Post 2: First Date

I've decided to explore the idea of preparing for the staff development I will be delivering in August (as you will see, we are lucky to be having Greg Young join us. ) I will explore the maker process by creating and modeling several paper and fabric circuits and will research STEAM/Maker resources that will guide me and my colleagues throughout the year.

Projects to complete

• Paper circuitry book demonstrating different types of circuits and switches (like the one we started in class)
• Another creative paper circuit project, to be determined.
• Finish the soft circuit bookmark sewn with conductive thread, LED and battery from class
• Move on to a soft circuit project that uses the lily pad simple.
• (If I have time I may dabble with a lily pad project where I need to program the lily pad)

 

STEAM Professional Development - preliminary ideas

Purpose:

• Introduce staff to NGSS Engineering Standards and the world of making
• Provide an opportunity to practice a hands-on engineering problem that they can use with their students.
• Provide time, resources and support for teachers to plan an engineering activity to use in an existing unit - any content area
• Share STEAM opportunities already in place and share ideas for the upcoming year

I will introduce the  to Engineering Standards in NGSS and provide an update on our district science curriculum work.  To wet everyone's appetites, I will address the STEAM movement by talking about my limited but enthusiastic attempts this summer, showing my projects and briefly outlining the content standards they address. 

Greg Young will lead us in a design task that allows for all steps in engineering design process and provides an activity teachers can use in their classroom

I will showcase resources I've prepared and give teachers work time to review them with the goal of  finding a task that would enhance learning for an existing unit. Ideas will be shared in a Google doc.  

Some (pre-selected)  teachers will share out of initiatives tried last year.

All will be asked to share any new ideas they've gathered today. 

Classroom teachers will have time to meet with specialists (art, music and me) to start to plan for integrated STEAM activities.

 

 

 

  

First Thoughts on Project

Well, I've made it into Blogger! After a few puzzling attempts from my ipad I jumped onto a "real" computer and here I am. As I imagine is true for all of us, ideas have been rattling around in my head all weekend - thoughts about everything I sampled at the buffet last week and how I want to synthesize this new learning into a project. I go back and forth between assuming the maker role and wanting to create a practical application for school. My list of potentials includes

• designing/creating a maker space in my classroom and creating sample projects to have on display (such as paper circuits and lily pad creation), 
• diving into lily pad arduinos and making one big project (which would help me better understand and finish some textile projects I started with students in the spring and need to finish), or 
• preparing for staff development I will be delivering in August by planning a presentation that looks at making, engineering, and NGSS standards, modelling several projects I make in advance and connecting them to the standards as examples, and researching multiple websites and other resources where teachers can find tasks that enhance the units (especially in math and science) that they are already teaching. 

That's where my head is on this rainy afternoon. To be continued....