Project-Based Learning
At Athens Renaissance School, students don't just study the world, they engage with it. Through Project-Based Learning, our students tackle real questions, collaborate across subjects, and produce work that matters. Each year, our PBL experiences challenge students to think critically, communicate clearly, and make meaningful connections between what they're learning and the world around them.
This year's projects are some of our best yet. Explore what our students worked on below.
Elementary (K-5): Schools of the Past, Blueprints for the Future
What makes a great school? This year, our K-5 students set out to answer that question---by first looking back. Through historical artifacts, students explored what school life once looked like from the technology to the clothing, the toys and the supplies. Armed with that perspective, they partnered with architects to do something remarkable: design a school of the future.
Working in mixed grade-level groups (K-2 and 3-5) based on shared interests, students collaborated to plan and build spaces where future learners could focus, create, and feel at home. Blueprints became models, and models became a showcase presented by students to parents, families, and community members who got a firsthand look at what young minds can dream up when given the chance.
Middle School (6-8): ARMS--The Documentary (You Never Asked For)
What does it feel like to be an ARS student? That was the question at the heart of this year's middle school PBL experience---and leave it to ARMS students to answer it with a "mockumentary".
Inspired by ARS's tenth anniversary, students set out to capture the middle school experience for the wider community. They applied for roles as directors, producers, and editors; wrote and revised scripts; and spent weeks filming, re-filming, and editing with professional-grade equipment including digital cameras, ring lights, and lapel mics. Editors polished their work in Adobe Premiere Pro while producers designed movie posters and promotional materials to build the buzz.
At year's end, ARMS literally rolled out the red carpet---premiering their full-length films to the ARS community in a showcase they won't soon forget. The skills gained along the way? Immeasurable. The fun had in the process? Equally so.
High School (9-12): Eras of Innovation
What drives human innovation, and what does it tell us about who we are? That was the question at the center of this year's high school PBL experience. Students explored the full sweep of human history through six lenses: Food & Nutrition, Music & the Arts, Communication & Technology, Business & Industry, Science & Medicine, and Military & Defense.
Students began by zooming in, either tracing innovations within one category across time, or examining all categories within a single era. From there, each student identified the innovation they believed had the greatest impact on their category or on humanity as a whole. Cross-grade groups formed around shared curiosity, and the deeper work began: researching the conditions that made each innovation possible, understanding the ripple effects it created, and imagining how that innovation could be taken even further.
The project culminated in a World's Fair-style showcase, where students presented their findings---and their visions for the future---to peers, families, and community members. It was history, research, and imagination all in one room.