My wife and I had
the privilege of attending Hardy Elementary School’s Holiday Extravaganza last
week. This was their first attempt at
what we call an “exposition of learning”. It is an opportunity for students to
share what they have learned with a wider audience. Students lined the foyer in
front of the auditorium with the crafts they produced: ornaments, holiday cards, cookbooks, brochures
to advertise the show, etc. How does all of this relate to an authentic
learning experience?
The essential
question for students was, “Is it better to give than to receive?” Students
chose to give all the proceeds from their work and their show to the Mission of
Hope. The students learned the gift of
giving and empathy through this amazing project. Students were eager to tell the adults about
their work. They used incredible
communication skills to describe the project. The entire performance was
student lead. The faculty and staff of
Hardy who went through the deeper learning training really understood the
purpose of students owning their work and being proud to share it. All of those in attendance were impressed
with the work the students had done in a little over 9 weeks of school.
I
wanted to share a letter from one of the parents who attended the
extravaganza. Her comments were so
powerful that I asked her permission to include the letter in my blog.
Hardy's
Holiday Extravaganza was such a meaningful experience for my child and
myself. I really felt the Hardy "family" feeling
yesterday. Watching everything come together and looking around at the
auditorium and all the students had accomplished was an incredibly warm and
proud feeling. I kept seeing more and more posters and pictures of the
authentic learning opportunities Hardy students had over the past 10+
weeks. This is something my child and my family will always remember.
I taught using Project Based Learning at a school that had been
practicing it for several years. This is new and I recognize how much
work goes in to switching gears and trying something different. There
will always be challenges, but Hardy embraced this opportunity to do something
different and the students have flourished.
Thank you for your support this year.
Congratulations
to Hardy Elementary for an outstanding demonstration of student work.
There are
three expos the week of December 5:
Georgie Tyler Middle School, Smithfield High and Windsor High. Look for highlights from those schools in
next week’s blog.
