What is Expeditionary Learning?

Schoolcraft Learning Community contracts with EL Education to provide in-service training to our staff around developing curriculum that is engaging, in-depth, and imbeds Minnesota Graduation standards into our expeditions. We have been an EL school since we began in 2000.

Expeditions are in-depth investigations into a topic or a learning area. They incorporate ideas and learning goals from as many of the subject areas as possible, knowing that the more you can associate one with another, the better the understanding and retention of knowledge. The expeditions aim to encourage student participation in the developmental process, as well as for student proficiency in the topics studied.

All expeditions contain:

  • Field work - Students go out into the field to obtain knowledge and/or data for further use.

  • Service learning - Service itself is at the heart of learning.

  • Projects

  • Celebration of Learning - Culminating presentation showcasing the projects and the learning of each student.

Expeditions will focus on project-based learning, aiming for a more in-depth understanding. Daily work will be primarily within the expedition.

Student assessment at Schoolcraft Learning Community will primarily be through our portfolio system. Student scoring rubrics are developed with students, and peer reviews are on-going within the classrooms. Portfolio presentations are presented to parents during the final scheduled conference of the school year.

Learn more about EL Education

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