SPOTLIGHT RIBEIRÃO PRETO MIDDLE SCHOOL

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MIDDLE SCHOOL RIBEIRÃO PRETO

escola CONCEPT

"IT ISN'T WHERE YOU CAME FROM. IT'S WHERE YOU'RE GOING THAT COUNTS."

ELLA FITZGERALD

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spot It is now your turn to celebrate what Middle School looks like during virtual school: a team of resilient learners, educators and parents trying their best to make lifelong learning a lively village!

The Spotlight is a publication where we celebrate our past months accomplishments, hear the voices of those representing unique groups and get to dive into exceptional reading to inspire us to strive for a better and fulfilling world where we can all have a chance to dream.

So what's next? Find yourself a comfortable spot, wear your best smile and enjoy the read.

It was made from us, with you, for you.

The Spotlight Team

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light

what

By Priscila Torres

if

How do you make a difference?

How do you leave your legacy?

Should you point a finger to the person next door, or to the person sitting beside you, or should you roll up your sleeves and be part of the change?

From Micro to Macro: What makes you stand out in your household? In your family? In your grade level? In your school? In your neighborhood? In your city?

In your country? How do you impact the future?

When we consider the times we are living in all these questions matter… and they matter more than ever because you can be responsible for changing the course of the future if you just think about how you can positively impact change. Will using old tools to solve new problems get to the answer? Or should you invest in developing new tools to solve unknown problems?

otsefinam ehT

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Life will give you waiting rooms, will put you through escape rooms, where you will have limited time to find your path and figure out the answers to riddles, questions, and challenges. Life will jolt you into emergency rooms where you will have to act fast and save lives… it will parachute you into opportunities where you are a spectator and part of an audience in the show of life, and then it will abruptly escort you in front of a jury to make just decisions.

But let's hone in on waiting rooms… Have you ever stopped to think about the what ifs of life?

And if not now, then when? As you sit in the many waiting rooms that life presents you with, you stop, think, ponder, and wonder...

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what if...

I worked harder?

I complained less?

I took more responsible risks?

I persisted on a task without giving up the first time around?

I truly listened and tried to be empathetic without passing judgement and truly putting myself in the shoes of others?

I chose to think interdependently while trying to solve a problem, and valued synergy over selfishness?

I treated others the way I want to be treated at all times, and by others I mean everyone, independent of color, shape, race, background, social class, and origin?

I understood that all people have feelings and my feelings are not the only feelings that matter?

I stopped looking for excuses?

I learned that there are no people to blame about results, but myself?

I invested energy in creating, imagining, and innovating?

As life presents you with choices, it also gives you the option to be an eternal spectator and sit and relax in the complacency of waiting rooms or to be part of the change and make a striking difference that will mark your legacy.

Mankind has a tendency to believe in certain myths‌ the myth that overnight success is possible‌ ignoring the full story that success takes years to mature, that there are no gains without pains, that you cannot achieve and succeed without having to dream, plan, act, invest, focus, fail, analyze feedback, and pick up from where you last left off.

If you exit the waiting rooms of life and step into the doors that lead to mazes, you will find yourself having to embrace challenge over comfort, growth over stability, and question marks over periods. These mazes will keep you curious and on your toes, will force you to become a lifelong learner who can impact change and will present you the opportunity to establish your legacy in the world post COVID-19.

What if you tried? What if I could be by your side? Let's go together!

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Numbers

plus Sensibility The educator MĂĄrcio Todeschini teaches mathematics for Grades 6 to 8 at Escola Concept SĂŁo Paulo and shares his perceptions about Escola Concept Virtual School in this edition of the Spotlight.

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"I USED TO THINK THAT ONLINE LEARNING WAS A TOOL THAT EDUCATORS USED ONLY TO DELIVER CONTENT, BUT NOW I KNOW THAT IT PROVIDES VERY FRUITFUL DISCUSSIONS AND EXCHANGES, WHICH CONTRIBUTE POSITIVELY TO FOSTERING A CULTURE OF THINKING, EVEN IN TIMES OF UNCERTAINTY."

