LEGO Education visits Wilson Elementary All the Way from Denmark

Students at Wilson Elementary School had a chance to literally “build” a story – beginning, middle and end, as LEGO Education experts from Denmark visited the school Wednesday, Dec. 9. Colton Joint Unified School District (CJUSD) was the only inland district visited by the LEGO team. They are in Southern California this week to observe classes and speak to teachers about how LEGO can support English Language Arts learning, especially for English Learners. The team came to Wilson through a connection with teacher Jeremy Wallace, who also happens to be a singer in a Danish band. They also plan to visit schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District. During the visit Wednesday, students used LEGO bricks to construct stories with a beginning, middle and end. They then shared the stories with members of the LEGO team as well as Wilson teachers. As students worked, discussed key elements of a story such as plot, conflict, resolution, and details, all of which can help students when they write the story on paper. Camilla Bottke, Global Lead and Senior Marketing Manager for LEGO Education Language Arts division, noted that play theory is helping students to build language skills by having fun. “We know some students need to be motivated in different ways,” she said. Students told LEGO team members that the exercise helped to “make stories real” and helped them to use team work to build stories together. “It’s really important to get the kids as engaged as possible because when they’re engaged, they give you 100-percent more than if you are telling them to do something,” Wallace noted. Wilson Principal Vanessa Gonzalez said the exercise was, “a good opportunity for (students) to build on their creativity and to help increase their motivation in reading and writing.”