Superbowl of STEM The 3rd Annual Flagstaff Community STEM Celebration kicked off the week on Monday, March 7th at the NAU Skydome with almost every school, STEM business, government agency, and non-profit in Flagstaff! You can relive the excitement with Flg4TV's 2 minute video here! High-Altitude Balloon Launch On Wednesday, March 9th, Teacher Kaci Heins and 100 NPA 6th graders sent their payload to over 106,000 feet on a high-altitude balloon from the Flagstaff Airport. Community Leader Bruce Sidlinger and his Aeronautics Engineering class from Flag High, Airport Director Barney Helmick, the Coconino Amateur Radio Club, the Civil Air Patrol, and many other community partners were there to assist. You can see images and hear the story from KNAU's science and technology field reporter Melissa Sevigny here. Women Executives in STEM Panel NAU hosted the panel on Thursday, March 10th. All of the women had connections to NAU and facilitator Elizabeth Glass recommended that the many students in attendance use their alumni network as they search career opportunities. AZ North Regional The Skydome was brimming again on Friday and Saturday with the CocoNuts and 52 other teams, for NAU's inaugural FIRST Robotics Arizona North Regional contest, which pitted robots against each other to try to take down a castle. You can read Corina Vanek's article on the event here. Microchip sponsored pit tours by volunteers from many of the teams, as well as a VIP luncheon that was well-attended by Flagstaff's government, business, and education leaders. FIRST, which stands for --- , is a non-profit founded in 1989 by Dean Kamen, the inventor of the Segway. It encourages students to pursue STEM and also develops skills in teamwork, problem-solving, creativity, and gracious professionalism. Congratulations to everyone on helping make STEM Week 2016 the best ever in Flagstaff STEM City!
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Marsha Reynolds, 5th grade teacher, and Jessica Soifer, Art teacher, have partnered for an after school 5th grade STEAM Club that has students engaged in numerous projects. Marsha borrowed Flagstaff STEM City's Engineering Adventures Kit on Rockets and Rovers called "Lift Off". Note: Look here if you are also interested in borrowing an engineering kit! Marsha Reynolds writes: "Both Mrs. Soifer and I have been privileged to help lead the 5th grade STEAM club at Knoles Elementary. We enjoy working with a dedicated group of students who are interested in science, art, engineering and technology and on top of that, are willing to stay after school once a week for the activities we provide. These students are creative, and do a wonderful job of persevering through the projects that we introduce." These dedicated teachers also bring in other professionals. Tenielle Gaither, from the USGS Astrogeology Center, observed students building their rovers. And Jeff Jones, the Dean of Arts and Sciences at Coconino Community College, brought in a 3D Printer and students learned how to use the printer to create something original. Jessica Soifer writes: "The motivation behind STEAM club is our dedicated students. The students show up once a week after school with eyes wide open and execute the daily projects. We have designed our lessons to ensure the students are exploring a range of content among Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics. The students explore through experiential learning, discover new ideas and designs, while problem solving, working collaboratively, and having fun. Marsha Reynolds and I work well together. We each have different strengths that compliment each other to bring success to the STEAM club. We collaborate and provide an easy going vibe and flexibility to facilitate a fun and exciting learning environment for all students."
Congratulations to this successful collaboration that has so many students happily engaged in such a variety of projects in their after school STEAM Club! Guest Blog by Christine Sapio On November 17, 2015, 70 students from Coconino High School competed in the Annual Great Cardboard Boat Race. The students were members of the Coconino Institute of Technology program and the Advanced Placement Physics class. The annual race between AP Physics and the CIT II Engineering students has been a tradition since the beginning of the CIT program with the first race taking place in 2003. Students build boats large enough to hold two people out of nothing but cardboard and duct tape. The boats are limited to a weight of 40 lbs, and the tape could only be used on the seams. Students then calculate the waterline on the boat when fully loaded with two people and placed in the water by using principles of buoyancy. Students then paddle their boats across a full-sized pool using whitewater paddles. The best overall boat at the Great Cardboard Boat Race is judged based on a number of criteria, including the time it takes to paddle the boat one full lap (50 meters), if the boat could survive three full laps (150 m), how much weight the boat held if it survived 150 meters, and the weight of the boat. A number of awards were also judged based on performance, including team spirit, most innovative design, and best “Titanic” moment or best sinking. The winners of the 2015 Great Cardboard Boat Race are:
Most Spirit Hallie Chiaverini & Tayler Dominguez (Santa’s Sleigh) - CIT Jack Lutch & Tyler Darnell (Ark II) - AP Physics Most Creative Design Aster Rich & Jessica Han - AP Physics Shandiin Miller & Meredith Norine - CIT Best Titanic (Most Dramatic Sinking) Richard McCormick & Coby Guerrero - CIT Drew Stringer & Kelsey Chiaverini - AP Physics Golden Oars (Fastest 50 m) Tristen Eddie & Matt Norris - 66 seconds/50 m - AP Physics Ferry Award (Most Weight Supported) Aaron Helwig, Ian Russell & Justin Heath – 1370 lbs - AP Physics Black Pearl Award (Best Boat Overall) Luke Peterson & Spencer Larson - 54 secs/50 m, 1619 lbs - CIT Congratulations to all! Jim Tuck and Phred Salazar are STEAMing ahead with an after school model train club at Sechrist Elementary School. Ten 4th and 5th grade students are learning science, technology, engineering, art, and math as they build their model trains. Using the T-Trak system (www.ttrak.org) each student builds their own module that then connects with the other modules to create an interconnected railroad system.
The students will exhibit their trains at the Flagstaff Community STEM Celebration in the spring at the NAU dome, and also for Youth Day at the Flagstaff Mall.
Thank you to Phred and Jim for bringing STEAM to students through model trains! |