Parkway students become part of the story

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Fourth grade-students at Parkway Elementary School in the East Meadow School District became scientists for a day when they took part in a Submerge Storytelling lesson.

Submerge Storytelling is an immersive experience that provides engaging curricula and enrichment for students in Kindergarten through fifth grade. Leading the experience was program founder Cory Levine, who transformed a classroom into a science lab to set the stage for a particular story. The storyline was that the earth was running out of two important lithium minerals — lepidolite and petalite — used to manufacture a variety of batteries. The students were tasked with testing the properties of those minerals to help astronauts identify and retrieve them from other sources in the universe.

The students were organized into teams to examine the minerals for properties such as hardness, color, streak and luster. They followed directions, collected tools and conversed with their teammates throughout the project. The multifaceted lesson allowed them to think outside the classroom walls while practicing collaboration, problem-solving and critical thinking.

—Brian Stieglitz