I'm so happy to have your third graders in our Horizon class!  It was an awesome day of collaborating on a challenging puzzle, communicating multiple perspectives about what Horizon Class is and learning more about ourselves and our classmates through a personality quiz. See below for the puzzle we used to practice our critical thinking and problem solving skills,. 

We will continue reflecting on the personality quiz next week, to help set individual and collaborative goals that we will refer to throughout the year.

We started our day by reflecting on our color personality results from last week and thinking about how understanding ourselves can help us better understand and work with others.

Next, we were introduced to the Scholarly Habits/Behaviors that help us grow as thinkers and learners.  Students then graphed their MAP scores, reflected on their current learning, and set a personal middle-of-year MAP goal.  Each student chose a Scholarly Habit they believe will help them work toward that goal and made a commitment to put that habit into action.  We also established our Horizon Expectations through our RedHawk promise of...I will do what's right, I will do my best, and I will show others I care.

Finally, we gathered for a Conversational Roundtable around an important question:  What is Horizon?  Students shared their thoughts and then wrote a group definition of what Horizon means to them.

This week, we put our creativity to work!  We learned about creative thinking and explore the FEFO Creative Process.  Students practiced each step through a series of quick exercises designed to get their brains thinking in new and different ways.

We then talked about how creative thinkers can identify problems, imagine possibilities, and develop ideas that could make life easier.  

Then, it was time to put our new learning to the test!

Students teamed up for a quick partner challenge - Invent something that would make getting ready for school easier.  These third graders thought beyond the obvious, took creative risks, and used their imaginations to solve an everyday problem.  Who knows...we may have some future inventors and innovators in Horizon!  I can't wait for you to see their designs!