This content has been archived. It may no longer be relevant
Two New Learning Opportunities for Washington Township Students
By Assistant Superintendent Dr. Jon Milleman
Learning S.T.E.M. at an Early Age
Students at John Strange Elementary are thinking like engineers thanks to an after school S.T.E.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) Club program. Teacher, Kim Matsuoka, and interventionist, Kathy Brown, created the club. During first semester, 1st and 2nd graders meet after school to learn about the four areas of S.T.E.M. education. During second semester, students in grades 3 through 5 will participate. Mrs. Matsuoka and Mrs. Brown use web-based resources, and items found in the students’ daily environment to create hands-on learning activities to make the Club’s curriculum come to life. Students are exposed to six strands of engineering: structural, environmental, mechanical, software, aeronautical, and chemical. Students keep a journal about their experiences and learn how to work as teams to solve problems. “My goal for the S.T.E.M. Club is really to plant seeds for opportunities,” says Mrs. Matsuoka. “Whether what they learn here helps students in classes they will take in middle school and high school or if what they learn factors in to a possible career choice, we are hoping to plant seeds for opportunity.”
Coding – A Middle School Approach
This year, to better prepare students for the challenges of the future in the global economy, students at Westlane Middle School were provided with an opportunity to take a course in coding. A new structure to the middle school schedule this year allowed for the elective to be added. Myron Snelson is the teacher and explains the goal of the course, “The primary goal of this course is to introduce students to the concepts of coding while teaching them to think conceptually, creatively, and computationally. We are giving them opportunities to more deeply examine things conceptually; like the complexity of programs behind the video games they are playing.”
To that end, Mr. Snelson uses a program developed by students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.) called Scratch. The program uses an age appropriate, user-friendly platform to provide a fun way for students to develop programs and aspects of programs and see the application to areas such as mathematics, science, education, graphic art, graphical storytelling, and music.
