Emerson's ELA Class had a 13-word scary story contest. Students then voted for the top 3 - here they are!
Eat cake and do a little Campus Care... FRIDAY 10/13/23 9:30am-12:30pm
Help install a few planters, cut up brush for removal, lay down some ground cover and gravel all in preparation for the building reopening in just a few weeks. Enjoy some birthday cake with Summer & Brian too!
Come one, come all; students, caregivers, and community members, we want to hear from you! Please give us your feedback, we strive to always be growing and improving.
Check out the October Armadillo Newsletter!
Drop In for Quarter 1 Conferences!
This is a time to hear all the AMAZING things your student contributes to our school, meet the teachers, and have any questions answered.
Come see us at the Phoenix Grange between 8-12 or 1-4:30 on October 2
Our artists need your help bringing a favorite medium to art classes this term...gel pens! These pens are part of "Art for Wellbeing" class that merges creativity with self-care. Check out this Donors Choose project and share or contribute if you're able.
http://rb.gy/8ffc3
Thanks to Rogue Credit Union volunteers, one of our buildings got a facelift! We couldn't have done it without them.
Looking for a job? Love animals? Apply at R&R Pet Resort in Phoenix.
If you plan to graduate this year please join Summer for lunch at the Grange either Thursday 9/14 or Friday 9/15 this week to learn about the new Capstone system replacing Senior Projects as a graduation requirement. although Seniors and early graduates need to attend, everyone is welcome as Armadillos can start to earn Capstone Points in any grade.
Pizza will be provided, questions will be answered, resources will be shared.
see y'all there!
#armadillotech
#charterschool
#learningbydoing
#armadillocapstone
Have you met Celina (she/her), our science instructor?! "Why do I teach? Because exploring the natural world with my students is the best! I love looking closer, getting curious, questioning, and making connections about the things we encounter, and this is something our young people do naturally. Our students are awesome and I'm lucky to get to work with them."
Have you met Rachel (she/her), Armadillo's new Executive Director? When asked why she went into education she said "to create connections with student's who don't feel like there is an academic future for them because I never felt like I had a future in academics or that my specific talents were valued in school. I want to celebrate every success and do it through saying 'yes' to the crazy ideas because those are the moments where learning is really happening". Stop by the temporary office and say 'hi' to our new Exec.
Check out our September Newsletter for upcoming events, breakfast updates, and donation needs.
Tomorrow, Sept 5, is back to school! If you're a Tuesday/Thursday cohort we will see you at 8:30 at the Phoenix Grange (209 N Main St). If you're Wednesday/Friday cohort log onto your google classrooms.
Looking forward to seeing you all for another amazing year as Armadillos!
Have you met Brian (he/him) - our AMAZING building/gardening/culinary teacher?! "The moment of creation, the original thought, the sudden self realization. Any artist or creative person will tell you these are the most exciting times for them. For me, helping others get to this point is my why. Helping people gain the confidence to look at a challenge and say, 'I can work this out,' Is my why. Showing up for these moments is my why"
Come learn something new with Brian and experience your own "AHA" moment
Did you know Jen (she/her) has been an armadillo for over 10 years?!
When we asked why Jen teaches she realized "I can only make it six months working a job that does not involve kids before I feel personally unfulfilled."
That's love for her work and for every student she interacts with!
Have you met Summer Brandon (she/her)? She's been an Armadillo for years, but have you asked her WHY?!
When I started my MAT program in 2005 I answered a similar question..."Why teach" The bottom line for me is that I want the world I want and teaching/education is how I choose to earn it.
I feel like the real question here is why ATI? I choose ATI because I know that traditional systems of education were built to uplift a narrow few, and exclude or squash into submission so many wonderful, wacky and unique people who are capable and smart and have bright futures if they can just get a fair break and support. I think systems should be designed to support people, not the other way around. And I think people who choose to be a community system together, like we do at ATI, need to uplift, challenge and appreciate one another as we prepare ourselves for the next great thing. I think there are hundreds of ways to solve problems when we can be flexible, kind and collaborative and that's what I hope to support at ATI this year with the FLEX program.
ATI staff are back in action this week planning for an amazing year ahead. We are welcoming new team members that we cant wait for y'all to meet. Keep an eyw out for new face and come meet the team at Ramp Up next week!
Meet Emerson Miller (she/her) - our new ELA teacher!
Why am I a high school English teacher? Because I believe in the power of transformative education and in building a strong community of learners. As bell hooks famously wrote in her book Teaching to Transgress, “Home was the place where I was forced to conform to someone else’s image of who and what I should be. School was the place where I could forget that self and, through ideas, reinvent myself." A safe and supportive school environment matters, and for me, that place was in the English classroom. It was there that I read literature that empowered me to build a better world. My hope is to inspire my students to do the same. I believe that the ELA classroom should be radical and thought-provoking. If I can get my students to listen to me play my guitar, then I hope I can also encourage them to read a good book.
The first day of classes is quickly approaching.
We cannot wait to see our returning students and families, and welcome all the new! Check out the attached Armadillo News.
Today our Personal Pathways student leaders got to practice focusing on assets/opportunities and owning our locus of control...in short, being super adaptable and open minded. We visited OSU Cascades campus in Bend where we saw some cool learning spaces including a 360 collaborative classroom designed by MIT, an art studio, and great dorms, and then grabbed some yummy smoothies from Emerald City Smoothie before heading to OSU main campus in Corvallis. We blazed our own self guided tour trail and saw some beautiful buildings, encountered an automated meal delivery robot, and viewed a sweet crafting center in a campus that is really its own city. Along the way we played our own impromptu game of Fear Factor. We braved a super stinky port-a-potty, extracted quite a few prickly pear spines from a person who shall remain anonymous, and changed up our housing for the night on the fly when the road to our Airbnb was closed due to wildfire. Whew!
Two more amazing college visits and one more fantastic day to go!
#charterschool
#charterhighschool
#learningroadtrip
#armadillotech
