"Silk Road" Project at JHS185Q with Yo-Yo Ma

Salvadori educator Juliana Wong is working with 6th graders at JHS185Q, a GLOBE school, on a long-term project titled "Cities and Architecture Along the Silk Road."  This theme is connected to Yo-Yo Ma's "Silk Road Project," an educational organization that takes inspiration from the historic Silk Road Trading route as a modern metaphor for multicultural and interdisciplinary exchange.

Each class has chosen one of five ancient cities to study: Athens, Alexandria, Venice, Baghdad, and Yazd.  They explore how rural sites become cities, experiment with and test out structures using the scientific process, and learn how climate, geography and materials affect the various forms in architecture.  Their efforts culminate in models typical of the architecture found in their focus city displayed throughout the school.

And, yes, Yo-Yo Ma did visit the school and had a chance to look at some of the models built by the students.  The photo shows him examining a model of the amphitheater at Alexandria.