Churchville-Chili has been integrating experiential learning (learning by doing) into required middle school science curriculum for several years, offering engaging enrichment experiences. This year, the district is expanding the initiative into social studies with lessons that encourage scholars to put themselves in the places of the people they are studying.
Sixth graders’ study of prehistoric people took on new meaning with a project that took them back more than 12,000 years to the caves of Lascaux, France. Students considered the art in the famous caves, magical images of hunting scenes and animals. How, when and why were they created? What were the difficulties faced by the artists, working in the dark, underground, with simple tools and pigments? The sixth graders wondered at the importance people placed on their artwork.
Our 21st century cave artists were challenged to create art that would similarly represent them and their culture. They crumpled brown paper and taped the imagined rock walls under their desks or chairs, turned off the lights and simulated the uncomfortable working conditions faced by their precursors. Each used earth-colored crayons to create drawings symbolizing objects and ideas they value, like sports, family holidays, or favorite family rituals. The experience gave them new insight into the people of the past, and a deeper understanding of times and events they are studying.