Students Value Intergenerational Connections
Rivers students forged connections with their elders through a growing number of initiatives both on and off campus this year, and found they have much to offer each other. Most recently, students in the spring IDS elective “Systems Thinking for the Common Good” found an appreciative and responsive audience for their projects about social change movements at the Golda Meir House in Newton. They visited twice to present their projects to a group of residents, generating lively discussions about current social issues and the differences in generational activism. Some of the topics the students addressed were the #Metoo movement, the fight for a $15 minimum wage, and the March for Science.
Students in the class were universally positive in their responses to the collaboration: “So interesting to bring different generations and people from different countries together to talk about current events.” “I heard perspectives that I had not heard before.” “Things were occurring in their teen years that are still happening now.”
This is the third collaboration this year with Rivers and Jewish Community Housing for the Elderly. Throughout the year, members of the Mandarin III and IV classes have met with elder members of the Chinese community from the Veronica B. Smith Senior Center in Brighton. They practice calligraphy, make dumplings, play mahjong, practice tai chi, all while practicing their English and Chinese with each other. Rivers’ Language Department has partnered for three years with the Center which is home to a large contingent of Chinese-American seniors. The collaboration typically includes six visits—three to the Senior Center and three at Rivers.
New this year were two RISE projects where students went to Shillman House in Framingham to interview veterans and other seniors. One group conducted the interviews while the other filmed and edited the interviews for JCHE archives. The projects dovetailed nicely with Sages and Seekers, the Grade 10 program which pairs each student with a local senior for a seven-week series of conversations about life.
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