The 3rd Annual Think Tank and STEM Expo Math Problem:
What do you get when you mix 44 scientists, engineers, educators and professionals from national leading STEM organizations with 40 volunteers, then add in 200 excited elementary learners and 250 (just as excited )adults? You end up with ONE amazing night of THINKING AND LEARNING!
AEOP brought their night vision lab! How cool! They also gave away waterproof notepads.
The cold and snow didn't slow this event one bit! Words can't possibly begin to explain this year's event so I'll rely on the pictures to tell the story!While not every table is represented in the pictures below, many are! As more pictures come in, I'll be sure to add them!
(For a more detailed description of the event, visit The Hill is Home for a post by a visitor!)
3-D Printer at work. Special case even created by engineer Erik Donald so kids could get up close and personal!
Erik Donald shows off the model rocket his printer printed during the Expo... and a lucky student took home!
During the Expo there were three presentations in the my classroom from amazing raptor expert Jo Santiago from Flying Higher LLC's! Thanks to the National Forest Service for bringing this amazing presentation
Toni Burnham with DC Beekeepers shares her expertise with future beekeepers!
The National Forest Service team had one popular (and messy) station! Students made "milkweed mud balls" allowing them to take home seeds to start their own Monarch waystations!
DC Department of Environment's Dan Rauch, Laura Washington, Michelle Lewis and Teresa Rodriguez led nearly 100 students in making their own bird feeders, examining live amphibians and sharing the many resources DDoE's Aquatic Resource Center has to offer!
Lindsey Williams from NOAA shares "shoebox nautical charting" with interested students.
Labyrinth Games and Puzzles Owner Kathleen Donahue welcomes early visitors to the ever popular game tables. These games stimulate problem solving, spacial skills and more!
Master Astronomer Guy Brandenburg from National Capital Astronomers braved 3 hours in the single digits to allow visitors a clear view of Jupiter and it's 4 moons! He MADE that telescope himself! You were lucky to catch it without a long line, even in the cold!
TuVa Labs showed students how to find real life data using their great online platform!
Thank you to Camsie McAdams, Senior Advisor on STEM Education at the US Department of Education for visiting our event! She brought along colleague Marisa Bold (not pictured) and I loved seeing them engaging with students and families.
Many thanks to ALL involved, to my amazing principal for valuing the Think Tank program and my initiatives and to each and every visitor for making this night a success.
Now Maury families get ready.... your children are about to embark on huge engineering units in all grades! Info coming soon:)
The 3rd Annual Maury Think Tank and STEM Expo is Thursday, January 23rd from 6-7:30pm! Learn more about it below or HERE!
Would you like this flyer for your people in your school or community? See below!
What IS this Expo anyway? From presentations with live hawks and owls and wearing
night vision goggles to planting personal milkweed plants and using a
3-D printer, visitors to the 3rd Annual Maury Elementary STEM Expo will
get to experience STEM careers first-hand from the scientists,
engineers, educators and professionals who do the work each day!
Designed like an exhibition hall, experts from over 20 STEM
organizations will engage students, families and community members in
activities that represent their work. The Expo is designed to make STEM
accessible to ALL learners, from preschool up! Past years have only been
open to Maury students, but this year we are opening our doors to all
DCPS staff, families and community members! This event is completely
free and most organizations also bring items that visitors can take
home with them ( much like the "swag" adults get at conferences)! If you
have any questions, feel free to contact Vanessa Ford at
vanessa.ford@dc.gov. You can also print out flyers for your school or community! Do you have flyers I can print to give to my school or community members?
YES! Feel free to print and share and I look forward to THINKING, LEARNING and EXPLORING with all of you next Thursday at 6pm!
Are you planning to attend and are not a Maury family?
Yay! I'm thrilled you will join us! Please consider emailing me at vanessa.ford@dc.gov to help me make an estimate of how many people are coming! I want to ensure I have enough "Swag Bags" and other goodies for all our visitors!
-Vanessa Ford
PS: Follow on Twitter @maurythinktank for updates on our program!
Flying Higher LLC will represent the National Forest Service with live Birds of Prey!
HAVE YOU EVER WANTED TO....
Use night vision goggles ? Get up close to LIVE birds of prey?
Make a bird feeder ? Wear a beekeeper outfit ?
Problem solve with games ? Use a 3-D Printer?
Learn about neurons and your body ? Explore the Anacostia River Watershed ?
View Jupiter with a large telescope ? Get up close to live birds of prey?
National Capitol Astronomers!
Hold local aquatic wildlife? Meet “Wendy the Waterdrop” ?
Become an architect ? Build bridges ?
Explore with magnets ? Learn about submersibles ?
