgitate answers on a standardized test.

Fun Fridays

June 18, 2013Culturesandefer

Our Eagles are in school while most of their friends are on summer break. So we try to make Fridays extra fun.

So after a morning of Core Skills, we nixed Pizza Friday for a walk down the street to the local food trailers, for a hamburger, a game of touch football and a few minutes down by the lake.

Then later in the afternoon, Game Time.

Having fun at school? Sure, they’ve earned it.

Mood

June 18, 2013Culture, Troublesandefer

Why are Mondays so difficult?

Many days, the intentionality at Acton Academy is intense. Eagles are focused and concentrating so hard that you can feel the brain waves pulsating through the room. Even the extreme silence seems energized.

On these days, it’s easy to feel smug about how well the incentives, contracts and other cultural levers are working. The studio and its owners are a well oiled machine.

Then comes the breakdown. Eagles interrupting “flow” for trivial reasons. One Eagle shouting across the room at another about an Instagram picture from the night before. Horseplay erupts.

Of course, it wasn’t a well oiled machine after all, but a living, breathing organism. Learning is progressing, just not in the way a teacher would decree that it should.

Learning is messy.

A 21st Century Town Hall Meeting

June 13, 2013Culture, Town HallMason, Pacesandefer

Town Hall meetings at Acton are nothing new. Eagles create their own rules of engagement, guidelines and consequences.

Today, an Eagle traveling with his parents for the summer, Skyped in to participate in the discussion, all the way from California.

Welcome to student led education in the 21st Century.

Apprentice Guide – Our Most Important Role

June 13, 2013Culture, Guidessandefer

Next to the Eagles themselves, our Apprentice Guides are the most important people at Acton Academy – far more important than the Lead Guide or Head of School role.

Why? Because we expect each and every Apprentice Guide will run an Acton Academy or a similar school someday soon. So we only hire superstars who believe that each Eagle is going to change the world in a profound way.

Ms Abigail, the Apprentice Guide in the Middle School, has been an oasis of calm in many storms – unflappable, and determined to deflect any question that comes her way, no matter how cunningly crafted. We joke at times about how little Guides do at Acton, but it’s incredibly hard to stay in a pure Socratic mode.

So how do you know when you’ve found the right person? You ask the Eagles.

Humility; vulnerability; a willingness to work extremely hard; a deep caring for people and respect for each and every journey – Eagles can spot these traits far more reliably than adults.

Yesterday our Eagles interviewed a potential Apprentice Guide by listening to his hero story, asking questions and filling out a detailed questionaire afterwards.

Honest customer feedback and involvement. Something all too often lacking in the world of education.

Rapid Prototyping a New Scoreboard

June 11, 2013Culture, Eagle Buck-Pts, Journey mapssandefer

The pictures above may not look like much, but they represent a fascinating experiment.

One team of middle school Eagles is rapid prototyping a new scoreboard for the school – visual displays of SMART goals, Running Partner critiques and examples of work-in-progress for Math, Reading, Writing, MyHJ, Civilization and other projects.

Displaying information in a clean visual format that is easy to use is no simple task – just read Steve Job’s biography to see how hard Apple works on problems like this.

Yet our team of Eagles is working diligently to collect customer feedback, mock up prototypes and hold Socratic discussions to create increasingly powerful displays.

Rapid prototyping. Without doubt a 21st century skill.

Summer: Intentional Celebration

June 7, 2013Culture, Hero's Journey, Independent LearnerCharlie, Ellie, Hayessandefer

At Acton Academy, we see the summer session as six weeks of intentional celebration.

Yesterday, three middle schoolers were awarded Independent Learner badges in a school wide ceremony, symbolizing that they had completed all of the challenges necessary to become an Independent Learner. An elementary Eagle received his Independent Learner binder during the ceremony, signifying that he had completed all of the math, reading, writing and critical thinking prerequisites needed to start work on his Independent Learner challenges.

The Independent Learner; Running Partner; Socratic Guide; Project Leader and even more senior learning badges present challenges that Eagles need to master to run their own companies and not-for-profits. Each badge earned is a big event at Acton, and worthy of a celebration.

