Colorado SKIES Academy Families,
We hope you had a restful and joyous Spring Break. It was great to see the learners and hear about their adventures. As you may have heard, all grade levels are in the design phase of their science experiments for the International Space Station. Before the break, learners learned about brainstorming techniques and teamwork dynamics from our partners at Mission Orbit2. In their teams, they initially brainstormed up to 100 ideas for their experiment and then narrowed the list down to their top 10.
Learners have spent the last week further refining their list to their top 3 and thoroughly investigating them to ensure their viability. The Chief Scientist from ISSET, in partnership with Ms. Subba, guided learners in their research and provided the framework that experiments need to meet for launch. Learners also heard from former NASA astronauts and scientists describing their favorite experiments on the International Space Station. The feedback from the kids has been overwhelmingly positive, and they have reported that their experiences have really sparked their creativity and motivation.
We learned a lot during Women’s History Month in March. We received positive feedback from all stakeholders regarding the information shared using NASA and other aviation-focused women to inspire and motivate us. In conjunction, we continued the hard work, having many discussions and reviewing expectations for social-emotional learning. We are committed to ensuring our students learn to lead, be self-directed, and develop their emotional IQ in a way that inspires creativity and engagement in their coursework. We believe it’s vital to help learners develop the skills of social awareness, self-management, regulation of emotions, and self-awareness early so they can begin to weave these abilities through every facet of their lives.
Please be sure to check the CSA Community Calendar. Quite a few events have been added in the last week, including each grade level’s end-of-year experience field trip, the all-school Boondocks field trip, 8th-grade graduation, and more. Please read the articles in this week’s message, including information about our Star Search hiring event on April 17th, an update about flight crew pictures, a reminder about the school yearbook, and others.
Have a great week!
In gratitude,
Directors Coryell and Motley