Julie Davis
jdavis@cherryroad.com
Collaboration between four teachers at Syracuse-Dunbar-Avoca Middle School resulted in a four-week cross-curricular project for seventh-grade students that allowed them to use their creativity to explain an aspect of World War I.
Special education teacher Megan Pitrat, English/social studies teacher Ashley Anderson, language arts teacher Julie Beach, and social studies teacher Sarah Burr wanted to “de-silo” their subjects and arranged for their students to visit the National World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City.
The students had one day prior to the museum visit to preview World War I, said Anderson.
Pitrat said the PTO and the Nebraska Department of Education provided funding for the trip, which also included a stop at Gates Bar-B-Q for a meal that provided an opportunity to practice some “soft skills,” such as ordering at a restaurant.
“The students represented the school so well,” said Anderson. “They were truly interested in the museum.”
At the museum, the students were divided into four groups, each with a different guide. After the tour, the students shared what they learned on the tour and discovered that each guide presented the story in different ways, so students could continue to learn from their classmates, said Anderson.
Taking what they learned at the museum, students then came up with creative research projects that combined writing an essay with an art project.
“We were intentional on our part to put the students in the driver’s seat,” said Anderson.
Subjects ranged from why poppies are a symbol of World War I to trench warfare to what effect mud had on the war and the soldiers to Stubby, a dog that was the unofficial mascot of the 102nd Infantry Regiment.
Pitrat said that one project fueled the other and that students told her things such as “art helped me write a better essay.”
The project concluded with an “Exhibition of Learning” on April 26 where students essentially created their own museum and invited their families and friends to come tour the exhibit.
“The students were extremely proud of their work,” said Pitrat, “and it was great to have their families and the community coming together to support them.” She added that the project helped demystify special education for students who don’t use those services regularly.
“Everybody needs help now and then,” she said.
In addition to the funding from the PTO and the NDE, Pitrat used a $1,000 stipend she received as a runner-up in this year’s Nebraska Teacher of the Year competition to help fund the project. The teachers plan to keep finding funding to continue the collaborative project.
“When teachers team up and lean into others’ experience, it makes learning richer and deeper,” said Anderson.
“Co-teaching leads to a creative process,” said Pitrat, who added that the World War I experience was the largest such project she and her fellow educators have undertaken.
“By shifting teaching and learning,” she said, “the kids get excited to dive in.”
