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November 5, 2009

Eastbrook students show off their smarts

By Rachel Brown

Sixth-grader Dagoberto Flores can tell you all about the history of chocolate.

A sticker on his shirt reads, “Ask me who killed Moctezuma,” and if you ask him, he’ll tell you the history of the Aztec leader and how a conflict with the Spanish conquistadors who wanted the recipe and ingredients for his chocolate drink eventually resulted in his death.

Flores was among hundreds of students at the 600-student school who participated in Eastbrook’s presentation of learning, a Thursday event in which parents and other visitors were invited for an evening of viewing students’ work. Students in Whitfield County Schools are moving toward project-based learning, as opposed to learning primarily through lectures and textbooks, and the event was one way to showcase the new things students are doing, organizers said.

“In the real world, you solve problems through learning, and that’s what this is,” said principal Brian Satterfield.

Sixth-grade math and science teacher Corey Dempsey helped her students make scale replicas of their bedrooms using paint and cardboard. Dempsey, who has been at Eastbrook eight years, said students primarily focused on paperwork last year as they were learning about scale.

“I think they’re picking up on it quicker just being able to do a hands-on (project),” she said.

Kayleen Mullins says she’s written several papers in her life, but never an autobiographical one she shared with the rest of the school.

The seventh-grade Eastbrook Middle School student wrote about her reaction to her two best friends leaving for Texas recently, and placed the story — along with those of her classmates — on a wall for the community to read and offer suggested revisions. She and other students in Shanda Hickman’s English classes will compile all their stories into a book at the end of the semester that will be published and distributed for $6, she said.

Some of the teachers offered incentives for students who participated in the presentation night or who brought their parents.

“We came because our son is in seventh grade, and he got 40 extra points as long as we stayed for the whole thing,” said parent Jennifer Tittle. “He loves (doing the projects). He’s gone early and come home late every day this week to get ready for this.”

Parent David Cochran said he came to see his son’s presentation on the Ganges River, but he enjoyed seeing the other students’ work, too.

“It gives parents and the community an opportunity to actually see what they do in school,” he said. “It’s not impossible (for me to get off work), but this is more convenient than coming down during the day.”



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Education