Can't wait to post photos, videos and more about the event!
February 2nd is our annual Science Fair/STEAM night. This year it will be from 5:30-7. At 5:30 we will have a ribbon cutting event to reopen our newly expanded library! A couple STEAM activities will be there for people to enjoy as well as take a look at the beautiful addition. In the gym you will see 3rd grade inventions, 4th grade science fair projects and 5th grade multi-media presentations. On the bulletin boards you will see all the grades showing things they have done in the STEAMworks lab or in the classrooms. 2nd grade invented Toys. Both the 3rd grade and 2nd grade projects have QR codes which means with your smartphone and earbuds you can hear the student talking in a video about their invention or their toy design. Download the free app, QR scanner, and bring your earbuds! An example is below.
Can't wait to post photos, videos and more about the event!
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STEAM night is next week and 5th graders are busy working on Multi-media presentations. They had to choose a scientist to research and then produce a Google Slide Presentation (1 slide). On the slide they are required to have 3 photographs of the scientist or their work, three interesting facts about the scientist, a list of their accomplishments with dates, and active link to a website about the scientist (no higher than a 3rd grade level), and a 30 sec-2 minute embedded student created video. The videos we've seen so far are slideshows, green screened videos, interviews, and stop motion. A couple students have connected a paper copy of their presentation to a computer program they have written in scratch. When someone walks up to the presentation they can touch certain spots and see an animation on a computer screen or hear information about the scientist. Can't wait to see the final products - more photos and information coming! Just wanted to let you know that the STEAMworks lab is being used during class, recess, and advisory to create some of the videos and students love having the space, the green screen and the ipads available to them! Thanks again to the grant and the support of PTA!
First graders went to the STEAMworks lab to see what soil, sand, rocks, fossils and shells look like under the microscopes. These digital microscopes were purchased with our grant money and the kids LOVE them. They can also take them off the stand and of course they had to look at things like their fingerprints, clothing, hair, and keyboards. They can't wait to come back when they are studying plants to see what those look like up close and personal! We'll use these pictures next week when we write about our observations in a digital drawing package, Pixie.
We have 20 Lego WeDo kits in the STEAMWORKS lab. We let the 2-5th graders use them. Younger students could use them but if you lose certain pieces it makes the kit unusable. Building and programming a model takes about an hour. Since I usually only see 2nd grade for 40 mins. we split it into 2 sessions - a building session and a programming session. I like to put the "expert builders together and the less experienced people together. This makes sure that everyone is touching and building and not sitting and watching. I LOVE it when I can go up to first timers and tell them they are further along than the experts. This first year I give the students the choice of building a kicking leg, a goal keeper, or cheerleaders. The leg being the easiest, the cheerleaders the toughest. Everyone leaves the room ultimately being successful. Below are videos of the kids putting two completed kits together. The first one is the kicking leg trying to kick past the goal keeper. Not only do they program the goal keeper to move side to side but sensing when the ball goes through the goal and putting the score on a scoreboard. Also below you see a ball going through the goal and when it passes the cheerleaders (actually I think someone arm goes in front of the sensor), the cheerleaders cheer. Fun times!
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AuthorMy name is Anne Jarriel and I oversee the SteamWorks lab at Gullett Elementary. I'm blogging about what I see and lead in the STEAM lab which is mostly kids just having a great time! Archives
January 2018
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