This week marked the final days of the fourth session of the school year. Over five full days, Launchpad learners wrapped up their Genre and Quest projects while also preparing for the upcoming session. On Monday, learners began by scheduling their week and setting priorities. The week also included several key events: P.D. with Jacob House Cup games on Wednesday Physics Day on Thursday Genre This week, learners focused on finalizing and formatting their allegories for compet

This was the fourth week of Session Four, and it’s hard to believe we are already more than 80% through the school year. On Monday, Launchpad learners planned their schedules for the week ahead, setting goals and organizing their time. Some of the highlights this week included: P.D. session with Jacob House Cup games on Wednesday Alpine Day on Friday Ongoing planning for Physics Day at the end of the session Genre This week in Genre, each learner completed their Hero’s Allego

Welcome to the Third Newsletter of Session Four! This week, learners in the LaunchPad Studio dove deeper into physics, advanced their allegory writing, and engaged in meaningful discussions about global poverty and income inequality. Quest (Physics: Hooke’s Law & Bungee Challenge) In Quest, learners began the week by researching Hooke’s Law and exploring the relationship between force and elasticity (F=kx). As the week progressed, they investigated different types of bungees—

Welcome to the second week of Session 4’s Weekly Newsletter! We began the week by continuing our Genre Allegories. Learners identified three main obstacles their protagonists will face. At Acton, we recognize three common challenges: Resistance, Distraction, and Victimhood. Just as learners work to overcome these challenges in real life, their characters will face and overcome them throughout their stories. This week, learners brainstormed how these obstacles would appear in

This week was filled with exciting STEM learning, creative storytelling, and hands-on engineering challenges. Due to a winter blizzard, learners returned on Tuesday to discover massive snow piles, creating a fun and memorable start to the new session. Our Physics Quest began with learners researching fundamental physics concepts such as displacement, distance, potential energy, and kinetic energy. Learners also had the opportunity to pursue an Honors Physics Quest, completing

Welcome back! The final week of Session 6 was filled with badge compilations, an inspiring Exhibition, and meaningful celebrations of growth. Here are this week’s highlights: Speeches, Games, and Guests: An Exhibition Worth Remembering This Session’s Exhibition was a truly special event, showcasing each learner’s NGA (Next Great Adventure) speech alongside their handcrafted board games. Learners invited personal guests who could support and inspire their future goals, creatin

Welcome back! As we approach our exciting Exhibition, learners have been hard at work refining their speeches and celebrating some unforgettable winter experiences. Here are this week’s highlights: Speeches are nearly complete! A genre milestone worth celebrating: We are entering the final stages of speech preparation, and the growth has been remarkable. This week’s Genre Challenges focused on memorizing speeches, recording practice presentations, and strengthening confident

Welcome Back! Week 4 of this session brought major progress in our Decision Making Quest , exciting developments in our NGA speeches , and plenty of snowy outdoor fun! Game Design Complete – Playtesting Begins! Our research- and reflection-heavy Decision Making Quest  is truly coming together. This week, students finalized their game designs and moved into one of the most exciting stages of the process: playtesting  with fellow studiomates. After sharing our games, we gather

Hello all! This week included a long-awaited trip to Orlando, Florida , where the LaunchPad Studio visited Acton Academy: Arts Thereafter  and Universal Studios . This experience was nothing short of amazing and provided an incredible opportunity for bonding, independence, and growth. Here’s a recap of our adventure: Day 1: Flights, Chaos, and Our Airbnb If our flight to Orlando hadn’t been so chaotic, it wouldn’t be worth mentioning—but it definitely was! The day included se

Hello parents and guests! We are now entering the part of Session 3 where things really start moving. This week was full of Quest challenges, AI learning, and exciting anticipation for our upcoming trip. Here’s a look at what we’ve been up to: #1 – The AI Badge: Taking the World by Storm This Session, alongside our Quest and Genre work, learners are earning an AI Badge. This badge focuses on using artificial intelligence in a responsible, ethical, and effective way, while als

