tying up loose ends

Driving Question: How can we historically learn about Pandemics and find solutions to COVID 19 while using strategies to cope with the stages of illnesses or death?

Project Health Domains: Determinate of Health, Systems

Project Problem + Purpose:

Students currently are facing the world wide pandemic head on as they are faced with COVID 19 during this time. Students will look at how important it is to deal with ideas such as, historical information on past diseases that have impacted society, what organisms are infectious, how micro-organisms spread, how to keep from spreading microbes, what types of microbes there are, and different ways to protect themselves from diseases as well as dealing with the ideology of disease and death.

Students are engaged in real world opportunities as they are providing solutions to this pandemic and how to protect themselves, the people they love, and the elderly. They have learned about how disease is contracted, how to make PPE (personal protective equipment) and how to create sanitizing solutions. All of the these factors combined are ways that students can arm themselves now during this time of a pandemic.

Community Partners + Engagement:

Mrs. Meek and Mr. Esparza would like to recognize Monika Stevens for her input, guidance, and suggestions in helping our students to have the best learning opportunities for on-line learning as possible. She has offered to connect students with members of the community to put their final products into action for the real world.

Also a special recognition to Teresa Hill who is a CMT/Supervisor of the NM Heart Hospital as she has provided expertise advise on microbes, communicable disease, and prevention of disease, as well as Charlene Drake (Nurse VA Hospital) as she also provided expertise advice on microbes, communicable disease, and the prevention of disease with real life experience. This curriculum could not be as strong if they did not provide this input. Thank you ladies for your hours of consulting with me, you have truly made a difference in these kids lives!

Mrs. Meek and Mr. Esparza's most proud moment of the class would be that many students kept in contact with us through a difficult time despite these extreme circumstances. We experienced times when we found that many students were the only one's working in their families, and they were holding up the household. This is a lot for a young person to carry while still trying to keep up with their studies and their teachers while juggling a working job. This is a learning experience that goes beyond reading and writing, this is a skill that shows deadlines, applying learning to real world experiences, and survival. We are both proud of these students, and we are both understanding with our students of how to cope and function while a world pandemic is taking place. This has shown growth for us as teachers as well, learning from our students is just as important as students learning from their teachers. Thank you to all our students who worked hard, stayed in contact with us, and completed your assignments. - Mrs. Meek + Mr. Esparza

We celebrate Ms. Meek and Mr. Esparza pivot during the project to quickly engage students in authentic experiences of making masks as well as homemade cleaning solutions to keep themselves, families and community members safe during the pandemic. - Moneka Stevens, Anchor Project Consultant