January 12, 2026 • 23 mins
In this episode of the One SMFC podcast, Superintendent Ochoa invites four students to share how they explore Project-Based Learning at Lead Elementary—soon to become Cottage Grove Elementary—and how this approach puts students at the center of their learning.
Project-Based Learning engages students in real-world projects that encourage curiosity, collaboration, and problem-solving. Students ask meaningful questions, work together, and apply what they’re learning in ways that feel relevant and purposeful.
As Lead Elementary transitions to Cottage Grove Elementary, this episode highlights how Project-Based Learning is already empowering students to think critically, create confidently, and see themselves as active learners in their school community.
Interested in learning more? Check out our recent On the Road to Year 3 Annual Report!
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Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_02 (00:05):
Sometimes we would do um partners, sometimes not.
The second unit we did partnersbecause it was very difficult to
do it by myself.
At first I didn't really want apartner, but then as I started
going, I see I saw that it washarder to do without a partner.
SPEAKER_01 (00:21):
Number one thing I learned from PBL was working
with my group.
I learned a lot about thepractices of the sustainability
practices of the loony.
I learned a lot about thetracks, so it was fun, but I
also learned the PBL is actuallyabout helping others.
It's about working with otherpeople, listening to ideas of
(00:42):
them, not just choice ideas.
SPEAKER_03 (00:44):
So kids learn new stuff, and we even learn new
stuff, and people should knowabout our poor little project.
SPEAKER_00 (00:53):
The PBL helps us learn how to work together.
SPEAKER_05 (00:59):
Alright, well, ladies and gentlemen, thank you
so much for joining me again.
It's actually been a really,really long time since I
recorded a podcast.
I think probably the biggestreason we took such a long
hiatus was we needed to feelinspired.
We needed to have a really,really important topic.
And today's topic definitelymatches that criteria.
(01:20):
And we're here to talk to fourstudents from Lead, soon-to-be
Cottage Grove Elementary School,all about what it means to do
project-based learning.
So I'm gonna let everybodyintroduce themselves right now.
Tell us your name and tell uswhat grade you're in, starting
with you.
SPEAKER_03 (01:38):
Hi, I'm Anthony.
I'm from fifth grade.
Hi, I'm Angel and I'm from fifthgrade.
Hi, I'm Luna, and I'm fifthgrade.
SPEAKER_05 (01:46):
Okay, so earlier this week I visited uh Leeds,
Soon to Be Cottage GroveElementary, and uh there was a
big old spectacle inside the newmulti-purpose room.
When I walked in, I saw probablyabout 50 posters, and I saw kids
with computers, I saw peoplelistening to podcasts on their
(02:08):
headsets, and I saw a lot ofexcited students, all four of
you were there.
And I want to start with I'llstart with you, Anthony.
When I walked in, I saw a bigevent.
Help people who weren't therethat day understand what
students at Leeds Soon to beCottage Grove were doing in the
MPR that day.
What was that?
SPEAKER_01 (02:29):
Well, we did um our podcast from the Loney.
Like we studied everybody studystudied a different tribe.
So our teacher made us make abig trifle to represent what the
loany were, what they ate, howtheir houses were.
So it was complicated at firstbecause we didn't know nothing
about them.
Like um, we didn't know how theywere, we didn't know their food
(02:52):
they ate, we didn't know wherethey lived.
But after a long time of study,we learned a lot about the
loony.
The they lived in adobe houses.
They live right now in the theyused to live in the San
Francisco Bay Area, but theparents like didn't know nothing
about the loony or about anytribe.
So it was complicated for themto understand.
Like I told my mom, oh we'redoing about the loony, but she
(03:15):
then she told me what's theloany.
And you're like, oh I explainedthat was a native tribe that
lived uh like a long time agobefore like us were born.
So the it was different backthen.
That's how I told her.
I told the little kids like oh,like mm, I told them, oh, we're
learning about the loony intheir history.
SPEAKER_05 (03:35):
Yeah, and I saw the school brought different
classrooms and to learn from youall.
Did that make you feel excited?
Did you feel a little bitnervous?
Because you all were presentingto the students and you had cue
cards in front of you.
Was that difficult for you?
SPEAKER_03 (03:50):
Um, maybe a little bit.
It was like I was like nervous,but we got used to it and or
like we already knew what to do.
When the little kids came, meand Anthony were a little bit
nervous, but but then Anthonywas like, I'm not afraid of
anything.
And then it and he startedtalking to the kids, like
showing them what the lonelytrip was.
(04:12):
I was a little bit nervous and Ididn't say nothing until he gave
me encourage and I startedtalking with him again.
SPEAKER_05 (04:18):
Did you feel like it was the kind of thing where if
you can explain it to oneperson, it's kind of like you
can explain it to a hundredpeople?
Did it make you feel that way?
SPEAKER_03 (04:25):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_05 (04:26):
I saw Luna, I went over and actually saw your
trifold.
Tell us about what that day feltlike being with everybody in
your class and having all thestudents in your school come in.
And really, you guys were likethe teachers that day.
Did that is that what it feltlike for you?
SPEAKER_02 (04:41):
Yeah, and I've always wanted to be a teacher
when I grew up, so it was Andyou should be, because we're
always hiring in San MateoFluster City.
Well, it felt like we were thebosses, like for once.
We w we got in control and wewere allowed to just talk about
the Aloney, the Navajo, or theIroquois or the Chocta.
SPEAKER_05 (05:03):
There were a couple kids who did research on the
Azteca Cesar.
Um, there was just a lot ofresearch that went into that.
Was it difficult to do theresearch?
SPEAKER_02 (05:11):
It was so difficult.
It was very hard to do.
Um because we had to make anessay, then we had to type it,
and then we also had to make atrifold and a podcast.
So it was all very difficult.
SPEAKER_05 (05:24):
Yeah.
Were those things that you haddone in the past?
