Envision

Higgins Elementary School adopts Envision program for gifted students
Francis A. Higgins Elementary School recently launched a new program in one of its third-grade classrooms called Envision, which offers students a unique hands-on educational experience that guides students through the completion of various real-world projects.  Students will present an Expo of their projects May 14 at 3 p.m.
 “Envision provides students with the opportunity to apply knowledge and skills to real-life, out-of-school experiences, engage in in-depth and practical research, and practice important presentation skills that will be useful well into their futures.  The excitement and energy created through Envision is tangible and contagious! remarks L’Anse Creuse Superintendent Dr. DiAnne Pellerin.
 The program is being implemented with Lydia Marin’s third-grade gifted students and will be implemented in more classrooms next school year. According to Marin, The purpose behind the Envision program is to give students the opportunity to challenge themselves in new and creative ways beyond the standard curriculum."
The first project, Travel Passport, like the other projects in the year-long program, involves a series of related activities designed to engage high-level thinking. Those activities include selecting a travel destination, budgeting for travel expenses, creating a detailed itinerary, mapping a travel route, and writing a fictional account of the trip as the student imagines it might happen. The students progress through the project by making numerous choices based on research and self-reflection.
 Students will share their learning experiences from the Travel Passport project May 14 at Higgins Elementary School. The Expos are the most exciting part of the program, said Melanie Bondy, author and publisher of Envision and former L’Anse Creuse employee. This is where students and community come together to celebrate the hard work and creativity the students have put into their projects.
 Higgins Elementary School is located at 29901 Twenty-Four Mile Road.  For more information, contact Marin at marinly@lc-ps.org or at 586-493-5210.