PIRATE TERM, RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER

- Jess East and Joletta Yoder collaborate on their Pirate Term offering, TV/Film Media.

- Chris Dvorak and Deb Klingaman put the finishing touches on their Pirate Term offering, Crafters Mission.

The end of the year is fast approaching and with that comes prom, graduation, and starting this year- Pirate Term.  Pirate term is concept based learning opportunity that takes place at the end of the school year (some of you may be familiar with May Term at the college level). Don’t mistake concept based learning as  something that’s only “conceptual” or “fluff” learning- many students will be exploring, designing, building, manufacturing, etc. This type of learning creates connections to students prior experiences and finds relevance.  Students will think beyond the “facts” and connect factual knowledge of ideas to solve problems and create new ideas. Teachers will truly facilitate learning rather than teach about a topic.

During Pirate Term, students will concentrate on one offering; something they wouldn’t normally have an opportunity to explore in a typical small school setting.  Some offerings include: Snorkel/Scuba Diving, Sketchup Architecture, TV/Film Media, Up-cycling, Game/Instument/Military Exploration, Chemistry of Health, Crafters Mission, Landscape Design/Turf Management, Engineering, Industry, Community, and many more.  Enrollment will start with Juniors and continue down from there.  Students will pick their top three choices, but only be enrolled in one class that will meet for 5 days (35 hours).  Enrollment starts the week of April 22nd. Students will receive a .5 enrichment elective credit (1.5-2 credits in 4 years).

Teachers have been brainstorming, preparing, collaborating, and writing curriculum for nearly seven months to prepare.  Many have contacted outside resources to help complement the experience for students.