Session 6, Week 3
The arrival of spring weather always brings a certain shift in energy to the studios. This week, that “spring in your step” was visible everywhere; from the literal bouncing of feet during transitions to the figurative leap into new challenges. Whether it was the excitement of the outdoors or the internal battle against the distractions of a sunny day, our heroes felt it!
In the Spark Studio
The Sparks truly sprung into action this week with some high-stakes team building. They tackled the tricky challenge of folding a zip-up blanket and the legendary challenge of collapsing a tent back into its bag!
The studio also welcomed some tiny new lives as our baby praying mantises hatched from their egg sac.
We even had a furry visitor: a bunny who preferred snuggling with anyone wearing red (the color of strawberries, of course) and got to practice doing laundry!
During CHOICE Work Cycle, Sparks explored different kinds of energy by collaborating in groups to build protective structures for egg drops. The creative and curious energy in the studio each day as heroes problem solved and tested was wonderful to witness.
We also explored the artist Alberto Giacometti. The question one hero asked how someone could be an artist without using paint, sparked a lovely conversation before the heroes used tin foil to create their own sculptures. Heroes showed incredible determination as they manipulated the foil; it was harder than it looked!
In the Fire Studio
EXPLORE tables have been especially enticing this session. Heroes have built dozens of different molecules at the Happy Atoms table and impressive chain reaction structures at the Keva block table. At the Origami table, heroes have created everything from many generational families of dragons to enough paper weapons to host an epic lunchtime battle. Some heroes have built the self mastery muscles to step away from the EXPLORE tables long enough to complete their other core skill goals through the week. And some heroes are still finding their feet springing right back to those EXPLORE tables, but are finding different levels of success in core skill focus depending on the day!
Through goal-sheet blackouts and a few failed strategies, the heroes reflected on how to overcome resistance next week; some decided to move away from friends, while others committed to “eating the frog” and doing the hard things first. This is the heart of the Hero’s Journey: encountering the obstacle of a beautiful spring day and learning the discipline to stay the course.
Week 3 in BizTown Quest definitely had that spring in your step and a spring in their feet…in a lot of different ways. As heroes gathered for a landing, they spontaneously made a game out synchronizing their feet bouncing left and right.
This week we started thinking about what interests “put a spring in our step”, and how that can lead to a job we enjoy doing.
We started the application process for jobs each hero will have at BizTown. They worked together to figure out what to put on each line, and where to reference information (like their email address).
They reflected about their work ethic, skills, habit of helping others, and what might be a good fit for them from the job openings posted.
We learned about job interview skills like: arriving on time, coming prepared, shaking hands, making eye contact, and strategies to help the interviewer see what we have to offer. Heroes seemed to have a spring in their step approaching their interviews with confidence.
Some heroes ran for office.
During a launch, Heroes were assigned various roles within a group, and then shared how they would use their roles as a team to benefit their community. They loved sharing reasons why being different rather than all being the same matters. The Launch also inspired comments that any age can make a difference in their community – they are not too young!
Thursday is Payday, which always brings excitement – counting earnings, spending on those very tempting miniatures (who doesn’t love miniatures?!), and continuing to build their businesses and community. But what stood out most this week was the trust.
During discussion, Heroes said things like:
“This school is based on trust.”
“We need to make sure no store items are stolen… and that other squads’ items are respected.”
At one point, a stack of cash was left on a table, and another Hero went around asking who it belonged to. Moments like that feel really good to witness. The way they are handling the register, passing responsibility to Family Leaders, and taking ownership — it creates a space where honesty and respect are just part of what we do. And that kind of environment naturally gives everyone a little spring in their step.
In Performance, the shadow box stories are really starting to come to life as Heroes began making their puppet characters. There’s a lot of excitement building as they get ready to add flashlights next week.
And in Creator, there’s a completely different rhythm — calm, focused, and steady. Peaceful music playing, little groups forming to make macramé friendship bracelets, and some Heroes choosing to sit and fully focus on learning a technique on their own. Different kinds of energy this week — some high, some calm — but all really good.
In the DELTA Studio
It continues to be fun to see individual Quests in the Delta Studio. Some heroes sprang into new projects while others are continuing their projects from session 5, and some are finding the distraction of spring hard to ignore.
As the heroes get older and as technology plays a bigger role in their lives, creativity and critical thinking are so important to practice. Launches are a great way to do this:
On Wednesday, the DS had an afternoon field trip to SLC Padel and to Hogan Park. It was a great way to practice both indoor and outdoor recreation in one field trip. Play like this is a wellspring in the midst of all the school work we are doing.
With the mild Spring weather, you can always find some DS heroes having fun outside.
… or inside.
Whether we were making macramé friendship bracelets in a calm and focused Creator session or synchronizing a spontaneous group bounce during a Fire Studio landing, this week reminded us that growth happens in many rhythms. We are learning, we are playing, and we are definitely moving forward with a spring in our step.