For me, one of the greatest joys of being a teacher is being able to look at my students and see them learning and enjoying the process of learning. I love the curiosity, the questions, the thinking, the wonder, and the "ah-ha" moments that come with that learning. Last week, when I took six students from Paul Robeson High School to the United Nations Youth Leadership Summit, I saw an abundance of that learning, that joyful learning taking place.

When these students started this whole-school interdisciplinary project on climate change several months ago, they had little sense of what to expect. They knew very little about climate change, the United Nations, and its various organizational branches. Now, they have not only learned a lot about those areas, but they have also learned a lot about themselves and their ability to participate in a global arena. They are able to make more meaningful connections between what they learned in the classroom and in their research on the issues surrounding climate change. Through their participation in presentations, panel discussions, and workshops, they have developed a certain confidence that no classroom experience could have given them, and even more importantly, they have developed a greater sense of their responsibilities as citizens of this planet. All of these students have already volunteered to take part in any upcoming projects and have indicated that next time they want to go even further beyond the boundaries of Crown Heights, Brooklyn, both literally and metaphorically.

This experience is one that definitely underscores the need for more real-world, hands-on learning experiences to make our students better appreciate and make sense of what they are being taught in the classroom. For these six students, this experience has not only been a memorable one, but it is one that has already launched a thousand dreams and ambitions.

Ann-Marie Henry-Stephens, Paul Robeson, Brooklyn, New York