Earthquake STEM problem

Today in class we presented our projects. My group created a STEM problem regarding earthquakes. We had a power point presentation that gave background knowledge and allowed for the class to participate in a lesson that they could use in their classroom. The lesson consisted of using materials provided to create a structure that could withstand an earthquake (jello). The class was giving the option to use marshmallows, Twizzlers, toothpicks, straws and string. They were given 15 minutes to create a structure then we put it to the test. After we gave them 10 minutes to go back to the drawing board and and try again if their structure failed. One group had a structure that withstood the earthquake so we gave them an extension, they had to create a two story structure that could withstand the earthquake. All but one group was successful at the end of the lesson. See pictures below :)

Pulley Lesson

Today, I went to Katie's class and taught a 5th grade STEM lesson. The students were excited and engaged during this lesson. I decided to teach her students about pulleys since they had already been discussing simple machines. The lesson involved different types of pulleys and pulley systems. They recorded this in a chart, and discussed the differences after.
The class was great during this lesson. The students were a little loud at times but that is expected with this students and this type of lesson. The class came to a consensus that pulley systems made it to lift objects. I wanted to have some pictures to show but the lesson was extremely fast paced and I did not have time to stop the lesson in order to take pictures.

Inclined Planes Lesson

Today, I observed Katie teaching a 5th grade STEM lesson. I was very excited to see how Katie's class would respond to this lesson and see how the older kids worked in this environment. This was a challenging lesson due to the critical thinking skills that it required. Katie's class had already been discussing the topic of simple machines so they were able to further their instruction in this area. The students had to determine which angles would help make the work of moving supplies up the inclined plane easier. After the lesson, Katie's class had an awesome discussion regarding the technology that is changing the world. They were asked how new technology came about. One student said she thought it came from on person being lazy and wanting a better way to carry things. What a great explanation!!!!
Katie taught this lesson using two large groups instead of teaching using small groups. The students had a limited number of supplies. Once the lesson was complete, the class compared their results.

How can I assess STEM education?

http://www.aacu.org/resources/assessment/STEMAssessments.cfm

This is a great link to find information on ways to assess STEM. My biggest concern as a first year teacher is meeting the needs of my students and having the data to support my methods of teaching. While STEM is a great method of teaching it is still in the the trial phases for most schools. I wanted to find ways to assess my students on their process of STEM. I think that using normal assessments and surveys are the best methods to assess younger students. Assessing their content knowledge can be done using normal assessments and testing their problem solving skills can be tested using surveys.

Investigations in class

Tonight we were able to investigate landing on the moon. We had to build a rocket that could drop a marble on a target as it was flying down a piece of string. My group decided to build a rocket using a cup and an index card as a wing and as a door. When the rocket flew down the string it would stop hard enough for the marble to push open the door and land on the target. When we tried on the first pass our marble landed too far away from the target. We were given some great advice from our classmates that helped revisit the drawing board and fix our rocket. We were able to land on the target on our second pass thanks to a revised wing on the back of the cup.

This lesson helped me realize that it is a great idea to always give students the ability to revisit their ideas in order to redesign. Trial and Error is a key element of STEM and allows for the students to really put their own ides to work and use their problem solving skills.

Earthquake Lesson

I decided to use my groups STEM problem to teach my students about earthquakes. We did this in two groups so that my students could work together and use team building skills in this lesson. My students really enjoyed this lesson and were engaged and asking higher-order questions during the lesson. They were debating each other and using great social skills in the lesson. (this is very important in 1st grade!)

Lesson Plan:

• Begin by telling students that their challenge is to create a building/structure using toothpicks/straws and marshmallows/twizzlers/string that they thought would be strong enough to survive an earthquake, just like real architects have to do.

• Next, it is time to put them to the test.

• Have students present their structure and show the class.
• Using aluminum trays filled with jello have students start to shake things up. Each group get a tray of jello. In pairs, they put their structures on the jello then shake it out for 10-15 seconds.Give students time to discuss what worked and what didn’t work.
• Some structures survive, others don't. The students learn the importance of building a strong base and how having one can help keep people and whole cities safer during an earthquake
• Extension: Allow students to fix their structure and try again!

