- Meramec Elementary School
- Overview
Students Develop Solutions for Some of World's Most Pressing Issues
Elementary students in the District's Extended Learning (XL) program have been working this school year to create solutions for real-world problems identified by the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as ending poverty, providing affordable clean energy and ensuring gender equality. The third- through fifth-grade students presented the outcomes of their work at the XL Expo held on Tuesday, Dec. 18, at Wydown Middle School.
The District’s XL curriculum this year is centered on learning more about the problems the 17 SDGs are designed to address and empowering students to create solutions of their own. Following the Project-Based Learning (PBL) process, students were challenged to take ownership of their learning by investigating real world issues and developing practical solutions in order to inspire change at the local, national and global levels.
Each grade level used a single question to drive their learning and exploration. This question, along with the SDGs on which each grade level focused, are included below.
Third Grade
Driving Question: "How can we ensure that everyone has access to clean water and a power source now and in the future?”
Goal 6 Clean Water and Sanitation
Goal 7 Affordable and Clean Energy
Fourth Grade
Driving Question: "What can we do to ensure all people have a decent life?”
Goal 9 Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure
Goal 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth
Fifth Grade
Driving Question: "How can we make the world more fair?"
Goal 1 No Poverty
Goal 2 Zero Hunger
Goal 3 Good Health and Well-Being
Goal 4 Quality Education
Goal 5 Gender Equality
At the XL Expo, students presented their projects to their teachers and family members in attendance and received feedback on their work.