Excitement for Learning New Concepts with Walkabouts (Virginia)

Profile

Moss-Nuckols Elementary is a public elementary school in Louisa County Public Schools in Virginia. It serves roughly 600 students from prekindergarten to 5th grade.

W. Blake Wilson is a second grade teacher in Louisa County, VA, with two years of instructional experience.

“Kids have a lot of energy. Walkabouts is a resource that taps into that mental and physical energy and works as a multifaceted approach to learning.”

“Now I’m a visual learner, so I always appreciate Walkabouts’ visual examples right in front of me to help me think.”

- W. Blake Wilson

Goals

Louisa County Public Schools (LCPS) was looking for different technological applications to present content to students. LCPS found Walkabouts and began using the platform in 2021.

As a first-year math teacher during the 2021-22 school year, W. Blake Wilson wanted to introduce and reinforce content objectives in engaging and meaningful ways. After learning about Walkabouts during professional development, he decided to use the platform with his students.

Outcomes

Wilson believes that when using Walkabouts, his students are more engaged with content. He has also seen more excitement about learning new concepts. Wilson says that Walkabouts not only get students out of their seats, but also get them out of their comfort zones a little. Additionally, he noted that Walkabouts allow him the flexibility to use the platform in different ways each day.

Recommendations

To other teachers considering using Walkabouts, Wilson says, “Anything you can do to help your students get out of their seats from time to time and approach learning in an outside-the-box way, I would absolutely encourage it. Walkabouts are exciting, fun, and present learning in different and more engaging ways.”