CONNECT, CONSERVE, CREATE: ARS celebrates Alabama with student-led projects

Published 6:45 am Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Students from Athens Renaissance School are celebrating Alabama this week with a project-based learning project aimed at connecting to Alabama’s rich history and learning about conserving its natural environments.

The entirely student-created event, known as “Celebrate Alabama,” allows students from other city schools to participate in an educational walking tour of downtown Athens, visit a pop-up natural science museum and play eight holes of Alabama history mini-golf in Big Spring Park.

Organizers said “Celebrate Alabama” is a multidimensional project that correlates with the Alabama Bicentennial.

The program was researched, developed and constructed by students across grade levels.

By week’s end, a total of 640 students will view the project, according to Athens Renaissance School Principal Nelson Brown. That total includes second graders from HEART Academy at Julian Newman Elementary School, second- and third graders from iAcademy at Athens Elementary and fourth graders from Athens Intermediate School are viewing the project

Brown said he is “very proud” of ARS students and their work.

“It’s been a student-led experience, and they have taken real ownership,” Brown said. “I think it will be something students will remember for a long time.”

Putting through history

Students in kindergarten through fifth grade at Athens Renaissance School researched, organized and built an Alabama-themed mini-golf course for other elementary students to tour.

“It’s pretty fun,” said Madelyn Oltmans, a fourth grader at ARS.

Oltmans, 10, was part of a group that had to design a hole based on prehistoric Alabama. She worked on a Lophortothon, the first genus of dinosaur discovered in Alabama, building a replica out of paper mache.

On Monday, she explained to a group of HEART Academy at Julian Newman students how the dinosaur was found by researchers in Alabama and how it lived more than 85.5 million years ago. She said adult Lophorhothons stood about 15 feet tall.

She also told about the Basilosaurus.

“It’s called the ‘King Lizard,’” she said. “It’s actually an ancient whale. It’s the state fossil of Alabama.”

Oltmans told The News Courier the best part of the “Celebrate Alabama” project is learning what’s happening in Alabama. Other golf holes contained themes such as “around the fall line” or “crazy Alabama laws.” Students have been working on the projects since December.

“These are their ideas,” said Leanne Hudleston, a teacher at ARS. “It’s 99.9% made by them, and everything is pretty much recyclable stuff.”

Hudleston said students had to do a lot of research as well as learn how to work well together.

“The biggest thing I got out of this was the teamwork and communication and collaboration,” Hudleston said.

Pop-up museum

ARS students in grades 6 through 12 created physical representations of the six ecoregions across the state. Museum exhibits included Mt. Cheaha, the Cahaba River and its lilies, Dismal Canyon and its bioluminescent creatures and more.

Students visiting the museum’s six main exhibits and art gallery were taught how to take care of Alabama’s natural environment and why it is important to conserve it.

Emily Pfeifer, 16, is a sophomore at ARS. She said students researched and worked together to create each exhibit.

Pfeifer was tasked with helping create the Interior Plateau, the region home to Limestone County. Students have been researching and working on the project since February.

“I’ve enjoyed being able to build it all from the ground up,” Pfeifer said.

Teacher Leigh Boulineau said the pop-up natural science museum was the brainchild of ARS teacher Summer Neely, who had the vision. She said students came up with the ideas for the ecoregions on their own.

“I’m incredibly proud of all the students,” Boulineau said. “The middle schoolers and the high schoolers worked so hard on this. They’ve had a good time, and they’ve learned a lot. It’s been a team effort.”

Walking tours

Older students in the ARS National Honor Society guided historic walking tours of downtown Athens this week. The 25-minute tours included stops at U.G. White, the Limestone County Courthouse, First Presbyterian Church, Kreme Delight and the Limestone County Archives.

Tour guides gave visiting students information about how each location is a part of Athens’ history.

Rosie Beshears, a senior at ARS, said she enjoyed the tours and felt like students were learning a lot about their community.

A complex plan

ARS teacher Chris Paysinger said he was a small part of a very complex plan when it came to the project.

“It’s something so different,” Paysinger. “We tried to make it interactive.”

He said the “Celebrate Alabama” project set out to show “authentic learning matters immensely.”

“This is really what learning should be,” Paysinger said.

Athens City Schools Superintendent Trey Holladay said he was excited about the students’ work. He believes it’s important for kids to be connected to their community.

“Community service should be a piece of what students do daily,” Holladay said. “It’s nice to see the younger generations connect to the classical charm of downtown Athens.”