10 PLANNING TIME

STRENGTHS

"Thinking as much about how I prepare, how I teach, and how I interact with learners, I take into account some principles. First of all, I try to minimize my speaking time while working with new content. That way, we have a more dynamic interaction, and the learners do not feel discouraged and tired. I also think about how to share content in a multidimensional way, including figures, excerpts from films, movement. Why? Because I am not physically facing learners, and I need, even from a distance, to reach learners with different needs. We know that some learn better by listening to explanations or instructions.

In contrast, others need support from additional resources to understand and build meaning. Concerning the interaction, I also take into account the questions I ask to maximize online participation and for their thinking to be even more visible."

Regarding the positive aspects of this distance learning experience, I realize that distance learning can be helpful when it comes to how learners focus. When we are on campus, learners may distract each other and these distractions may be minimized inside and online environment.

I also believe that this format encourages greater learner autonomy, both in the daily organization of their studies and and with the feedback learners receive. For activities and interactions in online classes, they receive daily feedback on what can be improved, showing that these classes are not simply a series of disconnected activities. It is crucial for learners to understand the role mistakes play in their growth and development and how these mistakes will impact their learning journey in the long run.

OPPORTUNITIES “Teaching at a distance is more challenging to maintain engagement because we are not facing learners, so we depend on their intrinsic motivation to participate in the lesson. I miss looking into their eyes, circulating the room, and observing their reactions as a sign to evaluate their level of understanding. This close observation allows me to approach the groups to offer immediate assistance.�

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12 MATHEMATICAL MINDSET

TOOLS

"I believe Mathematics can and should be developed as a problem-solving subject.

Therefore one of the best ways to engage learners is to allow them to go through some investigations, so they come up with their conjectures and understand how mathematicians discover formulas and solutions to real-world problems. In one of our classes, to find the origin of pi, learners measured the circumference and the diameter of some round objects, so they made connections and understood the relationship between these measures by applying the four basic operations.

After these hands-on investigations, they were able to visually understand that whenever you divide the circumference of any object by its diameter, the result will always be pi."

"I use a lot of collaborative tools, in which learners can register their opinions in real-time, allowing me to make immediate decisions with the information I receive. Nearpod, Kahoot, and DeltaMath are some examples."

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14 Here's a timeline of how the school has been communicating with parents throughout COVID-19 crisis this far.

April 18th: vacation toolkit with appropriate age level suggestions for children and families.

OUR JO

Crisis manageme

March 20th: launch of virtual school phase 1.

March 23rd: school informs families that meal and after school fees are suspended for March and for the entire period the school will remain closed.

April 27th: the school focused on the individual needs of each division. Early Years and Grade 1 remained on vacation to maximize on campus learning. Lower and Middle School Learners continued with virtual school on May 4th.

May 13th: 20% tuition reduction for Early Years and Grade 1 for the July tuition.

10% tuition reduction for Lower and Middle School for the July tuition.

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OURNEY

ent during COVID-19

March 25th: launch of virtual school phase 2.

May 15th: launch of phase 3 for Middle School.

April 7th: launch of the donation campaign for the Escola Concept partners of the COLLAB network or choice of tuition reduction.

May 22th: holiday anticipation (july 9th) for Monday, May 25th.

April 30th: first communication about the anticipation of vacation.

June 10th: security manual.

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ADOLESCENCE: "A TRANSITION PHASE"

By Carlos Nascimento Jr

Who is used to hearing tender

In Geology, the layer located

references to adolescence as

between two well-defined types

place in our society, inspiring all

we refer to childhood? And to

of rock deposition, but which is

kinds of care that we can offer

mention the relevant role of

not uniform as it contains flaws

them, and adulthood is the longest

adolescence for society as we

in the rock settlement is called

and most "productive" phase of

do for adulthood? If the

the transition layer. And also in

human life, adolescents easily

adjectives that come up in

urbanism, the spaces that are

hide in their vagueness.

conversations about teenagers

called "transition" are areas

They no longer need the same

are almost always "difficult",

between rural and urban space,

protection as the child, but are not

"rebellious", "boring",

in which the utilities of

yet prepared to play the role of

"precocious", "immature", it

properties are sometimes mixed

the adult.

is time to look at this phase of

with rural and urban

human development from

characteristics.

another angle.

