H-B Woodlawn Students Learn Geography Via Cupcakes

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by Katie Pyzyk April 19, 2012 at 3:58 pm 9,338 38 Comments

Eighth grade students at H-B Woodlawn sure found a sweet way to learn about geography and world issues. Today they unveiled the project that’s been in the works for weeks — a map of the world made out of cupcakes.

The 80 students each chose a country to write a report about, focusing on one particular issue in that country. They made signs for their cupcakes on the map, which correspond to the individual reports that are hung on the wall of the gym.

The students worked from 9:00 a.m. until about 1:00 p.m. to construct the map, which is made up of more than 2,500 cupcakes. Most of the sweets were made by students and their families, but some were also donated by Harris Teeter at the Lee-Harrison Center and by Sprinkles Cupcakes in Georgetown.

Tonight, the display is open to the public from 6:00-7:00 p.m. Students will be on hand to explain their research on the issues. Visitors who give a donation may take home some cupcakes. The money will go to the Arlington Food Assistance Center and the U.N. World Food Program.

wockney canker

H-B Woodlawn Students learn about obesity via Geography
- lurker
  
  You know, this comment is just plain MEAN. The kids are raising funds for the Arlington Food Assistance Center and the U.N.’s World Food Programme. Way to be supportive of a creative endeavor.
- Arlingtonian
  
  What an ignorant thing to say. I wish the moderator would take this post down. I think it is a fun and creative way to learn about our world– an area ALL American students need more education in.
  - PL25rd
    
    I completely agree – that’s uncalled for. And while there’s definitely an obesity problem in American schools, I don’t think it’s a major problem in Arlington schools!
  - thelevyisdry
    
    So the moderator should remove a post because you disagree with it? That’s not how this is supposed to work yo.
    
    Don’t get me wrong I LOVE cupcakes. If my school would have sponsored an activity like this, maybe I’d have learned all my state capitals.
- Rebecca
  
  HILARIOUS. I thought about the same thing.
- EastPike
  
  Ridiculous. Cupcakes don’t make you obese. Abusing cupcakes coupled with a wide variety of other unhealthy choices might make some people obese. However, all kids should be able to enjoy cupcakes, as part of a healthy, moderate, lifestyle. Especially when paired with learning and giving to charity! Kudos to the school and kids for pulling this off!
  - National Cupcake Association
    
    “Cupcakes don’t make you obese. Abusing cupcakes…make…people obese”
    
    We couldn’t agree more.
    
    Hate the cupcake abuser, not the cupcake !!!
    
    You will pry my cupcake from my cold dead hand (or something like that).
    - Cupcake
      
      I don’t fatten people. People fatten people.
    - EastPike
      
      Ha! Well played :).
- 1RLI
  
  When cupcakes are outlawed, only outlaws with map the world with cupcakes.
Aaron

This is … actually rather clever. I bet many of these kids will still remember elements of this ten years from now.
nunya

ha! fun and learning. and yummy.

nice job kids.
Impressed

This is amazing! It’s evident the teachers and students both worked so hard to make this happen, and the energy behind the project is admirable! A special props to the geography teacher for her creativity and ambition in pulling this together, and all the other teachers, students, parents, and others who made it happen. Well done!
KR

I love this! Good job to everyone involved!

And turning it into a way to raise money for charity was the smartest move of all! Together, we can find creative and fun ways to help each other.

I hope more people will learn to think this way.
Louise

This makes me hungry.
MC 703

Too easy. Frogurt lakes and flip flop peninsulas.

But this is really great good job guys!
FREDTERP

Is there a limit on how many cupcakes one can take tonight. FREDTERP
John

Just another symptom of the Washington, D.C. cupcake industrial complex.
geri

Tomorrow is 4 – 20. It’s HB Woodlawn and cupcakes. Doing good and planning ahead.
Arlington Ant

See you at Woodlawn ……woo hoo !!!
Steve

HB Woodlawn: the private school paid for with public tax dollars
- akan
  
  HB Woodlawn isn’t a private school, and all the cupcakes were made by students or as donations. HB never gets money from aps.
charles

What, no outline of a has-been space ship?
Anna

@Steve
HB Woodlawn: a public school that takes students from the whole county and helps test new ideas and model good teaching for the nation.
St Paul

I would have totally chowed down on Minneapolis
- Donatello
  
  Hb is a middle and high school. The students above are eighth graders. Maybe if you had gone to HB you would be able to read
alrimprovements

This is HIGH SCHOOL? Cupcake map—sounds more appropriate for an elementary school.

fruity tooty school.
- HB Graduate
  
  You’re just upset because we’re higher ranked than every other school in the county.
- drax
  
  It is a combined Jr. High and High school, for grades 6-12. This is 8th-graders doing the cupcakes, which it says right there in the first sentence of the story. Apparently you didn’t learn to read at your school.
- lurker
  
  8th grade Geography students researched a question of interest, focusing on higher levels of thinking, involving “why” not just “where” or “what,” and how those “why” reasons related to geography.
  
  Had you come to the presentation you would have met students who would have told you about how the Roma (Gypsies) originated in India, emigrated to Greece & then traveled throughout Europe.
  
  You could have head about why burial practices differ from country to country (largely due to topography and land features).
  
  You could have found out why there is a strong Chinese influence in Peru.
  
  They used other skills when planning the project:
  Students created a grid system, based on satellite imagery, to figure out how many cupcakes were needed to create the land masses. Other students created a web-based animation, and set up a web cam to capture the process. They transferred the paper map grid to the gym floor (covered in plastic), and were exact in their placement of cupcakes when creating the land masses.
  
  Instead of criticizing, come and see what kids are capable of!
YTK

Hey hey– did thery eat those cupcakes after they had been on the floor? Nom Nom Nom!!!
- H-B 8th Grade Student
  
  You bet we did! They were on a giant blue throw away tablecloth and we wore hairnets and everything while setting up.
Steve

So i guess your kid got in. Congratulations. It is a great school but It is that it is a higher acheiving school because they dont have to everybody. Thats a private school. Like it. Not.
- H-B 8th GradeStudent
  
  It’s a wonder I was able to tell what you were trying to say.
  We’re higher achieving because we apply ourselves, get help from our teachers if we need it and come up with creative and fun ways to get our learning done. Also, it’s a lottery system so any kid, no matter his/her grades, has a chance at getting in. If you’re wondering where your tax dollars are going, take a look in our bathrooms. We don’t even get paper towels. You can bet the money isn’t going here.
H-B 8th GradeStudent

^This kid goin’ ham.

At H-B we do not support censorship and therefore will not deter you from stating your opinions, however, we asks that you make the choice to keep your crude comments to yourself.
HB 8th Grade Mom

Eleanor Reed, the HB Geography teacher, deserves immense kudos for pulling off this project — she is an inspirational teacher. It was thrilling to see the kids so excited and working so hard. The geography knowledge demonstrated at the event was nothing short of spectacular. Critical thinking at it’s best. Anyone who thinks this was just about cupcakes is missing the point completely. I am sooooo proud of this 8th grade class — you all ROCK!
YTK

Having digested this lesson by now, I am sure those cupcakes are now part of the Arlington Geography as well.

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