Lawrence Seniors and Students Meet Face-to-Face

In February Beth Foley’s third-grade class at Ben Franklin Elementary School began an “inter-generational” project. While sitting in the gymnasium at their school on Princeton Pike, the students began chatting with some Lawrence Township seniors who were sitting in a conference room at the township’s Senior Center on Darrah Lane.

Skype, a computer application used to conduct video conference calls, made the conversation possible.  

The five-month project – called "” – culminated on Tuesday (June 14) with a party at the Lawrence Senior Center during which the students and their elders got to meet face-to-face.

On a 70-degree day, Beth Foley and her class walked the mile from the school to the Senior Center. Prior to the party, students and seniors participated in a to decommission flags that were deemed unserviceable.

After the Flag Day ceremony, the class and the men and women of the Lawrence Senior Center got together for some snacks. The children were able to see the room where the video conference calls had taken place. The seniors were able to see how the children look in person.

Aggie Palmieri went around the room and asked each student, “What did you learn?” Their answers ranged from “trolley cars” to “you had to make your own dolls.”

One student answered, “There were no TVs or radios back then.” He was politely corrected, “We had radio, but no TV.” One student remembered that when these adults were children, “boys and girls had separate doors.”

Yes, times have changed.

Before the students left for their walk back to school, the tables were turned on the adults. “What did you learn from this experience?” they asked the seniors.

Aggie Palmieri said, “They are adorable. They are like sponges. I think it is wonderful they absorbed some of the things the seniors said. I feel they learned something from us.”

“I am surprised by what they did. They are very polite children,” Mary Ferguson said.

Lorraine Colavita added, “What a different world it is! For their young age they are into so much. I was impressed with the group. So well-behaved. Very Knowledgeable.”

Teresita Bastides-Heron was impressed by the variety of ethnicities and backgrounds in the class. The class is made up of students whose families come from Santa Domingo, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Ecuador, Egypt and Switzerland, to name just a few places.

“The kids have many more opportunities – more races – such a diversity. They bring all their knowledge from their countries. It helps the kids learn about diversity,” she said.

It seems both groups learned a lot from each other.