Documentation Examples > Examples of documentation that is shared more widely

Amy began a study of parks and playgrounds in her 6/7s classroom with these questions as the core of her planning for the unit:

What do people in cities need?
Why are parks and playgrounds important?
What are the different kinds of parks in our city and what functions do they serve?
In what ways are the parks and playgrounds in our city similar and different?

The study was organized around trips to parks and playgrounds around the city. Parents were asked to get involved. Each parent volunteer was assigned a small group--equipped with cameras, clipboards and questionnaires--and provided critical support to the children and teachers as they collected data about parks.

The first parks the children visited for their study happened to be memorial parks. During a social studies discussion following their visit to the Gertrude Kelly Park, Amy asked the children to reflect on what parks needed and why they were important in the city. The children began to call out the things they had observed during their visits to parks and playgrounds, "... water fountains, play equipment, sprinklers, sand, sandboxes, swings, basketball courts, monkey bars, climbers, slides, trees, flowers..."

The children remembered seeing plaques at some of the parks and were intrigued to discover that parks are often named in memory of someone. The conversation shifted to what was needed in a memorial.

Jamila: Peaceful places where people can sit down and rest...

Maya: Memorials... when you remember something like for Gertrude Kelly. You remember her in your mind when you go there.

Zillian: Company, people to be with...

Joeline: A memorial for the World Trade Center...