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For Lowellville students, learning has its sweet rewards
By Sarah Lehr
LOWELLVILLE
Students donned scrubs and face masks as they prepped for work in a Lowellville classroom turned surgical chamber.
The second- through fourth-graders were performing “word surgery,” as part of a math and literacy night Monday sponsored by Lowellville Local Schools.
“Word surgery” – a delicate process involving cutting up words with scissors and breathing new life into them using an apostrophe and a new ending – offered a hands-on lesson on contractions.
The student-surgeons deposited their “medical waste” (scraps of paper) in mock biohazard containers and were compensated with lollipops for meeting their quotas of healed “word patients.”
“I could give them a worksheet, which might take them two minutes to complete,” said Michele McCaughtry, a Lowellville school board member and a curriculum supervisor at Youngstown City Schools. “The idea is that this experience will stick in their minds for longer.”
About 300 people participated in the school district’s second-annual math and literacy night, said K-12 Principal Christine Sawicki.
The event, open to kindergartners through sixth-graders and their parents, sought to extend learning beyond classroom hours. The year’s programming centered on a “sweet treats” theme and included activities such as writing acrostic poetry about chocolate and using M&Ms for graphing.
Lowellville teachers joined forces with consultants from the Mahoning County Education Service Center and volunteers from Lowellville High School Student Council and the Future Teachers of America club to facilitate the event.
The night included dinner, a visit from the dogs of K-9s for Compassion and an appearance from the Pop-Up Library of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County. The Pop-Up Library allows patrons to check out books outside of official library buildings.
Mary Ann Davis, a literacy coach with Lowellville Schools, said the decision to roll literature and math together into one event reflected a Common Core emphasis on word problems and requiring students to explain their work.
“It’s not just about your answer,” Davis said. “We want to know how you got your answer.”
The skill sets required for reading often overlap with those required for math, Davis added. Math, like language arts, requires critical thinking and specific vocabulary, she said.
Moreover, it makes practical sense to combine supposedly distinct learning disciplines, McCaughtry said.
“When these students have jobs, what they do isn’t going to be divided into separate subjects,” McCaughtry said. “They’re going to be using all kinds of thinking at the same time.”