Rock Your School events bring energy and student engagement at Brookside and Hamilton Elementary Schools
(10/21/2021) The first grade transformed into a carnival, the media center was a fishbowl and the fourth grade was glowing at Brookside Elementary School in Ramsey Oct. 19, as teachers, staff and students participated in a Rock Your School event.
Rock Your School is a worldwide event designed to energize educators, engage students and celebrate learning.
Brookside’s assistant principal Jim Potthoff brought the event to the school last spring and wanted to make this celebration an annual event. This time around, 100 percent of the staff had some sort of participation, which made for a fun and high-energy day for students and staff.
“Walking the halls you can feel the energy in the building,” Potthoff said. “The students are excited to learn and interact with the engaging activities the teachers come up with that fit with the material they are already teaching. Our staff have bought in 100 percent with this type of student engagement, as we continue to find ways to make teaching and learning fun.”
Student engagement is a major focus for Brookside. Potthoff harvested the idea for the Rock Your School activities through Get Your Teach On, an organization that supports improving relationships and learning in schools. Teachers participated by making small changes to the normal school day, while others went all out with a full transformation of their classrooms.
“Last year I had teachers tell me that even those kids that don’t normally say anything were raising their hand and participating,” Potthoff said. “That’s what we are looking for and it gets you thinking, maybe there are other things I can do throughout the year that have the same effect. Kids get excited about the simplest things, so your hope is that you can hook them into that energy and excitement on a more regular basis.”
Also participating in Rock Your School again this year was Hamilton Elementary School in Coon Rapids. Hamilton staff were decked out in Super Mario characters attire, and students were greeted with all kinds of fun learning activities that included incorporating a visit from a top fuel dragster into the school day.
Anoka-Hennepin Schools has established safe and welcoming schools as a strategic priority and creative activities like Rock Your School are aligned with that strategic direction.