# data[].attributes.headline
The kids were really invigorated by the Planet Earth film and loved discussing concrete ways to help the environment.

# data[].attributes.subject
The kids were really invigorated by the Planet Earth film and loved discussing concrete ways to help the environment.

# data[].attributes.body
This was the highlight of the week for a lot of the kids -- they just got to be creative and free and have fun and it was so well done.

# data[].attributes.body
I think the end of the year is so hard to get both students and faculty energized about anything. At the same time, I think it is an important experience and it was also a really great bonding experience. My group felt like an advisory by the end of the week. I was thinking how great it would be for new students to have that at the start of the year. So I think we should rebrand it as "Holton Experiential Learning Opp." and HELO, which is cute if it is the start of the year and more of an orientation type activity! :) It also sends the message to new families about what we value at Holton right from the start. I think we should just have classes up to the end of the school year and then a final celebration, yearbook-signing day at the end.

# data[].attributes.body
The speakers were fantastic but it was hard to get the kids to focus on hour-long talks when they were so burned out at the end of the year.

# data[].attributes.body
Our kids were really proud of the skit they did and actually wanted to watch it again during one of the breaks the next day. They seemed to have a lot of fun with that

# data[].attributes.body
Being outside on Day 2 was really nice. If there was some way to keep them in smaller groups, that would be great.

# data[].attributes.body
Having that bonding time at the end of the week and getting to play games with the students was fun for them and for us

# data[].attributes.body
We might want to keep the reflection portion short.

# data[].attributes.body
I suspect the speakers would work better in person than over Zoom.

# data[].attributes.body
We should really incorporate more learning about Native Americans into Holton. Diona was great and the students and I both learned a lot!

# data[].attributes.headline
The speakers were great. Their presentations were perhaps a little long for the students, but they got a lot out of them. The walks along Booze Creek and  on the Cabin John trail were very relaxing for the students. We need to do more of that.

# data[].attributes.subject
The speakers were great. Their presentations were perhaps a little long for the students, but they got a lot out of them. The walks along Booze Creek and  on the Cabin John trail were very relaxing for the students. We need to do more of that.

# data[].attributes.body
The activities on day 3 and 4 were given more time than needed on the schedule. Next time the groups could present their timelines to each other, and thus learn from each other.

# data[].attributes.body
Speakers, celebrity skit, hike, art project, discussions related to history, etc. Overall, it was a good way for teachers and students to bond.

# data[].attributes.body
The kids have a strong reaction when you use the word "reflection"- they prefer the word "review"- it should be short as well. Too much down time, I think, towards the end of the programming. It could be one day shorter.

# data[].attributes.body
Include an urban planner, who can talk about how decisions are made about urban development, and an environmental historian, who can talk about how the landscape has changed in our area over the past few hundred of years.

# data[].attributes.body
It was very well organized!
The art projects were amazing.

# data[].attributes.body
As cool as this was, I missed Romeo and Juliet. There was a lot of "academic" work on the first day, which may be a little much at the start of MELO or end of the school year.

# data[].attributes.headline
Will this be the new format for 9th grade moving forward? I thought there was discussion that this experience was just for this year to support Community Service initiatives, and that we were looking to return to Romeo & Juliet MELO in the future.  That said, there were some lovely things that we did with this MELO. There did seem to be a fair amount of unstructured down time when folks were wandering around. And while the art project was great, in our group it was a smaller contingency that was actually working on the art project and the others didn't quite know what to do with themselves, or weren't as interested in jumping in.  You will get that I suppose no matter what you are doing with them.

# data[].attributes.subject
Will this be the new format for 9th grade moving forward? I thought there was discussion that this experience was just for this year to support Community Service initiatives, and that we were looking to return to Romeo & Juliet MELO in the future.  That said, there were some lovely things that we did with this MELO. There did seem to be a fair amount of unstructured down time when folks were wandering around. And while the art project was great, in our group it was a smaller contingency that was actually working on the art project and the others didn't quite know what to do with themselves, or weren't as interested in jumping in.  You will get that I suppose no matter what you are doing with them.

# data[].attributes.body
Christopher Wilson 1m

Another off campus trip, in addition to the hike. After the lecture on Native American heritage, we could go to the National Museum of the American Indian and see what kinds of connections they might make.

# data[].attributes.body
All the careful organization and logistics were incredible! The course page, links to other resources, daily schedule all attest to the huge amount of work that went into this.

# data[].attributes.body
We had a discussion of environmental racism on the last day, and the students really got into that. It tied together some of the threads of the week, including "white flight" to Bethesda during the mid-twentieth century and environmental degradation of urban environments with large communities of color. This is a good article to start a conversation: https://www.yesmagazine.org/environment/2021/04/22/environmental-racism-examples

# data[].attributes.headline
We may want to thinking about the time spent sitting. The students really wanted to move around a bit more.

# data[].attributes.subject
We may want to thinking about the time spent sitting. The students really wanted to move around a bit more.

# data[].attributes.body
When a whole grade puts on a performance, they feel a bond when it is over. And the performance works as a culmination of the week that requires everyone to participate and everyone to also be an audience for. The current project had nice elements for coming to gather at the end, but not in the same way, not as an entire grade. If we did this one again, it would be nice to find a way for a community project in the end.

# data[].attributes.body
The first day, in particular, required a lot of passive listening to speakers. One student kept falling asleep, and others tended to check until reminded to pay attention.

# data[].attributes.body
The mandala was a wonderful project, and my group worked so well together both on that project and on the final one.

# data[].attributes.headline
A lot of work went into planning this week and I don't feel like the adults or students could really fully benefit from the experience because of the timing of this project. Should we rethink what we do this last week of school? 

# data[].attributes.subject
A lot of work went into planning this week and I don't feel like the adults or students could really fully benefit from the experience because of the timing of this project. Should we rethink what we do this last week of school? 

# data[].attributes.headline
I thought it was really well organized. Thank you to everyone that put the time and effort into putting all of this together. Any adult could easily slide in and do any of the activities. I think the girls enjoyed researching interesting facts for the timeline and they enjoyed the outdoor activities. 

# data[].attributes.subject
I thought it was really well organized. Thank you to everyone that put the time and effort into putting all of this together. Any adult could easily slide in and do any of the activities. I think the girls enjoyed researching interesting facts for the timeline and they enjoyed the outdoor activities. 

# data[].attributes.headline
What is the goal of this week? Do we need to rethink what this week is all about? We put it in to replace exams but now it seems like almost punishment to the girls. Should it be more of a choice thing so they buy into it more? Should it be like the seniors and be life skills? What else can we build off of 9th grade year? 

# data[].attributes.subject
What is the goal of this week? Do we need to rethink what this week is all about? We put it in to replace exams but now it seems like almost punishment to the girls. Should it be more of a choice thing so they buy into it more? Should it be like the seniors and be life skills? What else can we build off of 9th grade year? 