Classroom Activity

BIZTOWN!

This year our three fifth grade classes had the opportunity to go to Biztown. This was the second time our team and school participated in this program and it is quickly becoming the "highlight" of every student's fifth grade year at Sexton Mountain. The word is spreading through the younger grades like a rampant case of head lice.

The premise of the program is to interactively teach kids about economics, community development, government, and civic responsibility through hands-on and engaging curriculum provided by the wonderful team at Biztown. Our job as teachers is to teach our students the ways of "adult" world through twenty different lessons. After lessons on business, business ethics, philanthropy, and civic responsibility the students elect a Biztown mayor, create resumes, fill out job applications, apply for jobs, and participate in a group interview with staff members. Now they're ready to be put into their business teams. Each business consists a CFO, CEO, and various other titles pertinent to that particular business. They work together to create newspaper ads, TV ads, set prices and many more things related to operating a successful business.

Ultimately, the big trip to the Biztown warehouse comes a few days later. The students - with the help of parent volunteers - run their own city for the day. Long story short, it's a hoot of a time for all. Especially, teachers because we get to sit back the entire day at Biztown while the kids and they're parents run the show. Great times!

How I'll Use a Classroom Blog

The potential for a classroom blog is endless and right in line with the current technological trends that encompass the lives of our students and their families. I happen to work at a school where 100% of my students last year had access to computers at home and the only technological connection we had between school and home was either through email (mostly to parents), or an antiquated web page used strictly for our daily planner and homework, which was minimally checked by either parents or students. I think a specific blog tailored to the goings on in our classroom would increase both student and parent involvement, and ultimately strengthen the relationship between schools, parents, and community.

A goal of mine for next year is to start a school garden at our elementary school. I started this project late in the year last school year with my fifth graders. Although, we weren't able to get through the district's bureaucratic red tape for official approval before the end of the school, we were able to get things moving in the right direction, do some activities related to gardening, and even grow some veggies in individual pots outside our portable. The kids loved every minute of it and the educational opportunities are endless. Had my classroom blog existed last year I would have used it to chronicle our efforts and progress to continue momentum and gain the support of our community. I plan to use my classroom blog for this purpose next year.

Lastly, I think a classroom blog can be used to give students a purpose to write on a daily basis with their peers as an audience. I can pose questions related to a topic of study or short writing prompts as homework and my students will simply be expected to respond. Soon, they'll be posing their own questions and responding to each other.