Grade 8: Tutoring Harrington First Graders
For the past 20 or more years, Graland eighth graders have partnered with Harrington Elementary as their service-learning project to offer classroom help to teachers. This year, our eighth graders tutor small groups of first grade math students, and after four visits to the school this year, they report the project has its challenges, rewards and benefits.
For the past 20 or more years, Graland eighth graders have partnered with Harrington Elementary as their service-learning project to offer classroom help to teachers. This year, our eighth graders tutor small groups of first grade math students, and after four visits to the school this year, they report the project has its challenges, rewards and benefits.
The opportunity to work in public schools ties nicely with their history curriculum and gives them a chance to see civics concepts at work in the real world, according to history teacher Jake Dresden.
"The eighth grade year in history focuses on political science and civil rights," Jake explains. "We talk a lot about education as a civil right, which leads into discussions about public education and how public school students have different experiences than our students."
Keeping the younger kids on track during tutoring is hard work, but eighth graders also noted the first graders' love of learning and the joy of seeing them progress in their math skills. Making new friends outside their normal social circle is also fun.
"My buddy at Harrington is so loveable," Emma says. "She likes to sit with me and hear about my life. We talk about our families and I like getting to know someone from a different environment.”
Her classmate, Alex Alijani, adds, "Going to Harrington has really helped my people skills, especially talking to younger kids which was out of my comfort zone before."
Next month, service learning coordinator Christi James will meet with eighth graders to answer questions about child development and how the public school system operates. Thanks to Graland's Annual Fund, Christi is earning a master's degree in curriculum, instruction, and assessment at Regis University to enhance her understanding of best practices in curriculum development.
For her capstone project, Christi is focusing on the developmental needs of first graders and how those affect learning. She will design a Spanish curriculum that pulls together what she's learned in her program and that will best meet the needs of Graland first graders.
"I now have a much better sense of the history of education in this country and the current educational landscape in the US," Christi says. "Our national education system is very complex, and I look forward to connecting what I have learned in my master's program to the eighth graders' service learning."
Graland Country Day School
Graland Country Day School is a private school in Denver, Colorado, serving students in preschool, kindergarten, elementary, and middle school. Founded in Denver in 1927, Graland incorporates a rich, experiential learning approach in a traditional classroom setting, emphasizing the development of globally and socially conscious leaders who excel academically.