Hello everyone! The two-week break is officially over, and Session 3 has begun! With Decision-Making as our Quest and NGA Talks as our Genre, this session is already shaping up to be an exciting and meaningful one. Here’s what we’ve been working on this week: 1. Your NGA Is On! Building Real-World Connections A Next Great Adventure (NGA) is at the heart of what makes Launchpad unique, offering learners a four-year head start into the real world. This session, learners began w

Welcome to the final Launchpad newsletter of the Second Session! While we continued a few regular weekly activities—such as Civics, which focused on the Civil War, and our NGA time—this week was filled with special end-of-Session experiences. One major focus was Badge Compiling, where we gathered our most important achievements from the Session, including our Genre Restaurant Review video and Cooking and Chemistry course certificate. We compiled these accomplishments into a s

Welcome to Week 6 of the Second Session’s Launchpad Newsletter! This week in Launchpad was packed with creativity, experimentation, critical thinking, and outdoor adventure. Genre In Genre, learners continued working on their Restaurant Review videos. After filming the second-to-last version of their reviews, learners edited their videos using tools such as CapCut and VN Video Editor. They then gave and received peer feedback focused on script quality, content, video producti

Welcome to the Fifth Week of the Second Session’s Launchpad newsletter! This week in Genre, we wrote the rough drafts for our Restaurant Reviews! In these drafts, learners covered everything—from the atmosphere and service to the food quality and even the cleanliness of the bathrooms. Along with drafting, we exchanged peer feedback, revised our work based on critiques, and recorded our first round of video reviews. It was a busy, productive, and exciting week for Genre! In Qu

Welcome to the fourth week of the Second Session’s Launchpad Newsletter! This was one of the shortest weeks in Acton history—only two school days, with the third day reserved for our big Thanksgiving celebration. But before we get to the feast, let’s recap the learning highlights from this short but exciting week. Genre – Food Review Writing This week, we crafted our raison d’être —our reason for being food reviewers. Each learner chose the type of review they will write and

Welcome to the third week of the second session’s Launchpad newsletter! In Genre , we began narrowing down our restaurant choices. Learners spent time reading food reviews, shaping their reviewer personas, and taking a virtual tour of their top pick. Next week, we’ll finally be eating at our selected restaurant—something we’ve all been looking forward to. After so much prewriting and exploration, the excitement is definitely building! In Quest , we kicked off Module Three of

Welcome to the Second Week of the Second Session’s Launchpad Newsletter! This week was filled with thoughtful learning, hands-on experimentation, meaningful discussions, and even a special visit from another Acton Academy. Here’s a look at what we’ve been up to in the Launchpad Studio: 🍽 Genre: Crafting Restaurant Reviews In Genre, we focused on writing a short restaurant review to prepare for the longer, more detailed version coming later this Session. Each learner chose a

Welcome to the Session 2, Week 1 Launchpad Newsletter! This session is going to be a very exciting one, as we have started our first science Quest of the year: Cooking and Chemistry. We are all enrolled in a Harvard EdX Chemistry Course, which, if we successfully complete, will result in us earning a graduation certificate!  This week, we learned about dimensional analysis, balancing equations, and more (for those of you who like chemistry, try to balance this equation: 𝐻2+�

Welcome to the final Launchpad Newsletter of Session 1! This week was the last of the Session. A lot of time was spent wrapping up the House Cup, Quest, Genre, NGA, and much more. Everything we did this session was meant to prepare us for Friday, the day of our Exhibition! On Monday, we started the process of greenlighting our Genre essays. We recorded ourselves reading our essays and rewatched the recording, taking note of any words, phrases, or sentences that sounded out of

Welcome to the sixth Launchpad Newsletter of the year! This week was considerably shorter compared to prior weeks: Monday we had off for Columbus Day, Friday we went to Alpine, and we spent most of Tuesday on a field trip. So, our usual work load was spread out over 2 and a half days. On Tuesday, we took a field trip to the Lincoln Center in NYC, a building complex for the performing arts. During this trip, we learned the history of the different buildings that make up the Li