FlexFriday

 

What were the odds that two FlexSchool students, on two different Halloween hikes, in two different states, would each gently catch and release a praying mantis at about the same time? Also spotted on FlexFriday: A frog, a snake, horses, ducks and turtles -- not to mention a PacMan, a Pokeball, a JoJo Siwa impersonator, the grim reaper and more! Berkeley Heights students visited the Loantaka Brook Reservation, while Bronxville students visited Rockefeller State Park Preserve, and a festive fall day was had by all!

Can you use this hint…

...to solve this language puzzle?

There was instant rapport between FlexSchool students and visiting Yale University linguistics student Evan Hochstein, who joined us virtually from Austin, Texas on April 24, 2020. 

Evan challenged the kids with several puzzles of the sort one might encounter at NACLO (North American Computational Linguistics Open competition) -- an Olympiad-style contest for high schoolers -- and our kids were up to the task!

In fact, some students dove into the puzzles before they’d even received full instructions! 

When Evan, who studies the ancient language of Egyptian, asked if anyone else had a favorite foreign language, he found a room full of kindred spirits:  Our virtual classroom just bubbled over with enthusiasm for an astonishing array of languages, including Japanese, Gaelic, Norwegian, ASL (American Sign Language), Spanish, Indonesian, Mandarin, French, German, Swedish and Latin!

After several highly engaging language puzzles, one student loved the session so much that he spent the afternoon creating his own language! 

Many thanks to Evan for this inspiring and memorable event.

Experiential learning is a cornerstone of the FlexSchool model. So every Friday -- or as we call it, FlexFriday -- our students get out of the classroom and into the world, to make meaningful real-world connections through activities such as field trips, service days and visiting speakers. 

We are happy to report that even in the age of social distancing, FlexSchool has continued to provide this wonderful program on our cloud campus, where our students engage in real time with live guides, instructors and industry professionals, and enjoy fully interactive learning experiences every single week.

Hi FlexSchool families — Kristin from Bronxville here! I have taken our students on every Flex Friday outing since our campus opened this year, and this maple sugaring adventure at Westmoreland Sanctuary in Mt. Kisco, NY was one of my favorite outings yet! There was a time when I had little patience for this time of year, when everything seems cold and dormant, and it feels like it might stay that way forever. Little did I know that just beneath the surface — down in the earth and inside the trees —all sorts of dynamic processes are taking place! And with a little patience and a little effort — if we use the right tools, and tap into just the right spot, at just the right time — there’s so much sweet goodness bubbling up inside, just waiting to spill out! Remind you of anyone we know?
Please check out our Flex Friday videos for a glimpse into the sweet goodness I’m privileged to see bubbling up in our 2E kids every single week. Thanks for reading!