SPEAKER_02 (05:26):
No.
I've never done a podcast untilI came to fifth grade.
I've barely done essays a lot,but I've done paragraphs more.
SPEAKER_05 (05:35):
Part of what your teachers are trying to
accomplish with project-basedlearning is really wanting to
allow you to do things you'venever done, to go beyond what
you've done in the past.
Natalia, you've been at LEED nowum multiple years.
Take me back to the beginningfor you when project-based
learning came out and yourteachers were explaining what
(05:57):
you were going to be doing.
What did that sound like andwhat did that feel like at the
time?
SPEAKER_00 (06:01):
Well, it sounded really confusing.
I don't know.
She sounded like a differentlanguage like that.
SPEAKER_05 (06:08):
Why was it so confusing?
SPEAKER_00 (06:09):
There are some words that I didn't understand, but
there's other times where likethere's explanations that it
makes no sense to me.
SPEAKER_05 (06:17):
If I were to walk into your classrooms when PBL is
starting, I'll stick with you,Natalia.
When I walk in, tell me who yourteacher is, first of all.
Miss G, awesome teacher.
So tell me.
In Miss G's class, if I walk inwhen it's project-based learning
time, what am I gonna seestudents doing in the classroom?
SPEAKER_00 (06:33):
Projects, but I'm not listening.
SPEAKER_05 (06:35):
I'm not listening.
Are you keeping tabs oneverybody?
How about you, Anthony?
Are you also in Miss G's class?
SPEAKER_01 (06:40):
I'm Miss Haley's class.
SPEAKER_05 (06:42):
Miss Haley's class.
Tell me about Miss Haley's classduring project-based learning
time.
What am I gonna see?
SPEAKER_01 (06:47):
Well, some not focused, some talking while the
teacher's talking, but some arereally like really focused, some
understand better than others.
Like maybe some have like words,big words that I can understand,
but some other kids alreadyunder understand the word.
SPEAKER_05 (07:04):
And why does that stand out to you so much?
Like the way kids arecommunicating.
How do you how do you know thatduring project-based learning
time?
SPEAKER_03 (07:11):
So everybody can understand what's going on.
SPEAKER_05 (07:14):
Well, let me ask it this way
learning time starts, are yousitting by yourself or are you
working with a partner?
Are you working with more thanone partner?
Let's start with you, Luna.
SPEAKER_02 (07:25):
Sometimes we would do um partners, sometimes not.
This unit, number the secondunit, we did partners because it
was very difficult to do bymyself.
At first I didn't really want apartner, but then as I started
going, I see I saw that it washarder to do without a partner.
So and then I think the nextunit we're having it's three per
(07:50):
like three people per um pergroup.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_05 (07:53):
Yeah, and last year, you all were in fourth grade
last year, is that right?
Did you do any of theseproject-based learning units in
fourth grade?
SPEAKER_01 (08:01):
No.
SPEAKER_05 (08:01):
Tell me what school was like in fourth grade last
year.
How'd you spend your time?
SPEAKER_01 (08:04):
Well, we did a lot of assignments, like lots of
math tests, lots of readingtests, like NWEA test.
Um, our teacher would make uslike write a whole essay or a
paragraph about what we like,about our favorite movie, our
favorite animal, whatever.
But it was complicated becauseshe only made us do work and
(08:26):
like we didn't have fun.
It was kinda boring for usbecause it was only like um we
were gonna read almost until theend of the school, like end of
uh of the classroom.
So it was kinda boring becausewe didn't do nothing, we were
just reading or doing a math orsomething, but it was kinda
boring.
And then we got to fifth gradeand we started doing projects,
(08:47):
so it got more fun, but fourthgrade was kind of boring.
unknown (08:51):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_05 (08:51):
Yeah, Natalia, you're you're shaking your head
a lot.
Tell me what you think.
SPEAKER_00 (08:54):
I agree with him.
I was in the same class.
It was really boring.
A lot of assignments, not a lotof fun projects in there.
SPEAKER_05 (09:02):
Really quiet.
Class was quiet.
A lot of this is what I want youto do.
You have 20 minutes or 30minutes to do it.
Yeah.
And then turn it into me at theend of it.
Is that how is that what itlooked like?
SPEAKER_02 (09:15):
Yes.
SPEAKER_05 (09:16):
Yeah, and you're doing that less now.
So now that you're doing thatfor less time, what are you
doing in class?
SPEAKER_02 (09:23):
What we're doing is like for this unit, we've mostly
worked on PBL more than a lot ofstuff, and it was actually
really fun.
We're also doing like the basisstuff like math, readings
sometimes, going to library,art.
SPEAKER_05 (09:38):
What for you is the absolute best thing about PBL?
And I'll start with you, Una,and we'll just go around the
circle.
SPEAKER_02 (09:45):
The best thing about PBL, when you work together with
your partner to have fun in PBL.
My f that's my favorite thingbecause you get to work together
to make fun projects and do funstuff.
SPEAKER_03 (09:59):
Working in a group?
Oh, adding a lot of details.
If imagine we're doing thetrifold again, we could add a
lot of details.
Like me and Anthony did, weadded a lot of color.
I saw other trifods like Luna'sand Natalia's.
They had very much color.
SPEAKER_04 (10:17):
How about you, Anthony?
SPEAKER_01 (10:18):
I like more of the field trips we have of the of
PBL.
Because I like them because wemiss school.
We don't do the boring stuff wedo, so but we still learn the
stuff we're gonna do.
Like last time we went to tolearn how to do a podcast, so
that's how we knew how to do itnow.
So it got easier by going tothat field trip to help us
learn, but now we can like do apodcast like our our last unit.
(10:42):
Hey, he's not wrong.
SPEAKER_04 (10:43):
How about you, Natalie?
SPEAKER_00 (10:45):
My favorite is good projects and field trips too,
because they're really fun,probably better than fourth
grade.
