As educators, we know it’s important to engage students by providing real-world applications of classroom content. Taking this a step further, it’s possible to develop students’ sense of agency by providing opportunities for them to learn about the different ways people contribute to communities and begin to identify and address issues within their own communities, big and small. Keep reading for lessons from a variety of subject areas and grade levels.
1. Tell Community Stories Through Podcasts (high/language arts/social studies)
In Reading & Writing in the Disciplines, “Writing for New Media,” students create podcasts about issues and stories from their school community while learning effective journalistic practice. They develop interview, research, writing, and technological skills.
2. Beautify an Empty School Space (high/arts/social studies)
One activity in The Art of Teaching the Arts, “Making the Most of Community Resources,” shows a visual art teacher and her students working with community members to create a sculpture garden in an empty courtyard at their school.
3. Examine Effectiveness of Waste Collection (high/science/art/math)
In the “Garbage: The Science and Problem of What We Throw Away” activity from Essential Lens, students collect data from photographic evidence of community waste and compare this data with EPA standards for reducing and recycling discarded materials.
4. Protect the Community From HIV and Address Social Prejudices (high/middle/science)
As part of a longer unit on HIV and social justice, students teach their peers about the epidemic and examine claims made in articles about the disease. Reading & Writing in the Disciplines, “Peer Teaching,” also describes the class activities before and after the lesson in the video.
5. Prepare a School Improvement Budget (elementary/social studies/math)
Students learn about cooperation, community participation, budget, and planning when their teacher involves them in a project to remodel their school. The district superintendent meets with students to answer questions. This lesson is from Social Studies in Action, “Caring for the Community.”
6. Identify Civil Servants in Our Communities (elementary/world languages)
Elementary Arabic students identify civil servants and their roles in their communities while practicing the alphabet and language in Teaching Foreign Languages Library, “Arabic: People Who Help Us.” The lesson is subtitled and adaptable to other language classrooms.
Image Copyright: Cienpies Design
Stacie says
January 4, 2019 at 5:54 pmIn this article and podcast from EdSurge, “How to Move From Digital Substitution to ‘Deeper Learning’,” Scott McLeod discusses how to incorporate technology in the classroom in ways that create authentic, collaborative, and student-driven learning experiences. He is the author of “Harnessing Technology for Deeper Learning.” https://www.edsurge.com/news/2019-01-01-how-to-move-from-digital-substitution-to-deeper-learning?utm_content=bufferd13c9&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=EdSurgeBuffer
Betsy Stefany says
January 7, 2019 at 10:21 amThank you for developing this positive template to extend learning
And bridge gaps in topics necessary to forming shared experiences. The
Topics form a structure for refining and defining the constantly changing
Aspects of STEM Literacy which is the heart of our
Community of Practice.