 |
|
|
|
 |
Learning through Inquiry
Courses at UPCS engage students in the core thought processes of each discipline. Students adopt identities as young writers, historians, scientists, and mathematicians and participate in the central activities of each field. In English class, students adopt identities as writers, beginning their quarterly portfolio presentations saying to the class "My name is ________, and I am a writer." In history, students learn to think like historians. They analyze primary sources, making judgments, and drawing connections to gain new insights about the past and present. Students uncover mathematical and scientific understandings, just as mathematicians and scientists do.
 This approach to student learning mirrors the “ways of knowing” pedagogy taught in Clark’s teacher education program. Teachers ask “what does it mean to ‘know’ something in this discipline?” “What are the ‘tools’ of knowledge-making?” Then they aim to create authentic experiences for students focused on the big ideas and core thought processes of the discipline.
In their Own Words | "Teachers at UPCS make learning fun." -Seventh grade student
|
Activities such as real-world projects, debates, primary source circles, experiments, investigations, visual presentations of understanding supplement more traditional assignments and assessments and support students with varied needs and learning styles to engage with the content of each discipline in meaningful ways. Learning is deepened when students are pressed to make connections within disciplines, across disciplines, and between the course content and their own lives. These connections are often what brings content to life and makes it more memorable for students.
|
Related Bulletin Board Threads
|
|
| Related Files |
 Functions at Stations |
|
Kate Shepard begins her 8th grade math class with this unit that introduces functions though hands-on puzzles. |
| Digging through Documents |
|
Ricci Hall describes a year end activity where students act as historians to analyze a set of primary sources they have studied. |
|
|
|
|
|
