A team of Needham Elementary School fifth-graders – Angelina Kondrat, Annie Somrak, Ryder Ratcliff and Austin Williams – said Thursday that their research into animal rights left them with the hope of having some impact in the field.
Their presentation before fellow students, teachers and parents wrapped up six weeks of interviews and study of issues and constituted the most comprehensive endeavor they’ve undertaken as elementary school students.
“This is the culmination of their elementary career,” said Peter Kondrat, who was seated with his wife, Mindi, in the front row of the auditorium to support their daughter.
It was, indeed, the biggest project fifth-graders tackle, said Stephanie Snitslaar, one of three fifth-grade teachers at Needham. The other fifth-grade teachers at Needham are Amber Schenk and Andrea Nachtrieb.
The pedagogical term for the instructional approach at Needham is International Baccalaureate. IB, as it’s called, takes a global view in contrast to experiential learning. An example of the latter is how students at Durango High School learned about water mechanics – by visiting a hydroelectric generating plant, rafting the Animas River and touring the Grand Canyon.
The 54 fifth-graders at Needham were polled as to their interests and then formed into 14 teams of two to five students each, Snitslaar said. They interviewed public figures, among them a judge, a prominent orthopedic surgeon, Colorado Parks and Wildlife personnel and Manna Soup Kitchen leaders.
They also met weekly with mentors who were teachers or community members who monitored and discussed their progress.
Among issues taken on by the students were homelessness, cancer, weapons of mass destruction, travel/foreign culture, justice system discrimination and biomedical engineering, Snitslaar said.
The teams also made videos and devised skits, songs and dances in keeping with the main theme, Snitslaar said.
“The overall main theme was effective communication that creates change,” Snitslaar said. “It was student responsibility to bring change in the community.”
No matter what topic they examined, the approach involved team-building, community collaboration and problem solving, Snitslaar said.
“We have high expectations of these students,” Snitslaar said. “These are 10-year-olds reaching out to the global community with skills that meet 21st century needs.”
daler@durangoherald.com
