COLUMBUS, Ohio — As March Madness captivates basketball fans across the country, some central Ohio schools are channeling that excitement into the classroom through competitive activities designed to boost student engagement.
At Madison Elementary School in Groveport, Principal Rian Burnett said the school is using a tournament-style bracket to encourage attendance. The bracket, displayed prominently in the hallway, tracks which classes have the highest attendance percentages, advancing them through each round in a format similar to the NCAA basketball tournament.
“As we move into the spring, sometimes our attendance dips for elementary students,” Burnett said. “We noticed that slump, so we decided we’re going to change it. It’s become a really big tradition at Madison Elementary that kids look forward to.”
With statewide testing approaching, Burnett said maintaining strong attendance is especially important. The bracket, Burnett said, adds a layer of friendly competition and helps students draw connections between what they see at home during March Madness and what happens at school.
“They’ve said, ‘Oh, I saw the selection show on TV and we did the selection show at Madison,’” Burnett said. “So, they’ve started to really make those connections.”
In the Olentangy Local School District, Johnnycake Corners Elementary is focusing on literacy with its own “March Book Madness.” Literacy specialist Amy Nietfeld selected 16 books for classrooms to read, with students voting daily to determine which titles advance to the next round.
“As I see parents out in the community, they’re always sharing, ‘My goodness, this is all my kid can talk about,’” Nietfeld said. “The books that are part of March Madness, whether their book won or didn’t, it’s becoming part of dinner conversations.”
Nietfeld said the competition helps foster a love of reading and builds anticipation well before March arrives.
“In December and January, kids stop me in the halls and ask, ‘Do you have the books picked out?’” she said. “Kids become readers because you expose them to books. The more books we can expose them to, the more engaged they’re going to be.”
Both schools are nearing the end of their competitions: Madison Elementary’s attendance bracket is down to the final four classes, while Johnnycake Corners is approaching its championship round of books.
Educators said the bracket competitions are helping to blend fun with learning at a time of year when maintaining student engagement can be challenging.