Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1518807
planning. Next, I have them put together a quick presenta- tion to pitch their ideas to the class so we can vote on the best option. Students engage in collaborative discussions, look for unique perspectives and develop a plan that would address the challenge. It's important for them to be well-informed about the problem to suggest a solution. The implementation phase of CBL is the moment it all comes together. After investigating, discussing and plan- ning, we finally have a plan of action and are ready to move forward. This phase of dealing with real-world problems involves collaborative teamwork and effective communica- tion and promotes accountability, adaptability and resilience within students. Process snapshot Here's how we go through the CBL process in my class: Big idea: Health and wellness • Essential question: How can we improve mental health in our com- munity? • Investigate: With a solid question in place, students need more of a background in mental health in order to know how to improve it. I typically give them some research questions to get started but allow them to follow any path that inter- ests them. Here are some prompts I've given them: – How do certain mental health conditions alter brain chemistry? – How can your environment impact your mental health? – What are some healthy ways to reduce stress and anxiety? – How does social media play a role in mental health? During this phase, we do activities that help students learn more about the topic, such as a sheep brain dissection, reac- tion-time experimentation and reflex testing. These activities allow me to cover the content of the class but still connect to the topic. We discuss how mental health impacts brain structures and how age can alter reaction times and reflexes, and we identify good solutions to maintaining a healthy brain. • Implementation: After researching and learning more, each group comes up with an idea of how to accomplish our essential question and pitches it to the class. They create a presentation that includes all the details of their idea and implementation plan. Choose a project and reflect Groups present on a range of topics and ideas such as developing intramural sports teams to give students an out- let to reduce stress, putting on a holiday party at the local senior center, and incorporating mental health days into classes. After each group presents, we vote and decide to move forward with two big projects. This year, the first project was a holi- day party at our local senior center. The group that presented the idea reached out to the senior center for approval and organized the whole event. They designed games and competitions, all the while learning about brain develop- ment, age-appropriate activities, and project planning. More than 35 anatomy students volunteered to host the event on their day off from school. Each group ran a station for the seniors to attend. The senior center had more than 75 people show up that day. Watching my kids interact with the elderly community was the best part of my year. Students were there because they wanted to be, as none of it counted toward their grade. "Dealing with real- world problems involves collaborative teamwork and effective communication and promotes accountability, adaptability and resilience within students." 47 A P R I L / M AY 2 0 24