FAME 1st graders compare past to present with project

Published 7:00 am Tuesday, March 16, 2021

COVID-19 has brought with it many changes to everyday life, from social distancing and wearing facial coverings to an increase in the importance of sanitation.

But just how much has coronavirus changed things for schoolchildren these days, and what was attending school like for students long ago when the world wasn’t in the middle of a global pandemic?

Questions like these are what first graders at FAME Academy at Brookhill Elementary School are seeking to answer as part of a project that compares today’s school life to that of the past.

Teacher De’Onna Goodloe said she and her students are partnering with Limestone County Archivist Rebekah Davis to put together examples of how schools are different today versus “long ago.”

Goodloe said her students are putting together trifold displays complete with old and current photos to give a visual representation of the differences in things like classroom appearance, the school building itself, transportation, recreation and learning.

Once the project is complete, Goodloe said Davis will display the trifolds at the Limestone County Archives so the public has access to them, since COVID-19 has meant limited visitors at schools.

“I feel like project-based learning opens the door for deeper conversations with students,” Goodloe said. “It gets them to ask more questions and keeps the learning open ended. It shows them we never stop learning.”

Goodloe said her students kicked off the project using a Zoom teleconference call with Davis, who told the students about the Archives and what her job entails. The students then used digital resources available through the archives to find pictures and other information for their projects.

“They even threw in photos of the old train depot, because it was so important to Athens in the past,” Goodloe said. “They have lots of cool photos of old bands and basketball teams at local schools and even how the buildings themselves looked. They chose the photos to include.”

Goodloe said during February, which is Black History Month, students began learning about adversity in the past and how important it was to show how life has changed over the years, which helped lead into this month’s project. Goodloe herself is Black, which she said helped her class understand the difference between today and when public facilities were segregated.

“Once the projects are done, Davis is going to take pictures of the students and insert them into the Archives,” Goodloe said. “The kids are excited about being a part of history.”