There’s a lot to love here. This story really highlights how important it is to have a real-world context for what can be very abstract concepts (math, science, writing, etc.). The learning becomes more urgent when it’s not just on a page, but in your garage .
Not all learning has to take place within the structure of school (and we do our students a disservice if we send the message that learning only happens in school); we need to make it easy for students to bring outside interests in and apply it to what they’re learning–or to take what they’re learning and apply it to outside interests. Those interests can also be the driving force behind connections to a broader community of learners and experts–communities that we should encourage our students to contribute their own experience and expertise to.
When I Run The School 