First Graders Collaborate Remotely to Solve Community Challenge
21st Century LearningCommunity Based Learning

First Graders Collaborate Remotely to Solve Community Challenge

By November 3, 2020 No Comments

As teachers shifted in March to distance learning, a first-grade teacher at Kingsville Elementary School in Ohio was committed to keeping the learning her students experienced meaningful and engaging. Jacqueline Jenks used the training she received from Korda Institute for Teaching to integrate real challenges from organizations in her community into her classroom. As a member of an innovative cohort of educators at her district focused on implementing methods for developing 21st Century skills and knowledge, she’d seen the levels of student engagement increase when using this method.

Once the pandemic pushed her district to virtual learning, Jenks realized it was even more critical to set up a community-based project so her students would gain a sense of purpose for showing up to school remotely. She partnered with a local nursing home whose residents were experiencing extreme isolation due to COVID-19, and braved the learning curve that comes with teaching virtually by leveraging technology, the help of instructional coaches, and her passion for teaching kids. As students began moving through the creative problem-solving process, this teacher fostered their collaboration skills while still covering the required content standards. Watch how these 6 and 7 year old students proved that distance learning can be academic, engaging, and impactful.

Alison Tanker

Author Alison Tanker

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