To an outsider, seeing a group of eager AP Government students wandering the campus with their phones out taking pictures of the most random things like police cars and the cafeteria would be a strange sight. But this week, instead of being in class and writing down notes, Christopher Rothrock’s sent his students on a scavenger hunt to find first hand examples of federalism, a concept where the the federal government influences policies and funding at places like schools.
Rothrock came up with the activity of giving the students a more hands-on lesson on what federalism is and how it impacts their schooling. “The purpose of this is to teach them how federalism impacts their education and their school.”
In the activity, students had to show how the federal, state, and local government influcnced their education by looking for key objects around the school campus, for example the handicap ramps or finding the food they eat. He said the handicap ramps were implemented through the Americans with Disability Act which was a law that was enforced on July 26, 1990. The food served at the cafeteria was influenced by former first lady Michelle Obama’s Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids act of 2010.
Rothrock shared that he is a big fan of letting the students do hands-on activities, and any time that opportunity occurs he always jumps on it. “Any opportunity I have to get the kids up and moving and experiencing concepts we are covering I try to embrace that.”
Senior Symphony Alicea stated that she felt like she learned more doing the activity than if she were in the classroom. She said that she has a better understanding of federalism and its impact. “It makes the assignments more fun and people can actually do the work.”
Senior Aaliyah Smith shared that not only did the students understand federalism more, but they also learned a lot about teamwork to help each other solve clues. “Each one of us had different tools mentally, and we used those to work together.” She also shared that it was a fun activity because she got to participate in the hunt with her best friends. Smith said she felt like students learn more while doing hands-on lessons than taking notes in a classroom.
Although some students would dread taking an AP class, most of the students enrolled seem to enjoy the class, especially with the hands-on activities. Rothrock expressed that although it can be chaotic he can feel the engagement from the students making the lesson much more enjoyable as well as helping them remember more about the various topics.
“I liked the idea of having the kids hands on and kinda exploring and seeing first hand how the government impacts their lives.”