Middle School students got creative on the design level after being tasked with creating Beav-Hives to represent their identities. Each student started with a simple hexagonal tile of cardboard. Using the resources on the design level and inspiration from their peers, these tiles were painted, decorated, and modified to become visual representations of each student. Once finished, the tiles were pieced together to create clusters representing each Middle School advisory.

The goal was to help students reflect on their personal identities and create a sense of community in their advisories. . . Students got to know us and became familiar with the D-level, as well as show off their creativity through their creations.

-Blake St. Louis, Director of the Research + Design Center

An endless amount of creativity went into each tile. Some students chose to go abstract, swirling together their favorite colors and materials to indicate their interests. Others went with a three-dimensional approach, having characters and scenes rise up out of the hexagonal tile. Each student’s identity is communicated not only in what their tile depicts, but also what methods they used in their design process.

I think the biggest takeaway [for students] was being able to see the deeper interests of their classmates. To see representations of each student as a collective was a powerful visual.

-Nate Guevin, Middle School Liaison to Research + Design

Students previewed the finished results for the first time at a Middle School meeting earlier this term, pointing out their favorite tiles and spotting their friends’ designs. Currently, the Beav-Hive tiles are on display outside of classrooms 101-105.