On November 29, fourth-grade teachers Denise Barone and Stephanie Varlan at Churchville-Chili’s Fairbanks Road Elementary School (FRS) stood aside and welcomed a group of special guest instructors – sixth-grade composting experts from the C-C Middle School. Their classrooms became buzzing centers of learning. FRS students broke up into small groups, each led by a team of older student educators who shared research and facts about how we can all reduce waste and improve soil by making compost.
“Our fourth-graders are excited about going to the Middle School next year,” said Varlan, “but some are a little apprehensive. This gave them a fun preview of what to expect when they move on. The older students were kind, organized and thoughtful, and they took their responsibilities as teachers very seriously.”
Each collaborative middle school team chose a different approach to explaining what composting is and the benefits of doing it. They created skits, videos, posters or digital presentations that demonstrated different aspects of composting; many included humor or engaging opportunities for the younger students to ask questions or contribute ideas. The groups had well-considered lesson plans and did an impressive job of introducing their audience to the science of recycling organic materials.
The project was the brainchild of middle school science teachers Julie Irvine and Maria Straight.
“Our kiddos are extremely proud of the work they’ve done in this unit,” said Irvine. “It’s been structured as a Project Based Learning (PBL) experience, giving students an end educational goal, but letting them set out on their own and choose their own creative ways to get there. To come here today and share what they learned with younger students was the ultimate reward for all their hard work. They were really honored to be role models for the FRS kids.”
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