Student Experience
Polaris Tech is Uplifting.
Our school is open to ALL students in Jasper county and the surrounding counties. We foster an open, inclusive environment where students feel safe, respected, understood and encouraged to become their best selves.
Day In The Life
School life at Polaris Tech is intentionally different. Our facility is designed with large studios for group interaction, small huddle rooms for individual and small teamwork, common areas for brief breaks and an indoor walking loop for students and staff to focus on fitness goals. Our school day begins at 7:30 a.m. and concludes at 3 p.m.
The student and Learning Navigator experience includes:
Flight Team encourages students and staff to build and sustain relationships. Flight Team is every student’s safe harbor, where students check in to begin their day and check out before leaving school. During Flight Team, students work on the work and life skills curriculum, get the news of the day, review their daily ICAN learning plans, retrieve and store their computer devices. Every Learning Navigator leads a Flight Team, mentors and coaches students, and facilitates the implementation of the work and life skills curriculum.
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Huddle rooms provide students and staff with a place for individual work or to meet up with their applied learning project team members. Polaris Tech’s eight huddle rooms were designed to mimic corporate workplaces, equipped with whiteboards to encourage student and staff to design, create and collaborate.
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Polaris Tech’s common areas give students and staff an alternative to formal learning spaces. Equipped with comfortable tables and chairs, our common areas create informal and flexible spaces to relax and read. These open and bright areas are available to students and staff throughout the school day and can be used whenever a break is needed.
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Students visit learning studios throughout their day to work on applied learning projects supported by the use of Edgenuity™ for core academic content. Learning studios are large spaces equipped with Smartboard™ technology, wireless printers, rolling single desks and chairs to give students and staff maximum flexibility to work as a large group, individually or in small groups. Learning studios are connected to kitchen break areas for student and staff use throughout the school day. Learning Navigators team up integrate content into applied learning projects and to provide students with ready access to content guidance, mentoring and support.
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During Genius Hour students are provided lunch and choose how they use their time. Students may participate in clubs or use the time to catch up on project work. Indoor and outdoor meeting spaces given students many options for places to meet. Learning Navigators sponsor student clubs and participate with students in their area of interest.
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Students visit demonstration studios during the day to work on tech-minded application projects. Demonstration studios engage students in hands-on experiences centered on science and the six tech career pathways, in addition to Project Lead the Way programs. A Project Lead the Way Master Trainer and Science Learning Navigators engage students in applied learning projects that include coding, robotics and science experiments.
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The health and wellness of our students and staff is a top priority at Polaris Tech. Students participate in multiple forms of health and wellness experiences, such as fitness classes, walking the indoor loop, gardening, intramural sports, and our healthy lifestyles curriculum. Students maintain a record of health and wellness data as part of their ICAN profile to measure their growth. Polaris Tech approaches discipline in a different way and places an emphasis on restorative justice as a way to repair and sustain positive relationships.
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Flexible Fridays are integrated into the school calendar to provide students and staff with opportunities for personal and professional growth and enrichment. Flexible Friday is a time when students can meet with professionals in the six career pathways, go on field trips to expand their awareness and ignite their interest, make presentations to community and parents, work on projects or get tutoring and support. Learning Navigators use Flexible Friday for professional development opportunities and to collaborate on applied learning projects and student work.
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