Vermont’s Act 77 requires high schools to change their graduation requirements from a credit based system to one based on proficiencies starting with the Class of 2020. High schools throughout the state have seen this shift as a challenge, a problem or, in the case of BFA Fairfax, an opportunity. Teachers at BFA were ready … Continue reading Proficiency: How BFA Fairfax is Transforming the High School Experience
A Year of Innovation, Part 2
This is the second in the series featuring the unique innovative lab spaces enhance learning at FWSU. FWSU is proud to offer innovation spaces in all three of our schools. and how each of them impacts student learning. Today, you can learn about the multiple BFA Innovation Labs. Last year, BFA designed two innovation lab … Continue reading A Year of Innovation, Part 2
GEMS 2nd Graders Study Irrigation Systems
Second graders have been engineering irrigation systems as they study the importance of farming in our state. Gaining an understanding of the necessity of water and why farmers need irrigation systems to support Vermont crops was the underlying theme throughout the past weeks. Imagining, preparing, planning, and constructing were the initial steps to support the … Continue reading GEMS 2nd Graders Study Irrigation Systems
S.T.E.A.M. Night Showcases Proficiency-Based Learning in Fletcher
In the gymnasium, surrounded by shoulder-to-shoulder classmates, family and friends, several groups of Fletcher Elementary School students huddled around small piles of colorful straws and planned. Whispering softly, many with their hands cupped around their mouths so as not to allow their thinking to be overheard by their competitors, the groups skillfully deployed several strategies … Continue reading S.T.E.A.M. Night Showcases Proficiency-Based Learning in Fletcher
GEMS Students Explore Art and Innovation
Mrs. Young's class at Georgia Elementary created Frank Stella-inspired art through a collaboration with the Innovation Lab. I have always been inspired by Frank Stella's 3- dimensional relief paintings but struggled to find a way for young students to cut out interesting shapes in cardboard. Until this year when the GEMS innovation lab was set … Continue reading GEMS Students Explore Art and Innovation
Middle School Students Visit Champlain College in STEM Event
Recently, a group of BFA and GEMS Middle school students attended Champlain College’s event Reaching Out On Technology & Science (ROOTS). The goal of the learning experience was to spark interest in Science & Technology among middle school students with an emphasis on increasing diversity and female representation in these fields. ROOTS was an all-day event … Continue reading Middle School Students Visit Champlain College in STEM Event
VSO Performs at GEMS, Students Learn About Musical Instruments
This week, students at Georgia Elementary enjoyed a special visit from the Vermont Symphony Orchestra’s “Fanfare” Brass Trio. Fanfare members Glendon Ingalls (trumpet), Ron Wold (French horn), and Bear Irwin (trombone), played a variety of musical styles and demonstrated how the instruments produce sound and how each one has changed since its beginning. This rave … Continue reading VSO Performs at GEMS, Students Learn About Musical Instruments
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