Speaking of powerful learning

If you share my curiosity about what our children are learning and experiencing in our Whitefish classrooms, you may interested in knowing what I saw last week, in just one day of visiting several classrooms.

I begin with a snapshot of my visit with first graders, some of whom are learning to write dialogue between characters. “Speech bubbles” above characters’ heads help our young authors construct dialogue. I parked myself on a small chair next to one round-faced seven-year-old (I wondered whether I would be able to get back up again.) His class had recently read the story, “Don’t Let The Pigeon Drive the Bus,” and he had been inspired to author his own book, “Don’t Let Herring Drive the Boat.” I asked him how he knew about herring, and he offered a lesson on herring appearance and behavior. The herring in his story was making a persuasive argument to convince the boat captain to allow him a turn at the wheel.

And speaking of persuasive arguments, I was fascinated, in a sixth grade classroom, by the lively discussion among students, as they argued over the true climax and resolution in “The Iliad,” a classic most of us read much later in our educational careers. Kids passionately referred to the text to defend their opinions. I was delighted to see evidence of rigor in the reading content and level of discussion among the kids.

And speaking of rigor, I stood at the door of one English classroom at the high school, hearing students express strong disagreements about the apparent symbolism represented in the characters of the story “A New Leaf,” by F. Scott Fitzgerald. If I had closed my eyes, I might have felt transported into a college literature class. Not far away, in a science class, I listened while students discussed why deformed sickle-shaped cells are unable to effectively carry oxygen.

And speaking of listening, I could not help but be captivated by the wall of sound coming from a handful of musicians sitting on paint buckets, rehearsing a percussion piece demanding precision and something like choreography-as players played one another’s instruments and clicked their sticks in the air, performing from memory. I was fascinated by the irony that the musicians’ professional expertise and accuracy shone through the use of simple five-gallon paint buckets.

And speaking of accuracy, I next listened to choir members rehearse a piece from “Les Miserables.” The enunciation of each syllable and direction of every musical marking did not escape the scrutiny of director and vocalists. I felt goose bumps listening to the emotion generated as they rehearsed.

I noted that a number of our young musicians, alongside our budding scientists and literature students, were among those who brought home state DECA awards. Others from those classrooms were members of our acting troupe who won the state thespian award for “The Laramie Project,” and still others were in Ronan leaving their hearts on the basketball court this weekend. In a small school system like ours, students have multiple opportunities to shine academically, athletically and artistically.

And speaking of shining, you can probably tell I’m bursting with pride when I frequently offer my testimony to our community concerning the quality of our schools and the work our teachers are doing to constantly improve learning for our students!

— Kate Orozco is the superintendent of Whitefish schools