Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/358877
Feature Greg Lambrecht uses more than 200 glow-in-the-dark stars and 30 planets to take student learning to a whole new world. Left: Marinn Cedillo and Ellinor Sahlberg do battle as in the book, Ender's Game. Glowing reviews for sci-f i setting Students are transported into a futuristic, space-age world when they walk into Greg Lambrecht's literature and writing classroom at Fremont High School in Sunnyvale for a unit on Ender's Game, a science fi ction novel by Orson Scott Card. The entire room is lit with black lights. More than 200 glow-in-the-dark stars and 30 planets dangle from the ceiling. The walls are covered with a hand-painted, glow-in-the-dark mural. On each desk is a "lantern" — a glowing yellow plastic water bottle. The effect was achieved by dissolving the ink from the core of a yellow highlighter pen in water. The pièce de résistance is a six-foot "battle room" table in the middle of the room. Three "armies" of students move fi gurines across the tabletop to simulate battles in space, as described in the book. The Fremont Education Association member says his students are P H O T O G R A P H Y B Y S C O T T B U S C H M A N ecstatic when they walk in for the fi rst time and see what he's done to his classroom. Many tell him the decorations allow them to "live" the novel instead of just reading it, and they become totally immersed in the story. "As a result of the classroom environment, my students interact across classes, score better on quizzes, collaborate effectively, and complete homework and essays at a higher rate than before I started my classroom makeovers," says Lambrecht. "They contribute more consistently to dis- cussions and debates, and are excited to come to class. It's a lot of work, but I believe there's no limit to what a teacher can do to make learning come alive." Before 22 www.cta.org