Got Notes?
By Florida Virtual School on September 17th, 2015
Picture this:
You are in front of your screen, you have logged into your live lesson, and your instructor is about to start.
He or she reminds you to “take notes!” You find yourself unprepared, so you either open a Word document (which by the end of the lesson remains basically blank) or you hastily gather a pen and a paper napkin left in your room from last night’s pizza. At the end of the lesson, you barely have a few notes and the main idea of today’s lesson eludes you like the ghost of Christmas past…
Sigh…sound familiar? Continue reading
Joining Mars MAVEN Ambassador Program
By Florida Virtual School on August 22nd, 2015
Have you ever just watched the last five minutes of a movie and tried to piece the rest of it together, backwards?
Crazy idea, right? It’s one that Mars scientists are doing on the MAVEN mission.
MAVEN stands for Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN and the goal is to try and figure out what happened to Mars’ atmosphere millions of years ago.
Scientists know Mars at one time resembled Earth, with an atmosphere and flowing water. With MAVEN, they will attempt to work backwards and find out how the atmosphere and dynamo was lost.
I was lucky enough to be accepted into the MAVEN Ambassador Class of 2015 and I attended a week-long workshop with 29 other teachers to find out more about this cool mission. Continue reading
FLVS Brain Challenge: Only One Week Left!
By Florida Virtual School on July 24th, 2015
Today we’re recognizing @horses5ful1 of Instagram for her piano practice of “Let it Go” from Disney’s Frozen.
There’s only one week left to show what you’ve learned this summer for the #FLVSbrainchallenge!
All you need to do is share a video of you learning something new on Vine, Instagram, or YouTube (or all three!) and you could win four tickets to Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Check out our board of ideas below! Continue reading
Win a Family Getaway to Kennedy Space Center!
By Florida Virtual School on June 30th, 2015
There’s still time to enter our summer video contest – and win an awesome new prize!
Share a video of you learning a new skill by July 31 and you could be the lucky winner of a family getaway to Kennedy Space Center!
View all of the contest details here.
Did you know that NASA specifically seeks individuals who have a history of struggle and failures when searching for astronauts and engineers? Those who have bounced back and grown from their mistakes bring with them a unique set of strengths over those with straightforward success stories. Continue reading
FLVS Brain Challenge: Week 1
By Florida Virtual School on June 26th, 2015
It’s been a great first week for the FLVS Brain Challenge!
This week’s top contender is @jozh_legit who comes to us from Instagram with some crazy bike tricks. It’s obvious that he’s been making progress in learning some new moves this summer. Search for #FLVSBrainChallenge to see for yourself!
Think you can show us something even crazier? You could be our next big featured participant – or even our final winner! All you need to do is share a video of you learning something new on Vine or Instagram.
Learn more about our contest and how to enter here. Continue reading
Outdoor Education Video Contest Winners
By Florida Virtual School on March 6th, 2015
Last month, FLVS held a contest asking students to create a video describing the benefits gained by taking Outdoor Education.
We received an overwhelming number of submissions during our final hours and everyone really stepped it up. A big thank you to all of our participants for taking the time to submit an entry! There were so many great submissions that it was hard to choose only three winners. We are very appreciative of our judges who helped us narrow it down!
And now it’s time to unveil the winners… Continue reading
Becoming a Student Again with Astronomical Research
By Florida Virtual School on January 30th, 2015
Last year I was honored to be chosen as a NITARP teacher.
NITARP, short for the NASA/IPAC Teacher Archive Research Program, pairs teachers with astronomers from Caltech and NASA, and allows the teachers to do authentic astronomical research.
I thought this program would be something that was a little out of my comfort zone, as I only had classroom experience (like most science teachers), but I decided to apply anyway as it would be an educational experience. To my surprise, I was one of eight teachers that was accepted out of hundreds of applicants.
The teachers were split up into two teams, each with an astronomer to lead them. My team had educators from Boston, Colorado, and California and my astronomer, Varoujan Gorjian, was from Caltech and NASA. Continue reading
Lifetime Sportsman’s License Video Contest
By Florida Virtual School on January 14th, 2015
Calling all past, present, or potential Outdoor Ed Students!
Are you taking or planning to take Outdoor Education at FLVS? Enter to win a Florida Lifetime Sportsman’s License!
In partnership with Fresh Air Inc., Future Hunting in Florida Inc., and the Florida Wildlife Commission, FLVS is conducting a contest with former, current, or future Outdoor Education students and those with an interest in fishing and hunting.
Students are invited to create a 2-3 minute video describing the benefits they have gained (or expect to gain) by taking the FLVS Outdoor Education course. Videos can be uploaded to YouTube and submitted here.
Congratulations to our Contest Winners
By Florida Virtual School on September 30th, 2014
From the simple to the spectacular, we heard from all kinds of students during our “Go Ahead: Succeed” contest. Using Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, students submitted photos of themselves and told us how they have succeeded with FLVS.
Thank you to all of our amazing students who entered, from athletes to artists to world travelers to bookworms. We loved hearing your stories. Keep the success going and let us know how FLVS has helped you or your family in the comments below. You can also join the conversation on Instagram by following us at @floridavirtualschool. We might even share your story in a future post!
Go Ahead: Succeed with FLVS Contest
By Florida Virtual School on September 16th, 2014
This year, FLVS is excited to host our fall photo contest allowing students to share their success stories. We know our students are fascinating people who use the flexibility provided by FLVS to do great things – and we want to hear all about it! Using Instagram, Twitter or Facebook, we are asking students to show how FLVS has helped them succeed. You can even win a tablet!
Over the past few weeks, we’ve received all kinds of great submissions that showcase how unique Florida Virtual School students really are. We’ve heard from kids who act, students who travel all over the world, and those who just want to get their education in peace. We have met girls who play football, wrestle, or compete as archers. We have students who volunteer for Special Olympics, pursue creative hobbies and career opportunities, and finish high school early. Check them out here! Continue reading