Yesterday was a “Shadow Day” at Baxter Academy. That means that most of our students were off on a job shadow of their choosing. I’m anxious to hear about the shadows that they were able to arrange during the snowiest week of the winter, so far. I would have checked in today, but we have another snow day – the third this week.
Anyway, while our students were off doing their shadows, we had about 120 prospective students, interested in attending Baxter Academy next year, join us for a “simulated day.” The students were placed into 16 different groups, each led by a couple of current Baxter students through a day of classes that included a math class or two, a science class or two, humanities, and an elective or two.
I co-taught our modeling class with one of our science teachers. This is the introductory math & science class at Baxter. It’s technically two sections, but they are integrated and teamed up so that the two teachers are working with the same groups of students. Sometimes we meet separately, as a math class and a science class, and sometimes we meet together. I’ve written about the class before, and the kinds of modeling we have made them do.
But what do you do with a bunch of 8th graders who are are with you for only an hour? Introduce them to problem solving through with this TED talk by Randall Munroe. And then take a page from Dan Meyer’s Three Act problems – a page from your own back yard: Neptune*. A brief launch of the problem and off they went. Not every group was able to answer both parts of the question: How big is the Earth model and where is it located? But most groups were able to come up with a solution to at least one part.
The point of the day was to provide a realistic experience of what it’s like to be a Baxter student. We grouped them together with others they didn’t know before walking into the building. We asked them to collaborate to solve a problem they’d never seen before. We asked them to do math without giving them directions for a specific procedure to follow. We asked them to share their results in front of strangers. We gave them an authentic Baxter experience.
*For more information about the Maine Solar System Model, visit their website. It’s really a rather amazing trip along this remote section of US Route 1. I’ve done it – I’ve driven through the solar system.
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