Anchored in Application
There is one aspect of La Paz's school day that I found interesting and it is a learning space called "Anchor," or "Anclas." Anchor provides students the opportunity to enact the school's core values of self, family, community and world in meaningful, applicable ways that provide rich, relevant and transformative educational experiences.
A few shots taken across Tempisque campus where I found sites of Anclas collaborative work:
More about Anchor from the General Director of La Paz Community School, Abel McClennen (Jan 2015):
All La Paz students in grades k-12 participate in a yearlong consistent interaction with their school and community through a variety of anchor projects that are grade specific. Students focus at least one block per week on one particular experiential learning focus that is geared towards service learning. Through the study of Energy Flows, Nutrient Cycles, and Community Dynamics, La Paz students gain a profound understanding of their immediate school community and their complex relationship with their family, community, and world; thus transforming the self into a lifelong learner and active service oriented citizen.
Inspiring young minds to develop a greater appreciation for their natural world is a primary focus of the Kinder – 2nd grade Anchor Projects. Through the management of the North Campus Recycle Program, lunch scrap composting, greenhouse, and weekly visits to the Flamingo Beach Resort Sustainable Farm students work together to make scientific observations and learn to care for their world while getting their hands dirty.
The 3rd graders lead the way by inspiring La Paz students, teachers and parents to be stewards of their environment by reducing, reusing and recycling.Through the year-long process that includes visits to community recycling centers and the clean-up of various beaches, students will develop a better understanding of what happens to our waste and what we can do to lessen the impact we have on our natural resources and environment.
The 4th graders have the opportunity to help design and landscape their campus common area by using a variety of flowering, native, and drought resistant plants that attract many hummingbirds and butterflies. Students are creating a seed bank, learning how to transplant seedlings and propagate plants, and watching the flow of energy that photosynthesis provides as they develop their greenhouse into a sustainable model.
The 5th grade team is embarking on a year-long collaborative discovery of what it takes to successfully raise pigs on the La Paz campus. Through this journey, students will apply their critical thinking and problem solving skills to navigate their way through a hands-on learning process that meaningfully integrates all the subjects.
The 6th grade team is bringing energy and creativity to La Paz Community School's newest Anchor Project: raising chickens! This project focuses on building teamwork and tenacity while studying the educational, financial and environmental benefits to raising chickens on campus.
The 7th grade anchor project consists of growing native and adapted native trees in the La Paz tree Nursery and then transplanting them in previously identified biological corridors that are in need of reforestation.
The 8th grade project focuses on the Water, Solar, and Electrical Energy Flow systems on the La Paz Campus. The process involves learning about the Energy Flow System, monitoring the data, and educating the community on the flow system statistics and ways to conserve and preserve energy on our campus and in our community.
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