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Tag: personalized learning

Posted
October 7, 2024
Category
Educators at Work

El Centro Elementary: Making a Difference in Students’ Lives

Celebrating El Centro Elementary School District!

We’re excited to highlight the incredible work happening at El Centro Elementary School District in El Centro, California! They have made significant progress in their 7th and 8th grade Advisory classes this school year. They achieved this by integrating Thrively into their curriculum.  With Thrively resources, they’re building positive student learning identities. They are conducting well-being check-ins and fostering hope. They are also guiding students on their paths to future careers.  Awesome job El Centro!

McCabe Elementary School’s Inspiring Career Fair

McCabe Elementary School hosted a Career Fair at the end of last year. The focus was on student strengths and personality types. In preparation for the event, 7th and 8th-grade students completed Thrively’s Strength Assessment. They also completed the RIASEC survey to identify their top career interests. McCabe used the data from these assessments. They invited professionals from fields that closely matched their students’ most popular interest areas. 

The majority of students identified with Enterprising, Investigative, and Social personality types. The fair included a diverse group of professionals as a result. These professionals were bankers, sales managers, real estate agents, nurses, environmental specialists, and social workers. By aligning the presenters with the students’ interests, McCabe ensured that the event was both relevant and engaging. 

The school went the extra mile to make the experience meaningful. In their morning advisory class, students received their Strengths Certificates along with Cornell Notes to use during the presentations. This thoughtful preparation helped students connect with the speakers and provided a structured way to think about what they learned. At the end of the day, students completed reflection forms. They considered how their specific strengths and personalities help them succeed in the careers they found most intriguing.

McCabe took the time to truly understand their students and their aspirations. They created a Career Fair experience that was informative. It was also deeply personalized. 

Some of the students’ responses: 

“These strengths can be used to make myself successful in the career. I can learn information fast. I am creative.”

“Being athletic can help me succeed in Reach 9. I enjoy flying, and it requires strength.”

“I could use my compassion to make sure that they will stay happy. I could use my patience to take the time to help them. I could use social justice to stand up for them. I could use my flexibility to help multiple people at a time. I will use memory to remember how to help them.” (student interested in Social Work)

“The Verbal one shows how it would be nice for me to have a good language and grammar as that would help in advertising when I start my business. Independence shows how I would not depend on someone to start the business for me and I can start from scratch. The drive shows my determination.”

“I can use resilience in becoming a realtor.”

“Memorization is key for any job in the medical field.”

“My personality can fit the types of career I found most interesting because I like talking and being around others.”

“My personality might fit the types of careers I found more interesting because the jobs are very exciting and different every day for variety which I would enjoy.”

“I like comforting people, so being a counselor would be fun, as I enjoy making people feel better.”

Ms. Hester stated, “I think the best part of the experience was students seeing their unique strengths printed and having them with them. This happened while they learned about different career pathways. It makes their future more relevant. They connect career details with how their natural talents can lead to success in those careers. I think it was also very helpful to have data. This data informed our decisions about who to invite to speak to our students.”

Thank you, McCabe Elementary, for your unwavering dedication to your students. You are truly making a lasting impact on their lives and helping them envision a bright future!

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Posted
September 23, 2024
Category
Educators at Work

Thrively’s Impact on APS Schools: Success Stories Unveiled

Shout out to Amphitheater Public Schools (APS) in Tucson, Arizona!

As the school year kicks off, APS is making waves with Thrively’s Gifted and Talented Program. This initiative is significantly boosting student engagement. It is also fostering positive learning identities. Big SHOUT OUT to Nash Elementary School, Mesa Verde Elementary School, La Cima Middle School, and Wilson K-8 School. These schools have completed or almost completed 100% of their students’ strengths assessment. You are setting the foundation for creating a culture of care that identifies and celebrates all students’ unique strengths!

Success Stories: Thriving at Painted Sky Elementary and Coronado K-8 School

Painted Sky Elementary School
Teacher Nina Brown shared her excitement after a recent professional development session on Thrively. She stated, “Thank you for yesterday’s PD! I learned so much more about Thrively and am super pumped to dive deeper into it this year! We did the Pencil Carry Challenge in one of my 4th grade classes. We had an amazing discussion afterwards about what helped their team find success. The kids loved this exercise as well and challenged themselves to find multiple ways to solve the problem.” Each of her four groups came up with a unique solution—an inspiring showcase of collaboration and creativity!

Coronado K-8 School
From Teacher Erica Sparlin: After taking the Strengths Assessment, most students have all 4 [assessments] finished. Students made a hexagon with the 6 chosen strengths. They added pictures & colors if they chose to. Then, they made several matches with classmates. Finally, each class made a giant connection. These activities provided a great opportunity to recognize and leverage individual student strengths. As students participated, they naturally took on roles that played to their unique abilities, like leadership, creativity, or strategic thinking.

After the challenges, the discussions allowed students to think about their personal contributions. Students recognized the specific strengths that helped their team succeed. This learning activity not only fostered teamwork but also encouraged self-awareness and confidence in their abilities. By understanding how their unique strengths contribute to group success, students are better prepared for future collaborative projects. This reinforces the importance of diverse skills and perspectives in achieving common goals.

We are thrilled to partner with Amphitheater Public Schools, and Thrively is here to help every student recognize their genius. Every student deserves to thrive! Keep up the incredible work!

Posted
March 20, 2023
Category
Project Based Learning

Dropout Prevention Begins with Self-Awareness

With a passion for helping the underdog, Dr. Cynthia Knight has fervently persevered in creating a nonprofit organization to provide quality educational experiences for the most-needy of Iowa’s residents–the high school dropout. From classroom experiences ranging from large school districts: Des Moines, Johnston and Ankeny, Christian education at Dowling Catholic High School to smaller schools in Iowa: East Marshall, West Marshall to a seven-year stint at the Iowa Department of Education, Dr. Knight listened, learned, and developed a program, Jordahl Academy. “This program has successfully helped students earn a high school diploma who have been told there is no money, they don’t have time to finish, or there are no more options available for them through traditional school environments,” explained Knight. Jordahl Academy, named in honor of Dr. Knight’s friend and mentor, Don Jordahl, who was instrumental in launching this work, has spent the last 9 years changing lives. “We connect students with highly qualified Iowa licensed teachers who are passionate about providing hope to these young people,” she added. IOWA NET HIGH ACADEMY.jpg “One of the best tools we have for our work is Thrively. We use Thrively twofold: to get to know our students’ interests/career plans so we can create a learning pathway that is personalized and project-based and to let students explore their interests through the online tools Thrively provides.” When students are engaged and can see the personal relevance in what they are learning, they are more likely to invest their time and see the direct impact their new skills have on their daily and future lives. “100% of our graduates are employed or seeking further education through the trades/college. We are proud of these young people,” Knight added. Thrively PBL Project-Based Learning With a servant’s heart, Dr. Knight funds this work through a tea room named after her grandmothers, Ivadel Ruth’s Tea Room, and a consignment shop, Backroom Bargains, and she runs with her husband. She also takes donations from Don Jordahl’s supporters. More than 4,000 Iowa students have dropped out each year for the past three years. Dr. Knight created another option for these young people. She calls it HOPE.
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