With the success of the launch of “Learners for Life,” TFNB Your Bank for Life today announced it will work with the Waco Independent School District to help take a second ConnectED school to the Texas Capitol next spring.
On October 12th, about 70 fourth graders from J.H. Hines Elementary School, armed with iPads, traveled to the Texas Capitol in Austin for a history lesson, which combined a scavenger hunt, a photo walk, and creation of a presentation. On their tour, students documented the Capitol’s notable people, state history, and architecture.
“It is a really neat experience for them to tie what we are learning to the Texas history,” said Amber Ditto fourth grade teacher at J.H. Hines Elementary School.
During school several weeks before the field trip, the fourth graders learned about the branches of government, the major battles for Texas’ independence and the sovereign countries that ruled over Texas.
“Now they are getting to tie those pieces together after actually seeing them in the Capitol,” said Ditto.
Since students use iPads primarily on the campus of J.H. Hines, TFNB gave each fourth grader an over-the-shoulder carrying case to keep their iPad from getting damaged on field trips. The bank also gave each student a “Learners for Life” t-shirt, which they wore on the field trip.
“As soon as we walked up to the Capitol building, the students began taking photos and videos and never stopped until we left,” said Nate Sloan, a TFNB vice president who is spearheading the initiative for the bank. “It was a huge success for all involved.”
Sloan says TFNB wants to help take another group of ConnectED students to the Capitol in Austin in the spring. J.H. Hines, Kendrick Elementary School, Bells Hill Elementary School and Provident Heights Elementary School are the four Waco ISD schools to be awarded Apple’s ConnectED grant in October 2014. A total of 114 underserved schools across the U.S. were awarded the grant.
Apple creative professionals worked with the students to develop presentational stories from photos and video clips captured at the Capitol. For the next several weeks, the students are sharing their presentations with other students, teachers, and parents.
“A lot of our kids have never been out of Waco,” said Robin Newman, Community and Family Social Worker at J.H. Hines Elementary. “This is a really cool experience to be able to see history in person and learn about all the people that they have been studying.”
Click here to view to October 12, 2017 Learners for Life Capitol Connection Recap Video
About “Learners for Life”
“Learners for Life” is a partnership between TFNB Your Bank for Life and the Waco Independent School District, focused on the four Waco ISD schools that were selected to receive the Apple ConnectED grant. The goal for “Learners for Life” is to provide students educational opportunities so they can apply digital learning to enhance storytelling. As part of the grant, Apple provided all of the teaching and learning resources each of the schools would need in order to create a transformative and engaging learning environment, including an iPad for every student and professional learning for teachers.
