International Baccalaureate exercise examines ‘grand’ memories

In the memory book, ”Our Grandparents Remember When. . .,” sixth-grader Kaitlyn Wacker showed a photo of her grandmother when she was just a child.

Last month, Notre Dame's sixth graders finished up a "memory book" as a result of an International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program (MYP) unit question from teacher Ginny Pauwels that asked, “How does knowing about the past help us understand the future?”

Pauwels said she wasn't sure exactly what they were talking about in a sixth-grade Language A class, but it ended up as a discussion of how things “used to be.”

In 2013, Notre Dame 6th graders produced a memory book called, ”Our Grandparents Remember When. . .,” from interviews with grandparents and other family members.

"So I decided to use that idea in my technology class to introduce Google Drive presentations," she said. "Our MYP unit question was 'How does knowing about the past help us understand the future?' Each student was supposed to interview at least one grandparent about how life has changed since he or she was younger."

Pauwels said that along with the interview, students were also supposed to have their picture taken with the grandparent.

"The assignment was given before Christmas break with the hopes that most would be seeing grandparents over the holiday," she said. "As with any assignment, soon we were making modifications. Some grandparents live in Brazil, Syria or Germany. So, a few long-distance phone calls and emails were necessary to gather quotes."

Finally, after much editing and production time, the sixth graders are proud to present “Our Grandparents Remember When. . .”

A few students comment on the project:

“I loved listening to his stories because they were all like a really good book that you never wanted to stop reading.” Brian Gebara

“Knowing about the past can help us understand the present by reflecting back to find what things people, a company, a government, an army, or group has done to find what they did and what they’ll do differently next time instead of doing what they did last time.” Kolbe Eurick

“He proved to me that you don’t need technology to be happy.” Amelia Rinehart

Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org.

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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame's upper school enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three schools are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school's home page at www.ndpma.org.