Action!

Real-world learning is coming to Keels Elementary

By JOY L. WOODSON - jwoodson@thestate.com

Fourth- and fifth-graders at Keels Elementary will soon be the epicenter of a new program that bridges today’s changing global economy with everyday school lessons.

The School of Entrepreneurial Leadership will be a school within a school focusing on marketing, citizenship and technology. It will be available to all fourth- and fifth-graders enrolled at Keels beginning next school year.

Richland 2 received a $350,000 grant from the state Department of Education to create the program, which will be partly extended into Dent Middle School. The key, said Keels principal Lynne Ladue, “is to link academic learning to real-world experiences.” And, with the grant, the students “can actually see that happening,” she said.

Richland 2 hopes to serve about 450 students yearly with the approach, which is modeled after micro-society programs nationwide. Ladue discovered how it worked at a Connecticut school.

Spaces within Keels Elementary will be revamped over the summer to create state-of-the-art studios for science and weather, broadcast and digital media.

Students will create weather forecasts, a daily news show and financial plans.

Math instruction will focus on financial literacy, teaching students about balancing a checkbook, figuring taxes and crafting a family budget.

There also will be an after-school program that will provide students with transportation.

One of the most exciting components, Ladue said, will be based on project management, in which students will create businesses and market products to the community. Students will see how math and marketing directly relates to them, she said.

“Kids don’t always see that,” Ladue added. They wonder, “‘How is this going to help me? When am I going to use this?’ And, I think this is going to be a wonderful opportunity for them.”

Fourth-grade teacher Michael Barron already has seen how the program will work at Keels Elementary.

He recently participated in a micro-society workshop with students to create minibusiness plans.

The problem-solving and team work skills students will use, along with enthusiasm from teachers, will be integral, he said.

“I think (the students) get excited as much as their leadership does,” said Barron, a first-year teacher. “The students are really excited about this.”

Teachers, like Barron, will attend training seminars over the summer to prepare for the new creative curricula.

The school also will partner with several local businesses, a condition of receiving the grant. The Midlands Education and Business Alliance, Bank of America, Bose Corp., City Year, and Clemson University, are among the partners.

The partners will help with field studies for educators, and trips and mentoring for the students.

Lisa Call, the chief operating officer for Midlands Education and Business Alliance, said it’s never too early to start helping children relate what they’re learning now to future careers and other opportunities.

“We just want to make sure that our students are well-aware of what’s out there,” she said. “Hopefully, that will plant some seeds and let the students get excited.”

Reach Woodson (803) 771-8692