Revel Recap: April 22 - 25, 2025
Spark Studio
Mindfulness and Launch
The Sparks started Earth Day outside in the field, working in small groups to complete a scavenger hunt! They had to find items such as a bird nest, dirt, puddles, and rocks. (Many groups also brought their scavenger hunt list to recess!) For Launch on Tuesday, we learned more about Earth Day, which is celebrated on April 22nd and is a day to raise awareness about environmental issues and encourage actions to protect the Earth. It reminded us of the importance of sustainability and inspired us to make eco-friendly choices every day. On Wednesday, yoga was in full action! Everyone got their mats and followed along to a yoga story about Stella the Stick insect. On Thursday, we headed outside to start our day with a high-energy game of tag! Afterwards, we used How's the Water? The Soulness game is a conversation starter. The learners answered, What's something you're holding on to, but should probably let go? and How did it feel joining this circle? To end the week, the Sparks listened to The Grateful Book. Everyone shared something they were grateful for and wrote in their journals after hearing the story.
Quest
After learning about insects last week and having silkworms, butterflies and isopods in the studio, it was time for the Sparks to invent their own insect! On Tuesday, the guides introduced artificial intelligence (AI). They explored the world of AI by learning about how AI creates computer programs that can solve problems, make decisions, and can be improved over time. We also discussed how AI can analyze, recognize patterns, and adapt to new information. Some learners shared they use "Hey Google, Hey Alexa, or Hey Siri." Using ChatGPT, we opened a tab to ask the bot to create a bug for us. We gave it information such as the size, colour, number of wings, antennas and eyes and what shell texture it had. We recognized that some of the designs were missing part of the information provided. This then led to a conversation that we should not always believe everything we see on the internet; we need to think critically and do more research! Next, in pairs, the Sparks filled out a questionnaire. They were asked questions such as, Does your bug have wings, eyes, and antennae? What is its shape, colour and much more? The Sparks then created their insect. When finished, the guides input their answers in ChatGPT so they could compare the images. It was time to get messy and build on Thursday and Friday! The Sparks got down to business using recycled materials and did a wonderful job with papier mache. Once their papier mache bug was dry, they started painting, adding special materials such as sparkles, cotton balls and felt. We are super excited to share their creations at Exhibition!
French
On Tuesday, we designed a Bingo game focused on verbs and on Wednesday, we played our Bingo game to reinforce our learning. Thursday, in the gym, we rolled a die to randomly select a verb or action to mime, and we also played the Colour Game to review colour vocabulary.
Art
The Sparks continued their entomological studies during their art session on Wednesday. They created their own eye-catching 3D "doodlebug" insects. They cut out and folded paper pieces, then glued them together so their bug could stand. They explored the term bilateral symmetry in real insects, and the Guides challenged everyone to mirror their designs on each side of their shells for their doodlebugs. They designed creative patterns for their shells using repeating lines, dots and shapes. This activity required great patience; great job, Sparks!
Math Lab
Group One explored place value using the Montessori golden beads. We practiced splitting numbers into thousands, hundreds, tens, and ones and reviewed each number carefully before moving on. The Sparks were then asked, "What is addition?" and responded, "It's when we put numbers together." Two learners demonstrated this by building numbers with number plates and matching them with beads, then combining them all in a basket to find the total. The Sparks enjoyed working independently afterward, creating and adding numbers with their partners. We'll continue this work next week during independent work periods.
Group Two continued their hands-on learning of multiplication using our beadboard material. This wooden board has one hundred holes arranged in ten rows of ten. There are 100 red beads that the learners used to help them find the answers to multiplication questions. This activity is a concrete tool to help with comprehending and memorizing multiplication facts. They will be working on completing their multiplication table booklet throughout this session.
Reader/Writer
This week, we learned about the digraph sound SH. We brainstormed words we could think of that begin and end with this sound, such as shark, shell, shake, shut, shelf, shine, crash, trash, bash, mash, cash, and lash. After listening to a Scratch Garden song to learn more, the Sparks worked on writing five words that start with SH and five words that end with SH.
