Visit to the MIT Museum

Our engineering winterim group visited what could be the capital of the engineering field, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  We toured the campus with one of our leaders, Ms. Katherine Shroyer, an alumna and employee of MIT. We also visited the MIT museum which features exhibits on engineering and design, including robots and underwater vehicles, pictured below. 

Perhaps some of the most interesting exhibits were the sculptures of Arthur Gansen which made us question the line between high-level mechanical engineering and art. 

Snowy Sport Night

On a snowy Wednesday evening about 50 on-campus students participated in Sports night, while others went to Legacy Place in Dedham, MA.

Six teams competed in three indoor sports - dodge ball  volleyball, and knockout (4v4 soccer).  Sounds of serious intensity, like that of varsity-level sports echoed throughout the gym.  We are not completely sure of who "won" the overall title, but my team was certainly ranked high among the six! (Go Team Poulin!)

However, Mr. Casanave, definitely takes home the medal for most supportive and dedicated team captain. Check out this video below.

And Amadu has "best goal" in this video.

Be sure to visit the Wednesday Sport Night Picasa Album or all the LA Winterim Picasa Photo Albums to see more photos and video from Winterim 2013.

As the snow continues to fall, on Thursday night students will need to stay in their dorms chilling out with movies or video games. Maybe a quick break for snow angels and snowman outside will be allowed. A bit of hot chocolate also goes well with a good snow storm!

Windsor for Winterim?

LEAD: Leadership Experience and Development is staying at a camp in Richmond, NH called, Camp Takodah.  (It looks a bit like Windsor Mountain!)




In a text from the group leader on Wednesday, Katie Quist said, "We went on a 4 mile hike today! Despite snow and wind . . . hardcore baby!"  They also participated in low ropes challenge course initiatives the same afternoon (Wednesday).


The group stays overnight at the Camp from Monday through Friday and returns home for the weekend.  From the photos they have posted on Instagram and Twitter they appear to be having a lot of fun.

Fiery Pit of Wonder

                   

Clay and Kiln is underway and the team work is so strong you can taste it. The personalities in the 

room are very diverse. The flow of creations is uncontrollable.

What Lies Under the Dirt?

Every thing old.... and an opportunity for the eager beaver to become an eager archaeologist. That is just what our students are doing in Tolfa, Italy. Our students are learning the specialized techniques used to excavate and examine the unique objects that are pulled from the earth during the dig. They are also enjoying a little sight seeing.

Strategy Stress

A Grandmaster Chess Champion, has been sharing techniques and his own "secret" moves to win the game of chess.  Just spending a few minutes in the room, is mind boggling!  As he takes the group through a possible game scenario, he rattles off the "obvious" moves one would make to get them to the point where he makes the game-changing moves.






On Wednesday he challenged each student to a game of chess. All the students lost, however Matt Rose did last the longest in his game - about 40 moves.  As professional chess player, the longest game in his career was 9 hours, where he eventually lost the game after about 114 moves.  His shortest game was about 10 minutes and he won the game in 6 moves.  (Watch video of him explaining that particular game.)






During break times, one might find various structures of chess art on the boards.

  

                                 

Students Go to Jail

Reflecting on the jail visit

Lawrence Academy sent 12 students to the Nashua Street Jail yesterday. No, they didn't do anything criminal; they visited the jail as apart of their Winterim Project - The System.  The System is a Winterim that teaches students about the U.S. Judicial System. They learn about the daily process of the courts.

 They also visited two court hearings in Boston. One trial was about an individual suing a University in Boston, the man lost the case. The second was a widow in suit against a large car manufacturer about the death of her husband.

They learned that the U.S. Correctional System has some flaws in it. They spoke to a prisoner who has been in and out of jail 17 times since he was ten years old.  The group will travel to Washington, D.C. next week.

Making A Difference At Home

Winterim isn't all about traveling or designing a creative project. Some Lawrence Academy students are volunteering at places that help others. ARC of Opportunity is an example of this. The ARC is an adult day center for the developmentally challenged in Fitchburg, MA. LA students stepped out of their comfort zones and into a new world of challenges. The students are learning to socialize with people with disabilities. They are also playing games and supporting them as they practice important social skills.

What is between Texas and Mexico?

Rio of course, the Rio Grande that is.

LA students embarked on border scooting expedition to explore the wonders of the Texan riverside in canoes on the Rio Grande River. In a repetitive system of camp for the night, canoe for the day, the wannabe Texans will discover not only more about the area but also more about themselves.

Painting Peace

     

Peaceful, quiet, leisurely all describe the scene in Room 204 in Ansin.  Painting with watercolors is not an exact process, however, it does require some pre-planning.  Students must first draw or sketch what they intend to paint. They need to carefully mix the colors with water and each other to create the right shade to match the photo.  On Tuesday, they were all painting a farm scene from a photo. Although not an exact process, many of their paintings "matched" the farm photo quite well.