Goals
Meet our 2016 Photo Contest Winners
By Florida Virtual School on October 10th, 2016
Over the last several weeks, FLVS students have been sharing what makes them unique in our fall photo contest on social media.
Using Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, participants were asked to submit a photo showing what makes them one-of-a-kind using #IAMFLVS.
It was truly inspiring to see so many entries (including many of our new elementary students!) and hear all of your stories. We also enjoyed following the journey of several students who participated in our contest in years past!
We loved hearing how the flexibility of FLVS allows you to be yourself and follow your dreams.
As we have in previous contests, three winners were selected…one at random, one by our judges, and one by popular vote.
And now, we’re excited to present them to you!
To Bennu and Back!
By Florida Virtual School on September 29th, 2016
Hello FLVS peeps!
I had the distinct honor of representing FLVS at the OSIRIS REx rocket launch a few weeks ago.
Now if you’re wondering what exactly that means, OSIRIS REx stands for NASA’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer. That’s a mouthful, right?
In a nutshell, NASA is sending a spacecraft to an asteroid named Bennu. Once it reaches Bennu (after a trip lasting two years), the spacecraft will orbit the asteroid for about a year, find the perfect place to collect about 80 grams of the rock, and head back home, arriving back to Earth in 2023.
It won’t actually land on the asteroid, but instead hover over it – and with the help of Canada and their amazing knowledge of spacecraft arms – will grab a small sample. (To put this in perspective, 80 grams is about the equivalent of 80 Skittle candies.)
So why are we going to Bennu? Continue reading
Chase Your Dreams – You Might Catch One
By Guest Blogger on September 14th, 2016
This post was written by Shalyah Fearing, FLVS student and contestant on The Voice, Season 10.
Have you ever dreamed about a goal that you want to accomplish in life? I have.
Chase after your dreams. You might actually catch one!
I always wanted to audition for “The Voice.” I thought the show was unique compared to all the others. The chairs aren’t facing you during your audition! They can’t judge you off of your looks or style. They can only judge by your voice and that’s it. Genius!
I decided at the age of 12 that I was going to audition for this show and I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. Here comes that ping of doubt sitting in the corner of your mind. The kind of doubt that only comes out of its corner to crush your dreams when the time comes.
“Shalyah. Do you honestly think that out of thousands of singers here to audition, that you’ll get a slot? Why try?” that voice would ask me. Continue reading
FLVS Student Pursues her Passion for Animals
By Guest Blogger on September 13th, 2016
This post was written by tenth grade high school student Madison Toonder. Read about Maddie’s oyster research in a previous blog post here.
In October 2015, I was awarded a scholarship to attend any pre-collegiate program of my choice for winning second place in the nation in STEM mathematics at the Broadcom MASTERS national science fair competition in San Francisco, California.
I chose the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University’s two-week summer intensive in Massachusetts because it is directly related to my career path.
Tufts’ program is designed to give high school students insight into the rigors of veterinary school. During the program, we attended lectures, studied animal anatomy through fascinating dissections and hands-on palpitations, completed hospital rounds with fourth-year veterinary students, and explored the many different possible career paths within veterinary medicine. My daily agenda was varied and included activities such as learning proper techniques for handling animals, observing surgical procedures, and learning how to perform routine check-ups on a variety of different animals. One of my favorite activities was suturing bananas to practice proper technique. Continue reading
Cooney World Adventures Blog Series
By Guest Blogger on July 19th, 2016
If you’ve ever dreamed of traveling the world, it may not be as complicated as you think.
In 2008, Mike Cooney traveled the world with his wife, Catrell, and three teenage sons, Morgan, Zach, and Harrison, who studied online with FLVS. After selling their home, downsizing, and packing up their belongings, the family traveled across six continents and 22 countries…more than 61,000 miles! Today, Mike shares their experiences at speaking events and talks about his book which details their adventures. As Mike likes to say, “If we can do it, anyone can!”
In a year-long blog series on The Virtual Voice, Morgan, Zach, and Harrison and their parents shared their experience: Continue reading
A Life-Changing Experience
By Guest Blogger on April 20th, 2016
This is the final post in a series by the Cooney family about their world travels, made possible by the flexible learning offered at FLVS.
For the past 12 months, my family and I have been recounting our trek around the world and sharing what it meant to each of us.
Although it’s been nearly seven years since we returned in September 2009, there is not a day that goes by we don’t think about what the trek meant to us individually and collectively. Needless to say, it was a life-changing experience for each of us. My wife Catrell and I set several goals before leaving on our trek and they were all met. Continue reading
Let Freedom to Choose…Ring
By Guest Blogger on March 29th, 2016
Choice.
It’s a beautiful word. It means having options and being able to select an alternative for something that works for you.
Whether you’re male or female, if you live in the United States, you have a choice—where to live, what to eat, and what to do with your life.
Opportunities exist in this country like none other. We can choose our religion, our education, our life partner, our president, and what livelihood we wish to pursue. In many other countries around the world, these choices are made for you. Continue reading
A Narrow Piece of Geography
By Guest Blogger on March 16th, 2016
This is the 11th post in a series by the Cooney family about their world travels, made possible by the flexible learning offered at FLVS.
Our around the world trek was accomplished in two stages.
The first lasted four months and we backpacked through Central and South America. After returning home for a short visit, we resumed our trek, which lasted seven months. During our odyssey, we traveled to six continents, visited 22 countries and covered more than 61,000 miles. Although we did circumnavigate the globe, the fact is we only traveled a narrow piece of geography.
No matter how well-traveled someone is, they tend to stay within the lines – back roads, hiking trails, plane routes and highways. We were no different. Through Central and South America, we traveled almost entirely by bus – from “chicken buses” packed with 30 people when there should have only been 15, to a luxury motor coach that had its equivalent of a flight attendant onboard. Continue reading
How Online Learning Helped our Dream Come True
By Guest Blogger on February 29th, 2016
This is the tenth post in a series by the Cooney family about their world travels, made possible by the flexible learning offered at FLVS.
As any parent knows who has children enrolled in an online learning program, there are pros and cons.
In most cases the pros outweigh the cons, which is why the number of options for online learning have exploded in recent years.
Whether someone is simply brushing up on basic skills, completing a Kindergarten-12 class or working on his or her PhD, online learning has become deeply rooted in our educational infrastructure.
Continue reading
The Value of a Diverse Education
By Guest Blogger on January 21st, 2016
This is the ninth post in a series by the Cooney family about their world travels, made possible by the flexible learning offered at FLVS.
Most people who live in the United States believe they are well informed about world events. It isn’t until a person travels that he truly understands how wrong he is.
And by travel, I don’t mean staying at a resort and participating in touristy tours, but going to the local markets, riding the local buses and getting to know the local residents. You can only truly understand and appreciate the culture and people when you’ve transitioned from tourist to traveler.
As a result of social media and cable television, we live in a world of 24/7 news, or so we believe. In reality, very little of the “real world” news seems to filter through the noise of popular media.