Last week in first grade, we combined Super Bowl weekend fun with Social Studies, math, and Black History Month learning! We were joined by a very special guest teacher for the day Mr. L. (also known as second grader Brendon!).

Mr. L. shared an engaging history lesson about Fritz Pollard, a pioneering African American football player and coach. Pollard was one of the first Black players in what became the National Football League and later became the first African American head coach in the league’s history — a true trailblazer in sports history.

To keep the football theme going, our first graders took on a fun math challenge! Students worked together to kick (flick!) a triangular red or blue “football” over the goal post for a point, and then tallied and counted by fives to keep score. They strategized about the best technique and distance from the goal post to earn points — and it proved to be quite the team challenge!

Learning, teamwork, history, strategy, and fun — this Social Studies lesson had the perfect mix!