Project Based Learning Electives provided by the Berrien Springs Virtual Academy
Innovation Central: Survival in the Pre-Civil War Era Fall 2025
All students must complete a project for these classes.
Instructors: Jim Whitehead and Joanna Whitehead
Email: jwhitehead59@gmail.com, whiteheadjoanna26@gmail.com
Phone: Jim Whitehead 269-325-1263, Joanna Whitehead 269-325-0199
Ages: 10-16
Day & Time: Mondays and Thursdays, 6pm - 7:30pm
Dates: Sept. 4 - Oct. 9
Location: Innovation Central at Lakeside Family Church, 6999 Red Arrow Highway, Stevensville
Life is the Great Northwest: Pre-Civil War Era
Course Description: This course objective is to impart to the student what life was like in the late 1700’s to the mid 1800’s (pre civil war). We will discuss what led to the western expansion of the American settlers, and how they faced many of the difficulties just to survive in this new wilderness.
Students will learn basic first aid, foraging for food (and what to avoid), how to build a shelter out of the natural materials, how to tie knots, how to start a variety of different types of fires, and how to properly care for tools such as an ax.
*Please note: it is important to make as informed a decision as possible when choosing your student's Community Resource classes. Most locations will allow a student to drop a class after one meeting, at no charge if it wasn't a good fit for the student, but not all. Some classes plan ahead based on the number that have signed up and have purchased materials, hired teachers, etc. and there might be a fee for class time or materials given to the student if the student drops after one or two meetings. The school cannot pay for classes that students do not complete, so choose wisely; if you do not take the class off of your student's schedule by the deadline, you may be asked to pay for the class time incurred prior to dropping the class.
Teacher of Record: Tom Hurst
