MS Students Share Insights at Open House

Insights - one of Hawken’s Readiness Initiative programs - is a week-long immersion experience that is designed to develop core skills of collaboration, critical thinking, information analysis and synthesis, and creative expression.

“Tonight is a celebration,” Middle School Director Stephen Hopkins said in his welcome to the standing-room-only crowd gathered in the chapel. He spoke briefly about the energizing process of the program’s development from inception to actualization, as students ventured off campus and welcomed guests to their campus to learn from different perspectives and experiences. Students chose one of sixteen courses offerings, all designed to blend technology, service learning, environmental, and cultural components. Open House guests were then treated to three performances representative of the songwriter’s workshop before being invited to sample all of the courses in an open house format.

“The learning that occurred over the last week was not for grades; it was for personal enlightenment, enjoyment, and love of learning,” Mr. Hopkins explained. That love of learning was evident from the joy and pride with which they shared their projects. Students learned alongside air traffic controllers, publishers, inner city school children, professional musicians, civic leaders, chefs, Native American healers, wildlife biologists, doctors, actors, athletes, and those suffering from a variety of physical and mental illnesses. Students and faculty not only learned from these people but developed a stronger sense of community both within and beyond Hawken: students across grade levels working together, teachers working together who normally have little opportunity for interaction, and students engaging with community members in new, innovative, and meaningful ways.

The Insights Program is a powerful example of our 3 Ps at work; growth in student self-confidence, character, and intellect was readily apparent in the outcomes students shared. Empowered to move beyond their comfort zones to learn new skills and approaches to inquiry and problem solving, they recognized that they have the ability to make a difference not only in their own lives but in the world. A client of Magnolia House with whom students from the Radio Rookies class worked, noted, “With all of the bad things happening in the world, these Hawken students give you hope for a bright and better future.”

The list of courses that follows, some with links to projects, highlights the breadth of offerings during Insights Week. Click here to view the course descriptions or here to view a sampling of photographs.

A Taste of Cleveland's Culture

Black History and Leadership in Cleveland

Carnival Games... What are the Odds?

Conscious Living for Middle School Students

Theatre: Developing Community and Self-Awareness Through Making a Play

Digital Storytelling

Flights of Fancy: The History, Physics, and Math of Flight

GORP, Belay, and Thoreau. Oh My!

Ornithology is for the Birds!

People and Other Animals: A Winter Survival Guide

Radio Rookies, aka The Audio Project

Songwriter's Workshop

The Evolution of American's Pastimes

Twi-light to Twi-Hards

Why does Cleveland Rock?

Winter's Lens: Snapshot of the Survivalists