We talked about a month ago about project based learning - bringing real world experiences into the classroom to help students connect what they're learning to future careers. Today, I want to highlight a member who's brought some really cool activities to District 186. 

Memorial Health wanted to build opportunities to connect with students and get them thinking about a career in healthcare. They focused on meaningful engagements in the classroom to inspire and excite students about potential opportunities. Ashley Damery, their Workforce Development Consultant, has developed lesson plan kits for science teachers in the district to utilize in the classroom, providing real world connection between what the students were learning in a textbook and how that knowledge is used in the field. 

One of these kits puts students in the role of Certified Medical Assistants where they take a pulse, check blood pressure, listen to heartbeats and learn how to communicate with patients. Ashley provided the class with everything they needed for the lesson: a slide deck presentation, worksheet templates, stethoscopes, pulsometers, career information and more. You can read more about this lesson and check out photos of the students practicing on District 186's Facebook page.  

Ashley's developed a wide range of programming for all ages within the 186 system. It's taken some time to figure out what works best but ultimately it's led to a unique experience for a student to decide if this is something they'd be interested doing down the road. 

So here's your call to action. Take a minute and imagine as aspect of your business and how it could fit in the class room. 
Maybe you could help a design class walk through a brand refresh for a business. 
Maybe you use algebra daily and would love to share with students how they will use it in the real world. 

You don't need to be an expert in lesson plan creation, you just have to be willing to brainstorm a unique opportunity and see it through to the classroom. If you want to explore this more, let me know. I'd love to help you create something to help students at any Sangamon County school better understand your industry and their school work.