Intentional celebration can be just pure fun too, especially since Eagles are still learning long after most traditional schools have dismissed for the summer.

Today was “Crazy Hair” day, with the middle schoolers inviting the elementary Eagles over to serve them a surprise Ice Cream sundae party.

Learning can be fun and hard at the same time. It also can be intentional and celebrated — just like a Hero’s Journey.

Syllabi versus Quests

June 7, 2013Culture, Guides, Hero's Journey, Questssandefer

A battle is raging over the Common Core curriculum, a nationwide effort to deliver a standardized syllabus to every teacher in America.

Yesterday, I asked our middle school Eagles how soon they would be comfortable designing their own Learning Quests, the series of real world challenges, set in a compelling narrative, that Acton Eagles use to acquire world skills and “learn to be” lessons.

“Probably a year and a half,” replied one, “I need to see a few more examples.”

“More like a year,” answered another, “if we made it a priority.”

“We could do it now,” chirped a third, “it just wouldn’t be our best work.”

Government committees, decreeing standardized lessons, designed to allow teachers in a classroom to deliver facts, at a cost of over $10,000 per student per year.

Aspiring heroes, creating their own personalized quests, full of real world challenges, guiding each other and preparing for paying apprenticeships, at a cost of $1500 per student per year.

Care to wager which approach creates more 21st century leaders?

Learning on the fly in the 21st century

June 6, 2013Collaboration, Covenants, Culturesandefer

Overheard at Acton Academy middle school yesterday:

Student #1 to his Running Partner: “I’m going to be in California for the next two weeks, but we’ve got lots of work to do, so we’ll need to be holding each other accountable while I’m gone. How would you like to keep in touch: email, text, Skype, by phone or some other way?”

Running Partner :”Email would work best. Let me give you my personal email because I check it more often than the school address. We can Skype too, if we need to discuss something in real time.”

Twelve year olds. Learning while on family vacation. Affirming and holding each other accountable from 1,500 miles away.

Welcome to the future.

Why read?

June 5, 2013Core Skills, Culture, Guides, Reading, Socraticsandefer

One of this session’s projects is: “How do I choose what to read next?”

Eagles were asked to select favorite subjects, genres, time periods and heroes that might assist in choosing a “next book,” as well as being introduced to ways to analyze titles, first sentences and table of contents as a guide to style and voice.

Then, silence. Not much energy. Little interest.

“Why go to so much trouble,” one Eagle asked, “when you simply can read what you enjoy?”

“What about when you need to learn to do something?”.

“Usually it’s easier to watch a You Tube or try a simulation,” came the reply.

Our Eagles read a lot. Half the class are voracious readers; the other half just avid readers. So this seemingly lackadaisical approach was puzzling.

“What about the classics?,” a Guide pressed.

“We hate the classics. Those are books that teachers used to make us read, so no one likes them.” Many heads nod in agreement.

“What about books like Animal Farm, To Kill a Mockingbird or Frankenstein?”

“Those aren’t classics, those are books we enjoy because they help us on our Hero’s Journey.”

Enjoy. A word like “flow.” It doesn’t mean easy, it means to be delighted or pleased. Like when you love to learn, even if learning is sometimes hard.

Starting the summer

June 5, 2013Core Skills, Culture, Journey maps, Launches, Uncategorizedsandefer

Around June 1st, most schools begin to dismiss for the summer. Not at Acton Academy, where we see the summer session as a time for individual learning projects, reflection on lessons learned during the last ten months and a time for celebration.

The map above reflects our journey for the next six weeks. Much of our energy will be focused on completing the Independent Learner and Running Partner badges and inspiring every Eagle to master Khan’s Arithmetic and Pre-Algebra before school starts again in September.

We’ll also have a “What do I read next?” project that explores how using Amazon, Shelfari and recommendations can help Eagles select and prioritize a powerful reading list.

