ART/DESIGN:

 

A-MAZE-ING:  Explore labyrinths and mazes.  Find out how you can create your own.  Discover various techniques to hand-draw labyrinths and mazes, as well as how to create walkable versions!

 

ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN:  Design your own dream house in this enrichment activity.  You will create detailed floor plans using a board and architectural software; you will create a scale model!!!  

 

BE A MYTH BUSTER:  Drawing with Ms. Pichette – (a myth is a false idea – that many people believe!!!)

Drawing Myth 1 – The ability to draw is inherited – Are people who play musical instruments born with the ability to play or do they learn techniques and practice?  Drawing too, is a skill that can be learned and must be practiced?

Drawing Myth 2 – There is a right and wrong way to draw.  In a museum you will see all different sorts of drawing, from neat to sloppy, from beautiful to ugly.  Even art critics disagree about what makes good or bad art.  It is not necessary to please anyone but yourself.

Drawing Myth 3 – Drawing is simply for pleasure and has no practical use.  The art process, realistic drawing in particular, helps teach problem-solving skills, develops concentration and visual perception skills that are applicable in other areas.  In addition, drawing can promote relaxation and creative energy that is healing to the mental and emotional body.

 

COMIC STRIP CREATION:  Are you interested in drawing and art?  Do you like to read comics?  If this is a passion you have or would like to explore, then think about Comic Strip Creation.  We will look at current popular comics, videos on drawing, animation, comics to movies and also have a visit from Friendly Neighborhood Comics.  The end goal will be a completed comic strip of your own!!

 

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE:  What is Landscape architecture?  What is the difference between a Landscape Architect and a Landscape Designer?  How does Landscape Architecture compare to Civil Engineering?  Most people think Landscape Architects only do planting design, but there is actually a lot more to the profession.  This workshop will provide an overview of the profession of Landscape Architecture AND AN OPPORTUNITY TO WORK ON A SAMPLE PROJECT!!!!!!

 

SCRAPBOOKING:  Take your cherished photos and memontos off the counter or out of the box and transform them into works of art designed exclusively by you.  You could create a visual autobiography.  Learn and practice design and color as you create a primary source, which will be cherished for years to come.  Document, and organize and have fun as part of this exciting team!

 

 

 

BUSINESS:

 

YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS:  Apple Computer was started in a basement; Warrior Lacrosse was started in a college student’s dorm room.  Face Book and Google by teenagers.  Got an idea for a business or a product but don’t know how to get past the idea stage, the Entrepreneurship will work to help you take your ideas and make them real.  Divided into teams, the teams will operate as individual companies.    HOPING TO COME UP WITH SOME IDEAS THAT WILL MAKE US SOME MONEY!!!!

 

 

 

COOKING AND EATING:

 

COOKING AND EATING IS FUN!:  You will prepare food!  You will cook food!  You will eat food!  You may try a new food and learn that you like a new taste.  You may try an international recipe.  You will learn about foods that taste good but will not make you overweight!

 

 

 

FASHION:

 

FASHION IS A PASSION:  Do you love to pour through fashion magazines and try to create the same look at home?  If you do, this is the place for you!  We will be spending our time together looking at and critiquing the new fashions and trying to find the best way to recreate them.  We will even have an expert from a retail store come in and direct us on what the “must haves” are going to be for the summer season.  She will also answer other fashion questions and questions about having a career/summer job in retail.  So, bring in your fashion magazines and get ready to create some new looks for the summer!

 

STRUT YOUR STUFF ON THE CATWALK:  Would you like to be a model, designer or Master of Ceremony?  Use your talent for our upcoming fashion show.  Goal:  to combine texture, color and style to create beautiful outfits that will be displayed in a fashion show format.  The sky is the limit!

 

 

 

HISTORY/POLITICS/TAKING A STAND:

 

A POLITICAL PARTY:  Interested in the Politics?  Are you a Democrat, Republican, Green Party or Independent?  Would you like to find out?  Politics is a contact sport.   Join me and explore the world of American politics.

 

CIVIL WAR:  The American Civil War was the deadliest war in American history, causing 620,000 soldier deaths and an undetermined number of civilian casualties.  The Civil War was responsible for ending slavery in the United States and strengthening the role of the federal government.   The social, political, economic and racial issues of the war brought changes that helped make the country a united super power.  As part of this group you will be able to explore these and many more issues dealing with the most important event in the history of the United States!

 

JFK CONSPIRACY: In spite of the presence of several secret service agents, JFK, the 35^th president of the United States was assassinated in broad daylight in front of hundreds of witnesses on the streets of downtown Dallas, TX.  Despite witness testimony as well as photographic and video evidence, JFK’s assassination remains the most famous and controversial unsolved murder in history.  What happened and why is this case unsolved?  We’ll take a look (literally, we’ll watch the video) – what happened in Dallas on November 22, 1963 – We’ll use investigative skills as we discuss the logic of what makes sense and try to assemble some of the pieces of this very interesting and complex puzzle.141122222222224

 

SAVE OUR SOCIETY:  Do you have an interest in community service?  Do you want to “change the world”?  Then come on down to SOS!  We’ll work hard to help people in and out of our community.

 

SPEAK OUT:  Human rights in the world...Global warming—Student rights – Year round school year...Eliminating recess for sixth graders...Are these hot topics for you?  Do you have other ideas that get you hot and bothered?  What ARE you passionate about?  You can make a difference.  Test the power of words---YOUR words!  SPEAK OUT is your voice for change.  How?  Go public in local newspapers!  Submit an editorial!  Get others thinking.  Convince them to see it your way!

