Today was a day of learning new skills and time spent in the Learning Pit! The students were introduced to the digital portfolio platform Book Creator, which is where they will post reflections and work samples for their entire pull-out GATE career. You can check out their cover art designs and first reflection assignments here!

The students used this new experience as an opportunity to practice Learning Pit strategies, or "I'm stuck!" strategies. When they felt confused or stuck, they practiced the following strategies:

1. Take a deep breathe (or 3!)

2. Check my memory or the directions

3. Ask a classmate

4. Ask a 2nd classmate

5. Ask Ms Gabrielli

So often, students aren't used to being able to ask classmates for help; they think adults are the only people who could possibly solve their problem. They also don't like to sit in a state of struggle for very long, so by making strategies like these second nature, they can work toward becoming more independent and empowered problem solvers. (and help maintain the sanity of the adults in their lives!) As they master these strategies, we will add others to the list of options including things like trial and error, deductive reasoning, and apply past knowledge.