Miller Avenue School second-graders recently took part in an engaging educational lesson where they constructed an entire gingerbread village out of milk cartons.

The project, directed by teachers Kristen Gironda, Renee Gilmore, Kerri Langan, Rob Korchma and Laura Urban, culminated an interdisciplinary reading, math and social studies unit that focused on different types of communities, fairy tales and spatial problem-solving.   

After a close reading of “The Gingerbread Man,” students were tasked with building a gingerbread village for the gingerbread man using a set of building codes. To build the village to code, students worked in teams to construct a 32-inch by 32-inch section of the village that included four houses and two businesses. To accomplish the task, they used their geometry, measuring and estimation skills. They were also asked to think about the important types of businesses and services that the village needs to thrive.