November Learning: Expanding the Boundaries of Learning

Elaine Barnett

About Elaine Barnett
Primary Grades Teacher at West Tisbury School, West Tisbury, MA

Elaine Barnett has been a public school primary teacher for 36 years. During the past two years she has focussed on developing and implementing a multiage program for 6,7 and 8 year old children. Her goal is integrating year long thematic units while weaving frameworks and standards throughout her many projects.

Main Session Workshops

Creating Context for Building Global Learning Communities (presenting with Valerie Becker and Nancy Cole)

How can educators take the discrete strands of required curriculum and frameworks and weave them with technology to create year long authentic, thematic opportunities for learning? Students in Elaine Barnett’s multiage classroom (6-8 year olds) embarked on learning journeys founded upon primary source materials. As they learned about their community, their Island, whales and whaling, they connected with elementary classes around the globe to share their experiences.

A team of innovative educators (classroom, technology and museum) collaborated to create interdisciplinary curriculum centered around the use of primary resources as an anchor for the essential questions: Where are we in the world and how do we fit? How do climate, topography and natural resources influence people?

Higher achievements in reading, writing, listening, speaking, science, social studies and math were evidence of their success. But the real achievement was students’ direct experience of diverse ethnic and cultural perspectives, and the broadening of young children’s world views.

Audience members will gain the knowledge of the pedagogy and methodology behind the construction of a year long learning adventure as they view student artifacts.