Curiosity | Adventure | Thought

One of the really cool things about our school is the desire to consistently look for opportunities for our students to learn in different ways. Our teachers do an amazing job of creating lessons that model best practices in education, which we believe are student-centered and engaging. 5th grade students are getting to once again experience something new for them, a unique day that we are calling C.A.T. Day. C.A.T. stands for curiosity, adventure, and thought and embodies what we hope our students will experience as they leave campus today.  Two years ago my two sons got to experience something new at their high school called "T-term". The idea behind this was to provide the students with several options of various experiences/learning outside the classroom. Students were able to choose from various classes/experiences that interested them and then spend time doing those things. The first year was huge a success, and I enjoyed watching my younger son experience it again this year, as McCallie fine tuned it even more.

We have watched this from a distance with a desire to create a similar experience for our own students.  Our 5th grade faculty team has enlisted the help of several other teachers at BBS to create a similar experience for our students. Obviously, we had to be intentional on creating experiences that were age-appropriate for elementary students. I want to thank Mr. John Creed and Mrs. Deb Gruner who have worked very hard to make this day a success for our students. It will be neat to see this evolve in the future as well. 

Earlier this week our 5th grade students were presented with some choices of special learning days to choose from. As they get here today, they will embark on a day full of hands on learning and experiences outside the normal classroom. If you would like to follow along on these adventures, search the hashtag #CATday2018 on our social media pages. Below are the different options that our students are getting to experience today.

Curiosity | Adventure | Thought

Farm to Table - Students will go to a local farm to hear about the raising of beef and chickens, participate in garden planting, and basically spend the morning outdoors in a farm atmosphere. Then we will go and cook a meal together with all fresh meat and vegetables and do some comparative tasting of fresh vs. frozen, canned, or preserved.   

Sports Management - For this course, students will visit UTC to tour the athletic facilities and hear from Geoff Wilcox, Associate Athletic Director of Marketing and Promotions. Students will also meet with Sean McDaniel, General Manager of the CFC. We will then return to campus to tailgate for lunch. Students will finish the day by organizing and planning a sporting event. 

Health and Wellness - Humans are made up of mind, body, and spirit. Each one of these parts has to be nourished and cared for on a daily basis. Students will begin the day with a brief devotional and discussion covering health and wellness. We will then visit with a local orthodontist where we’ll get to work with models, molds, and x-rays. We will also visit a nutrition store, spend time at the driving range, and create our own nutritious smoothies. 

Media Day - In the morning, students will visit the Sunny 92.3 radio station to learn how the radio business works. We will then have lunch and discuss media opportunities we could implement at BBS. In the afternoon, students will visit News Channel 12 to learn how local news operates. 

Give Back Day - Is your life filled with joy? It will be if you think of joy as having your life in the right priority: Jesus, others, and you. Would you like to spend your day serving in a local preschool class for children with special needs? We will spend the morning reading and interacting with young children and then spend the afternoon helping others. What a blessing you can be by serving others!

Outdoor Art - We will begin on campus by creating a field journal in the art room. During this time, we will discuss basic outdoor ‘how-to’ skills. This will include map reading and tree, flower, plant, and bird identification. Then we will hike to Mushroom Rock on Signal Mountain where we will picnic and practice the skills learned earlier in the day. Our afternoon will conclude with sketches and journaling. *This course will require a packed lunch, water bottle, small backpack, and appropriate footwear.*

Folk Music - Students will spend the morning at the Songbirds Guitar Museum which has just opened in Chattanooga this past fall. They will tour the complete collection of guitars, learning about their history and the art of guitar building. After lunch, students will visit the Folk Music School in Red Bank where they will learn about all different forms of folk instruments including the mandolin, banjo, harmonica, and kazoo. During our visits to both places, the students will be able to experiment with playing some of the instruments and will be taught how to play a simple song on an instrument of choice.

Flower Power - Seeds, dirt, plants, sprouts, garden, and design! Students will spend a day in the dirt - from beginning to end - with lunch together in the middle of the day. Students will also visit a florist with one additional flower stop during the day.