Wait, I Already Passed 5th Grade Science

Why project-based learning should stretch students, not stress parents.

I had to touch on this topic again because when I hear the words “project based learning” I immediately jump to: “Cool. I’ll just stop what I’m doing for a last-minute run to Hob Lob because my kid forgot to tell me about the thing that’s due tomorrow at 9 a.m.”. Hold up, who is doing more work, problem solving?  Me, it's for sure me trying to problem solve in under 30 minutes: What time does the store close? Can I make it in time? Will my other kids survive if I bail on dinner? Do we even own glue? Is this the whole assignment or just part one of the surprise?

My kid? Over there chillin like he didn’t just hand off a do-or-die mission to his personal assistant which, as it turns out, is me. He forgot to plan while I paused dinner and became a one-woman disaster response team for Mount “Seriously, Kid”?  He built a paper-mâché volcano while I wiped a baking soda explosion out of my mouth and questioned every life choice that led me here.

He didn’t learn time management. He didn’t solve a problem. He learned that if he waits long enough, Mom will fix it. I, on the other hand, problem-solved the entire situation—from supply chain to execution. I solved a real-life challenge and he got rescued. How did that happen? I already graduated. So why am I the one learning the lesson?

That’s why at PivotED, we do projects differently. Our approach to project-based learning is student-led, purpose-driven, and  it happens at school. No panic shopping. No last-minute glue gun meltdowns. Just students working through real ideas, with structure, support, and enough space to make mistakes and try again.

Projects at PivotED are designed to build the student’s skills—not test the parent’s patience. Students plan, create, revise, and reflect with guidance along the way. They apply what they’re learning across subjects, solve problems that matter to them, and finish the project knowing it was theirs start to finish.

Because let’s be real, I’ve never paid Whataburger with a worksheet on making the correct change using as few coins as possible. (I wish, though.) Worksheets have their place. But life isn’t fill-in-the-blank, so why is education?