When is enrichment appropriate in education

As we thought about these two groups of children, we could not say that one group was more worthy of enrichment than the other. Could enrichment, in fact, provide the motivation and engagement that many of our students who were receiving remediation needed?

We considered how to provide remediation and add an enrichment class each week without lengthening the school day or cutting services. Fortunately, we have one period a day called core extension, during which no new classroom instruction takes place—instead students travel to remediation, enrichment, instrument lessons, or English for speakers of other languages ESOL instruction.

We just needed to provide the remediation within the enrichment classes. We could help students decode just as effectively using a text on building a computer as we could with leveled fiction. We could emphasize the importance of math conversions as students learned that computer-aided design is created in millimeters. Students would still receive standard interventions on other days, but on enrichment days, real-life applications could provide context and motivation.

Each semester, students choose their enrichment class—we have options in the sciences, technology, and the arts. In Fibonacci Art they can create a mathematical spiral or a board game; they do nighttime stargazing in Space Class; and they fully construct and program their own creations in Gizmos and Gadgets.

They get to decide for themselves whether they want to build a computer in one class or tap into their musical talent in another—there are up to 12 choices per semester, spanning many interests. Pairing or grouping students based on these data points allows students to have the option to work collaboratively among learners with similar interests and abilities. Enrichment activities should account for student choice.

This means that, while each option for enrichment should revolve around a similar learning goal, the method by which students arrive at that objective can be vastly different depending on their interests or selections. Considerations for enrichment If you, as the teacher, had unlimited time to spend on a subject, genre, topic, concept, etc. Use the answer to this question as the springboard for designing enrichment opportunities.

What have students asked to read or learn about? Create a running list of topics in which students have expressed interest. Then begin to curate a collection of texts involving these topics so that students can begin to explore their interests if completing additional research. In what way will students be able to work independently when completing an enrichment activity?

Share on twitter. Share on linkedin. Enrichment programs are not just something that fills the time between school and home though. They have several advantages and allow students to pursue interests outside of the classroom or try something new. Some of the most valuable skills students can achieve are self-motivation, self-discipline, and self-awareness.

Learning outside the classroom also gives students the opportunity to experiment and take risks with no implications. They are neither graded or compared to classmates, so students can make mistakes and learn from them. Education Trends , Events , Extracurricular Classes. Charlotte is the Global COO.

She works across all areas of the business to ensure we deliver quality products and services effectively and efficiently. In she moved to Asia as the Academic Director of a learning center, designing the curriculum, contributing to publications, and teaching.