We're always looking for themes in ASPIRE 5, and last Friday we went all in with Star Wars Day. The timing was perfect, as we were studying the Sun in science and the Revolutionary War in Humanities. And of course, the latest Star Wars movie is currently setting box office records around the world. We announced our plans to the students a week in advance to start their curiosity and anticipation. It also gave them a week to pick out their Star Wars shirt. Mrs. Fullhart and I kicked around several ideas, and we finally agreed that it would be best if we designed an open work day to give the scholars the flexibility to choose from a set of activities and when they wanted to complete them.
As always, the day started with math. Since we teach different levels, we had separate scavenger hunts that included problems with various Star Wars characters and concepts. After math, we all came together and presented the passport for the day. All scholars had to sign up for the science Bazinga review, which was offered 4 times. The Bazinga game incorporated questions about our Sun, Earth, and Moon unit along with Star Wars trivia. For Humanities, scholars had to complete two assignments from a list. For the first choice, scholars wrote a comparison of R2-D2 and the new BB-8 droid. (Character summaries were provided for students that have not seen any of the movies.) Another choice required the students to create a Star Wars "crawl" in the computer lab that set up the story of the American Revolution. Other students chose to write analogies for Star Wars characters and historical figures from the Revolution. Another option for scholars was to write a letter from Yoda to a character in their Revolutionary War Book Club book. Of course, they had to use "Yoda speak" for this assignment. (Read my blog, you must!) Finally, scholars were challenged to follow the lead of JJ Abrams and George Lucas and write about a "force for change" to help our community. To add to the experience, we had Star Wars door prizes, music, room decorations, coding opportunities, and a trivia contest. Most of the students joined in the fun with a variety of shirts and stories.
Looking back, this was more than just another day with a clever theme. While the Star Wars universe drew the scholars in, the choices required them to think critically, make connections, analyze characters, and consider global issues. Hopefully the scholars will remember the day for a long time, and maybe it will serve as a reminder that learning can be challenging and fun at the same time. We appreciate the support of our Star Wars Day from all of the parents. Stay tuned, because you never know what's next in ASPIRE 5!
