blog Category
Saturday SAVY, Day 2 – “Wired Up! Electronics in Action” (5th/6th)
Nov. 1, 2025—This week, our young creators explored the world of electronics in the Wired Up workshop. It was wonderful to see their excitement as they began discovering how technology comes to life. We started with the basics of using a multimeter, an essential tool for every engineer. The students practiced measuring voltage and checking connections to see...
Saturday SAVY, Day 2 – “The Call: Heroism and Transformation of Percy Jackson” (5th/6th)
Nov. 1, 2025—SAVY parents, It was a great second day at SAVY. Students came in ready to learn. On day two, we started with some riddles to start us thinking and add a little levity before diving back into our literary analysis. In class, we continued our discussion of archetypes. Students were given twelve...
Saturday SAVY, Day 2 – “Observing the Cosmos” (5th/6th)
Nov. 1, 2025—Day 2 of Observing the Cosmos focused on scale and distance in the cosmos — how massive celestial objects are and how far apart they lie. We began by reviewing the primary tool for astronomers, which is light. We briefly introduced spectroscopy and how absorption and emission spectra reveal basic properties of stars. We also examined...
Saturday SAVY, Day 2 – “Science of the Senses” (3rd/4th)
Nov. 1, 2025—We had another great Saturday at SAVY! This week, students continued their journey into exploring the world using their five senses. Students worked as scientists and engineers as they discovered new content. First, we reviewed our understanding of the atom and basic chemistry. Students worked as scientists to make and test hypotheses about acids and...
Saturday SAVY, Day 2 – “If Walls Could Talk…” (3rd/4th)
Nov. 1, 2025—Hello! I’m always amazed at how much we accomplish in these SAVY classes. The pace is fast, and the content is jam-packed. We covered many concepts and ideas, and many tasks were challenging, but we did it. I’m so proud of this group. We started the day by completing a brief lesson on skyscrapers,...
Saturday SAVY, Day 2 – “Spatial Smarts” with Ms. Slick (1st/2nd)
Nov. 1, 2025—Hello SAVY families! Our 2nd class session kicked off with a thoughtful review of a big question from last week: What is the maximum number of lines of symmetry a shape can have? Students shared insightful ideas, and together, we discovered that a circle has an infinite number of lines of symmetry! After reconnecting during...
Saturday SAVY, Day 2 – “Spatial Smarts” with Ms. Gruchot (1st/2nd)
Nov. 1, 2025—Dear SAVY Families, We had a very exciting second day of Fall SAVY 2025: Spatial Smarts. Your mathematicians continued to impress with their knowledge of math and dedication to their learning. We started the day by reviewing concepts from week one, but we quickly dove into our new concepts for this week. First, we introduced...
Saturday SAVY, Day 2 – “Plants and Pollen” (1st/2nd)
Nov. 1, 2025—We learned a lot about pollinators today. Students learned about the anatomy and life cycles of bees. We also identified the metamorphosis of butterflies and ladybugs. We had a demonstration by a beekeeper from the Beekeepers Association of Tennessee. Students handled beeswax, honeycomb, and even had a chance to try on beekeepers’ outfits. Mr. Foy,...
Saturday SAVY, Day 1, “Plants and Pollen” (1st/2nd)
Oct. 27, 2025—We had a wonderful first day with all of our Agricultural Engineers. We started our morning meeting by introducing ourselves, and we got to know each other through interesting facts everyone shared about themselves. We then ascertained norms for our time together, and students worked in teams to produce posters to remind us to Be...
Saturday, SAVY Day 1 “Building Virtual Worlds” (7th/8th)
Oct. 27, 2025—We began day one of “Building Virtual Worlds” with two lectures, one from Mark Wallace, our lab’s principal investigator, and Adam Tiesman, one of our PhD students. They gave a bird’s-eye view of the multisensory processes that our lab studies, and the neuroscience of sensation and perception. Then we brought students into our multisensory cave...