Hi Memorial teachers! This is a page for information on the Knowledge Expo, an event that is open to all interested parties. I am going to try to give you as much information possible here, but please feel free to reach out if you have any questions!
The video below is a brief introduction and tells you the parts of the project. I also added some Q&As on the bottom if you would rather read about it than watch a video. Any questions, please reach out!
Knowledge Expo.mp4What is the Knowledge Expo?
Students work on a project independently. You may have heard this called a "passion project," independent research project, or "genius hour" - they are all the same thing! Basically they choose something that they are interested in and become an expert on that topic. This video explains genius hour if you'd like a reference for yourself or your students.
Who can participate? How do they sign up?
Any student who is interested should participate! All 3rd and 4th grade ECG students are working on this project (or should be!) independently.
Students who are interested should fill out this form. They can find it on the 'students' page, linked above.
Students should fill out the form no later than November 1st! This will give them a good amount of time to research & create a project.
When do they work on this project? How involved is this for the teachers?
They should work on the research part of this project whenever they have free time. I recommend that they keep a book about their topic at school so they can read about and learn about it when they have free reading time.
They should not need much help but may ask you to check their work or want to share with you. I have also told them they can reach out to me via Schoology message if they have any questions or problems.
We will be holding biweekly "Enrichment Group" meetings to work on this project, broken into 3rd and 4th grades.
Initially, all 3rd and 4th graders working on the project will come down and learn how to start/work on it, how to research, etc.
We will communicate when our formal meetings are done, then moving forward it's more like our Knowledge Expo "office hours." Students requiring help can come and work on their projects at this time. If students are having difficulty staying on task or not being productive, they will be sent back to class.
What do they do after they research?
After they have done some research and feel they are an 'expert,' they can decide how they want to share their knowledge.
I have a graphic below and on the 'student' tab that gives 101 ideas for possible products. When I did this with my own students, we would use tri-fold boards because they were a good visual, but this time we are letting the students choose their own way to show what they learned.
Again, this can be completed partially at school and partially at home, or all in school, or all at home. It will depend on the individual and how much extra time they have to devote to the project.
When is the Knowledge Expo?
This event will take place on May 30, 2025.
Families will be invited to come to the Knowledge Expo to see the students' work at a designated time in the morning.
Other grades will be attending the Expo in the afternoon, more details to come.
What happens when it's time for the Knowledge Expo?
In May, we will have a meeting for all the participants to go over the procedures for the Expo.
We will have a time for students to set up their projects in the gym, library or cafeteria (TBD based on numbers). Then, they will come down and stand behind their project. Other students, staff, and possibly community members will be coming in and walking around, talking to the students and asking about their projects.
This is an advertisement for our first Knowledge Expo held district wide in 2015, just to get an idea of what the Expo is all about.
These are some possibiliites for the students' final project. They are not limited though, they can create anyting they want! I recommend something that they can work on both in school and at home. It can be technology based or it can be a physical project. Creativity is encouraged! :)
This is a video of Howell's Knowledge Expo back in 2014, so you can get an idea about what the final product looks like!