Thrive Room :: Fifth through Seventh Grade
Our Class
The Thrive room is a mixed-age classroom of ten 9-13-year-old students. One question many people have is, “How do you teach to such a wide range of students?” In every classroom, regardless of whether they are same-age or mixed-age, there is a mix of ability levels. Some students thrive more with language arts, while others have strengths in math and science. The same is true in our Thrive classroom. Students are challenged by one another in our inductive curriculum, and most perform at or above their grade level in the core subject areas: literacy, math, social studies, and science.
Our Day
Each morning, Thrive students arrive, check in for attendance, turn in homework assignments, put away their belongings, and begin the day with a 30-minute yoga workout. A one-hour math lab follows yoga, and is divided into whole group, small group, and individual learning sessions each week. After a brief snack break, Thrive students engage in a one-hour literacy lab. Exercises in guided reading (small group, teacher led), spelling/vocabulary/handwriting (individual), and writer's workshop (whole and small group) are included each week. Special projects in subject studies, cultural studies, and independent research are sometimes allotted during literacy lab, which often carries over into the afternoon time slots as well. After an hour recess and lunch break, Thrive students enjoy an afternoon filled with elective classes. Electives offered include strings, music & dance, studio art, nutrition & culinary arts, physical education, library time, project & subject studies, and cultural studies. On alternating Fridays, students enjoy show & share time and school assemblies.
Our Year
Because our school's curriculum is created inductively, students have a say in what they study. This dynamic approach allows students to build upon knowledge that they have already gained (scaffolding), as well as make new connections to the knowledge they want to gain (webbing). Webbing is at the core of our year's curriculum. Students are regularly asked to make webs of the different subject areas to make personal connections to what they are learning (both whole group and individually). It is then the teacher's responsibility to build the curriculum for the term using the scaffolding method-laying the foundation for their research through review, mini-lessons, and whole-group discussions, then guiding the students in their individual and small-group research. Thrive students this year have chosen to study the following topics: Greek mythology, the history of pirates, intro to chemistry, dragons and minotaurs, Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, black holes, artificial intelligence, dinosaur intelligence and newly found species of dinos, rain forests, lagomorphs, the history of the motion picture, the history of cameras, and car manufacturing, Westward Expansion and the Oregon Trail, Abstract-Expressionism in art, Minimalism in music, and topics in current events (the recent election, the financial crisis, advances in technology and global ecology). Whenever possible, web-sessions and class discussions are held to connect these many topics together using webs, timelines, and student presentations.
