How Academy Online Isn't Your Typical Online School

That’s a wrap on our 2019-2020 school year, and with the fourth quarter held fully online, our students adjusted to a new way of learning in just a few weeks! We are proud to showcase some fun, quality projects our students completed over their final quarter. Enjoy!

One of our weekly themes was “Endurance”. Students were presented with a variety of assignments that required focus and perseverance to complete. We received a number of submissions that were creative and inspiring. Check out this “trick shot challenge” from one of our elementary students, where they were to set up a challenging shot and practice endurance until they succeeded at the shot.

The shift to online learning meant exponential opportunities to practice technology! Elementary students learned the ins and outs of iPad apps like iMovie, while learning practical skills like how do laundry! In one Creative Arts course, students created step-by-step presentations to teach others how to properly wash laundry. This was one of our favorites!

Our Jr High students’ backyard gardens are thriving! They’ve been applying what they learned in elementary gardening classes to manage pests with homemade organic sprays, and control weeds with mulching methods like cardboard and wood chips. Way to go students, we are so proud of you!

Also in Jr High, the Nutrition & Meal Prep class, emphasized skills such as proper knife grips, and how to work safely around heat in the kitchen. Their final project was to plan and execute a 3 course meal, documenting both how they used their skills, and the fellowship that was enjoyed on the other side of their efforts!

One of our high school students, Genesis, composed a poem in her Social Studies course reflecting on what they’ve learned in the class.  It was a joy to see students creatively express themselves and the content they had processed through online modules. 

“Life Hacks” was a favorite class with our younger elementary students. Teachers were intentional in embedding STEM skills (geometric shapes) and Language Arts skills (following and articulating step-by-step processes) into fun, creative projects.

In her 8th grade Project Development course, this Jr High student created a product called “No-Dough” to assist her in making bread and cleaning her supplies. This class trained students to create a product that met some need that they had, and could be marketable.

Memorizing and writing scripture is a component of our Language Arts courses. These are some submissions from elementary students!

This Jr High student did an excellent final project for his Visual Arts course! His video showcases the creation process.

And finally, this documentary by one of our upper elementary students blew her teachers away! The students were asked to use the videography and storytelling skills from the Documentary Making to produce a mini-documentary on a subject of their choice, something that was interesting and feasible to do within a 6-week period.

Removing Stress from Reading

Written by Ms. Rachel Nowlin, Kindergarten Lead Teacher

Learning to read can be stressful. It can also be a lot of fun! As a kindergarten teacher at the Academy, I am thankful everyday that we teach individual students how to read, rather than forcing each five and six year old student to fit a predetermined reading mold for which they might not yet be ready. According to the New York Times, few five year olds are even ready to be independent readers. Thinking that a kindergartener who isn’t reading simple books on his or her own is “behind” is stressful and can be detrimental for both the parent and the student. When a child associates reading with stress, they can be less likely to want to try it. 

In kindergarten, reading is made fun! Our students are grouped with other like-minded students to work on the aspects of reading they are ready for. If they crave books, we give them books and they enjoy the challenge! If they are still cementing their letter sounds, we play fun games to help them nail these down. If they are still learning to recognize their letters, we give them lots of exposure through games and activities while making sure that they associate letters with fun so they want to start reading when they’re ready. 

We also don’t load down our students with reading homework they will struggle to do, but we encourage families to spend time together by reading books out loud to their children. Even when kids start to learn how to read, they still want you to read to them. I love hearing from my students about how their parents read them Bible Stories every day at home. They hold on to those memories! Deuteronomy 6:7 talks about the necessity of parents teaching their children about God’s word, “You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.”

I love reading. I grew up reading and still love it. So, it didn’t take long this year for my students to start copying me by saying, “It’s my favorite class - Reading!”

Adventuring Outdoors

ACADEMY FOR G.O.D. OFFERS KINDERGARTENERS OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLORE OUTDOORS

Rubber boots - check. Overalls - check. Outdoor Adventures is a time to figure out just what discoveries there are to be made in the woods.

“It’s time for Outdoor ‘Ventures!" young students cheer on Friday mornings, as they bundle up for their very favorite class of the week. At the Academy for G.O.D., Kindergarteners don their rubber boots and jean overalls, ready to be fully immersed in a woodland experience called Outdoor Adventures.

The 5 and 6 year olds traipse into the back woods of the school’s property, and enjoy a supervised but unstructured time of exploration. Shouts of “Look at this leaf!”, and “I found a beetle!” echo through the trees. One student nervously balances on a slick log. With more body control than she’s ever had to exercise, she makes her way to the end of it and jumps off, triumphant. The fact that it was 6 inches off the ground does nothing to inhibit her joy.

“It’s a really great class for so many reasons.” Kindergarten teacher Rachel Nowlin says, “The kids learn about cause and effect in a natural setting. If they climb on an old, dry log and it cracks, then the next time they find an old log, they know to be careful. They move with much more caution than they do in the classroom, simply because they know there are natural consequences to being out of control.”

As students explore, they record observations they make when they look more closely at the bugs, flowers, and trees they encounter.

Nowlin uses the class as a way to capitalize on healthy curiosity. “Sometimes I’ll have them go find one interesting thing from the woods, and they’ll come back with an unusual leaf, a piece of moss, or a flower, and bring it back to class to make a note in their journals. They are excited to learn how to spell that new word.”

Crossing a shallow creek becomes a lesson on suction, as students giggle and fight to pull their booted feet out of the mud. One young boy compares a jagged stone with a round one smoothed by the water, and runs to find a teacher to ask how that happened. Teachers and aides stand by, ready to ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ over discoveries, but do not interfere with the discovery process.

A study published by NPR has shown that access to nature provides a calming effect, and decreases symptoms of stress. In outdoor activities students tend towards working in groups; they make a task of rolling a giant boulder, or together scale a pile of wood chips, warning each other to be careful and offering a helping hand. These social benefits improve in-class dynamics.

Outdoor Adventures is a class unique to Kindergarteners. After learning to handle themselves in a natural setting, students graduate to other outdoor classes like Coordination & Balance, and Gardening. Maneuvering a wheelbarrow full of compost requires not only coordination and strength, but also the consciousness of when exactly to stop loading up the wheelbarrow. It only takes one spill with a full wheelbarrow to go a little lighter the next time! These classes are natural settings for lessons on self-awareness, humility, and teamwork.  

Far from being less important than more ‘academic’ topics, students at The Academy will continue to enjoy these outdoor classes as part of a holistic approach to education. Whether it’s forging a creek, examining a leaf, or digging a garden bed, students will learn what it means to truly explore the world!