Focus: Readers’ Workshop in First Grade
The classroom is quiet and the children are focused on their daily work of reading. Several children are nestled in a corner with just right books perched in their tiny hands. Some children have Post-It notes sticking out of their books where they decided to make a connection, identify a word they didn’t know, make a prediction, or just comment on a character.

Another group is quietly discussing a book they are reading together in a book club. At first, the teacher is difficult to find since she is either knelt down in a one-on-one conference with a child about his or her reading, or sitting at a U-shaped table with a group of students focused on a specific strategy through a guided reading lesson.

Toward the end of the workshop, the teacher calls the students to the rug in a circle. The teacher asks, “What strategy did you use today while you were reading your ‘Just Right’ books?” Hands shoot up and the students share their strategies for that day.

Focus: Writers’ Workshop in Fourth Grade
The students are sitting at their desks facing the teacher. The teacher has photocopied an example of a persuasive essay and placed it on the overhead. The teacher is leading the students in a discussion about what they notice about the text features. The students raise their hands and share their observations.

In this classroom, the students are guided in their understanding of the unique features of a particular genre of writing. Once the students generate this list, they work collaboratively with the teacher to create a rubric to evaluate their writing in that genre. With the students involved in the identification of specific text features, examples to follow, and a rubric to evaluate their writing, they are ready to get to work. During Writers’ Workshop, the students develop “seed ideas” in their writers’ notebooks. These are ideas regarding the subject matter and stance they want to take on an issue. Once they’ve chosen their topic, stance and arguments, they are ready to begin working on their persuasive piece.

During the workshop, the teacher confers with as many students as possible to guide them in their writing. At the end of the workshop, the teacher gathers the students either on the rug or back at their seats to share and reflect. The teacher may ask, “What successes did you have as a writer today? What challenges did you face?”

Focus: Math Workshop in Second Grade
The students are seated on the rug and the teacher is at the white board. The teacher demonstrates how to play a math game that focuses on understanding place value. Each player has a 100 chart, ten sticks and ones. The object of the game is to fill up the 100 chart using as many ten sticks as possible. The first player to fill the chart wins. The teacher asks a student to play the game with her and model for the others. The teacher rolls two sixes. The teacher takes 12 cubes to represent 12 ones. Then she asks the students if she can trade her ones for a ten. Then it’s the student’s turn. This modeling continues until the teacher is sure that the students understand the objective of the game and are able to trade ones for tens where appropriate. The students are asked to form pairs and are sent off to play the game.

The students play the game quietly while the teacher walks around the classroom with her clipboard taking anecdotal notes. The notes offer the teacher evidence of student understanding of the concept taught. At the end of the workshop, the teacher gathers the students on the rug and leads them in a reflection of the lesson.

Focus: Science Workshop in Fifth Grade
A human brain, a human heart and a pair of human lungs. That’s what you might see when you walk into a Science Workshop in fifth-grade. At Park, we believe that science should be hands-on, interactive and exciting. During this workshop, the students spend time in three centers. The first is an examination of human organs guided by a parent volunteer. The second is a life-size, anatomically correct drawing of the human body and the third center is an exploration of a model of the human lung and how it works.

The students spend the morning engaged in these high-interest and motivating projects that provide them with knowledge and skills practice, as outlined in the State Standards. Project-based learning is a cornerstone of Park’s instructional approach. We believe that children learn best when engaged and motivated in real-life, hands-on learning.