I was nervous to try on project-based learning in my kindergarten classroom. It seemed like a lot of work on my end and a loss of what I thought was structure in the learning environment. After seeing major success over the past year in my classroom, I can now say that I’d never go back to my old style of teaching. Project-based learning has literally flipped the script on engaging my learners over the past year. My students are running through the door each morning to see what we’ll be learning next about a specific topic. My parents are constantly telling me that their children talk nonstop at home about our topic of discovery.

After working with Lizzie over the past year, I’ve come to appreciate a step back from my idea of the role of a teacher and learning to lean into supporting my learners, while guiding their learning through projects. Lizzie has taught me to appreciate the learning struggle as my students work to uncover answers to their questions. My classroom has gone from teacher heavy thematic units to an inquiry-based classroom where my students are eager to learn each day.

My early childhood classroom went from a teaching style rooted in an enormous amount of printables and worksheets to a thriving community of learners that are self-motivated to find answers to their questions about the world around them.