Creative Painting. Eager Engineers. Blast from the Past. Games Galore. Animate Go! Fitness Fanatics. Silly Science.
The classes listed above don’t seem like subjects taught in school. But, for three half-days recently, Whittier offered first-through-sixth grade students the opportunity to participate in these elective classes and more, thanks to a new staff-designed program called “Explore!”
“Explore! is a brand new program that Whittier staff began designing at the end of last school year, and we rolled it out the first week of school,” said Whittier Principal Michael Krugman.
Whittier provided students with 11 Explore! class topics. Students had the freedom to select the topics that most interested them. Explore! classes helped students discover new interest areas and develop academic, social, emotional and physical skills.
“The new projects and experiences also encouraged students to think creatively, work successfully with others, and practice different problem-solving skills,” Krugman said.
Non-classroom teachers – including specialists, instructional coaches and parent volunteers – taught each Explore! class. Meanwhile, classroom teachers met individually with each of their students for 15 minutes in the LRC. These one-on-one conferences allowed the classroom teacher to assess each student’s current reading level using the Fountas & Pinnell Individual Reading System.
“The program exceeded our expectations! Students loved picking their topics, learning new things and meeting new friends from other classrooms,” Krugman said. “Meanwhile, our teachers gained valuable one-on-one time with each student. It was a win-win, and a great way to kick off the school year!”