SPEAKER_05 (10:51):
Does the work that you do in PBL seem hard to do?
Is it is it challenging work oris it easy work?
SPEAKER_03 (10:56):
Sometimes.
SPEAKER_01 (10:57):
The first and sometimes, yes.
The first week is challenging,but after a week and week of
study, it it gets easier.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (11:06):
We got used to it.
SPEAKER_05 (11:07):
Could you imagine what it must feel like for a
teacher when the teacher startsto give students a lot of
freedom?
Because in your class, noteverybody did an assignment on
the Ohlone, right?
SPEAKER_02 (11:20):
Like I did a Iroquois.
That was my tribe.
My tribe was about the Iroquoisand where they live in the
Northeast, which is now known asNew York.
unknown (11:30):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (11:30):
Even um Dakota.
I don't know what else.
I think it was South Dakota.
I forgot.
SPEAKER_02 (11:36):
I thought it was Lakota.
SPEAKER_05 (11:38):
The Lakota tribe, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (11:40):
I think it was just like that.
SPEAKER_01 (11:40):
I thought it was South.
Alone were the San Francisco BayArea.
SPEAKER_05 (11:45):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (11:46):
That's what it used to look to tell you.
SPEAKER_05 (11:48):
So so what do you think it feels like to your
teacher when one student'slearning about the Iroquois,
others are learning about theOhlone, others are learning
about the Lakota.
What do you see your teachersdoing?
SPEAKER_03 (11:59):
Uh we see that, or she, or a teacher, sees that
we're working on a project andif it's tough for us, she can
say, Oh, mm, I'm gonna work withMiss Haley, like Miss J and Miss
Haley.
Let they talk about it and theysay, Oh, let's make a little bit
easier the project.
Or if they um or if they if it'se like easy, they're the Miss
(12:22):
Haley and she can say, Oh, let'sdo a little bit harder, a little
bit challenging, so they canthey can get used to it.
And now when they're in whenthey're in college, university
and everything, like anythinglike that, they don't know what
to do.
SPEAKER_05 (12:36):
Anthony, what do you think?
What do you see teachers doingwhen really everyone in the
class is kind of doing somethingdifferent at the same time?
SPEAKER_01 (12:44):
Well, our teacher, Miss Haley, looks stressful, but
sometimes she gets um a littlebit frustrated because some
people do are doing the loany ordoing the Urkai.
Other people are doing differenttribes.
So not everybody is doing thesame tribe, so it gets difficult
and not it's not easy helpingone student with something like
(13:05):
the looney and another studentwith the Lakota or another
another tribe.
So she looks very stressful.
SPEAKER_04 (13:11):
Natalia, what do you think?
SPEAKER_00 (13:13):
She just makes us search search it up, that's how
he does.
Sometimes she um gets the otherlessons ready.
SPEAKER_05 (13:20):
Yeah, and the less this project that you all did,
it wasn't just about learningabout the lonely, because you
had to record a podcast and youhad to create a visual and you
had to learn how to present whatyou basically all the research
you did.
So when did that happen?
SPEAKER_02 (13:35):
Well, we did is we finished it by working hard and
staying focused.
Because when you're not workinghard, you you can't get stuff
done as much.
It was very stressful to mebecause there was a lot of noise
and it's very annoying whenthere's a lot of noise in the
classroom.
SPEAKER_04 (13:51):
So you like a quiet classroom.
Yes.
SPEAKER_03 (13:55):
In our classroom, sometimes inside the classroom
it's very loud.
There's some kids who go outsideout of the classroom and they
work out there and they thinkit's more quiet.
Like like more like more likeNatalia too.
She she works with her friendsand the at the uh at the back of
the classroom and they finishthe work, it's like very quiet
(14:19):
and there's nothing going wrong.
It's like there's nothing goingon.
SPEAKER_05 (14:23):
Yeah.
Anthony, the poster, thepodcast, the presentation, when
did you do all that work?
SPEAKER_01 (14:29):
Well, we learned our podcast, as I said, from the
future that we had that theyshowed us how to make the few
like make the podcast and how weshould write it.
They actually kinda helped us alot.
Well, we learned how to do thetrifle from the last unit we
did.
We had a big one.
It was I think bigger than thisone that showed our identity.
(14:50):
So that's how we learned how todo our like our trifold.
It was easy, but also it'scomplicated.
SPEAKER_00 (14:57):
I agree.
SPEAKER_05 (14:58):
Natalia, when did you do all this work?
SPEAKER_00 (14:59):
Well, we did all this work during the unit.
Like Anthony said, we did atrifle um the last unit, but
it's much more smaller.
We probably learned how toorganize so it'll be easier for
us to learn.
SPEAKER_05 (15:12):
Now that you've done two units, you did the unit that
was on your identity, you didthe unit that was on the tribe.
Which do you like better?
Was it more fun researchingsomething new that you didn't
know anything about at all?
Or was it really fun to create aunit based on your identity and
who you are?
SPEAKER_00 (15:32):
I think I really like the identity because I
really know how to expressmyself.
SPEAKER_01 (15:37):
I agree.
I like m I like more theidentity with one because with
the loony, I didn't know nothingabout them.
So I like more about theidentity because I can express
myself, like my culture and ourpeople and our languages.
SPEAKER_03 (15:51):
I like it when we learn new stuff or research up
stuff that we never we neverlearned about, we never heard
about.
And I agree, same as Anthony andNatalia.
Uh I like both of them becauseon the front on the trial on the
identity, I get to expressmyself just as Natalia, but I
talk about myself, I talk whathappens in my life, and on the
(16:14):
other one, I like that.
Um we know we we learn newstuff.
SPEAKER_05 (16:19):
Let me ask a question about the poster
project and about the podcast,because what I walked around,
everything looked different.
One poster looked different thanthe next one, looked different
than the next one.
But you're also not working byyourselves.
You were working with anotherperson.
