Journeys - Kindergarten to 5th Grade

Journeys are the heart of the Tessellations curriculum. Journeys are a project-based, approach to instruction that weave English Language Arts, social studies, science, history, and art into a meaningful and integrated storyline, instead of treating the subjects as discrete classes. During each semester-long Journey, students develop conceptual understanding through critical examination, deep reflection, and making meaningful connections to the real world, all in a collaborative learning environment.

Journeys begin with a launch, an immersive experience that hooks students into the project. From there, students travel to several destinations, where they focus on different units of study. Destinations incorporate enriching, hands-on activities as well as guest experts and fieldwork experiences. Each Journey also incorporates a service learning project or an opportunity to give back to others. The Journey culminates in a celebration to showcase all that the students have learned and accomplished. Journeys are informed by state and national standards, and teachers assess students constantly and adjust curriculum to meet students’ needs.

Journeys create rich, memorable, and meaningful learning experiences in which students gain a deep understanding of the importance of and relationship between the disciplines. The result is a high level of student engagement, increased knowledge retention, affinity for school and learning, and a well developed set of academic and critical thinking skills that students are able to apply to all future intellectual endeavors.

Here is an example summary of a recent Tessellations Journey, completed over the course of a year by our 2nd and 3rd grade students.

Example Journey: Are We There Yet?

During the Journey, Are We There Yet?, the 2nd and 3rd graders took on the personas of 1842 pioneers, experiencing westward expansion first-hand. Students first learned about the people who traveled west, including immigrants, tenant farmers, missionaries, and factory workers. To build background knowledge, they did a deep dive into primary sources and fictional texts to better understand why thousands of people left their homes and everything they ever knew to make the perilous journey into the unknown.

Students created pioneer characters based on their research. They crafted background stories and characters, drawing personal connections to the historical overlanders and their traveling parties while developing key research, literacy, and writing skills. When students arrived in Independence, MO, they were challenged with multiple trail preparation tasks such as establishing a wagon train (geography and map skills), building model wagons (design thinking and engineering), and selecting appropriate supplies to bring with them on the trail, considering their uses, weight, and the limitations of their wagons and the terrain (planning and mathematics). In addition, students got to experience several trail-related activities, visiting a farm to learn about animal husbandry, learning about food preservation through pickling, and sewing shirts and dolls. They recreated cooking on the trail by making hotcakes and jam. They learned plant identification, survival skills, and even created their own survival guides at our Nature Campus.

Once the pioneers set off on the trail, their journey was full of twists and turns. From diseases, unknown animals, flash floods, wagon challenges, injuries, and learning the history and considering the perspectives of different Native American Nations, the 2nd and 3rd grade students encountered a multitude of learning opportunities on their journey out west. Along the way, each student kept a detailed journal that captured their experiences of the trail and provided daily practice for literacy skills and development. Students acted out different events before writing their journal entries. In addition to written entries, the journals included sketch noting, observational drawings, and scrapbook pages that comprised a visual memoir of their time on the Oregon Trail.

At the end of this Journey, students completed a personal passion project on a topic that peaked their interest over the course of their studies. Some students focused on geography, while others did deep dives into Native American history or the biodiversity of North American animals. To mark the end of this Journey, students shared their learning experiences, Journey work, and passion projects with their families and our school community at their culminating Arrival Celebration.

They finished the year with a love of learning, well-honed academic skills, strong bonds and deep friendships. They are ready for the learning adventures that lie ahead!