S.T.E.L.M. Night!

Last night, we hosted our 2nd annual S.T.E.L.M. Night, which stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Literacy, and Mathematics.  I know, the "catch phrase" in today's education is S.T.E.M. (which is a good thing).  But we wanted to add in the L to stress the importance of literacy in the content areas.  Teachers facilitated stations dressed as their favorite book characters.  Students had the opportunity to engage in a wealth of learning experiences in a fun and meaningful way.   We had a huge turn out, and an amazing time. A FEW of the stations were...

• Elephant Toothpaste with the Cat in the Hat
• Plant dissection with Mrs. Frizzle
• Lava Lamps with the Lava Ladies
• Ice Cream with the Ice Queens
• The Great Balloon Take Off
• Dancing Raisins with Professor Nos It
• The Electrified Field Trip
• "May the Fold Be With You" with Darth Vader and Princess Leia
• Dora the Explorer Sets Sail!  

Also, it was also a BYOT event.  Students could "find" Waldo, Fancy Nancy, or Amelia Bedelia to answer S.T.E.M. - based questions using their Smart devices for prizes.  Family math game packs were given out as well.  It was a great time for the whole family, and a wonderful opportunity for our entire instructional community to engage in meaningful learning experiences that truly speaks to the direction we are moving in.  A special shout out goes to Wayne Carley, editor in chief of Georgia S.T.E.M. Magazine.  He brought a drone to our event, and facilitated four stations where he educated students, teachers, and parents on this type of technology as well as the S.T.E.M. behind it!  His station was a HUGE hit!  Can you tell we had a great time?  Check out our pictures!  More to come...

Kids waving "hello" to the drone...

A S.T.E.M. Minilesson about drone technology...(Thanks, Wayne!)

An "eye in the sky" view of students and parents...(credit: Wayne Carley)

Mrs. Frizzle and Phoebe help parents and students to dissect plants to 

get a closer look and plant production.

"May the Fold Be with You!" ~ the STEM behind oragami making

Where's Waldo?  Who has questions for Amelia Bedelia?

Test Prep Woes...

It's testing season. Yep, that time when teachers take students to feast on surface-level learning (packet, packets, worksheets, drill, drill, worksheets, packets...) to prepare for the "big test."  SO NOT COMMON CORE.

Why?  I truly believe that when the entire year is full of rich, authentic learning experiences, students will rise to the occasion when it's test time.  So teachers, PLEASE don't abandon everything that makes sense, and everything that pushes our students toward critical thinking and deeper understanding of mathematics...all for the name of a multiple choice test.  Some schools call seasons like this "March Madness."  I don't have the answers, but it's certainly not this. We've come a long way, but we still have a long way to go. I don't neccesarily want to shift the focus away from my essential message by posting test prep, but for the sake of teachers' stress levels, I'll provide a few links to the right...

This is how I feel about "March Madness."

 If we give our babies our best, they will rise to the occasion!

 

P.S. In no way is this post specific to any particular school or program.  It is purely comprised of the author's observations at many schools.