Discovery Studio
Mindfulness and Launch
We focused on drawing an Easter bunny holding an egg for Tuesday's mindfulness, and for the first Launch of the week, we met some new studio mates - caterpillars for the Bombyx mori and Vanessa cardui (aka domestic silk moth and Painted Lady Butterfly)! Rebels learned a little about the life cycle we get to observe over the next few weeks, and we decided on a safe and suitable home for these caterpillars as they prepare to molt and pupate. For Wonder Wednesday, the Rebels tackled the daily Wordle and Connections puzzles and solved both this week without running out of chances! For Launch, we continued discussing and planning our Joy Project. Next Wednesday, we will participate in Cleaning the Capital due to the interest of learners! Thursday, we started the day with an option of meditation or yoga. Then at Launch, we practiced, through role-playing activities, how to handle complex friendship situations including; "Would You Like to Play With Us?" — How to invite a classmate who is often alone to join group games, "I Don't Like the Way You Talk to Me" — How to express their feelings when a friend uses a hurtful or harsh tone and "It's Hard to Play With You When You Get So Upset" — How to react when a friend gets upset or has an emotional outburst during a game. For Fun Friday, we played Boomwhackers, beginning with our warm-ups and then Taylor Swift's "You Belong to Me." In Current Events, we delved into stories, including one that stated scientists have found the strongest signs on other planets yet. We also learned that a baby Malayan tapir calf was born on March 29th at the Bioparc Zoo in Fuengirola, Spain, which is excellent news as they are on the endangered species list. Lastly, climate change doesn't appear to be a big topic for the political parties in our federal election, and Margaret Anderson, a 12-year-old from Ottawa, is asking why. The Rebels also agreed that climate change is a big topic that should be central to our election.
Reader/Writer
Aim and Release Rebels decided on an insect or bug of their choice to research for the non-fiction book they will write. Then, they started researching all about their insect and filled out a table with the information they discovered, as well as their sources.
Civilizations
This week's read-aloud was about the Thirteen Colonies coming together and tales of George Washington becoming the first American president. Rebels mapped the thirteen colonies, carefully colouring neighbouring regions to show borders. They also circled New York and starred Washington DC to show their significance. After listening to the way the Constitution was developed, Rebels discussed what was more important: the Constitution or the Bill of Rights (aka amendments)?
Math Lab
Draw and Anchor Rebels completed a series of tasks this week to get ready for their Pictograph Challenge! They first worked with readymade pictographs to explore their keys and counting patterns, as well as negotiate how to represent even and odd numbers. Then, they combed through data about different species of arthropods and added data to tables to keep track of an attribute of their choice. For example, how many legs do various species of centipedes or millipedes have? What is the wingspan of different damsel and dragonflies? To get information about specific species, they also practiced using Google to ask a question, confirm the results with multiple sources, and check that their source is trustworthy by noting whether or not it is Canadian, a government website or an official institution like a museum.
French
This week, the Rebels have been focusing on developing their questioning skills to get to know their friends better. They practiced asking questions such as "What is your biggest dream?" and "What is your favourite dish?" as part of a fun presentation activity. We also worked on a challenge where learners were given descriptions and had to match them with the correct character. This was a great exercise in listening carefully and understanding details. Finally, the learners began creating their own version of the game Guess Who, with a personalized "Rebels Edition!" They took photos of themselves and their classmates to use in the game, which will help them practice asking and answering questions in a fun and interactive way.
Quest
This week's Entomology Quest theme was AI Super Bugs! We built on our understanding of taxonomy from last week by first considering the differences between insects and bugs and noting their special features. While Rebels know the defining traits of the class insecta, they didn't seem sure about what is special about "true bugs" of the order hemiptera. We listened to Jam Campus' "Scientific Classification Song" and practiced saying the seven levels of classification from kingdom down to species before moving on to our design competition! To kick off the contest, we took some time to inspire ourselves with CBC Kids' article about 14 of the weirdest real species and the Lumoraptor iridescens, ak that ChatGPT designed for u” designed for us. Rebels then had to design either a brand new species from their imagination or take two existing species and design some sort of hybrid creature. They were tasked with outlining as many of the seven taxonomic categories as possible and describing their species' behaviour, special abilities, ecological role, and habitat. Rebels shared their finished designs on Wednesday, and we voted on the nine most excellent ones. We then watched a short clip showing examples of symbiosis in nature, including commensalism and parasitism, and discussed special covenants for our papier mâché projects. Then, we partnered up with people we could work well with based on the concept of mutualism (where both parties gain or benefit from the relationship) and what we could do if there were any one-sided (or worse, harmful) partnerships going on. We constructed our species armature on Thursday using all the excellent recyclable donated materials! Many Rebels then added their first layer of papier mâché.
Physical Development
On Tuesday, the PE options were a run outside or Cross Canada in the gym led by a Rebel. On Thursday, we escaped outside to enjoy the beautiful weather and play at the park.
