As summer break neared its end, 10 McKinley teachers, our Curriculum Support Specialist, and our Principal spent 3 full days in a Project Based Learning (PBL) training. At the beginning of the training, we had many questions from how to start, to how to integrate PBL into our other initiatives, to how to assess students’ projects. As the training days unfolded, we learned a lot and grew excited about the projects we were planning. We realized that since we represented grade levels that spanned 1st through 6th grade, we could take this summer time opportunity to plan across grade-levels, building on each others’ ideas for meaningful, authentic student projects. By the end of the training, we left with our questions answered, projects planned, and a deeper sense of camaraderie. Did it make giving up some of summer break worth it? It most certainly did.
We were excited for this learning opportunity and look forward to implementing what we earned in our classrooms this school year!
We were excited for this learning opportunity and look forward to implementing what we earned in our classrooms this school year!