Eagles also are breaking into teams to tackle one of three mini-projects:

The Math Challenge – for Eagles who have completed pre-Algebra to explore the history, heroes and practical applications of one of the three following areas: Algebra; Geometry or Trigonometry. The Eagles choosing this mini-project will pitch their specialty to the class, and the winner will be the person who convinces the most classmates to choose their particular area of study.

The Scoreboard Challenge – a rapid prototyping exercise to develop and test the displays and tracking tools we will use to set goals, provide inspiration, incite competition, determine priorities and ensure accountability for next year, when we’ll have 26 middle school Eagles.

The Portfolio Challenge – this group will be choosing formats, designing processes and curating blog posts – as well as crafting journal questions — that will allow each individual Eagle to reflect on all that he or she has learned and assemble a powerful online portfolio.

So while many students are at home watching television, our Eagles will be designing 21st century learning tools for next year’s class.

Does not compute. Not!

May 24, 2013After School, Collaboration, Core Skills, CultureEllie, Masonsandefer

“Raise your hand if you’ve done any programing before” ( a smatter) “Raise your hand if you’ve heard of Java Script” (a few) “Raise your hand if you have no idea what I’m talking about” (several) :”That’s okay! We’re here to learn together.”

And Mason then led the wonderful group of 12 mixed-age Eagles, 3rd-7th grade, girls and boys, through a Socratic introduction to Comp Sci, taking well into account that some of the youngest had accrued more expertise than some of the oldest, but staying true to the Acton belief that every child is a genius that can change the world.

The joy the Eagles find in collaboration and the depth of learning that enables are humbling.

The future they will invent, rather than accept, will be a (perhaps complicated for those of us over 30) joy to behold.

Software Frustrations

May 21, 2013Culture, Guidessandefer

Google Earth crashed today for one Eagle, wiping out his carefully recorded tour just before it was ready to post.

Frustrating. Maddening. Makes you want to scream.

As a Guide, you want to swoop in and fix these types of technical problems, because they interfere with learning. But of course, they are part of the messy practice of learning to learn: learning to create back ups; learning to read the directions — and sometimes learning the hardest lesson of all – that life sometimes isn’t fair.

Town Council, Property Rights and the Separation of Powers

May 18, 2013Civilization, Culture, Town Hall, Troublesandefer

An exchange of letters between diplomats. Tension, with the possibility of all out war. Misunderstandings. A flurry of activity within and between the leaders of two democracies. Finally, a peace treaty.

History class? Europe, just prior to World War One? No, just another day at Acton Academy.

It seems that Middle Schoolers are disturbing the peace of Silent Core Skills for Elementary Eagles, especially now that spring has come to Austin and classroom windows are open. Likewise for the Middle Schooler’s Silent Core Skills when the Elementary Eagles are on free time. Plus, disagreements about the intensity of dodge ball and how younger Eagles can be included in Middle School games without the risk of injury.

Town Council meetings can be unruly, even to the point of wasting time – just like real world democracies. But eventually conflicts get worked out, property rights are re-established and civil society is sewn back together, stronger than it was before.

Next fall we’ll grow from twelve Eagles to twenty five in the Middle School. Time to revisit the US Constitution and hold a Socratic Discussion about how the separation of powers might help the Eagles create an even more effective governance system.

It’s one thing to read about the Founders. Quite another to be a Founder yourself, and face their same struggles. No question which approach better prepares the leaders of tomorrow.

“Blood, toil, tears and sweat”

May 16, 2013Communications, Core Skills, Culture, Exhibition, Quests, Smart Goals, Speech Quest, SpeechesMasonsandefer

A young Winston Churchill prepares to address Londoners during the Battle of Britain, 1941. Nothing quite concentrates the mind like a good hanging, unless it’s a fast approaching speech deadline.

The Acton Academy classroom is humming with intentionality. Energy is high. Deadlines are looming. There’s a hint of anxiety in the air – each and every speech must change the world by moving people to action. A high hurdle indeed.

A pause at the end of a busy day and a Guide’s question:

“What will be more important for your long term Hero’s Journey:

Setting and reaching milestones and long range goals?
Planning a trip to anywhere in the world?; or
Delivering a a speech that moves people to action?”