While childhood has a privileged

However, there is a lot of beauty in the whirlwind of emotions and

Well, adolescence, to which

the energy of teenage desire. With

The time of adolescence, as a

similar characteristics can be

each long conversation, full of

passage between two very

compared, also fits the concept

indignations and arguments, a

well defined periods of life,

of "transition phase". It is

world of wishes is revealed and

carries the difficult task of

neither childhood nor

takes shape. Each long moment of

any "transition zone":

adulthood, but it contains

isolation, full of silence and

preparing what lies ahead,

aspects of both. It contains

denial, is a precious moment of

being neither what came

"voids" with "spaces" yet to be

accommodation for the

before nor what comes after.

filled by the more mature

frustrations and contradictions

In many areas of human

learning that time itself brings.

that the world around us presents.

knowledge there is a

It is a period when the human

With each long hug, with or

"transition zone". In

body simultaneously embraces

without crying, there is the

Geography, there are, for

childhood and adulthood

acknowledgment that he or she is

example, the spaces between

characteristics.

not alone and that human

two types of climate and vegetation, which contain typical aspects of both.

imperfection does not detract .

from its beauty, but, on the contrary, confirms it.

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It is also good for them to experience the full range of emotions that arise in their hearts, so that they may have the chance to learn how to deal with them, but for this they need help from those who do not judge them too.

18 It is positive that they have many friends and that they want to be with them (and with their parents), so they can better understand the multiple perspectives that life brings and gradually comprehend different behaviors and their risks. It is also positive for them to experience the full range of emotions that arise in their hearts, so that they may have the chance to learn how to deal with them, but for this they need help from those who do not judge them.

All the nuances of teenage years cannot be ignored. As adults we are constantly telling them, “enjoy this age because it is the best phase of your life,” but the truth is, our words do not ressonante with them the way we wish they would.

These words end up bringing an idea to the teenage mind that the next phase in life will be less pleasant and that is not how we want to make them feel. We want them to enjoy the present, take responsible risks, grow from opportunities presented, and apply their learning to what lays ahead. So when addressing a teenager, perhaps the best words of advice would be, “live this phase as well as you should love each moment of your life.”

Carlos Nascimento Jr is the coordinator for Middle School in Concept Ribeirão Preto.

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MORE MORE

CONNECTION AUTONOMY

CecĂ­lia Verri is a pedagogue, graduated in Argentina, her birthplace, Spanish educator at Concept RibeirĂŁo Preto. Married with two teenage children, Luca, 18 and Malena, 15, she tells us about her routine at home and how she has perceived and contributed to learning during Virtual School.

21 THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE I FACED DURING THIS PERIOD WAS ... accept that things can change and we must be prepared for change.

I CAN ENGAGE STUDENTS WHEN…

I HAVE FOUND MOTIVATION... in the professional field, in my colleagues, in the study groups that the school offers and in the students.

AGITATION OR BOREDOM: WHAT BEST DESCRIBES THE QUARANTINE ROUTINE IN MY HOME IS…

On a personal level, in the varied

excitement, always! In fact I

readings I usually read, such as

would switch to animation,

mindfulness, decoration, gastronomy

because my house is a great

and travel! I read about running,

workshop to put into practice

because I have been practicing for 2

everything we like to do.

I propose challenges that force them

years, but I am stopped because of

to move from the known place to an

the isolation!

unknown place and, at that point, Hispanic culture favors you a lot!.

BOOKS, SERIES OR MOVIES I READ AND RECOMMEND ...

LEARNERS MAKE ME PROUD WHEN… hablan en español! Or when they embrace the cause for what we are researching, for example.

book: “‘What I talk about when I talk about running: a memoir” by Haruki Murakami, because although the title seems restricted to runners, it is a book that shows how much we must be persistent and how dedication weighs more than talent. tv show: Modern Family, because even though it is a comedy tv show, it defends family diversity and always ends with a reflection. movie: Little Women by Greta Gerwig, because it was written in 1868 by LM Alcott who at the time did not think that something written by a woman, with the theme of feminist struggle, would be so successful for so many years... and the movie has a different ending.

“In this period of Virtual School, students have developed mainly one of the pillars of the school, which is digital fluency. I also noticed that they are in full development of their autonomy and adaptability for this new learning scenario.”

