A simple question or picture can lead to a huge project. My Martian Colony Project (all school year for four years) started with a NASA video. But authentic teaching doesn’t always lead to a project and that is fine. Authentic teaching sometimes means a student answers a question and then moves on. You can’t force that spark of interest that becomes an authentic project.
The above photo is of Haleakala Crater on the Hawaiian Island of Maui. Research about what caused this crater and how the Hawaiian Islands formed (and are still forming) might lead to a short project, a huge project, or no project at all. As long as students are researching and learning, that is all that matters.
A really important teaching strategy we learned early in our journey with authentic teaching was not to answer student questions. If a student asked how the Hawaiian Islands formed, we did not simply give them an answer. Very little learning takes place when students are simply given answers. We usually responded with, “That is a great question! Where do you think we can find information about that?” We would then guide them to a good starting place for research. This is one of the most important skills we can give students today. Students no longer need to memorize facts and answers to questions. Everything we need to know is literally at our fingertips – on our cell phones! What students need to know is how to go about finding the information they want and then what they should do with that information.
Where would be a good place to look for information about how the Hawaiian Islands formed? That is a great question! Let me know what you find out! And let me know if this becomes a starting point for an authentic project…
The Educational Journey 