Setting and Context
Culture and Community Context:
This semester I got the opportunity to be a part of the school community at the Lab School for Creative Learning. The Lab School in located in the city of Fort Collins in Colorado. One of the main things that make this school unique in the Poudre School District is their central idea around expeditionary learning. Expeditionary learning is based around learning expeditions, active pedagogy, and the building of character and culture. Through this expeditionary learning students get to encounter a learning environment that promotes creative in-depth learning experiences and a love of learning. The main idea of expeditionary learning is that students learn about a unit focused around one learning target using the multiple content areas like math, science, etc. Using one learning target over multiple content areas can lead to students gaining a deeper understanding and skills of that target to then link to projects in the class. A few other things that make this school unique are the small class sizes, there are no grades, and the teachers are on a first name basis with the students. All of these unique qualities that the Lab School for Creative Learning has make it a good learning environment for students.
Support Structure:
The Lab School for Creative Learning is a school of choice meaning that parents and students can choose to go here no matter where they live. This also means there is no bus system to get students to the school so parents are committed to their child going to school at the lab school because they have to be able to make a commitment to get their child to school every day. There is a strong sense of community at the school because of this opportunity to make the choice to go here. Also all the students are invested in their learning because instead of teachers running conferences, the students run them. They get to tell their parents and teachers all about what they have learned and what they might need to improve upon. This is also how students pass grades at the lab school. They have to give a final presentation of their learning to a panel of judges who then decide if the student has met the right criteria. These are the things that make the community at this school so strong.
Demographics:
-Grades Offered: K-5
-Total Students: 128
-Gender percentage:
- 46% Male
- 54% Female
-Total Classroom Teachers: 8
-Students to teacher ratio: 16:1
-Ethnic Groups:
-Asian: 1%
-Hispanic: 9%
-Caucasian: 82%
Eligibility for free lunch: 33%
Classroom Environment and Students:
The classroom I was places into was a combined second/third grade class. The class is organized into five table groups with a central carpet on the floor and five centers. The centers are for reading, art, computers, exploring, and literacy. These are used by the students during different activities throughout the day. There is one main smart board at the front of the room next to the teacher’s desk and there are learning posters up on the walls. There are also paper clips attached to string hanging from the ceiling to make it possible to hang students work throughout the room.
Student One: She is engaged in the lessons and her ark making. She is able to show her understanding of the subjects through her artwork.
Student Two: He is a hard working student who comes up with original ideas. He can lose focus during class time but he can be refocused to continue working on his artwork.
Student Three: This student takes time to think through her ideas and how they pertain to the assignment. Sometimes she has a hard time getting started on her ideas but once she finally finds an idea she runs with it.
Student Four: This student tries hard to work on his art during class. He does have a hard time staying focused when he starts talking to his friends in the class which is something he needs to work on.
Student Five: This student is eager to participate in class and does whenever she gets the opportunity. She is also a good worker even when the students around her get distracted.
Student Six: He is a hard working student but doesn’t participate much in the class discussions. He does show his understanding of concepts through his brainstorming process.
Student Seven: This student has a hard time staying focused during class time. He does like to draw and create things and takes time to think on his own about his ideas.
Student Eight: She is a quiet student during class time. She does work hard on her projects during class time.
Student Nine: This student is excited when working on his art and talking about it. He is also willing to participate in class when he’s asked questions.
Student Ten: This student is very quiet but when asked about her artwork she is willing to share her ideas behind it. She is also engaged in the class and the projects being done in class.
Student Eleven: This student struggles to come up with his own ideas. He does like to work with other students in the class room.
Student Twelve: This student is engaged in lesson and is willing to answer questions when asked them in class. He also works hard on his projects to express the ideas he brainstorms in his sketchbook.
Student Thirteen: This student is mostly quiet during class discussions. She is willing to share her ideas when asked during one-on-one time.
Student Fourteen: He is willing to share and collaborate with other students. He is also very engaged during the brainstorming and art making processes.
Student Fifteen: She is a very creative student. She works hard on her artwork and is proud of the things she makes.
Student Sixteen: This student is true to herself when she works on her artwork. She is creative when coming up with ideas that encompass our concepts and things she is interested in.
Student Seventeen: This student has a hard time extending his ideas and completes his artwork faster than most students and needs to work on this. He does well with contributing to class discussions though.
Policies:
At the Lab School for Expeditionary Learning they fallow the Poudre School District’s code of conduct and safety precautions. They are focused on creating a safe learning environment for their students. In the class that I’m a part of the students are expected to practice good behavior using their attending skills and the six P’s (prompt, prepared, polite, positive attitude, participation, and produce). These expectations were set for the students at the beginning of the school year and they are reminded of them when they are not meeting expectations. Also our class uses a five step refocusing disciplinary process. This allows the students to have opportunities to change their behavior before they have to be removed from the classroom. These are the policies set in the classroom to ensure that students are engaged in the learning in the classroom.
