Full Time Edition
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
Meet FLVS Student Kayla
By Guest Blogger on August 14th, 2015
Kayla loved school.
She loved her teachers.
She loved her friends.
However, she really struggled with staying focused and was morally disappointed by the various distractions at her public school. She wanted to do more, see more, accomplish more – and she did.
Kayla researched Florida Virtual School, made phone calls, and spoke with her Dad and I about doing FLVS from home for her junior year of high school. Continue reading
Back-to-School Traditions
By Guest Blogger on August 12th, 2015
For a few weeks now, Target and Walmart have had their back-to-school aisles fully stocked with shiny new markers, notebooks, and binders.
All the tools to help students transition back to school without a hitch are on sale – and tax-free through August 16th! Walking down these aisles reminds me of the back-to-school traditions I used to have with my parents and sisters growing up.
My mom always took us shopping for our back-to-school clothes and of course filled our brand new backpacks with all the supplies and pens and paper they could hold. My dad would take us to school on the first day, but not before having an early morning breakfast at IHOP for some delicious back-to-school pancakes. 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
FLVS Student Studies Sea Turtle Hatchlings
By Guest Blogger on July 22nd, 2015
It’s 11:00 pm and the moon is shining brightly in the nighttime sky over the south Florida coastline.
A large sea turtle races against time as she climbs the beach’s slopes to find the perfect nesting site. After an hour, she finds it and begins to dig a deep nest and lay her eggs. In the end, only one sea turtle out of a thousand hatchlings will survive to adulthood.
Loggerhead sea turtles are an endangered species threatened by predators, pollution, poaching, and habitat degradation. Last year, I decided to look at sea turtle hatches because of their importance in the marine life cycle. A factor that negatively affects the sea turtle’s nesting habitat is beach erosion. Continue reading
Preparing for College: Start Early, Be Consistent, Finish Strong
By Amy LaGrasta on July 3rd, 2015
Many students fall into the trap of thinking college is something they need to start considering their senior year.
Students who wait until then, however, will be much more than a day late and a dollar short (more like four years too late and thousands of dollars short).
The fact is the time to start thinking about college is when you are selecting your freshman courses. It can be argued that it begins much earlier than this even – through the development of soft skills like time management, study habits, and a growth mindset for example, but that is a different post. 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
Florida Virtual School Full Time Hosts Third Graduation
By Guest Blogger on June 22nd, 2015
Over 200 Florida Virtual School Full Time students walked across the stage of the CFE Arena at the University of Central Florida on June 4, 2015 to receive their high school diplomas.
About 1,500 family members of the graduates filled the stands of the arena, along with staff members from the school including board members, guidance counselors and instructors.
Also in attendance was Ronald Blocker, the school’s newest president and chief executive officer who replaced founder Julie Young after her retirement in 2014, and chief operating officer, William Gordon. Continue reading
Meet 3rd Grade Synchronized Swimmer Jennah
By Guest Blogger on June 18th, 2015
We love sharing our student stories with the FLVS community!
This week, we hear from Jennah H., a third grade student at Florida Virtual School Full Time (FLVS FT) who shares her love for both FLVS and synchronized swimming. Jenna started attending FLVS FT during the 2014-15 school year so that she could attend swimming practice more often. She has won every competition she entered this year – all while keeping straight A’s!
If you or your student is interested in sharing your FLVS experience with The Virtual Voice, drop us an email at socialmedia@flvs.net. Continue reading