Happy Friday Everyone,

This week we honored our veterans for their service to our country. We are proud of our graduates who have dedicated their lives to defending our way of life. In our history classes our students develop an understanding of democracy. The freedoms we enjoy as citizens are possible because of those who serve. 

Service also plays a role in education. Picture a teenage musician introducing a ten year old to the piano. Imagine a group of teenagers organizing a beach cleanup supported by an educational pamphlet describing the ways marine life is impacted by plastic. Service can be a means for learning because when we teach something to others we gain a deeper understanding for ourselves. 

In 1969 the first service-learning conference took place in Atlanta Georgia, where educators and representatives of the Peace Corps met to explore the ways learning and service could combine. Service-learning is an educational strategy that provides students with the opportunity to put theories into practice. A high school student who volunteers to teach third graders a reading strategy also strengthens their own reading practice by accepting the challenge to reflect on how they read and considering what they might be able to do to transfer that understanding to another. Teaching is a way to take your comprehension to the next level while positively impacting the life of another person

I hope this weekend you have the opportunity to explore how you and your family might take something you want to understand more deeply and develop a service project that would have an impact on others.

Peace,

Chris