Through a partnership with the senior living community Woodland Terrace, seniors and kindergartners from Eastside Connections School have spent one day a week the last several months doing classroom activities, exercising and eating lunch together.

Kindergarten teacher Bonnie Prenkert initiated the project last year. Students initially spent one day a week for a semester visiting the Woodland facility.

This year, Prenkert expanded the program and students spend one day a week throughout seven months at the senior living facility.

Prenkert said her aim was to engage students in intergenerational learning, while connecting the elderly with local youth.

“So many children do not have grandparents,” Prenkert said. “I felt like blending [students and seniors together] would bring happiness to both the kids and the elderly.”

Prenkert said she was inspired while visiting Oklahoma, where a school used a similar model to connect youth and local seniors. Prenkert talked about the idea with Sonja Donlin, the resident care director at Woodland.

Together, Donlin and Prenkert worked to bring the idea to fruition.

“This was the perfect environment for us to give it a try,” Donlin said. “She came up with the plan for her students and I worked with the organization here.”

Throughout the day, students go about their daily lessons, often engaging in the same learning activities as seniors. Seniors help students with reading, writing, math and art projects, too.

With her background in nursing and hospice care, Prenkert said she could see the health benefits in bringing seniors and students together in the same learning environment.

“It helps the residents. It gives them something to look forward to and generates a happy feeling,” Prenkert said.

Donlin has seen this excitement from the seniors first hand.

On days when students visit, seniors are anticipating their arrival. A handful of seniors will wait by the front door, eager to offer students a warm welcome and get started on the day’s lesson ahead.

“I think in today’s world, intergenerational activities are not there as much as they used to be, so it does allow for those relationships to happen,” Donlin said.

The program fits with Eastside Connections project-based learning model, which uses hands on activities to teach students.

In addition to engaging in daily lessons and activities, students interviewed a resident to learn about their lives.

The students reported their findings through a journal and poster project. Students also asked seniors what they enjoyed about spending time with them. Students wrote out the answers on a poster.

“It is very exciting and interesting. It reminds me to get a little more peppy,” one resident was quoted as saying.

Student Grayson Allred said he most enjoys “eating ice cream with the residents and popcorn.”

Kindergartner Elijah Mwenya said he learned about how one of the residents grew up with five brothers in north Maine and later went on to teach elementary school.

Mwenya said he enjoyed downtime with residents, too especially eating ice cream with them.

Senior Marilyn Schumacher said she and her sister, Rosemary Schumacher have enjoyed the children spending time with them.

“Most old people love children,” Marilyn said. “ It has been really quite nice.”

She added that Rosemary was particularly touched when one child gave her a hug during lunch.

As school sessions come to an end for the summer, Donlin said their ultimate goal is to encourage students to stay connected with seniors throughout the summer. Last year, students returned with their families to pay a visit to seniors. 

Students will have the chance to sum up what they learned in a ceremony at 6 p.m. Wednesday at Woodland Terrace, 13 Longmeadow Drive. Niles Community Schools Superintendent Dan Applegate will visit the facility for the presentation. Niles New Tech students will also be in attendance to coach students if they get stuck during their presentation. 

Prenkert’s next group of kindergartners will visit next year to see the seniors and continue the intergenerational learning.

“It has been such a positive things for the kids and the residents,” Donlin said.