A TACTIC TO APPROACH TEENAGERS IS ... listen to them!

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WORKING TWICE AS HARD Michelle is a lawyer and the mother of Manu from Grade 8. During this period, she saw her demand for work increase and had to adapt to a new reality. She momentarily had to put aside dance, her main escape valve. See what she says about her new experiences at home.

23 AGITATION OR BOREDOM: WHAT BEST DESCRIBES THE ROUTINE IN MY HOUSE IS… boredom! I am working much more

I HAVE FOUND MOTIVATION... in working because even though it

THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE I FACED IN THIS PERIOD WAS…

may seem strange, it's just what I've

not being able to take my ballet

been doing the most recently!

classes and go to the movies.

than before, I am a lawyer and I

These are activities that I love to

work for a company in São Paulo

do and that are my true outlets.

that is part of essential activities and The work has increased as we are

A NICE ACTIVITY TO DO AS A FAMILY IS ...

reviewing many contractual issues

reading our favorite books

for this period.

together!

that has not stopped in quarantine.

A DISCOVERY ...

MY CHILDREN MAKE ME PROUD WHEN… I notice his spiritual evolution, empathy, indulgence, understanding, maturity, culture, his ability to learn other languages, his beauty, willingness to help at home, love for animals, and openness to have his parents as friends.

currently when I find spare time, I try to allow myself to rest and reflect upon life..

ONE TACTIC TO APPROACH YOUR TEENAGERS HAS BEEN ... talk and watch tv shows together!

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Y T I R A D LI

SO IN ACTION Solidarity is the word of action for Olivia, a grade 7 learner.

Together with her family, she has found motivation and inspiration to help people in need. Let’s discover what she learned from this new experience in the last three months.

25 WHAT I'VE BEEN DOING MOST AT HOME IS… I have been cooking, drawing, swimming, watching many movies

MY HERO OF ISOLATION IS… My mother, because she has done everything to help people who have

WHAT I LEARNED MOST IMPORTANT IN THIS QUARANTINE ...

been affected by the pandemic, and

The importance of my family

it really helped me to open my eyes

and valuing everything I have,

and see how lucky I am for the life I

because we never know what

have.

tomorrow will be like.

BOOKS, SERIES OR MOVIES I READ AND RECOMMEND…

I RECOGNIZE THAT MY PARENTS ARE BEING AMAZING WHEN ...

Books: "Wonder" and "The Taster."

When they generously help those

Traveling, doing things outside the

Movies and tv shows, I would

in need without even thinking

home, like going to the movies and

recommend: Resistência, Jojo

twice.

restaurants, walking around the mall

Rabbit, Yesterday, The Book Thief,

with my friends and being able to see

I still Believe, The Crown, Victoria,

other people.

Never have I ever, Atypical and

and series with my family. I have also been helping my mother's solidarity project called Radar S.O.S. She and some friends got together to collect food, blankets to deliver to those in vulnerable situation.

WHAT I MISS MOST ABOUT MY OLD ROUTINE IS ...

Modern Family.

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Please welcome OUR NEW UKULELE PLAYER!

Seeking different activities to avoid, in her own word, "to freak out" and discovering new hobbies were Manu's challenges during the isolation. Find out what our Grade 8 learner is doing and her recommendations for this period!

27 WHAT I'VE BEEN DOING MOST AT HOME IS… reading several books, some to distract me, others for school activities.

WHAT I MISS MOST ABOUT MY OLD ROUTINE IS ... sports and dance. I used to take dance classes and Muay Thai at school and now I am adapting to this routine at

MY HERO OF ISOLATION IS… health professionals.

I RECOGNIZE THAT MY PARENTS ARE BEING AMAZING WHEN ...

don't freak out! I discovered

they need to work late.

look too bad. I make bracelets

"Origin" of Dan Brown and

around the condominium and doing

Grey's Anatomy. This book is

online training.

for everyone, because it has some mystery and suspense. It

in a word: adaptation!

several “hobbies” during this quarantine, for example that I can bake a cake and they don't too. In order not to freak out,

BOOKS, SERIES OR MOVIES I READ AND RECOMMEND…

home, riding a bike, walking a bit

FOR ME, ESCOLA CONCEPT VIRTUAL SCHOOL MEANS ...

