Third-graders in Bethany Stubbs’ classroom at Williams/Ledger Elementary recently had the chance to learn about snow, using more than just their minds.
During the month of December, Stubbs’ students read the text “The Science of Snow”, giving them some insight on the science behind the frozen precipitation that is a rarity to Central Texas.
Enter Debbie Payne, a paraprofessional who spends her mornings working on reading comprehension with small groups of students in Stubbs’ classroom.
Payne recently returned from Colorado, travelling there for the holiday season. During her visit out west, a snowstorm spurred Payne to collect a few snowballs as souvenirs; little did she know, the classroom aide was bringing a rare educational tool back to Central Texas with her.
“I thought that bringing in the snowballs for the students would be a great hands-on learning experience,” Payne said. “All the students thought it was so cool to see and touch the snowballs.”
Student Abbygale Harris witnessed the real science of what she had learned in the classroom and only had the chance to read about.
“I saw how the same thing happened in the story, just like it’s happening now to the snowball pieces,” Harris said.
Stubbs credits Payne with helping students comprehend what they are reading by ensuring they understand how it applies to everyday life.
“Mrs. Payne is always going above and beyond to provide students with real world examples of whatever they are reading about that week,” Stubbs said. “It’s always exciting to see students eager to learn from a hands-on approach.”
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