The Green Footprint Project

The Green Footprint Project was an environmental project that 5th grade students created for their community. What made the project a success, in my opinion, is how it incorporated multidisciplinary activities to have students see the project in various perspectives. I think it is important for students to see how what they learn in one class can connect to others as well.

According to the SC Teaching Standards 4.0, the project exemplifies various categories such as motivating students. Since it is a project based learning project which has a problem that students should solve, it motivates students beyond just knowing multiple choice answers for a test. Instead, it allows them to inquire about the world around them and pushes for higher level thinking. The article mentioned that students had inquiry activities, such as observing surroundings which helped give them ideas for their project. This sustained students' attention because the project was challenging and allowed for student choice. The questioning for the project seemed to come from the students because they have to inquire from their notes and observations what was needed to be done to help complete their project.

I really liked how they incorporated ELA into the project as method to advertise to the community about the project. This shows that English does not always have to be reading books but can be used as a communication class. This project also makes what students learn in the class relevant and useful.