Lacy Connors and Olive Skiathitis with Connors poster on the Great Depression. Credit: Courtesy 
Evan Zimmer and Katholiki Koukia with Zimmer’s poster on Dodge Ram trucks. Credit: Courtesy 
MacKenzie Luth and Evan Griffin researched what other galaxies look like. Credit: Courtesy 
James Ludlam and Antonio Adams Delgado researched what happens to freshwater fish in saltwater conditions. Credit: Courtesy 
Liam Doherty and Toby LaChance, with LaChance’s poster about MGP Jeeps. Credit: Courtesy
Around Franklin Pierce University’s Spagnuolo Hall on Wednesday, were academic posters on a variety of topics ranging from ballet to the Great Depression. Around the room, there were laptop stations and headphones, where visitors could sit and listen to the recordings of short stories, such as “The Missing Moon,” or “Mr. Worm”. All of them, projects created in partnership between local elementary school students, assisted by university students, in an ongoing partnership between the university and local school district.
Wednesday was the final showcase for the spring semester’s Inquiry Scholars and the Writing Nest, two programs that pair college students with Rindge Memorial and Jaffrey Grade School students in after school programs that help foster interest in research and literacy.
The two separate programs run on a similar premise — older students mentoring younger ones and making learning fun.
Inquiry Scholars encourages children to pick a topic — any topic at all of interest to them, from their favorite pop singer to scientific concepts — to research. The students create a poster, which is professionally printed, and present it at the showcase.
The Writing Nest has students, over several weeks, participate in activities that act as writing prompts to spur the imagination, and write short stories, which they then turn into podcasts at Franklin Pierce’s recording studio.
This semester, it was Jaffrey Grade School’s turn to participate in the Writing Nest, and Rindge Memorial School in Inquiry Scholars. The schools take turns running each program between semesters.
Joan Swanson, director of education at Franklin Pierce, said that the demand for the program has been growing, with more elementary schoolers than ever participating, and more college volunteers, too. This semester, there were 23 students in the Writing Nest program, and 19 in Inquiry Scholars. And demand was higher than that — the program was limited this semester to only fifth graders due to the number of kids that wanted to participate, where in the past it has included fourth and fifth grades.
“It’s great to see the demand increasing in such a nice way,” said Swanson. “These programs reinforce reading and writing and spark an interest in science — all things that we need more of right now.”
FPU Associate Professor Tom Bennett, who leads the Inquiry Scholars program, said this is the first year that demand has been so high that the programs ran both semesters. He said he’d like to see it continue to grow, even to include middle and high school grades.
Margaret Barney, a teacher at RMS, said interest in the program has been growing, and enthusiasm is high among elementary schoolers.
“They love it. They connect instantly with the older kids,” Barney said. “It’s awesome to see. That enthusiasm is why we do it.”
“It’s obvious this project means a lot to the kids,” Bennett said. “They’re invested. When we ask a question, almost every hand in the room shoots up. They’re really intersting in participating.”
Bennett said some of the college volunteers now have been involved their whole college careers, and some, who grew up locally, were involved with Inquiry Scholars when they themselves were students at JGS or RMS.
Connor Doolittle, a senior at FPU, has been working as a volunteer at the Writing Nest for three years. An environmental science major, Doolittle said it’s rewarding to help kids find their voice
“I think it’s just how easy it feels to be helpful to them,” Doolittle said, of why he comes back to volunteer each year. “They’re so excited to be there, and to write. They’re so full of energy, it made me want to be there, too. Their creativity always amazes me. There’s such a variety of what they want to write about.”
The podcasts created by Writing Nest participants can be listened to at thewritingnest.podbean.com.
In addition to hosting a showcase on Wednesday, each participant in the program was honored with a certificate and a gift card for Toadstool Bookshop, provided by the Jaffrey-Rindge Education Foundation. The JREF also donated to allow students to attend lunch on campus with their guests. To donate to the JREF, visit jreducationfoundation.org. The ways to give can be found under the support tab.