Tough Topics Inspire Students to Share Presentations with Their Parents

Nearly 20 years ago a teacher in Belmont, Mich., saw the need to tackle tough topics with her middle school scholars. Students were facing new challenges related to mental health, bullying, and the advent of social media and all its implications.
 
Chandler Woods Charter Academy Language Arts Teacher Kristin Helmbold, now in her 23^rd year with National Heritage Academies, decided to encourage her students to challenge themselves to present on topics close to their hearts.

 
“I just decided we needed to really make a change in the lives of middle schoolers and high schoolers,” Helmbold said. “I thought ‘we've got to get some of these topics out in the open.’ People back then weren't really willing to talk about those tough topics. Parents were scared and kids were scared because they kind of felt shame to talk about depression or suicide or any of those things.”
 
Helmbold worked with administrators to get approval for the assignment, then scheduled the first parent presentations.

 
“At the very beginning of the unit I have them pick a topic that interests them; something they would like to share with parents to make them more aware,” she said. “Some of those are more informative like human trafficking or schizophrenia. We take time to find sources and evidence and then they start putting together their multimedia presentation, so they add in video images, text, and put it together on a board.”
 
Students hoping to present on more challenging topics must get their parent’s permission first, and those presentations are made just to older grades. This year topics included human trafficking, hunter safety, staying home alone, substance abuse, and consumption of fast food.
 

It’s not just parents who show up to watch the presentations. Former students, some in high school and others now in college, come back each year to watch while remembering their own efforts.
 
“They come back, and they love it,” Helmbold said. “They remember it, they pour their heart and soul into this project. Not only is it a multimedia, all hands-on deck family-oriented project, but it's also something you remember forever because it's so close to your heart.”



About Chandler Woods Charter Academy
Chandler Woods Charter Academy is a tuition-free, public charter school in Belmont, Michigan, serving students in Young 5s through eighth grade. It is part of the National Heritage Academies network, which includes more than 100 tuition-free, public charter schools serving more than 65,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade across nine states. For more information, visit nhaschools.com.

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