Some of the answers:

“I’ll use goal setting more frequently, and it will be an important skill for my Hero’s Journey.”

“Yes, and being able to plan a trip will come in handy, if I have to travel for my calling.”

“But the technology for trip planning will keep getting better; someday machines may be able to do it. A machine will never be able to give a speech that moves people to action.”

Where will tomorrow’s Churchill’s, JFK’s and Martin Luther Kings come from? Tune in next week for an answer, as a flock of aspiring heroes prepare to give their first world changing speeches.

Intentional Water Fights

May 13, 2013Core Skills, Culture, Hero's Journey, Quests, Speech Questsandefer

Lots of serious intentionality today. During Core Skills, you could feel the brainwaves in the air, made even more serious by complete silence. Eagle Heroes at work.

During PE and lunch, a high energy water fight broke out and continued full force. The far ranging water war became the subject of an Elementary School Town Hall meeting, with younger Eagles split between censuring and joining in the fun.

As Project Time kicked off at 12:30 PM, many Eagles dripping wet. But wet or not, the mood changed back to serious learning. After all, deadlines loomed next week for Hero Speeches, travel budgets, itineraries and Google Earth tours of far off lands. The deep concentration continued until 2:45 PM, broken only by a brief Charlie Break at 2 PM.

When asked about the day’s blog theme, one Eagle suggested “Intentional Water Fights” and heads nodded all around.

Work hard. Play hard. Work hard again. Not a bad motto for becoming a hero who changes the world.

de Tocqueville and Civil Society

May 12, 2013Consequences, Covenants, Culture, Hero's Journey, Smart Goals, Socratic, Town Hallsandefer

A visitor who wants to import the magic of Acton Academy to his school, circled the Eagles to ask the secrets to a strong culture.

Their answers:

1. Strong covenants between students.

2. Eagle Bucks and accountability.

3. A Town Council and Council Meetings that made Eagles, and not adults, responsible for creating and enforcing laws.

4. A belief that “we are all in this together, and not separate tribes like the Stanford Prison experiment.”

5. Socratic discussions where we hold each other accountable for respecting and upholding the discussion process.

6. Daily, weekly and session long SMART goals, where we have the freedom and responsibility for our own learning.

7. Running Partners who are assigned, so you learn to get along with people who are different than you.

8 Faith that we really are heroes, who are going to change the world.

Not only do the Eagles know what makes a strong culture, soon they will be able to build their own, in companies, not-for-profits and community groups. Exactly the kind of everyday heroes that Alexis-de Tocqueville observed in Democracy in America.

Eagles Taking Control

May 10, 2013Collaboration, Core Skills, Covenants, Culture, Guides, Socraticsandefer

Yesterday, we had some important visitors who wanted to see Acton Academy in Action (we now average three to five visiting groups each week.)

After the morning launch, one of our Eagles asked for a moment to propose changes in the way Running Partners collaborate during Silent Core Skills time. Here’s a report from an observer on what happened next:

“An Eagle stepped up to facilitate. He grabbed a white board and refocused the group by reintroducing the topic- Collaboration Requests. He asked for suggestions, listened intently, and wrote them down. When more than one person began talking, he reminded them of the Socratic Rules of Engagement. After a few minutes of discussion, he read the list of suggestions and took a vote. He kept the discussion on topic and was mindful of time. The class came to a unanimous decision in seven minutes.”

A group of middle school students. Recognizing a need to make changes in the way they govern the classroom. Taking control; mindfully discussing; coming to a conclusion and implementing the changes in seven minutes.

Without any help from an adult.

An Acton Academy Riddle

May 8, 2013Culture, Guides, Hero's Journeysandefer

In the last few months, we’ve heard from a dozen or more entrepreneurs and educators who want to open an Acton Academy.

This fall we’ll host a contest/tournament to select between five and ten education-entrepreneurs to open an Acton Academies (or a generic version that doesn’t use the Acton name.)

If you are interested, here’s a riddle that captures the spirit of what we’ll be trying to do.

How can both the following statements be true?

