STEM.tas.tic

Below you will find some of the Lessons Taught

Download Build a Levee - Grade 5

Download Boxing up the Weather - Grade 4

Download Mineral Display STEM Challenge - Grade 3

Matter Everywhere

 
Second grade students loved experimenting with matter!

  

Mini STEM Challenge - Paper Chain

Who can make the longest chain using only one piece of paper?

Native American Houses

What a fun STEM challenge! Second grade students followed the Engineer Design Process to create Creek and Cherokee homes.

 

Destination Imagination, 2nd Grade

Do you want to have fun and be part of a team?

Do you like to create new things? Build or design? Paint or draw? Act or improvise? Write or compose? Do you look at things differently than others around you? Enjoy being part of a team? Looking for something cool?

If the answer is yes to these questions, then you would enjoy Destination ImagiNation®. DI is for anyone who likes to be creative in one way or another. It doesn’t matter whether you get all A’s in school or even high scores on tests! Anyone can participate in DI if they are willing to work hard with fellow teammates!

WHAT IS DESTINATION IMAGINATION?

Destination ImagiNation (or DI for short), is a rather unique opportunity for kids to use their creativity and work together to solve a challenge. A team of up to 7 students will work on a solution to a Rising Stars! Challenge for younger kids in kindergarten through 2^nd grade.

In March, teams will take their solutions to a local affiliate tournament where they will showcase their creativity, see how others solved the same Challenge, celebrate their accomplishments and really have FUN!

 

WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE ON A DI TEAM?

You must be committed! DI will be a lot of FUN, but it will also take some time.

However, if you have at least one free afternoon per week or some weekend time, you probably can fit it in.

Below is a rough idea of the time commitment you would need to make:

• November – January -- one meeting per week
• February – at least 1-maybe 2 sessions per week
• March-- the Affiliate Tournament is in March-- plan on lots of meetings to get ready!You MUST come to scheduled meetings! You are part of a TEAM and they are depending on YOU!Sound like FUN? DI is starting at YOUR school for 2^nd graders, so tell your Mom or Dad that you want to find out more about DI, and have them email your school coordinators! Next, attend a meeting about DI! With Mom or Dad! Check out gadi.org for more information!Meeting Date: Monday, November 28th   Time: 2:45-4:00   Location: Room M4- 2^nd gradeCoordinators’ Email: nina.delk@cobbk12.org / pamela.wilfred@cobbk12.org
•                                                     
• DI Program Coordinators: Ms. Delk / Mrs. Wilfred

Student Participation in Science Fair

King Springs is developing a STEM culture among our faculty and students. Through professional learning opportunities, we are exposing our teachers to the possibilities we can and should be giving our students if they are to be prepared for the best opportunities in the future.

            For the past 3 years, our students, on a strictly optional basis, have produce between 110 and 120 projects each year. Our STEM cohort has developed a science fair rollout to support the STEM culture we are developing.

            This year, all kindergarten, 1^st and 2^nd grade classes will develop a class science project, thoroughly acquainting students with the Scientific Method. Each class will submit their project for display on STEM night in January 2017.

            This year, students in grades 3-5 will receive extra credit for submitting a science fair project two days before the STEM night. Their projects will be judged and the top two projects in each grade will be sent to the district Science Fair in February, 2017.

            Next school year, 2017-2018, 3^rd grade students will receive a grade for their science fair projects (students may work in small groups) while it will remain extra credit for grades 4 and 5. In the 2018-2019 school year 3^rd and 4^th grade students will receive a grade, while it remains extra credit for 5^th.

This chart shows the projected increase in participation:

School Year	2015-2016	2016-2017	2017-2018	2018-2019
Participants	Optional to all	K-2 mandatory 3-5 extra credit	K-3 mandatory 4 & 5 extra credit	K-4 mandatory 5 extra credit
% Participation	13%	57%	70%	84%

These numbers are based on current enrollment per grade level and a conservative estimate of the projected optional performance for the upper grades.

To facilitate greater participation, extra workshops will be hosted after school and help will be offered in the media center during recess times. Resources will be supplied through the STEM resource room through a generous donation from the KSE Foundation/PTA.

We believe this rolling approach will give our students a strong background in the early grades and prepare them for success in the upper grades. We are unwilling to require participation for the sake of appearances without ensuring students will have what they need to produce meaningful and quality work.

Interdisciplinary Learning through STEM - Engaging 3rd Grade Students

Students were asked by the Tellus Science Museum to create a new display explaining the physical attributes of minerals.  As an individual the students needed to create a display for one mineral. Then as a team they created a larger array display. The display must be an equal array and they had to explain the minerals shape, color, texture, streak, and hardness.  The display must have a minimum of 6 compartments and they had to create a multiplication sentence to match their display.  Click here to Download The rest of the story!

Kindergarten Zoo Animal PBL

All of the Kindergarten students read the book Animals Strike at the Zoo. It's True! by Karma Wilson. They then were posed with the question: "What would you do if all of the zoo animals went on strike?" Students were lead to create their very own "new" zoo animals to be on exhibit at our local zoo!

The students were hard at work planning, designing, and researching their zoo animals in order to create a hybrid! Students used the engineer and design process to create animals such as, a Manda a Monkey and a Panda or a Rhebra a Rhino and a Zebra. Students worked together in their teams to choose their animals covering, body parts, and the way their new animals would move. Once they had their plan made they began constructing their 3D model of their animal. After they were finished they worked hard to add details to the animal to make them look as real as possible! See for yourself! Look below to see their hard work pay off!

I personally think their new Zoo animals are far more interesting than the ordinary ones you see everyday!

 

STEM-a-Palooza Training

Over the Summer some dedicated STEM loving teachers attended a two day STEM training provided by Cobb County School District. By attending this training not only did these teachers receive some fun and innovative ways to include STEM into their everyday instruction, but they also received some AWESOME prizes for our students! King Springs as a whole won 3 Spheros for the students to practice their coding skills!

The teachers who attended are:

K-Mary Beth Trulove
2nd-Nina Delk
3rd-Sara Hersch & Emily Atkins
4th- Lily Denny(Parkinson)
5th-Patricia Calvin-Thomas
STEM Teacher 92-5 campus)- Joannah Shoushtarian