This post originally appeared on the blog maggiemenkus.com.

I am a teacher who LOVES to teach students about literature. Books open the doors to students’ imaginations so they can explore life’s possibilities. Students learn about authors and their mastery at creating a story. There are no limits to the number of paths a book can take in the classroom.

But I discovered a longer path with books when I added Project Based Learning into my lesson planning! I discovered that I could not only tap into students’ imaginations, but I could turn a book into something real in their lives! Here’s how my 6th grade project reflects each of Gold Standard PBL’s Essential Project Design Elements.