On Friday, Harvest Middle School welcomed visitors from East Contra Costa County Office of Education, Mt. Diablo School District, and Oak Grove Middle School. Joe Paniagua, Jenny Banta, four students and I shared our International Baccalaureate journey and next steps. Our 7th and 8th grade students shared their appreciation of formative and summative assessments because it gives them a chance to try again and they acknowledged that classwork and homework are still important because they help on the formatives. We heard 6th graders talk about being open-minded as they planned their spaghetti towers, a student explained what monochromatic means, and students connected their learning in art to the gender inequity they were learning about in language and literature.
All I can say is “Wow!” We are doing the right work for kids. Thank you for opening up your classrooms so that our visitors could experience IB in actions. We offer students an incredible learning experience at Harvest because of the work you do every day. Students are connected to their learning, developing skills, inquiring at a deep level, and developing a growth mindset through IB. Friday was a proud moment for me as the Principal of Harvest Middle School. I hope you find time to reflect on the power of the work you are doing with pride.
