I work at a project-based school. We give our kids long lists of possible 'deliverables' in order to move them away from what we call the 'Three Ps': Papers, Powerpoints, and Posterboards. One of my seniors outdid himself this by making a home-made pig roaster. It was amazing. His presentation made a great case for Project Based Learning. He was thoroughly engaged in solving real-world, multi-disciplinary problems. He had to deal with high level math and physics, often scribbling his equations right on the metal he was trying to configure into a roaster. He worked most of the icy winter in his garage. We'd call his mom to find out if he was coming in or if he was working from home. One time she said, "I'm not sure what he is doing out there, but he did just come in to ask for the spare fire extinquisher, just in case". Nice.
In the end he not only created a working roaster, but he made a trailer to be able to bring his roaster to the party, wherever that may be. And he made some community connections so that he has several pigs offered to him for a test run. The goods will be available to try at his graduation party. Never in my career have I been more convinced that a graduate has the skills and habits needed to succeed in the larger world.
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