 

WORLD WAR II AND THE HOLOCAUST:  World War II and the Holocaust were two events that occurred simultaneously.  What lessons can we learn from these dark days?  Do you want to travel back in time to determine if there were decisions which could have been made to alter the course of history?  How would you like to create some sort of strategic plan using the lessons of the past to impact our future in a positive way?  This might be the group for you!

 

 

 

READING AND WRITING:

 

THE BOOK NOOK:  Are you someone who GENUINELY enjoys reading?  Are you fascinated by some of the things characters do or say, or do you even recognize yourself in them?  If you find it both fun and relaxing to share your thoughts and reactions with others as you read a novel, then the Book Nook is for you.  Some titles being considered are A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte and Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.

 

THE PAGE TURNERS:  Good books are meant to be shared!  Readers are welcome to share their favorite books using a mini booktalk format.  Come and talk about stories, characters, and favorite authors in a relaxing, coffee house setting.  There will also be some great books for young adult readers!

 

ROCK, WRITE, ‘N’ ROLL!!!:  Have you ever loved a band so much that you just wanted to tell everyone else about them?  Heard a song that you thought was so great that you just wanted to write down some enthusiastic words about the sound it left ringing in your ears?  Ever heard music on the radio, on television or online that was sooo bad that you just wanted to write something to trash it?  Ever read a music review online or in a magazine and thought “I could do that”.  If you answered yes to any of those questions, then this enrichment activity is for you.  It’s the first Horace Mann online music review blog.  We’ll be listening to music, looking at examples of exciting ways to write about music and writing and posting reviews and articles about music in a blog that we’ll create and publish on the internet together.  If you like your music loud and your opinions about it to be heard even louder, then sign up for Rock, Write, ‘N’ Roll!!!!

 

 

 

SCIENCE/DISCOVERY:

 

CRIME SCENE CAPERS:  Blood splatters, DNA, fibers, finger prints and unknown powders – evidence left at the scene of the crime.  If you think CSI is a fascinating TV show, and you want to use your curiosity, attention to detail and perseverance to solve crimes, then come join our team of investigators!  Use the tools and techniques of forensic science and create your own crime scene! Nab the criminal by analyzing clues used by crime scene investigators who use science every day to brings criminals to justice.

 

ELECTRONICS AND MORE:  Do you enjoy working with electronics?  Taking things apart – examining the inner workings of technology???  Then this is the group for you – come find out more!

 

LIFE IN THE OCEAN:  See the fantastic ocean lie through National Geographic films and further discovery.  We will pick a few favorite creatures and learn more about where they live, how they live, what they eat, and what eats them.  We will discover the smallest ocean creatures to the largest whales on Earth including the rich ocean seal life of our own New England coast.

 

SCIENCE QUESTS:  Bill Nye has nothing on us!  Real life scientists doing real time experiements with us.  Take what you like most about science class and apply it to the future!

 

SOAPSATIONAL:  Learn the foundations of soap making:  the history behind soapmaking, basic melt and pour techniques, how to create your own recipes (using a simple set formula), how to create signature soaps, basic aromatherapy and special soaps.  You will come away from this enrichment activity with your bar(s) of handmade soap using natural scents, additives and herbals.  If time allows, we will venture into the process of making bath salts, lotions and shampoos.

 

STAR STRUCK:  Explore the heavens with an introduction to the night sky with a course in identifying constellations.  You will explore common constellations visible in Franklin during the summer and winter months.  You will learn how to identify constellations and identify the starts within them.  Addition, you will explore the history of the constellations and how they were named.

 

 

 

SPORTS

 

SPORTS STATISTICS:  Most Sox fans know that Ted Williams, the Splendid Splinter, was the last hitter to bat .400 in a full season, but do you know how to calculate a player’s batting average?  Alright, you can compute an average, but what about slugging percentage or OPS?  Did you know that OPS stands for on-base percentage plus slugging percentage?  If a hitter is batting .331 and goes 0-3 tomorrow, can you figure out his new batting average?  Do you know how to read an official baseball score card and interpret exactly what happened in the game?  Can you determine a pitcher’s Earned Run Average by reading the box score from his first outing of the year?    Can you keep score for a bowling game manually??  What is a triple double in basketball?  Who is the NFL’s single season sack leader and how many sacks did he have that year?   If you are interested in learning how to compute sports statistics, join this group!!!

 

 

THEATRE AND VIDEO PRODUCTION

 

LIGHTS!  CAMERA!  ACTION!:  If you want to be the next Steven Spielberg and win an Oscar for directing, then Lights!  Camera!  Action! is the enrichment team for you!  You will work with a small group of like-minded students to plan, tape and edit a video production such as music video, funny commercial, an advertisement, or any other creative project.  We can accept up to twenty students.  We will use the Oak Street Mac Lab since we’ll be working with iMovie!  Hello Hollywood!

 

LIGHTS!  SOUND!  CURTAIN!:  Experience the creation of a theatrical production from start to finish.  Working together with your peers, you will produce a 5-10 minute play from scratch.  You will develop the characters’ motivation, play the roles, block the scene, design the set, create the costumes and plan the lighting and sound plots.  By participating in this program, you will learn that there is a lot more to theatre than just the actors!!!