Teacher Kelly Froehlich has turned a brainstorm about how to make the study of decimals more interesting into a full-on career exploration, STEM unit and pretty much a fifth grade rite of passage.
Inspired by the Home Builders Association’s annual West Michigan Parade of Homes, students in Froehlich’s class hone geometry skills while exercising their imaginations and exploring potential careers including architecture, construction, interior design, engineering and landscaping.
“It ties in multiple content areas, and they have so much fun with it,” Froehlich said. “It also makes their learning real world and future real world.”
And it’s a multi-generational, community effort. The school’s PTO pays for materials, and parents do the foam-board cutting based on student’s measurements. “I was the boss” on the project, noted Tripp Hoekstra, project manager on the house with the octopus in the swimming pool.
