Connecting STEAM to agriculture A University of Delaware program is equipping Delaware 4-H students with science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM) skills, and connecting them to agriculture. Twila Parish-Short, a 4-H youth development science educator with UD Cooperative Extension, is incorporating those five disciplines into educational programming and activities for children and teenagers around the state. She is developing a team of teenage ambassadors, as she calls them, to lead youth in STEAM education and activities. The hope, Parish-Short said, is for those ambassadors to bring the activities back to their communities, help young people explore their interest in STEAM fields, and broaden 4-H’s reach. “I’m envisioning these young STEAM ambassadors building their confidence to get into STEAM careers,” Parish-Short said. She recently hosted an event in for her first STEAM Team. Students formed groups to work on activities for this year’s 4-H STEM Challenge from the National 4-H Council. They were given projects on renewable energy that prompted them to choose an energy source to power a fictional bunker. Then, they built prototypes for those renewable energy sources using arts and crafts materials provided by Parish-Short. Read the full article HERE. Building science and engineering skills through STEAM The U.S. NAVFAC Northwest facility in Bothell, Washington, launched its Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) program, with an inaugural “Once Upon a STEAM” fairytale-themed Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) community event held at Woodside Elementary School this past November. Volunteers from NAVFAC Northwest joined a diverse array of participants, including public and private enterprises, collegiate academia, high school robotics programs, and coding companies, among others whose booths featured interactive but fast-paced STEM-related activities tailored for students in kindergarten through 5th grade. One of the most widely attended activities— the Parachute Community Build Contest—sparked creativity for participants by constructing parachutes to gain insights into the principles of gravity and aerodynamics. The event witnessed an impressive turnout, with both students and parents contributing to the creation of over 300 parachutes. Read the full article HERE. Fusing technology and creativity At Stony Brook (New York) University a collaboration between student and campus organizations aimed to bridge the gap between STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) and the arts, making technical fields more accessible and engaging for students of all majors. They launched their effort at an event, Hallo-STEAM, which featured three unique projects, each designed to showcase the fusion of technology and creativity that can be built by anyone even if they are not “tech-savvy.” “We have planned several events for elementary and high schoolers together that meld STEM and art (STEAM), specifically exploring how origami techniques can inspire engineering design. This event was therefore a natural progression for us and paired well with our goal of showcasing the interdisciplinary nature of STEM and art to audiences with little prior experience in STEM,” said Elizabeth Argiro, a biology major who heads the school’s Interactive Origami Club. The Hallo-STEAM event incorporated traditional origami, programming, and electronics. Attendees made flower vases with glowing origami tulips, lilies, and butterflies that lit up when you clap. According to Rachel Leong, president of Stony Brook’s, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the program was a great opportunity to introduce circuits and coding to people who might not otherwise know much about it. “The combination of art and technology excites us, and we are thrilled to see more people interested in these fields,” she said. Read the full article HERE. Beetlejuice production partners with Dallas schools to teach STEAM skills Over the course of multiple weeks, 3,400 theatre students and teachers from 26 Dallas High Schools will participate in a specially created curriculum that connects to the Broadway Dallas production of Beetlejuice, the musical adaptation of Tim Burton’s film. Taught by Broadway Dallas teaching artists, as part of the lesson plan all the participating students and teachers will attend a dedicated performance of the musical, which runs February 20-March 3, 2024. The curriculum was developed to prepare students for college and 21st-century careers and includes a sequence of lesson plans where students will learn the art and science of hand drafting, which in the theater is used for scenic design. Through hand-drafting, students will apply basic principles of scales, measurement units, and physics, developing fundamental skills can be transferred to the construction, engineering, and architecture industries. Read the full article HERE. Winnipeg STEAM project INSPIRES young children Young Designers, a Winnipeg, Canada program, employs a trio STEAM support teachers who travel from school to school to provide a six-week program to nursery-to-Grade 2 students. Each 90-minute weekly session, which typically runs from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., begins with free play and ends with a group dinner. Participants spend the bulk of the time in a group read-aloud and a related STEAM design challenge inspired by the week’s storybook. One assignment involved brainstorming about a fictional species and accompanying habitat. Chicoine’s youngest child came up with a creature who is half-dinosaur, half-gorilla and lives in a forest surrounded by an abundance of grass for the fantastic vegetarian to eat. During the 90-minute sessions, children and their caregivers play with light tables, robots, gear-building kits, pipe cleaners and geometric puzzles, among other crafty and constructible items that promote creativity and fine-motor skill development. The program received $500,000 via the province’s strengthening student support and learning grant program to get the extracurricular off the ground. Participating schools receive STEAM kits, books. and professional development. In addition to being fed, every family takes home a copy of the storybook of the week. Read the full article HERE. How the maker movement is changing education In Salt Lake City makerspaces are flourishing. Makerspaces are known as places where people, or “makers,” create, or “make,” projects using a variety of hands-on and digital tools. Commonly found at some libraries, museums, colleges and at places like the Utah STEM Action Center, the number of these spaces for open exploration have increased, especially in schools, which has given students equal access as well as gain skills in STEAM—science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics.
At the Utah Action Center, students have opportunities for hands-on making, creating, designing, and innovating that bring individuals together in a variety of mediums, including robotics, textile crafts, woodcrafts, and electronics. “Makerspaces need to be available and accessible,” said teacher Beth McKinney, who helped open the makerspace in Salt Lake’s Murray’s Hillcrest Junior High this fall. “It’s important for kids to have a place where they can explore their own interests, talents, curiosities and have that experience on their own with the freedom to do it in a safe, controlled setting. Many students might not have the tools, the confidence, or the opportunity to do so, so it’s important we have a safe space where any student can create and many learn best by doing, with their own hands.” Read the full article HERE.
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