“It was important to have fun and see how communities look...and see how we can help our communities. We can help our communities by putting more nature, not using so much gas. And to learn about problems, and how to solve them. We made our models so we can share with the whole school!” - Oskar, student.

 

The second grade students have been busy learning about rural, suburban and urban communities as part of our current Social Studies unit. As a culminating project, teams worked to design and construct communities using recycled materials. The children were challenged to consider not only what communities need, but to consider elements of their design that can help to solve problems. Some of the problems tackled by the second graders included addressing the need for trash bins and recycling, greenhouses, solar panels and urban rooftop gardens.

 

Emily, student, said: "I liked building the canals and the windmills. Some communities look different. We should do it so we can discuss what the community looks like, and the work that we did."

 

Leo, student, added: “It's important that we did this so people in the future can know what we should build in a community. We should have turbines to help the air. A greenhouse is important because you need crops to eat. Building the community was fun because everyone was helping!”

 

The creations were displayed in the ECC Atrium, and the second graders enjoyed sharing their work with each other during our end of unit celebration. This project provided an excellent opportunity for students to think about the variety of communities; from smaller scale to global, the interconnectedness of our communities, and that our choices and behaviors can impact our communities positively or negatively.

 

Sarah, student, shared: “We live in communities so it's important we talk about it. If we don't have communities people won't work together. A good community works together, and thinks together!”.

 

Ms. Ceci, teacher, wrapped up the learning experience perfectly in her observation: “This is something that the children will develop through their lives that will help them to become better citizens. The success of future generations is based on this kind of knowledge. And...it was fun!”

 

#LearningThatMatters

#ASHexperience