Our project came to a natural conclusion as the students finished their narrative books and decided where on the map their Story (where their story took place-urban, suburban, or rural) should take place. They used all their prior knowledge about how towns and cities develop in proximity to a river and they thoughtfully placed (pinned) their "setting" or community on the map. It was gratifying to see and listen to them explain their decisions as they recalled previous information to decide the placement! Children who had urban settings were careful to place their fabric "city" piece near the mouth of the river, recalling how it is easier to ship goods from that point. Children who had suburban settings noted how things "were further apart" and placed their fabric further up the river, noting that it "wasn't as crowded". Children who had rural settings placed their fabric further away from the cities, where they noticed a lot of open land, closer to tributaries.
The students ability to synthesize the concepts they had learned/experienced was evident at this point of the project! Earlier learning experiences had been much more scaffolded, so it was exciting to see them apply what they had learned!