This is OSOTA // Welcome Back Scholars
School started on August 15th and what a welcome back it was!
It could just be our perspective, but it felt like our school’s grand opening.
You know -- the kind where the community comes out in droves to support and to cheer, and to just be on the cutting edge of the very moment that is destined to shape the future?
Whether true or false, we’ve felt that fizzy fuzzy enthusiasm already coming from our parents this year. Yes, you! Your energy has been contagious. Our team senses such positivity, and it’s showing up in the halls and classrooms as scholars are genuinely engaged and ready to tackle the year ahead.
Thank you!
#scholarlife
Last week, you may have caught a clip of #scholarlife in action, and, if you are new to our culture, you may have asked in all sincerity, what - is - going - on?!
It could have been our annual Boo-Hoo breakfast or Mrs. Rice’s balloon challenge, or the STEAM activities where scholars had to work together, with no hands, to stack plastic cups? Maybe it was Dr. Fares' science classes you heard about or your scholar playing with giant bubbles, or Laser Tag for the Summer Learning Bash. Perhaps you signed in to our PTF Facebook group, and saw the live video of our Character House Induction.
To explain...this is OSOTA.
#thisisosota
We are a school that believes in wholehearted education--classrooms are actually discovery labs and daily lessons transcend traditional boundaries. We are keen on celebration and creating peak moments. Our teachers are professional heart-shapers and risk-takers, and they’re 100% comfortable with the unconventional. As a team, we are on a mission to witness, if not create, multiple smiles in one day from your scholar. And already we’ve seen it-- in all grades, Early Childhood - 12th.
Get ready for more because school is in session, and joy is at the forefront.
What does joy really look like in the classroom?
Can it just be measured by the expression of a smile or the excitement of an event? Is joy just a synomym for fun?
Children, even adults, need to experience "the emotion of great delight or happiness caused by something good or satisfying." Boredom at school is not the standard, and it's normal to smile more and to experience good moments where we connect and feel inspired, and want to get to know the people better who create this awesome, almost strange feeling inside us.
Isn't that why we yearn to know more about God, to connect with him because he promises and delivers joy? Joy is not circumstantial; joy is all around us if we dare to capture it.
#everydayjoy
We want you come alongside us and help us spread lots of it this year so our kids can reach up, grab as much as they'd like, hold onto it for a rainy day, and still have enough to give away.
Dare to be all in with us as we amplify creativity this year and anchor your scholars educational experiences in joy!
Be encouraged by your kids laughing, dancing, being up out of their assigned seats, talking during a collaborative lesson, and even praising and worshiping God during chapel this year. This is the life of a scholar at One School of the Arts and we are so very happy that you are part of it.
See our first week of #everyday joy
Interested in what Joy Looks Like in School? Read On!
Joy in School
Steven Wolk
Many of our greatest joys in life are related to our learning, but, unfortunately, most of that learning takes place outside of school. Educators can put more joy into the experience of going to school and get more joy out of working inside school by focusing on several essentials.
Help students find pleasure in learning by giving them the freedom to explore what they love.
Give students some choice in how they will go about their learning and how they will demonstrate their knowledge.
Allow students to create original work, and show off that work.
Give students and teachers time to tinker.
Make school spaces inviting.
Get students—and teachers—outside.
Read good books.
Offer more classes in gym and in the arts.
Use more authentic assessments and student self-assessments.
Get teachers, students, and administrators together from time to time to have some fun