CEMS Experiential Learning Projects 2019/2020
Vertical Gardening Challenge
Students were tasked with a design challenge to build a a self watering vertical farm. Students researched designs, tested pumps and learned about how to set up piping to move water. They also learned about what plants need to survive from nutrients to the light spectrum and how we could replicate that in an artificial indoor setting. Each team set out to plan, budget, design, and build their farms. We were able to visit Olivias Gardens in New Gloucester to check out their hydroponic growing system and see what it looked like on a larger scale. Unfortunately our students never got to put their designs to the test and see if they could grow seedlings as we have had to adjust to virtual learning. However they made great progress, mades tons of mistakes, and learned from them!
Change makers
Throughout history, there have been people who have made significant impacts on our society today through change. There are people making changes to the big picture and people who are making changes locally. In addition, the youth of today have many ideas about what they would like to see a change in. The students have been researching and creating a number of different pieces that highlight the various change-makers around us from historical, to local, to their own personal change they want to see.
GUEST SPEAKERS SHARING THOUGHTS ON CHANGE
We had a number of local people come talk to our class about what they are passionate about and how they go about making change.
We had our local Senator, Rebecca Millett, come talk to the class about a number of topics. She also took questions from the students about topics which are important to them.
Chris Kessler, who represents part of Cape Elizabeth and South Portland in the Maine state of House of Representatives. He talked about how he got into politics and why and some of the changes he is working on.
Caitlin Jordan, a Cape Elizabeth Town Counselor, took time out of her busy day to talk to student about how change occurs at the local government level. She also talked about the number boards she is on.
We also had Beth Stickney, a local lawyer who has made changes at the local, state, and national level around immigration. She shared many interesting stories about how she has made change.
Historical change makers
For this project, student chose a person who they were inspired by. From there, student created research questions and were tasked with creating a museum exhibit that portrayed the change their person made and what they believed in. Each exhibit included a visual artifact that represented their change maker. While researching, students gained more insight into how change occurs. The students researched people from all different time periods and backgrounds such as Alexander Hamilton to Lin Manuel Miranda.
Position Papers/ Speeches- CHANGE I WANT TO SEE
For this project, students researched an issue or something they are passionate about, and turned it into a speech. They cited sources and ranked evidence to choose the most effective argument. Additionally, they worked on public speaking and how to find reliable information. They learned a lot about revision and what parts of a position paper support your argument the best.
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For this project students chose a person in the greater Portland area who was causing change and contacted them for an interview. They drafted thoughtful questions ahead of time that got at what do they do to make change or how does what they do make change. Then after the interview, the students made a biography poster about their change-maker and their cause. During this part, students learned about writing emails and conducting an interview.
Aquaculture Independent Projects
This week students have embarked on their independent/small group projects based on Aquaculture and coastal ecosystems. There is a wide diversity of projects being planned and brainstormed. Students are exploring cooking with kelp, kelp food carts, how to start their own oyster farms, making cosmetics with Maine seaweeds and other natural products, growing algae to feed ourselves and our classroom oysters, creating sensors that sends ph and temperature data, and advocating for creating an aquaculture trades program for local schools. This first week, phase 1, has been all about planning, asking questions, and beginning to start research. Our next steps are connecting students with mentors and other experts connected to their project topics. We are planning small field trips with groups of students studying similar topics. Be on the look out for more information about these trips! (Photos are from our classroom design project, but students are using Scrum Boards to organize their projects)
Casco Bay Aquaculture Farms Field Trips-
This past Tuesday, the 8th grade experiential learning team boarded a converted military PV boat from Casco Bay Custom Charters and made their way into Casco Bay to get an in person view of some of the different aquaculture ventures that are right along our coasts. We were able to visit Matt Moretti at the Bangs Island Mussel site off of Clapboard Island and learn about his mussel, kelp, and scallop operations. Students asked engaging questions and learned a lot about what it takes to start an aquaculture venture. Our next stop brought us to the the crew of Basket Island Oysters in Broad Cover off Cumberland. Students got off the boat and tried their hand at sorting oysters, listening to how oysters help in repopulating eel grass colonies (which offer a nursery environment to baby fish and other marine organisms), and checking out the process of how oyster spat is grown into market ready oysters.
We also had the great opportunity to be joined by Jaclyn Robidoux, a wild and farmed seaweed researcher from Maine SeaGrant on our trip. She was able to work with small groups and teach them about the many different edible seaweeds that are found along our coast line, how to farm grow kelp, and let kids sample some of the edible seaweeds and maine produced seaweed products. She will be coming back into the classroom in a few weeks to help us set up our in class kelp nursery!
This kick off event spurred a lot of great conversations and got students minds turning about what their personal projects could look like for our Aquaculture and Coastal Systems project could look like. Ask your kids what they are thinking about doing. They have some great ideas!
IMG_2078.MOVFORENSIC SCIENCE
For the past four weeks, half of the experiential learning group has been learning about forensic science techniques to help them figure out how crimes are solved. The group learned about polygraphs, fingerprints, imprints, car crashes, blood types, chromatography, handwriting, using K-9's to help solve crimes, aviation crashes,
FIELD TRIP TO PORTLAND POLICE HEADQUARTERS- CRIME LAB
Office Dave Galvin from the Cape Elizabeth Police Department and Cape's School Resource Officer, worked closely with our forensic group, leading lessons, arranging field trips and speakers, and helping create a scenario for the students to work through.
Officer Galvin got the forensic group a tour of the Portland Police Headquarters forensic lab. We saw where finger prints are processed, where basic tests are done, and how evidence is processed. We also heard from an officer about various cases and the training the officers must go through.
The experiential group met in the gym on a Friday afternoon to listen to Officer Shane Stephenson and his partner. Officer Shane demonstrated how he and his K-9 partner, Zak, help keep the community safe. He passed around a many pieces of training equipment and shared many stories.
Zak is a young German Shepard who loves to play tug of war. At one point Office Shane and Zak were playing and Zak was tossing Shane around like a stuffed animal! Even though Zak is trained to do some impressive things, he is still sweet and loved the attention from the students.
CRIME SCENE SCENARIOS
Students were placed in groups and tasked with solving a crime that occurred at school. Students were given some background information about the case. Detective Dorval and Office Galvin helped the student process the crime scene. Then in groups they examined the evidence, reviewed eyewitness testimony and applied the skills they learn about forensic science to help solve the case. In the end, students wrote up their police reports summarizing the evidence and put forth the suspected criminal.