Introducing students to STEM

How can I introduce my students to STEM?
 A great resource is to first start looking into why STEM is important and how it can affect the students in their future. Students in 1st grade begin looking at careers in the community and discussing what they want to do. It would be a great resource for students to start researching careers and seeing how they impact their lives using STEM. Here is a great link to use! http://stemcareer.com/students/

Inventing a backscratcher

Today, Katie taught a lesson in my 1st grade classroom. The students were inventing their very own backscratcher. Yes, 1st graders really enjoyed this lesson! The students began the lesson by brainstorming ideas in groups. Each group drew up a sketch of what they wanted their design to be like. They were extremely creative and used a lot of imagination to create. Katie and the students tested out the different designs and then decided as a class whose design was the best design.
Katie did a great job at teaching this lesson. The students really listened and were engaged in this lesson. She spent a lot of time instructing the students (1st graders need a lot of instruction).

STEM!

STEM!! I am so excited to start getting others excited about STEM. I have been discussing the idea of STEM with other teachers and staff at my school. It is a topic that I am relating to all of our subjects as much as possible. I am hoping that the more they hear about it they more they will want to know about it.
I am also looking into starting a STEM class in our after school care program next year. I really think that have a dedicated hour to STEM would get students wheels turning and get them excited about STEM!

Save the Animals Lesson

Today I taught a lesson on Save the Animals. This lesson centers around the idea of push and pull. The students used LEGO robots to help save stuffed animals from falling off of their desks. It was up to the students to determine whether they should push or pull the animals to safety. The robots that the students created were really creative and allowed for the students to put their own touch on this project. It took a few minutes at first for the students to grasp the concept of using the robots but once they mastered this skill they really enjoyed the lesson.
The students had a lot of energy on this day but were able to channel this energy into the lesson. The lesson was a success and allowed for me to incorporate a few of the STEM elements into my classroom.

Today I found out my school participates in the Elementary school Sci Oly. I am really excited to hear that my school is participating in this. I hope that one day my students can be excited and participate in this awesome experience. A few of the teachers take students every year to compete. A lot of the students seem to enjoy being able to create projects and do hands on experiments. I am hoping to start introducing my 1st graders to what Sci Oly is so that when they are old enough they can begin participating.

Sci Oly

Today, I participate as a volunteer at SciOly. I was assigned to work with Dr. Revelle in the A & P event as well as the anatomy event. This event was a simple test for middle school (Anatomy) and High School (A&P). The students were given 55 minutes to complete the examination. They were allowed to have one front and back paper with any information they chose. They were also able to work in pairs or individually.

The first test given was to high school students. Before we began Dr. Revelle informed us that their will be students who do not bring anything with them (no paper or writing utensils). During the high school test, two groups did not bring their allowed paper. Both of the groups were partner groups that consisted of both boys. One group seemed to take their time and really try while the other group seemed to be there to just play around. (They were putting answers that were not relevant to the topics) This group of students overall consisted of a good mixture of boys and girls and ethnicities. 

The second test was to middle school students. They had the same rules and procedures to follow. A few of these students came in late, with one student missing her partner until a few minutes after the test had already started. This group was the same as the first when it came to the amount of boys and girls testing. A few boys did not bring a pencil and had to ask to borrow one from the professor. All groups did bring a paper with information to help them with their test. The biggest difference I noticed was that there was more individual testers in this group.

Overall, the day was interesting to think about the data and statistics that we discuss in class and relate them to what was seen during this event. After grading the test, the winning group in each division was a partner team that consisted of both boys. I enjoyed being able to see STEM at work in such young students and seeing what our future will consist of when it comes to jobs in the STEM fields. 

Moon Day!

Moon Day

To start our Moon day we made Space Play dough. I had a play dough recipe and then as a class we turned it into" space dough". The students then  had to add their own stars, the sun, the moon, and the Earth. Once they finished this portion of the lesson we discussed orbiting plants and the Sun.

We discussed how asteroids create craters. The students got to help as we created this project. I started by first using a large round tray, I added flour to the tray and gave students turns creating mountains. They then were able to experiment using different asteroid sizes to create craters.

