Grade 8 Capstone

“What world challenge would you like to help solve?” Bridgette  Murray asks a group of Grosse Pointe Academy Grade 8 students. Murray, who is Assistant Head of School, Middle School Division Head and Middle School Language Arts teacher, is referring, of course, to the Academy’s Grade 8 Capstone Project.

The Academy Grade 8 Capstone Project provides our students with a yearlong opportunity to research a challenge of local or global significance, design a solution to help resolve that challenge and, ultimately, present their findings to the Academy community.

By early fall, our Grade 8 students are already well underway in their Capstone work. They begin with researching their potential topics and identifying sources that can help them. Part of the Capstone experience is “learning how to use critical thinking skills when reviewing sources and researching your topic,” says Mrs. Murray.

Next, students presented their “Guppy Tank Proposals" to their peers. The "Guppy Tank Presentation" is a two-minute presentation to their fellow classmates and Mrs. Murray, providing an overview of their proposed research topic for their Capstone Project.

As part of the Guppy Presentation, each student explained to their peers the challenge they want to help solve, potential obstacles they have identified and why their Capstone project is a worthwhile investment of their time. Students had the opportunity to give feedback, ask questions and provide guidance to each other as part of that process.

Over several months Grade 8 students invested significant time into developing their projects, culminating with a presentation near the end of the school year.

When Mrs. Murray introduced the Capstone project to the Academy nine years ago, she knew it would be a great fit for the Academy approach to education. “Capstones align with our Cornerstones and values,” says Mrs. Murray.

Once students have finished writing their research paper, it’s time to leave their mark in the world. The “Action Piece” portion of the project must be action-oriented,” explains Mrs. Murray. “This is not just about researching a topic. It’s about taking that research and turning it into an action to help solve that challenge.”

These skills, “thinking critically, asking questions, thinking about how they can affect the world around them and taking action” combined with “developing skills such as public speaking, research, self-sufficiency and goal setting” are skills that will help prepare them for high school, college, careers and beyond.”