Students may be physically sitting at their desks at school, but their distance learning sessions are taking them around the world...
Distance Learning at St. Mary
Students may be physically sitting at their desks at school, but their distance learning sessions are taking them around the world. Distance learning is a means of connecting through technology with teachers and experts in other locations. Common avenues to connect include Skype, Google Hangouts, Zoom and Apple TV. With the world at one’s fingertips, St. Mary School staff have supported and extended the curriculum in ways never dreamed before.
The pre-kindergarten class connected with Denali National Park in Alaska to learn about Denali’s dinosaurs and became dino detectives. They made and found clues to figure out if a dinosaur was a carnivore or herbivore. Fourth-graders will also be connecting with Denali National Park later in the year to learn about habitats and the fifth-graders will be connecting with the Gates of the Arctic Park to view this biome live. They are hoping to catch a glimpse of the resident animals in action.
The fifth-grade had a personal visit with art from Cleveland Art Museum’s Art to Go program. The hands-on program enables participants to touch genuine works of art. Wearing gloves and with supervision students handle actual art objects from the museum’s Education Art Collection while engaging in exciting exploration guided by Art to Go docents. Fifth-graders interacted with an Egyptian collection during their session. Third-graders are looking forward to a trip to the Smithsonian Art Museum for a distance-learning lesson on finding objects in artwork. Docents at the Smithsonian will connect these artifacts to storytelling and poetry to support the third-graders’ study of poetry.
From the comfort of the library classroom, second-graders will be visiting a historic classroom from the Durham Museum and learning what school was like for students in the 17th and 18th centuries.
In addition, there has been no shortage of distance learning for junior high students. From the 911 Memorial Museum to the Pro-Football Hall of Fame and the Pearl Harbor Memorial to the Smithsonian Art Museum, junior high students have been engrossed in learning outside the confines of their classrooms. They have spoken to experts from the Cleveland Clinic and heard firsthand the stories from U.S. veterans. Many take part in early morning sessions with Cleveland Clinic staff in on-going sessions to solve real world medical problems and have watched a live kidney transplant. These real world experiences speak to and move students and make their learning come alive.
There is no limit to where distance learning will take the students of St. Mary next. Partnerships and programs with organizations around the country continue to be scheduled throughout the year for St. Mary students, keeping them busy and learning both in and out of the confines of the classroom.
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A docent from the Art to Go program out of The Cleveland Art Museum shares real works of art with St. Mary students that they are able to touch and feel.
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Staff from Cleveland Clinic share a case study live with St. Mary students via distance learning.