STEM resources

This week I was looking around and searching for STEM resources. I found a lot of great resources that students and teachers can use in the classroom. Here are the links:
PBS gives students the ability to participate in games that are STEM related. Bill Nye and How stuff works are great teacher resources that can be used to incorporate STEM into the classroom.

http://pbskids.org/lab/show/stem-video-game-challenge/
http://www.billnye.com/
www.howstuffworks.com/

STEM in Special Area

This week I was able to observe a class at a different school. I was observing a 1st grade class at a local school and I noticed that they S.T.E.M. block in their schedule. When I went and asked the teacher what this was they gave me the chance to go observe another class. This school hired a specific teacher to teach S.T.E.M. This is a part of their special area rotation. The students usually get to attend this class once per week. The teacher has all the materials needed in order to successfully teach STEM. The students were learning about how to make play-doh. They were given materials and magnifying glasses so that they could create their own play-doh and observe the process. It was interesting to see how involved all of the students were in this lesson and how engaged they were throughout the whole thing.

3D shape Lesson- STEM Finally!

I was able to meet my goal this week and incorporate some aspect of STEM into my lesson. My students were learning about geometry, 3D shapes to be exact. Once they had the concept of what a 3D shape was, they were given pieces to create their own. I gave the student toothpicks, Twizzlers, scissors, and a paper plate. The only direction they were given was that they must create a solid shape. I did not give them exact parameters because I wanted them to be creative.
Most of students stuck to the basic shapes they had seen in our math geometry books. I did have a few students step outside the box and create unique shapes. It was really interesting to see how they differed in their processes of thinking. I even had some students who used all of their materials and create multiple shapes. Once they finished they had to use an iPad to look up places that they might find their shape in the real world. Most of the students found at least one place they thought they could find their shape.

Pinterest Board

Today, I started researching some new lessons to incorporate into my class. I have been searching for lesson ideas that would be easy to incorporate into my lessons and still allow for me to meet the common core standards. I have found many new lessons on Pinterest: click here,  that I plan on starting to incorporate into my classroom.
Listening to other teachers talk in different grades, I am starting to hear a lot more talk regarding STEM education. I was excited to hear that so many teachers are using STEM. I can not wait until I can find a way to smoothly integrate it into my lessons!

STEM in my room

This past week has really made me look into ways to involve STEM into my classroom. While I was teaching my normal reading and math lesson I was constantly thinking of ways to change up my lesson to make it STEM. I have been making notes on ways to start incorporating it weekly. My goal is to try and make one lesson a week into a STEM lesson so that my students are getting the access to the problem solving skills and critical thinking that STEM education entails.
My goal this week is to involve STEM into my math lesson.

STEM Experiment

Today in class we got to participate in a STEM lesson. We were able to decide our own STEM question using bubble gum and then perform the experiment. My group decided to test the weight difference between chewed and non-chewed bubble gum. We chose 3 different types and tested the theory. During this lesson, it was evident that allowing students to create their own problem and solve it allowed them to use their own creativity to work through the different fields of STEM.

STEM in my room

       My idea of what STEM in a classroom should like has changed tremendously after today's class. When I walked into this class I had a vague understanding of what the word STEM stood for and what it could possibly look like in the classroom. Today, I learned that STEM does not always have to incorporate all components of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) but a combination of some of the components. I also learned that in the classroom it does not have to be taught in the science block (since I do not have a designated science time this was exciting) but it can be taught and incorporated into my reading block or my normal math lesson.
       This weekend's class also opened my eyes to why STEM is so important. We watched a video and discussed why it is so important to incorporate STEM into our classrooms. The fact that the number of people who are certified to work in the STEM field is decreasing and the fact that women are a lot less likely to work in the STEM field just shows me that I need to open my students eyes to the possibilities that the STEM field has to offer.
       My goal for this class is to find out more information on ways to incorporate STEM and still meet the standards that I am required to teach. I am hoping to learn more ways to make STEM fun in my classroom and to open other's eyes on how important it is in our schools.