Was it easy for you, Luna, towork with that other person and
to make all those decisions?
Or was that something you neededto get better at?
SPEAKER_02 (16:40):
I think I need to get better at that because back
in my old school, I used to getbullied a lot.
So when I moved to this schoolbecause because I s I wanted to
I wanted it to stop.
So I came here and it was waynicer.
I just gotta get used to umworking it out with others.
SPEAKER_05 (16:59):
Yeah, and then how about you, Anthony?
Was it easy for you to work withother people?
Was that more difficult?
SPEAKER_01 (17:05):
It was hard working with Angel as a group.
Like I disagree with himsometimes, sometimes he didn't
even want it to help me becausehe got mad like of the ideas I
got and the different ideas hegot.
Like he wanted to printeverything out of the printer,
but I but I did it, so he wantedto be like more fun, but I
(17:26):
didn't.
I wanted us like to just draw itout.
But he wanted everything likeprinted out.
So we both mm like work togetherso sometimes we printed
something out about the looney,but sometimes we worked uh like
drawing it.
SPEAKER_03 (17:41):
We um something like Anthony, but we shared ideas.
At first Anthony's right, I waslike, we should do this, and he
said we should do that.
But then we we saw that we thatdidn't get us to nothing.
Cannot get nothing finished, wasjust saying that.
So we both agreed that each oneshould express themselves or say
(18:03):
like there was three parts, likeone here in the middle, and the
other one.
He did the writing, I did thedrawings, and I thanked him very
much because basically um he didalmost all the writing and he
he's a good writer, he he likeslearning new stuff and um I like
(18:24):
I liked working with him and ifwe get another project I'll like
working with him again.
SPEAKER_04 (18:30):
How about you, Natalia?
SPEAKER_00 (18:32):
Well, I had the same problem that me and my partner
always disagreed with differentthings, like she wanted to draw
it and I wanted to print it.
But and we also were prettyopposite.
I was good at writing and shealways slacked off when it comes
to writing.
But we worked it out because Idecided that we could draw it
and she decided that I was gonnawrite.
SPEAKER_05 (18:53):
The presentation that you did, you know, you had
these cards that were in frontof you.
But you had to stand there andread it to other people.
Did you think that it was fun tostand there and be kinda like
the spotlight on you and youtalking to other people about
what you knew?
I'll start with you, Natalia.
SPEAKER_00 (19:09):
To me, no, because I s had like stage fright, but I
kinda got over it.
But I still get scared when peopall eyes are on me, so not
really.
I agree.
SPEAKER_04 (19:21):
Same for you, Angel.
How about you, Luna?
SPEAKER_02 (19:24):
Um, it's very hard to do that because um, but for
this one, I had no trouble withit.
It's only when I sing I getnervous.
But when I speak, I'm like fine.
SPEAKER_01 (19:35):
For me, it was challenging because almost every
student was eyes on me.
Like what if Angel was helpinganother person learning about
it?
But the rest of the kids werelike their eyes were focused on
me.
Like I got nervous that theywere looking just at me, like
watching me like seriously.
So it got I got scared at first,like nervous, but after that, um
(20:00):
I got over it so it got easierand easier.
SPEAKER_02 (20:03):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (20:04):
Something I am afraid of or like I don't like
doing.
Same as when I I don't I'm notcomfortable comfortable of
singing in front of everybody ortalking.
SPEAKER_05 (20:17):
So you don't want to do karaoke with me?
unknown (20:20):
No.
SPEAKER_03 (20:20):
I'll do it with you again because it's only one
person, but if there's more thanone.
Or maybe like right now, I likeit because we're working it and
they're talking in a group, butmore than this, I I don't I
don't really I'm very shy.
SPEAKER_05 (20:34):
Anthony, what's the number one thing you've learned
from PBL?
SPEAKER_01 (20:37):
Number one thing I learned from PBL was working
with our group.
I learned a a lot about thepractices of the sustainability
practices of the looney.
I learned a lot about the tribe,so it was fun.
But I also learned that PBL thatPBL is actually about helping
others.
It's about working with otherpeople, listening to ideas of
(20:59):
them, not just yours ideas.
So like that's for me, that wasall.
SPEAKER_04 (21:04):
What's the number one thing you've learned from
PBL?
SPEAKER_02 (21:07):
The number one thing that I've learned from PBL is
that whatever comes to youreally ho challenging and hard,
you can always do it if youbelieve.
SPEAKER_05 (21:19):
We need to keep doing PBL because it gives
students the opportunity to takecharge in their learning.
So what I want you to do ispoint the camera at Angel.
He's gonna tell you why we needto keep doing PBL.
Angel, go ahead.
SPEAKER_03 (21:32):
Kids learn new stuff and and we even learn new stuff
and people should know about ourpr little project, a little
project that Mr.
Ochoa created and he figured outwhat the district and I think a
lot, Mr.
Ochoa, for coming up with theidea of PBL.
SPEAKER_05 (21:54):
I got your teachers came up with everything and and
you guys are doing it all.
Luna, look in the camera.
Tell Mr.
Perez why do we need to keepdoing project-based learning?
SPEAKER_02 (22:04):
Project-based learning is the one thing in the
whole in probably the whole timeyou're at school to have fun and
to just maybe express yourselfor maybe just like look learn
more things that you haven'tlearned.
SPEAKER_05 (22:20):
Natalia, you're up right into the camera, look
straight into it.
Tell them why should we keepdoing project-based learning.
SPEAKER_00 (22:27):
We should keep learning doing project-based
learning because we learn how todo teamwork and group projects.
I like what Mr.
Ochoa said before we did thepodcast.
Some middle schoolers didn'tknow how to work in a group.
So the PBL helps us learn how towork together.
SPEAKER_05 (22:45):
Last one, Anthony, right into the camera.
Tell this man why we should wekeep doing project-based
learning.
