Using research and writing skills in Humanities, scaling in Math, circuitry in Science, and Engineering in Makers, the seventh grade students at HTMMA partnered with different non-profits around San Diego to help spread their messages to the community. Students explored the history of parades and non-fiction texts about parades, scaled blueprints of their float ideas, circuited their lights, and built their parade float. The students partnered with The Animal Pad, The Rescue Dog, Fishes and Loaves, and the OB Women’s Club to build parade floats that were exhibited in the 2018 Ocean Beach Holiday Parade.

Teacher Reflection

Encouraging creativity, being proactive in the community, spreading positivity, and interdisciplinary learning, the students did so much more than build a float. Given leadership positions and smaller subgroups, students collaborated with their peers, used so many tools to build, researched floats and materials, and took on roles pertaining to their passions. In this project, they practiced so many soft and hard skills that resulted in them being a collective and powerful voice. When given a real client and an authentic audience the students were powerful and unstoppable. Students built the float for their non-profit not because they had to but because they wanted to spread an important message to their community.

-Mimi Tran

Student Reflection

I think that it has helped me connect with my peers and classmates by learning to know them better. I got to work with people I don’t normally hang out with and created something amazing. Something that was hard was scaling to size the model to the actual size, painting multiple layers of paint for the backdrop, and deciding on how different scrap wood could be used to create the size of the backdrop. We had to screw beams to the backdrop as well. I learned how to carefully use resources that I was given and to problem solve with my peers. 

-Jaden Gonzales