Exploration Studio
Mindfulness and Launch
Tuesday morning, we went for a walk, and then the learners got right to work on Core Skills as we had a shorter week to accomplish our goals. On Wednesday, we learned about the physical, social, cognitive, and emotional changes often occurring during adolescence and puberty. We discussed that for some of us, the changes (which are all normal) may have started already, while for others, the changes may be a few years away. In groups, learners sorted numerous changes into each of the four categories (physical, social, cognitive, and emotional). Learners were reminded of the anonymous Google form for questions and given a handout to take home and review with their guardians. Thursday morning's yoga practice included a sun salutation pattern with two warrior poses! Rebels were invited to whisper the mantra "I am strong" to themselves while they powered through this flow. Upon returning to the studio, learners participated in a game of memory with a partner where they matched up the province or territory name and flag with the capital. Some used atlases to review the capitals they were unsure of, and the mini-lesson helped as they did a great job with the afternoon's Kahoot knowledge check! We started Friday morning with NYT puzzles. The Wordle was tricky, but the Rebels got it on the last guess and finished the Mini and Connections within the time limit. Our Current Events team taught us about Pope Francis' death and the process of choosing a new Pope. They also presented articles discussing what age people should be allowed to vote and new potential signs of life on another planet that scientists have detected!
French
This week, we worked on French homophones — words that sound the same but have very different meanings. The learners engaged in an activity sheet designed to help them better understand these tricky words and practice using them in context. It was a great exercise to build their listening and language skills, and they had fun exploring how even small changes in spelling can change the meaning of words!
Reader/Writer
This week, we examined Chapters 1-12 from Thirst and discussed boiling water advisories for First Nation Communities in Canada. We also learned that some girls and women in India have to walk 6-12km to get water, the equivalent of us walking from Revel to Bayshore and back with a bucket of water every day. We discussed why girls and women were expected to collect the water and how that would affect their lives and ability to have a job or gain an education. At the end of our discussions, Rebels were challenged to learn a new game called Carrom and to write a message in either Pig Latin, Morse Code or using a cipher because, in the book, the siblings write secret messages to each other so their parents won't be able to hear them talking. Next week, we will analyze chapters 13-25.
Math Lab
This week's Math Lab exploration was all about circles and nets! Rebels were invited to try three tasks designed to help visualize and get precise about the perimeter and area of circles, as well as how nets fold together to make solids (or not). As they worked in teams, some Rebels turned to special relationships they knew, such as the perimeter of a circle (or circumference), which is equal to its diameter multiplied by pi. We tried to put words or tools together to explain why this always works, and some teams made flexible paper rulers that showed how you could fit three repetitions of a circle's diameter, plus a little bit extra, on the flattened-out model of the circumference. When we met to discuss their work, one Rebel shared the idea that a unit circle (a circle with a diameter equal to 1) would have the area pi. We then watched a short clip about pizza to try to make sense of this cool constant.
Civilizations
This week, learners began with an annotation lesson, learning to become better researchers by critically reading for interesting facts and asking clarifying questions. It was then time for the Rebels to dig in and research their chosen topics. It was fun to hear several, "I never knew that ______" and "We'll get to see ____ when we are in Quebec City!"
Quest
On Tuesday afternoon, we went outside to conduct our Mentos and Diet Coke experiment. Rebels organized themselves to ensure we had someone to uncap the bottle, another to add the Mentos, another couple of learners to time the reaction, and someone to film for the height of the eruption. As is often the case with experimentation, we witnessed some experimental error as it was challenging to get the larger quantities of Mentos in the bottle before the reaction occurred, skewing the results. Once we were back inside, we watched a thorough video about elements, atoms, molecules and compounds before completing a quick review and sort activity as a studio. On Wednesday, we learned about the various components of chemical reactions! Using visuals and handouts, Rebels learned about coefficients, subscripts, reactants, catalysts, and products before labelling a series of chemical equations. They then learned how to count atoms, utilizing their understanding of coefficients and subscripts. After learning about the Laws of Conservation of Matter, their last challenge of the day was to balance a series of chemical reactions. With the help of an online simulator and a handout, teams worked to balance the reactions, ensuring that there were equal numbers of atoms on the reactant and product sides of the equation. Our last Quest period of the week was dedicated to constructing rockets made from pipe-insulating foam and a rubber band to investigate the trajectory relationship between launch angle and range in a controlled investigation. Teams used a set of instructions to build their rocket, as well as a launcher equipped with a quadrant to track the angle of the launch. They then headed outside to test their rockets and identify which angle provided the farthest trajectory. It was a gorgeous day to take our scientific studies outdoors!
Apprenticeship Prep
This week, learners narrowed down their list of ten apprenticeships to the three they want to start pursuing. We talked about how they should take a "portfolio approach" for this challenge: one "safe" apprenticeship you are nearly certain you can get, even if it's not the most exciting, one "challenge" apprenticeship that will be hard to get but is within reach, and one "dream" apprenticeship you will very likely not get but, hey it is worth a shot! Once they had their three, they were asked to pick one of them to draft an email that included an obvious understanding of the company/organization (product, values, customers, identify the decision maker, etc.). Several Rebels completed their first draft using a provided email template and will receive feedback before either sending their email or drafting another to a second option.