SPEAKER_01 (22:51):
We should do more PBL because it grows friendship
between us.
It can grow friendship.
Um, we do fun projects withpeople.
We don't we we're not bored likefourth grade.
It's more funner and excitingthan like what we used to do in
fourth grade, so I think weshould keep doing PBL.
SPEAKER_05 (23:10):
Alright, everybody, give yourselves a round of
applause.
Sometimes we would do um partners, sometimes not.
The second unit we did partnersbecause it was very difficult to
do it by myself.
At first I didn't really want apartner, but then as I started
going, I see I saw that it washarder to do without a partner.
SPEAKER_01 (00:21):
Number one thing I learned from PBL was working
with my group.
I learned a lot about thepractices of the sustainability
practices of the loony.
I learned a lot about thetracks, so it was fun, but I
also learned the PBL is actuallyabout helping others.
It's about working with otherpeople, listening to ideas of
(00:42):
them, not just choice ideas.
SPEAKER_03 (00:44):
So kids learn new stuff, and we even learn new
stuff, and people should knowabout our poor little project.
SPEAKER_00 (00:53):
The PBL helps us learn how to work together.
SPEAKER_05 (00:59):
Alright, well, ladies and gentlemen, thank you
so much for joining me again.
It's actually been a really,really long time since I
recorded a podcast.
I think probably the biggestreason we took such a long
hiatus was we needed to feelinspired.
We needed to have a really,really important topic.
And today's topic definitelymatches that criteria.
(01:20):
And we're here to talk to fourstudents from Lead, soon-to-be
Cottage Grove Elementary School,all about what it means to do
project-based learning.
So I'm gonna let everybodyintroduce themselves right now.
Tell us your name and tell uswhat grade you're in, starting
with you.
SPEAKER_03 (01:38):
Hi, I'm Anthony.
I'm from fifth grade.
Hi, I'm Angel and I'm from fifthgrade.
Hi, I'm Luna, and I'm fifthgrade.
SPEAKER_05 (01:46):
Okay, so earlier this week I visited uh Leeds,
Soon to Be Cottage GroveElementary, and uh there was a
big old spectacle inside the newmulti-purpose room.
When I walked in, I saw probablyabout 50 posters, and I saw kids
with computers, I saw peoplelistening to podcasts on their
(02:08):
headsets, and I saw a lot ofexcited students, all four of
you were there.
And I want to start with I'llstart with you, Anthony.
When I walked in, I saw a bigevent.
Help people who weren't therethat day understand what
students at Leeds Soon to beCottage Grove were doing in the
MPR that day.
What was that?
SPEAKER_01 (02:29):
Well, we did um our podcast from the Loney.
Like we studied everybody studystudied a different tribe.
So our teacher made us make abig trifle to represent what the
loany were, what they ate, howtheir houses were.
So it was complicated at firstbecause we didn't know nothing
about them.
Like um, we didn't know how theywere, we didn't know their food
(02:52):
they ate, we didn't know wherethey lived.
But after a long time of study,we learned a lot about the
loony.
The they lived in adobe houses.
They live right now in the theyused to live in the San
Francisco Bay Area, but theparents like didn't know nothing
about the loony or about anytribe.
So it was complicated for themto understand.
Like I told my mom, oh we'redoing about the loony, but she
(03:15):
then she told me what's theloany.
And you're like, oh I explainedthat was a native tribe that
lived uh like a long time agobefore like us were born.
So the it was different backthen.
That's how I told her.
I told the little kids like oh,like mm, I told them, oh, we're
learning about the loony intheir history.
SPEAKER_05 (03:35):
Yeah, and I saw the school brought different
classrooms and to learn from youall.
Did that make you feel excited?
Did you feel a little bitnervous?
Because you all were presentingto the students and you had cue
cards in front of you.
Was that difficult for you?
SPEAKER_03 (03:50):
Um, maybe a little bit.
It was like I was like nervous,but we got used to it and or
like we already knew what to do.
When the little kids came, meand Anthony were a little bit
nervous, but but then Anthonywas like, I'm not afraid of
anything.
And then it and he startedtalking to the kids, like
showing them what the lonelytrip was.
(04:12):
I was a little bit nervous and Ididn't say nothing until he gave
me encourage and I startedtalking with him again.
SPEAKER_05 (04:18):
Did you feel like it was the kind of thing where if
you can explain it to oneperson, it's kind of like you
can explain it to a hundredpeople?
Did it make you feel that way?
SPEAKER_03 (04:25):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_05 (04:26):
I saw Luna, I went over and actually saw your
trifold.
Tell us about what that day feltlike being with everybody in
your class and having all thestudents in your school come in.
And really, you guys were likethe teachers that day.
Did that is that what it feltlike for you?
SPEAKER_02 (04:41):
Yeah, and I've always wanted to be a teacher
when I grew up, so it was Andyou should be, because we're
always hiring in San MateoFluster City.
Well, it felt like we were thebosses, like for once.
We w we got in control and wewere allowed to just talk about
the Aloney, the Navajo, or theIroquois or the Chocta.
SPEAKER_05 (05:03):
There were a couple kids who did research on the
Azteca Cesar.
Um, there was just a lot ofresearch that went into that.
Was it difficult to do theresearch?
SPEAKER_02 (05:11):
It was so difficult.
It was very hard to do.
Um because we had to make anessay, then we had to type it,
and then we also had to make atrifold and a podcast.
So it was all very difficult.
SPEAKER_05 (05:24):
Yeah.
Were those things that you haddone in the past?
SPEAKER_02 (05:26):
No.
I've never done a podcast untilI came to fifth grade.
I've barely done essays a lot,but I've done paragraphs more.
SPEAKER_05 (05:35):
Part of what your teachers are trying to
accomplish with project-basedlearning is really wanting to
allow you to do things you'venever done, to go beyond what
you've done in the past.
Natalia, you've been at LEED nowum multiple years.