This semester I got the opportunity to be a part of the school community at the Lab School for Creative Learning. The Lab School in located in the city of Fort Collins in Colorado. One of the main things that make this school unique in the Poudre School District is their central idea around expeditionary learning. Expeditionary learning is based around learning expeditions, active pedagogy, and the building of character and culture. Through this expeditionary learning students get to encounter a learning environment that promotes creative in-depth learning experiences and a love of learning. The main idea of expeditionary learning is that students learn about a unit focused around one learning target using the multiple content areas like math, science, etc. Using one learning target over multiple content areas can lead to students gaining a deeper understanding and skills of that target to then link to projects in the class. A few other things that make this school unique are the small class sizes, there are no grades, and the teachers are on a first name basis with the students. All of these unique qualities that the Lab School for Creative Learning has make it a good learning environment for students.
Support Structure:
The Lab School for Creative Learning is a school of choice meaning that parents and students can choose to go here no matter where they live. This also means there is no bus system to get students to the school so parents are committed to their child going to school at the lab school because they have to be able to make a commitment to get their child to school every day. There is a strong sense of community at the school because of this opportunity to make the choice to go here. Also all the students are invested in their learning because instead of teachers running conferences, the students run them. They get to tell their parents and teachers all about what they have learned and what they might need to improve upon. This is also how students pass grades at the lab school. They have to give a final presentation of their learning to a panel of judges who then decide if the student has met the right criteria. These are the things that make the community at this school so strong.
Demographics:
-Grades Offered: K-5
-Total Students: 128
-Gender percentage:
- 46% Male
- 54% Female
-Total Classroom Teachers: 8
-Students to teacher ratio: 16:1
-Ethnic Groups:
-Asian: 1%
-Hispanic: 9%
-Caucasian: 82%
Eligibility for free lunch: 33%
Classroom Environment and Students:
The classroom I was places into was a combined second/third grade class. The class is organized into five table groups with a central carpet on the floor and five centers. The centers are for reading, art, computers, exploring, and literacy. These are used by the students during different activities throughout the day. There is one main smart board at the front of the room next to the teacher’s desk and there are learning posters up on the walls. There are also paper clips attached to string hanging from the ceiling to make it possible to hang students work throughout the room.
Student One: She is engaged in the lessons and her ark making. She is able to show her understanding of the subjects through her artwork.
Student Two: He is a hard working student who comes up with original ideas. He can lose focus during class time but he can be refocused to continue working on his artwork.
Student Three: This student takes time to think through her ideas and how they pertain to the assignment. Sometimes she has a hard time getting started on her ideas but once she finally finds an idea she runs with it.
Student Four: This student tries hard to work on his art during class. He does have a hard time staying focused when he starts talking to his friends in the class which is something he needs to work on.
Student Five: This student is eager to participate in class and does whenever she gets the opportunity. She is also a good worker even when the students around her get distracted.
Student Six: He is a hard working student but doesn’t participate much in the class discussions. He does show his understanding of concepts through his brainstorming process.
Student Seven: This student has a hard time staying focused during class time. He does like to draw and create things and takes time to think on his own about his ideas.
Student Eight: She is a quiet student during class time. She does work hard on her projects during class time.
Student Nine: This student is excited when working on his art and talking about it. He is also willing to participate in class when he’s asked questions.
Student Ten: This student is very quiet but when asked about her artwork she is willing to share her ideas behind it. She is also engaged in the class and the projects being done in class.
Student Eleven: This student struggles to come up with his own ideas. He does like to work with other students in the class room.
Student Twelve: This student is engaged in lesson and is willing to answer questions when asked them in class. He also works hard on his projects to express the ideas he brainstorms in his sketchbook.
Student Thirteen: This student is mostly quiet during class discussions. She is willing to share her ideas when asked during one-on-one time.
Student Fourteen: He is willing to share and collaborate with other students. He is also very engaged during the brainstorming and art making processes.
Student Fifteen: She is a very creative student. She works hard on her artwork and is proud of the things she makes.
Student Sixteen: This student is true to herself when she works on her artwork. She is creative when coming up with ideas that encompass our concepts and things she is interested in.
Student Seventeen: This student has a hard time extending his ideas and completes his artwork faster than most students and needs to work on this. He does well with contributing to class discussions though.
Policies:
At the Lab School for Expeditionary Learning they fallow the Poudre School District’s code of conduct and safety precautions. They are focused on creating a safe learning environment for their students. In the class that I’m a part of the students are expected to practice good behavior using their attending skills and the six P’s (prompt, prepared, polite, positive attitude, participation, and produce). These expectations were set for the students at the beginning of the school year and they are reminded of them when they are not meeting expectations. Also our class uses a five step refocusing disciplinary process. This allows the students to have opportunities to change their behavior before they have to be removed from the classroom. These are the policies set in the classroom to ensure that students are engaged in the learning in the classroom.