Search Results | Models of Excellence

Geology of California

Grade(s):

Geology of California is a middle-school student product synthesizing learning from a semester-long Earth Science expedition.

Bills and Gills Field Journal and Nonfiction Narrative

Grade(s):

4, 5

Students in the 4th and 5th grade Crews at Sierra Expeditionary Learning School in Truckee, California studied bird and fish species of the Sierra Nevada and created field journal entries as well as a non-fiction narrative to accompany it. Students followed a performance task in which they obser

Social Justice Issue Public Service Announcements

Grade(s):

As a culminating social studies expedition product, 8th-grade students of Sierra Expeditionary Learning School, Truckee, CA produced Public Sevice Announcements on current social justice issues of their own choosing.

TOPO Map Model

Grade(s):

6, 7, 8

This is a project that is part of our Cartographers case study. Prior to this project, students looked at the development of maps as technology improved and as more of the world was known to cartographers. We have learned how to use modern maps and compasses to find directions and navigate.

Engineer a Mining Technique Model

Grade(s):

4, 5

After learning about the various mining techniques used during and after the California Gold Rush, students are asked to engineer a final product of a technical drawing and working model that exhibits a solid understanding of a particular mining type.

Guess My Landform!

Grade(s):

Students learned about different landforms and then chose a landform to research further. They used different resources (books, anchor charts, language dives) to come up with a riddle containing at least 3 clues as to their landform.

The Animal Important Book

Grade(s):

During a winter/spring expedition, first grade students learned about local animals’ characteristics, including body features, diet, predators, and adaptations. As a whole group students went through the entire research process focused on a local black bear.

Top 10 Things to Do in Truckee with Kids Under 10

Grade(s):

2, 3

During a Social Studies Expedition on the history of Truckee, California, students visited and learned from experts about the stories and history of historic buildings in downtown Truckee.

I will never forget this horror

Immigrant Poems For Two Voices

Grade(s):

After exploring the immigration experience through cultural fieldwork, primary source documents, documentary and historical fiction films, and current news stories, students wrote a research-based, two-voice poem spoken by immigrants from different periods that expressed their ideas about how the

Kids Talk Climate

Grade(s):

Climate change has been called the defining issue of the next generation. As students grapple with the chemical and physical science associated with how humans are impacting our climate, they have one question: what can we do?