Take me back to the beginningfor you when project-based
learning came out and yourteachers were explaining what
(05:57):
you were going to be doing.
What did that sound like andwhat did that feel like at the
time?
SPEAKER_00 (06:01):
Well, it sounded really confusing.
I don't know.
She sounded like a differentlanguage like that.
SPEAKER_05 (06:08):
Why was it so confusing?
SPEAKER_00 (06:09):
There are some words that I didn't understand, but
there's other times where likethere's explanations that it
makes no sense to me.
SPEAKER_05 (06:17):
If I were to walk into your classrooms when PBL is
starting, I'll stick with you,Natalia.
When I walk in, tell me who yourteacher is, first of all.
Miss G, awesome teacher.
So tell me.
In Miss G's class, if I walk inwhen it's project-based learning
time, what am I gonna seestudents doing in the classroom?
SPEAKER_00 (06:33):
Projects, but I'm not listening.
SPEAKER_05 (06:35):
I'm not listening.
Are you keeping tabs oneverybody?
How about you, Anthony?
Are you also in Miss G's class?
SPEAKER_01 (06:40):
I'm Miss Haley's class.
SPEAKER_05 (06:42):
Miss Haley's class.
Tell me about Miss Haley's classduring project-based learning
time.
What am I gonna see?
SPEAKER_01 (06:47):
Well, some not focused, some talking while the
teacher's talking, but some arereally like really focused, some
understand better than others.
Like maybe some have like words,big words that I can understand,
but some other kids alreadyunder understand the word.
SPEAKER_05 (07:04):
And why does that stand out to you so much?
Like the way kids arecommunicating.
How do you how do you know thatduring project-based learning
time?
SPEAKER_03 (07:11):
So everybody can understand what's going on.
SPEAKER_05 (07:14):
Well, let me ask it this way
learning time starts, are yousitting by yourself or are you
working with a partner?
Are you working with more thanone partner?
Let's start with you, Luna.
SPEAKER_02 (07:25):
Sometimes we would do um partners, sometimes not.
This unit, number the secondunit, we did partners because it
was very difficult to do bymyself.
At first I didn't really want apartner, but then as I started
going, I see I saw that it washarder to do without a partner.
So and then I think the nextunit we're having it's three per
(07:50):
like three people per um pergroup.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_05 (07:53):
Yeah, and last year, you all were in fourth grade
last year, is that right?
Did you do any of theseproject-based learning units in
fourth grade?
SPEAKER_01 (08:01):
No.
SPEAKER_05 (08:01):
Tell me what school was like in fourth grade last
year.
How'd you spend your time?
SPEAKER_01 (08:04):
Well, we did a lot of assignments, like lots of
math tests, lots of readingtests, like NWEA test.
Um, our teacher would make uslike write a whole essay or a
paragraph about what we like,about our favorite movie, our
favorite animal, whatever.
But it was complicated becauseshe only made us do work and
(08:26):
like we didn't have fun.
It was kinda boring for usbecause it was only like um we
were gonna read almost until theend of the school, like end of
uh of the classroom.
So it was kinda boring becausewe didn't do nothing, we were
just reading or doing a math orsomething, but it was kinda
boring.
And then we got to fifth gradeand we started doing projects,
(08:47):
so it got more fun, but fourthgrade was kind of boring.
unknown (08:51):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_05 (08:51):
Yeah, Natalia, you're you're shaking your head
a lot.
Tell me what you think.
SPEAKER_00 (08:54):
I agree with him.
I was in the same class.
It was really boring.
A lot of assignments, not a lotof fun projects in there.
SPEAKER_05 (09:02):
Really quiet.
Class was quiet.
A lot of this is what I want youto do.
You have 20 minutes or 30minutes to do it.
Yeah.
And then turn it into me at theend of it.
Is that how is that what itlooked like?
SPEAKER_02 (09:15):
Yes.
SPEAKER_05 (09:16):
Yeah, and you're doing that less now.
So now that you're doing thatfor less time, what are you
doing in class?
SPEAKER_02 (09:23):
What we're doing is like for this unit, we've mostly
worked on PBL more than a lot ofstuff, and it was actually
really fun.
We're also doing like the basisstuff like math, readings
sometimes, going to library,art.
SPEAKER_05 (09:38):
What for you is the absolute best thing about PBL?
And I'll start with you, Una,and we'll just go around the
circle.
SPEAKER_02 (09:45):
The best thing about PBL, when you work together with
your partner to have fun in PBL.
My f that's my favorite thingbecause you get to work together
to make fun projects and do funstuff.
SPEAKER_03 (09:59):
Working in a group?
Oh, adding a lot of details.
If imagine we're doing thetrifold again, we could add a
lot of details.
Like me and Anthony did, weadded a lot of color.
I saw other trifods like Luna'sand Natalia's.
They had very much color.
SPEAKER_04 (10:17):
How about you, Anthony?
SPEAKER_01 (10:18):
I like more of the field trips we have of the of
PBL.
Because I like them because wemiss school.
We don't do the boring stuff wedo, so but we still learn the
stuff we're gonna do.
Like last time we went to tolearn how to do a podcast, so
that's how we knew how to do itnow.
So it got easier by going tothat field trip to help us
learn, but now we can like do apodcast like our our last unit.
(10:42):
Hey, he's not wrong.
SPEAKER_04 (10:43):
How about you, Natalie?
SPEAKER_00 (10:45):
My favorite is good projects and field trips too,
because they're really fun,probably better than fourth
grade.
SPEAKER_05 (10:51):
Does the work that you do in PBL seem hard to do?
Is it is it challenging work oris it easy work?
SPEAKER_03 (10:56):
Sometimes.
SPEAKER_01 (10:57):
The first and sometimes, yes.
The first week is challenging,but after a week and week of
study, it it gets easier.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (11:06):
We got used to it.
