June 2019 — Teaching Kids Through Project-Based Learning
Sometimes, a “project” is something like a solar system diorama or a tabletop volcano in a Rubbermaid tub.
But sometimes, “project” means something else: A big, complex, challenging problem or assignment that happens over a longer period of time, in multiple steps. Compared to, say, a single pencil drawing or piece of math homework, this is pretty high-level stuff.
Project-Based Learning, or PBL, is a type of active, “inquiry-based” learning. This means the student has to ask questions, be creative, and identify problems that need solving — instead of just memorizing or following a set of instructions. We can think of PBL as “learning by doing.”
PBL is important for kids to learn how to function in the real world — in their jobs and in higher education, but more importantly, in everyday life. PBL teaches kids things that can only be learned through experience: Collaboration with others, bouncing ideas, making predictions, planning, organizing, and drawing conclusions. Students have to get creative when they’re part of a project. They have to think critically. They have to figure out where they fit as a leader. All of these skills are essential for learning how to solve real-world problems — and kids have the ability to learn them from day one.
Cheryl Bautista had her 3rd graders embark on a project just like this at their elementary school in San Jose, CA. The project: To design a tiny home.
The overall, driving question for Cheryl’s students was this: “Given a budget, how can we, as a design team, plan a home for a family?” The students used fun, playful technology — specifically, Minecraft — to build their tiny homes.
Cheryl’s kids were given real adult “clients.” They were encouraged to come up with questions for the clients, like: How much do you want to spend? How many kids live in the house? Will grandparents stay with the family? What’s the minimum square footage you want?
Watching the video, it’s clear that students were engaged and fully immersed in their project. They got to look at blueprints, read books that interested them, fiddle with floor plans, and even use Cheez-Its to calculate square footage. They also learned how to present to clients, with tips on everything from making eye contact to using their best public speaking voices.
A big theme of Curio’s newsletter is that kids learn best when they are the ones at the helm. This is a huge part of PBL. When kids direct their own learning experiences, they become more confident, engaged, creative, and of course, they have more fun.
In science, PBL means doing more than just having kids, say, make a colorful poster detailing a bacterium of their choice. It means “zooming out” and making the project meaningful.
For instance, students could watch a video about bacteria-contaminated water at the beach. They could discuss pollution, food poisoning, and the many different ways bacteria show up in our everyday life.
From there, students could be asked their driving question; something like, “Is our water safe to drink?” This gives the project real purpose.
Without a driving question, students may not understand why they are undertaking a project. They know that the series of assigned activities has some connection with a time period, a place, or a concept. But if you asked, “What is the point of all these activities?” they might only be able to offer, “Because we’re making a poster.”
- Buck Institute for Education
Then comes the project itself. Students might be directed to launch a “Clean Our Water” campaign complete with things like brochures on different types of bacteria, public service announcements, letters to government officials, and whatever digital media they might want to include.
There are tons of other ways to incorporate PBL into science learning. Students could plan and plant their own organic farm. They could design an app based on what they think the public needs. They could solve an animal mystery — “Why do these birds disappear during the winter?”
The Curio Classroom can be used to boost these kinds of projects. For example, you might remember our February post on Monarch butterflies. Kids can use tools like the Xerces Society’s Milkweed Mapper to investigate the decline of pollinators and talk about the role humans play. Students might also design an urban garden for their school or neighborhood, filled with milkweed plants and other important native wildflowers that support pollinators like bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.
The possibilities are endless, and kids of all ages will jump at the chance to take matters into their own hands.
References:
Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development: “Seven Essentials for Project-Based Learning.”
Buck Institute for Education, PBLWorks.org: “What is PBL?”
Educational Psychologist: “Motivating Project-Based Learning: Sustaining the Doing, Supporting the Learning.” 1991.
Project Pals: “17 Examples of STEM Project Based Learning Activities.”
Teacher Librarian: “Project Based Learning.” 2011.
The Tech Edvocate: “14 project-based learning activities for the science classroom.”