Additional Highlights
With warmer weather in the forecast, the Rebels scheduled an outdoor picnic one afternoon and decided to try to self-organize events like this more often!
Launchpad Studio
Besides working independently on French, Russian, math, coding, biking, and independent music, Launchpad learners were challenged to complete the following coursework, requiring incredible focus and time management.
Children's Business Fair
The learner coordinating the Ottawa Children's Business Fair spent time updating their Kick-Off slideshow this week in preparation for Saturday's online event. On Saturday, she ran an informational session to ensure a smooth day of experience for the entrepreneurs and to give advice to new participants. Great job!
Communication & Literature
Launchpad met on Wednesday to discuss chapters 4 through 7 in The Kite Runner. While reading chapters four and five, learners focused on diction, syntax, and perspective. We learn more about the character's perspective by analyzing the diction and syntax of a character's speech. Hence, Rebels analyzed selected quotes and highlighted some significant words or phrases. Rebels then prepared to discuss what they had learned about the Pashtuns vs. Hazaras, Amir the writer, Amir's mean streak, July 17th, 1973's bloodless coup, the character of Assef, the Hazarajat, and Hassan's surgery. In chapters six and seven, our answers to questions about the novel's foreshadowing were finally revealed. We met to discuss the kite tournament, Hassan's innocence and comparison to a lamb, the tale of Rostam and Sohrab, and lastly, the assault and following guilt. The learners were also introduced to the slow essay approach and given a prompt to ponder as they read the novel. Before meeting on Friday to discuss chapters eight and nine, learners tackled an activity on character complexity. Character complexity is when a character feels two contrasting emotions or does two contrasting actions. The learners brainstormed Amir's emotions and actions so far. Once done, they wrote a claim about Amir's complexity. We then discussed the effects of trauma on the different characters, the role of guilt, the symbolism of the pomegranate tree incident, and Hassan's final sacrifice.
AP Language and Composition
With the AP test a couple of weeks away, our learner used her time to complete a couple of online practice quizzes and work on the essay prompts found last week.
AP Literature and Composition
This week, one learner read the second half of The Great Gatsby and discussed Fitzgerald's critique of the American dream. They also examined two works about the American Dream by Langston Hughes.
AP Biology
This week, our learner followed last week's strategy of reading through the AP Biology textbook, Units 4-6: Cell Communication and Cell Cycle, Heredity, and Gene Expression and Regulation. She then completed the quizzes at the end of each chapter and used each set of flashcards to identify areas for necessary study.
Challenge and Change
One of our Launchpad Rebels learned about globalization and its positive and negative impacts on global economies. They also began a case study of the fictional island nation Veridia, observing the impacts of globalization and imported culture on its previously uncontacted Indigenous peoples.
Potential Discussion Ideas or Questions to Ask Your Rebel:
Spark Studio
What did your AI bug look like compared to your design?
What do you think about AI?
What would you change about your AI bug?
Do you like observing the silkworms or isopods more?
French: How do you say 'To eat' in French? (manger)
Discovery Studio
The last two weeks have been four-day weeks, but your Core Skills goals remained the same. Did you notice? If so, how did you cope with this? Were you in your Comfort, Challenge or Panic Zone?
What new species did you "discover" and design for Quest? What special abilities does it have?
With warmer weather on the way, what time of day would you love to spend outside? (Mindfulness, DEAR, Closings, etc.)
French: Which friend have you chosen to do your presentation about?
Exploration Studio
What are the coefficients, subscripts, reactants, and products in the following chemical reaction?
How do you find the perimeter and area of a circle?
Without cutting and folding a net, can you tell if it would make a complete solid? Why or why not?
How is your Quebec City research project going?
Did you narrow your Top 10 apprenticeship options to three using the portfolio approach (one safe, one challenge, and one dream)?
French: How do you know when to use 'a or 'à'?
Launchpad Studio
The Kite Runner: How are both Amir and Hassan reacting to this trauma? Is it a shared trauma or separate?
With the upcoming AP exams, what can we do to support you as you review?
Which Duke of Edinburgh goal do you enjoy completing most each week: Physical Recreation, Skill, or Voluntary Service?
Important Upcoming Dates
Exploration Field Trip to the Aviation and Space Museum - Friday, May 2nd
Spark and Discovery Field Trip to the Experimental Farm - Friday, May 9th
Session 6 Exhibitions
Discovery and Spark Exhibition - Wednesday, May 14th at 4:15 pm
Exploration Exhibition - Thursday, May 15th at 4:15 pm
Launchpad Field Trip to Room Escape - Friday, May 16th
Sessional Break and Camp - Tuesday, May 20th - Friday, May 23rd