SPEAKER_05 (11:07):
Could you imagine what it must feel like for a
teacher when the teacher startsto give students a lot of
freedom?
Because in your class, noteverybody did an assignment on
the Ohlone, right?
SPEAKER_02 (11:20):
Like I did a Iroquois.
That was my tribe.
My tribe was about the Iroquoisand where they live in the
Northeast, which is now known asNew York.
unknown (11:30):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (11:30):
Even um Dakota.
I don't know what else.
I think it was South Dakota.
I forgot.
SPEAKER_02 (11:36):
I thought it was Lakota.
SPEAKER_05 (11:38):
The Lakota tribe, yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (11:40):
I think it was just like that.
SPEAKER_01 (11:40):
I thought it was South.
Alone were the San Francisco BayArea.
SPEAKER_05 (11:45):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (11:46):
That's what it used to look to tell you.
SPEAKER_05 (11:48):
So so what do you think it feels like to your
teacher when one student'slearning about the Iroquois,
others are learning about theOhlone, others are learning
about the Lakota.
What do you see your teachersdoing?
SPEAKER_03 (11:59):
Uh we see that, or she, or a teacher, sees that
we're working on a project andif it's tough for us, she can
say, Oh, mm, I'm gonna work withMiss Haley, like Miss J and Miss
Haley.
Let they talk about it and theysay, Oh, let's make a little bit
easier the project.
Or if they um or if they if it'se like easy, they're the Miss
(12:22):
Haley and she can say, Oh, let'sdo a little bit harder, a little
bit challenging, so they canthey can get used to it.
And now when they're in whenthey're in college, university
and everything, like anythinglike that, they don't know what
to do.
SPEAKER_05 (12:36):
Anthony, what do you think?
What do you see teachers doingwhen really everyone in the
class is kind of doing somethingdifferent at the same time?
SPEAKER_01 (12:44):
Well, our teacher, Miss Haley, looks stressful, but
sometimes she gets um a littlebit frustrated because some
people do are doing the loany ordoing the Urkai.
Other people are doing differenttribes.
So not everybody is doing thesame tribe, so it gets difficult
and not it's not easy helpingone student with something like
(13:05):
the looney and another studentwith the Lakota or another
another tribe.
So she looks very stressful.
SPEAKER_04 (13:11):
Natalia, what do you think?
SPEAKER_00 (13:13):
She just makes us search search it up, that's how
he does.
Sometimes she um gets the otherlessons ready.
SPEAKER_05 (13:20):
Yeah, and the less this project that you all did,
it wasn't just about learningabout the lonely, because you
had to record a podcast and youhad to create a visual and you
had to learn how to present whatyou basically all the research
you did.
So when did that happen?
SPEAKER_02 (13:35):
Well, we did is we finished it by working hard and
staying focused.
Because when you're not workinghard, you you can't get stuff
done as much.
It was very stressful to mebecause there was a lot of noise
and it's very annoying whenthere's a lot of noise in the
classroom.
SPEAKER_04 (13:51):
So you like a quiet classroom.
Yes.
SPEAKER_03 (13:55):
In our classroom, sometimes inside the classroom
it's very loud.
There's some kids who go outsideout of the classroom and they
work out there and they thinkit's more quiet.
Like like more like more likeNatalia too.
She she works with her friendsand the at the uh at the back of
the classroom and they finishthe work, it's like very quiet
(14:19):
and there's nothing going wrong.
It's like there's nothing goingon.
SPEAKER_05 (14:23):
Yeah.
Anthony, the poster, thepodcast, the presentation, when
did you do all that work?
SPEAKER_01 (14:29):
Well, we learned our podcast, as I said, from the
future that we had that theyshowed us how to make the few
like make the podcast and how weshould write it.
They actually kinda helped us alot.
Well, we learned how to do thetrifle from the last unit we
did.
We had a big one.
It was I think bigger than thisone that showed our identity.
(14:50):
So that's how we learned how todo our like our trifold.
It was easy, but also it'scomplicated.
SPEAKER_00 (14:57):
I agree.
SPEAKER_05 (14:58):
Natalia, when did you do all this work?
SPEAKER_00 (14:59):
Well, we did all this work during the unit.
Like Anthony said, we did atrifle um the last unit, but
it's much more smaller.
We probably learned how toorganize so it'll be easier for
us to learn.
SPEAKER_05 (15:12):
Now that you've done two units, you did the unit that
was on your identity, you didthe unit that was on the tribe.
Which do you like better?
Was it more fun researchingsomething new that you didn't
know anything about at all?
Or was it really fun to create aunit based on your identity and
who you are?
SPEAKER_00 (15:32):
I think I really like the identity because I
really know how to expressmyself.
SPEAKER_01 (15:37):
I agree.
I like m I like more theidentity with one because with
the loony, I didn't know nothingabout them.
So I like more about theidentity because I can express
myself, like my culture and ourpeople and our languages.
SPEAKER_03 (15:51):
I like it when we learn new stuff or research up
stuff that we never we neverlearned about, we never heard
about.
And I agree, same as Anthony andNatalia.
Uh I like both of them becauseon the front on the trial on the
identity, I get to expressmyself just as Natalia, but I
talk about myself, I talk whathappens in my life, and on the
(16:14):
other one, I like that.
Um we know we we learn newstuff.
SPEAKER_05 (16:19):
Let me ask a question about the poster
project and about the podcast,because what I walked around,
everything looked different.
One poster looked different thanthe next one, looked different
than the next one.
But you're also not working byyourselves.
You were working with anotherperson.
Was it easy for you, Luna, towork with that other person and
to make all those decisions?
Or was that something you neededto get better at?
SPEAKER_02 (16:40):
I think I need to get better at that because back
in my old school, I used to getbullied a lot.
So when I moved to this schoolbecause because I s I wanted to
I wanted it to stop.
So I came here and it was waynicer.
I just gotta get used to umworking it out with others.