WHAT I LEARNED MOST IMPORTANT IN THIS QUARANTINE ...

talks about how technology and science are advancing in the world. So that makes a lot of sense right now.

I'm playing Ukulele.

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Como as habilidades socioemocionais podem melhorar a convivĂŞncia?

Publicado em Nova Escola

29 A neurociência e os conhecimentos da natureza cognitiva das emoções mostram que o desenvolvimento das habilidades socioemocionais e afetivas impactam direta e positivamente na aprendizagem. Mas há outro ponto a favor do trabalho com as emoções: a melhora no clima escolar e na convivência entre os estudantes. Assim, ao abrir os olhos para a dimensão sociomocional e ética de crianças e jovens, em um contexto em que as práticas são democráticas, aumenta-se a probabilidade de que conflitos, casos de violência e de bullying sejam equacionados por meio do diálogo e melhorem as relações na comunidade escolar.

Aprender a se comunicar melhor, cooperar em prol de um objetivo trabalhando em grupo, dialogar e negociar um conflito de maneira construtiva, saber oferecer e pedir ajuda, por exemplo, melhoram a capacidade do sujeito de lidar com situações relacionais difíceis de forma mais competente. “Se eu parto para a agressão, é porque não encontrei uma saída mais construtiva.

Ao aprender essas habilidades, amplio o meu repertório para lidar com situações de conflito”, explica a psicopedagoga Alcione Marques. Com isso, há uma relação direta entre essas habilidades e a maneira como os jovens lidarão com o conflito no ambiente escolar.

Para a doutora em Psicologia pela PUC-SP, Denise de Camargo, que estuda o tema das emoções desde 1998, quando o afeto e a empatia são valorizados na escola, a instituição fica mais leve, mais flexível e mais tolerante, com mais espaço para a diversidade. “Quando você valoriza as emoções, o que ganha é o clima da escola, que passa a ter valores de convivência mais saudáveis entre as crianças”, diz a professora da Universidade Tuiuti do Paraná. No entanto, o trabalho precisa ser feito de maneira intencional e sistemática, e não aleatória e pontual, para dar bons resultados.

Para Telma Vinha, pesquisadora do Grupo de Estudos e Pesquisa em Educação Moral (Gepem) e professora da Unicamp, a ideia é que a escola planeje as ações sobre competências socioemocionais como qualquer outro assunto no currículo. Trabalhar com competências emocionais não é só emoção, vai além. É um conjunto de habilidades que precisam ser desenvolvidas para viver melhor.

Embora ainda seja alvo de debates no campo educacional, o desenvolvimento dessas habilidades na escola foi incorporado pela Base Nacional Comum Curricular (BNCC).

Para ler na íntegra, clique aqui

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What If The Future Of Work Starts With High School?

Published in Forbes 2019

31 Nearly 100% of the jobs created during the economic recovery went to workers with postsecondary education training. That training really begins in high school. The work of the future will require a robust system of lifelong learning and high school may just be the fulcrum in that system, best positioned to make the necessary profound changes across the system.

Right now, the university degree is the new high school diploma. It is the best proxy we have, but it remains insufficient. Four out of five CEOs say that skills gaps in creativity and problem solving make hiring difficult and nearly half of job tasks may be lost to automation within the next two decades. While we have substantial technical skills gaps we also have a profound shortage of non-technical, uniquely human skills such as empathy, social intelligence, creativity, communication and judgment among others.

The Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce predicted that without changes to our postsecondary education system immediately, our economy will be short 5 million workers by 2020.

This is not new information but our responses to these challenges are insufficient. Merely pushing more people on the existing factory pipeline through higher education is not working.

Nor are efforts to retrain those displaced in short-term skill acquisition boot camps. We need to start thinking differently.

Enter The Fourth Industrial RevolutionThe first industrial revolution was steam, the second was electrification and mass production, and the third was the advent of computerized technologies and with it the automation of physical labor such as manufacturing.

The fourth industrial revolution will be marked by many advances in many forms of technology but most notably the automation of cognitive labor. Anything mentally routine or predictable, no matter how cognitively intense, can and will be achieved by some form of technology. As a result, we need to think differently about what work humans best address and how we prepare them for that work.

To read the full article, click here.

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