2 Cool 4 School: Awesome School Programs in Metro Atlanta by Emily Webb
It should come as no surprise that students in school are learning, but some metro Atlanta programs take traditional classroom learning to the next level. These organizations partner with schools to teach students life skills.
Riding Along with All Kids Bike The Strider Education Foundation’s All Kids Bike wants to help every kid in America learn how to ride a bicycle. Implemented in kindergarten, their online curriculum features lesson plans and resources, and the program is taught in eight lessons. All Kids Bike places Strider 14x Bikes into the class and includes necessary items, such as pedal conversion kits and helmets. “My favorite part is seeing the pure joy that kids have when the bikes are revealed to them and seeing their confidence and
Building a Toolbox with Toolbox
64 Atlanta Parent January 2022
belief in themselves continue to grow as they progress from balancing on a bike to proficiently pedaling,” says Lauren Tadlock, Project Manager. Kids’ screen time has increased, and families may not be able to prioritize exercise. “Seventy-five percent of American kids won’t ride a bicycle even one time this year. For many, it is simply because they don’t know how to ride,” she says. “Riding a bike is a developmental milestone that introduces a lifetime of confidence, mobility, joy and overall wellbeing.”
Remember your high school’s shop class? Jeffrey “J” Prothero was inspired to help students start learning woodworking and electrical skills at a younger age. Called the Young Apprentice Construction Club, it exists in all six schools which feed into Roswell’s two middle schools and completes the first elementary to high school construction technology pipeline in Georgia. “The first project they build is a toolbox, and this toolbox is a metaphor for life skills,” says Prothero, Founding Volunteer. “We’re giving them tools they can use in life. We’re working on the kids in every category we can possibly impact.” The students learn how the skills relate to their future, as Prothero explains that what they’re learning will help them if they’re ever homeowners. But they also practice life skills. At the start of each meeting, students and volunteers shake hands, learning how to greet others politely. Students also work in buddy teams, making them better peers. “When they start building and you see these kids’ faces, it’s mind blowing to see them light up the way they do,” he says. “We’re impacting how kids feel about school and impacting their happy meter.”
[ Focus on Education ]
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