SPEAKER_05 (16:59):
Yeah, and then how about you, Anthony?
Was it easy for you to work withother people?
Was that more difficult?
SPEAKER_01 (17:05):
It was hard working with Angel as a group.
Like I disagree with himsometimes, sometimes he didn't
even want it to help me becausehe got mad like of the ideas I
got and the different ideas hegot.
Like he wanted to printeverything out of the printer,
but I but I did it, so he wantedto be like more fun, but I
(17:26):
didn't.
I wanted us like to just draw itout.
But he wanted everything likeprinted out.
So we both mm like work togetherso sometimes we printed
something out about the looney,but sometimes we worked uh like
drawing it.
SPEAKER_03 (17:41):
We um something like Anthony, but we shared ideas.
At first Anthony's right, I waslike, we should do this, and he
said we should do that.
But then we we saw that we thatdidn't get us to nothing.
Cannot get nothing finished, wasjust saying that.
So we both agreed that each oneshould express themselves or say
(18:03):
like there was three parts, likeone here in the middle, and the
other one.
He did the writing, I did thedrawings, and I thanked him very
much because basically um he didalmost all the writing and he
he's a good writer, he he likeslearning new stuff and um I like
(18:24):
I liked working with him and ifwe get another project I'll like
working with him again.
SPEAKER_04 (18:30):
How about you, Natalia?
SPEAKER_00 (18:32):
Well, I had the same problem that me and my partner
always disagreed with differentthings, like she wanted to draw
it and I wanted to print it.
But and we also were prettyopposite.
I was good at writing and shealways slacked off when it comes
to writing.
But we worked it out because Idecided that we could draw it
and she decided that I was gonnawrite.
SPEAKER_05 (18:53):
The presentation that you did, you know, you had
these cards that were in frontof you.
But you had to stand there andread it to other people.
Did you think that it was fun tostand there and be kinda like
the spotlight on you and youtalking to other people about
what you knew?
I'll start with you, Natalia.
SPEAKER_00 (19:09):
To me, no, because I s had like stage fright, but I
kinda got over it.
But I still get scared when peopall eyes are on me, so not
really.
I agree.
SPEAKER_04 (19:21):
Same for you, Angel.
How about you, Luna?
SPEAKER_02 (19:24):
Um, it's very hard to do that because um, but for
this one, I had no trouble withit.
It's only when I sing I getnervous.
But when I speak, I'm like fine.
SPEAKER_01 (19:35):
For me, it was challenging because almost every
student was eyes on me.
Like what if Angel was helpinganother person learning about
it?
But the rest of the kids werelike their eyes were focused on
me.
Like I got nervous that theywere looking just at me, like
watching me like seriously.
So it got I got scared at first,like nervous, but after that, um
(20:00):
I got over it so it got easierand easier.
SPEAKER_02 (20:03):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_03 (20:04):
Something I am afraid of or like I don't like
doing.
Same as when I I don't I'm notcomfortable comfortable of
singing in front of everybody ortalking.
SPEAKER_05 (20:17):
So you don't want to do karaoke with me?
unknown (20:20):
No.
SPEAKER_03 (20:20):
I'll do it with you again because it's only one
person, but if there's more thanone.
Or maybe like right now, I likeit because we're working it and
they're talking in a group, butmore than this, I I don't I
don't really I'm very shy.
SPEAKER_05 (20:34):
Anthony, what's the number one thing you've learned
from PBL?
SPEAKER_01 (20:37):
Number one thing I learned from PBL was working
with our group.
I learned a a lot about thepractices of the sustainability
practices of the looney.
I learned a lot about the tribe,so it was fun.
But I also learned that PBL thatPBL is actually about helping
others.
It's about working with otherpeople, listening to ideas of
(20:59):
them, not just yours ideas.
So like that's for me, that wasall.
SPEAKER_04 (21:04):
What's the number one thing you've learned from
PBL?
SPEAKER_02 (21:07):
The number one thing that I've learned from PBL is
that whatever comes to youreally ho challenging and hard,
you can always do it if youbelieve.
SPEAKER_05 (21:19):
We need to keep doing PBL because it gives
students the opportunity to takecharge in their learning.
So what I want you to do ispoint the camera at Angel.
He's gonna tell you why we needto keep doing PBL.
Angel, go ahead.
SPEAKER_03 (21:32):
Kids learn new stuff and and we even learn new stuff
and people should know about ourpr little project, a little
project that Mr.
Ochoa created and he figured outwhat the district and I think a
lot, Mr.
Ochoa, for coming up with theidea of PBL.
SPEAKER_05 (21:54):
I got your teachers came up with everything and and
you guys are doing it all.
Luna, look in the camera.
Tell Mr.
Perez why do we need to keepdoing project-based learning?
SPEAKER_02 (22:04):
Project-based learning is the one thing in the
whole in probably the whole timeyou're at school to have fun and
to just maybe express yourselfor maybe just like look learn
more things that you haven'tlearned.
SPEAKER_05 (22:20):
Natalia, you're up right into the camera, look
straight into it.
Tell them why should we keepdoing project-based learning.
SPEAKER_00 (22:27):
We should keep learning doing project-based
learning because we learn how todo teamwork and group projects.
I like what Mr.
Ochoa said before we did thepodcast.
Some middle schoolers didn'tknow how to work in a group.
So the PBL helps us learn how towork together.
SPEAKER_05 (22:45):
Last one, Anthony, right into the camera.
Tell this man why we should wekeep doing project-based
learning.
SPEAKER_01 (22:51):
We should do more PBL because it grows friendship
between us.
It can grow friendship.
Um, we do fun projects withpeople.
We don't we we're not bored likefourth grade.
It's more funner and excitingthan like what we used to do in
fourth grade, so I think weshould keep doing PBL.
SPEAKER_05 (23:10):
Alright, everybody, give yourselves a round of
applause.
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