Capstone Projects Take Fifth Graders Into The Field
As part of their Capstone Project, our fifth graders spend their last year in Lower School learning guided and independent research skills, choosing a community issue that matters to them, and collaborating with a local organization that supports the cause.
After spending the first half of the year researching, the spring semester sees students traveling across Austin to volunteer with local organizations making an impact on the issues students care about. This year, student groups explored issues of food insecurity, climate change, clean water, gender equality, health care, poverty, and quality education.
Groups working on food insecurity visited four organizations making a real difference in Central Texas: Farmshare Austin, Uplift Texas, Hope Food Pantry, and the Central Texas Food Bank. Students served meals to unhoused community members, helped on the farm where crops are grown to feed people experiencing food insecurity, and volunteered at hunger-relief organizations that help tens of thousands of people each year.
The climate change group visited TreeFolks, a mostly volunteer-powered organization focused on expanding the tree canopy in central Texas and building community in the process. After learning more about the organization’s goals and the positive impact of trees on our quality of life, students got their hands in the soil, planting lavender bush seeds and helping water them.
Two groups focused on Austin's waterways. Students researching clean water visited Keep Austin Beautiful and Shoal Creek Conservancy. Fifth graders tested the quality of creek water, made seed balls, and collected trash at Lady Bird Lake. They were staggered at the amount of trash they found at the lake, and even more so when they learned from volunteers that 24 billion pounds of plastic enter the ocean each year. Students saw firsthand how much of that journey begins in places like local creeks and lakes.
The gender equality group visited Dress for Success, an organization that provides free professional clothing to women preparing to enter or return to the workforce. Students working on healthcare and quality education both visited Communities in Schools Texas. The healthcare group assembled hygiene kits for students in need, while the quality education group learned about the organization's work connecting young people with the support they need to stay in school. The poverty group visited Austin Sunshine Camps, which gives children who couldn't otherwise afford it the experience of overnight summer camp.
After their trips, each group created a documentary-style video, describing their issue, especially as it shows up in the city of Austin, as well as the organization that the fifth graders chose to work alongside. Videos included a call-to-action for viewers, encouraging them to get involved with their chosen organization or others that make a positive impact on their selected issue. The Capstone project allows students to learn from community leaders making a difference in Austin as well as practice hands-on service learning themselves. As they move to Middle School, fifth grade is equipped with empathy, leadership, and compassion to make real change.