1. Acton Academy is open to all students; and

2. Acton Academy only serves gifted students.

If the answer to the riddle is obvious, you’d make a great Acton parent, Eagle or education-entrepreneur.

Road Work

May 7, 2013Core Skills, Culture, Excellence-Best You Can Do, Hero's Journey, Independent Learner, Math, Troublesandefer

The road gets slippery, and people stumble. How do you get back on track? If you, like the Acton Academy Middle Schoolers, are committed to independent learning and being on a Hero’s Journey, you might refer back to the standards that you have set, dig into the specifics of how those standards look and feel in action, and recommit with deeper intentionality.

The Eagles believe that striving towards excellence is an important part of what defines their community. But what are the signs of that? And how does it feel- what are the symptoms?

Respect topped their list of characteristics that distinguish them from any other group. Nice word, but what does that look like? How does it feel?

After brainstorming specifics, they discussed how to bring these back into the classroom to return the bar to where they prefer it (quite high). So, how’d they do? The group ranked itself at a (low) 3 on a scale of 1-10 coming into the morning. By closing, they’d climbed to an 8-9, and left the classroom with enthusiasm about striving for a 10 tomorrow.

Everyone has off days, and no road is always smooth. The Eagles are learning how to attend to the rough spots, then get right back to the business of their Hero’s Journey. Maybe, some days, that IS the business of their Hero’s Journey.

And speaking of Excellence…. Congratulations to Claire, who became our first Eagle to nail her Khan goal (2.5 weeks ahead of schedule!). She’s looking forward to taking a break from all that math… so she can move on to a couple of weeks of intense computer science. No wonder Hayes commented, “I felt really respected when Claire took the time to help me on math”.

Take me to your leader. (Beeeeepp…. Does not compute?)

May 4, 2013Civilization, Core Skills, Guides, Journalling, Quests, Socratic, Speech Quest, Speeches, Writingsandefer

If a Martian had shown up on campus today and presented that demand, the outcome would vary depending on the moment. Core skills? An elementary school guide who came in to verify the Friday pizza order was amazed at the intensity of the Eagles’ focus. Who led that?

The Socratic discussions during Civilization learning? Well, it depends on which question was put to the group. If it was “If you were a noble during the French Revolution, would you have joined the fight or stayed loyal to the Second Estate?” it would have been Sarah, who came up with the question, which was deemed by her peers to be worthy of discussion. Different question, different student leader.

If our otherworldly visitor had shown up during the journal reflection contest, it would have sought out Claire, who MC’ed the event (after a guide misguidedly tried to tap a student to MC only to be told indignantly that “we’ve already decided who’s doing it”).

Any Mars native who floated in at 2:45 would have been certain that the go-to guy was Crayton, who assembled the troops and set them to task with the surety of General Patton, the notable figure he’s delivering a powerful speech in the shoes of in just a couple more weeks.

And if the Martian had come during Game Time, it would have been certain that the committee of four guests from the elementary school (in the MS to guide our Eagles in learning a rhythm game) was where the power dwells. Happy Friday, and here’s to all the leaders of tomorrow!

We play games.

May 3, 2013Civilization, Core Skills, Critiques, Culture, Quests, Socraticsandefer

Clue, Boggle… Alamo Dodgeball, check. But we also use games to inspire and motivate, to gauge comprehension, and to challenge the Eagles to keep striving towards excellence.
Yesterday the Eagles spent the morning doing core skills as usual, with the added twist of acting as members of the clergy, nobility, bourgeoisie or peasantry of late18th-century France (didn’t take long for a revolution to manifest). In the afternoon, they competed in the Anticipate the Questions game, putting their virtual travel itineraries through a series of fun but grueling real-world troubleshoots.

Thanks to the dad of an incoming Eagle for sharing this article about the latest research on the creaky monarchy of the A-F system: http://www.slate.com/articles/double_x/doublex/2013/05/the_case_against_grades_they_lower_self_esteem_discourage_creativity_and.html
Games, projects and discussions instead of lectures, tests and grades. In the words of King Louis XVI’s advisor, it’s not a revolt, sire, it’s a revolution.