1. Launch individual Dreams Preferred Portfolios while relaxing in an air conditioned lodge or in the sunshine on the deck--From inside: windows wide to the lake and trees of the park.
Breakfast: Cereal, Locally grown fruit (blueberries, strawberries, peaches--in season, locally baked pecan rolls and zucchini bread (from locally grown zucchini and pecans),boiled eggs and egg salad from free-range chickens (fed 'clean' wholesome food).
Book Circle Selection: Brief Introduction of one of the recommended books for upcoming review: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver and her husband and daughters: The family resolves to live on local provenance. This book is recommended by several professors to incoming college freshmen. One of the daughters writing in the book is a student at Duke University (science and dance). http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/
2. Your Story: Begin with Table of Contentment: Introduction to Individual Portfolio: Flash Drive and Disk Storage of Curious Learner work products.
Recreation Interval (RI): Restrooms are in lodge. Bottled water is provided room temperature and refrigerated. Relax in chairs on Wide Deck. Play volleyball and croquet on wide grassy lawn next to lake, music and exercise video in lodge room facing the trees and lake. A variety of snacks are available. Movie and scrabble, chess, checkers video programs are available--no Internet during seminars, though Internet guidance is provided for web quests.
Important Note: Allergies: The food at the seminars includes peanuts, other tree nuts, cheese, eggs, and other ingredients not guaranteed 'allergy-free' for everyone. We provide refrigeration and warmup of snacks and meals you bring. Make teachers aware of any allergies.--bring allergy-free snacks and order allergy-free food from our choices. Check in foods for refrigeration, and we will check them in with a label and store them in accessible area refrigerator (2 on site).
3. Chapter I: You are the Lead in Your Story: Use evaluation and assessment to YOUR advantage: We teach Personal Use of Standardized Tests: Full practice SAT test. Over three hours of first seminar will be the full practice test as chosen from one of the Princeton Review books, sometimes shuffled from more than one practice guide. The time for each section of the test is the same as for the real test. There are some breaks not included in the 'real' test. The breaks are to foreshadow the upcoming support the students will receive in preparing for the actual standardized tests.
Begin plan for each student, customized to the student, for the student's use with us in upcoming courses and seminars. (Teach the student how some teachers use a 'tic-tac-toe' approach to studies as a differentiation technique. Show the student ways to use this approach herself or himself.)
We use Princeton Review publications for the practice tests and strategy sessions. We use many other resources, depending upon the customized plans for each student.
The view of the lake and the trees, all the time, is spectacular and soothing for a relaxed studying atmosphere. Test conditions while practicing are the same as for the official tests--except for the view, the provision of water, peppermints, and an additional break to explain why accommodations are sometimes provide--and how to get those accommodations if you are eligible.
Links and information provided to contact the College Board.
Frequent information is given throughout the day about using the College Board site in a variety of ways: www.collegeboard.com The site has registration information, eligibility for accommodations details, day of test preparation, and so much more to help in other studies on a daily basis.
Word Pro, Inc.'s owner, Judy Cooper, writes a column in response to many of the SAT Questions for the Day on this site: www.coolrocketschool.org (See the archives, e.g., Rocketcat's RACECAR strategy.)
A handout with the links to find out more about how to apply for accommodations is provided to each participant. We give an overview of the accommodations with the dates they are decided for each test.
BOOKS, FILMS, PLAYS, AND POETRY--for Cool Rocket School's Curious Learners.
During meals and snacks all day, we talk about the science and pleasure of pesticide-free, organic, and/or locally produced foods, supporting local businesses and farms with the book: Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver and her family.
Other books and films used in Word Pro Inc.'s supportive seminars: Films: Animals are Beautiful People, October Sky, Akeelah and the Bee, Finding Forrester
Books: Ariadne; Animal, Vegetable, Miracle; Great Expectations A Separate Peace, To Kill A Mockingbird, Silent Spring, Wings for My Flight, Into Thin Air
Plays: Antigone, Julius Caesar, Pride and Prejudice
Poems: The Iliad, The Odyssey, The Aeneid
Ask for more extensive lists--contact Judy Cooper, Word Pro, Inc. wordproinc@gmail.com
Ask for information about The Curious Learners' Field Guides to use in your personal study and/or your own classrooms. The guides have disks with printable templates to use in your customized study, with quizzes, study guides, web quests; Socratic Circle and Jigsaw group discussion guides; peer-to-peer rubric evaluation guides; and rubrics to evaluate projects, web quests, examinations, and portfolios--in alignment with professional standards and best practices.
The Curious Learners' Field Guides provide students, teachers, family members, and administrators with the information to generate the information for self guidance and evaluation by the student and for assessment by the teachers for the future progress of each individual student.
For more information, contact one of the teachers at wordproinc@gmail.com or Ms. Cooper or Ms. McDowell individually: judycarolcooper@gmail.com or jmcdowell01@gmail.com
You may also call 678-938-1219.