See how data impacts our world ? See how your eye works ?
Hold real aquatic animals ? Dissect owl pellets ?
Use real Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation to see how your brain and muscles interact... AND MORE?
It will be printing out something special for the raffle!!
If you answered yes to any of the above questions, you will LOVE this year's Expo! With our most extensive list of exhibitors yet, the range of activities for you and your child seems almost endless. (Don't forget! We are welcoming ALL students and families in Washington, DC to our Expo! If you need flyers for your school or community group, please contact vanessa.ford@dc.gov. )
GET TO KNOW OUR EXHIBITORS!
Would you like to learn more about the organizations who will be
providing hands-on, engaging STEM activities for you when you arrive?
Click on each link to go to their website... and get excited!
The 3rd Annual Maury Elementary Think Tank and STEM Expo is almost here!
You are invited to one of the most exciting nights of the year! Come engage with our youngest
scientists, engineers and
problem solvers, learn from the experts and be inspired.
WHEN: January 23rd, 2014 from 6:00 - 7:30pm
WHERE: Maury Elementary
1250 Constitution Ave NE
Washington, DC 20002
WHY:Learn
from leading STEM-based organizations with your child! Engage in
activities from each exhibitor, be inspired ( or become involved!) in
their work.
WHO IS INVITED?All community members, students and STEM-lovers in Washington, DC and surrounding area.
WHO IS EXHIBITING?
Take a look at the impressive list of new and returning exhibitors who
have confirmed so far. To learn more about the organization, just click
on their name. Bookmark this page to see the list grow as new
organizations are added.
In the meantime, enjoy some NON- pellet related Think Tank joy. Feel free to subscribe to my YouTube channel to stay current on all videos posted there of our work as well.
For instance, you can check out this time-lapse of the work during an open period recently. That's some ramp!
Or this Stop Motion Time Lapse of a 3 year old building her "unique" building:
Or this one:
Or this one!
( I'm not only obsessed with pellets, I'm obsessed with the Stop Motion app and how it allows me to look at student progress overtime... with the TIME! Plus their voice overs are just plain cute!)
For those of you who are tired of owl pellets, rest assured change is coming!
4th graders at Green Engineers? Yup.
3rd graders at Environmental Engineers ? That too.
Architecture in the School? Sure thing.
1st Graders at Civil Engineers?? That too!
That's right... we are being our engineering units in the coming weeks!
In the meantime, please enjoy my 4th grade group of animators in their first "full-length" ( 1m30sec) Lego movie entitled : Capture the Flag Car Style
Of course I was an owl pellet for Halloween! (I'm being dissected here!)
Before I begin I must give a MASSIVE shout-out to the incredible parent
volunteered weekly in nearly all my classes to ensure I can stay at work while my still healing back.... heals! I'm constantly amazed by the incredible community I
work in, and thankful to have such wonderful support. I now have parents acting out my read alouds, engaging in content, and adding a new level of knowledge and excitement to the classroom. My back thanks you... as do I!
(We were acting out "How Tall was Milton" a fairy tale about why people may want to use standardized units of measure. Subrat Biswal, parent volunteer extraordinaire, acts as Milton here!)
Now onto everything else....
The Owl Pellet Obsession has not ceased! In fact, the interest students have shown has forced me to delve much deeper into the content than I originally planned! We began our study with a Donor's Choose funded project through Carolina Biological Supply Company then supplemented with wonderful, small business pellet retailer Owl Brand Discovery Kit . (Thanks OBDK for your quick turn around time and unique inventory at the last minute!) I even lead the Maury Staff in their own exploration so they could see what it was all about!
K and 1 students get their first try at using scientific tools to carefully dissect their fragile pellets. Fine motor, sorting, inquiry.... this group took right to the task!
2nd grade not only dissected pellets but then used new, unique pellets collected from a variety of sources to see if they could find evidence of where the pellet was found.
Left and Right hand collaboration in 2nd grade on their lab!
3rd Grade has been lucky enough to have theDC Department of Environment'sWildlife Biologist and Ornithologist Dan Rauch come to present about raptors. I've never seen students have soooo many GREAT questions about a topic! He's such a great sport because for each of their questions, he has written back a response! All questions and responses are, or will soon be, posted in the first floor hallway.
4th and 5th grades took their dissections farther and have begun using dichotomous keys and other organizers to more accurately identify the prey in their pellets. While younger grades are sorting bones into "rodent, mole or bird", this group of students is using clues found in the bones to find out what KIND of rodent, KIND of mole etc.... Did you know that voles have angled teeth and mice and rats have lobed teeth? ( Yeah, me neither, but now we all know!)
After using a bone chart, students began sorting bones. They will be able to determine the number of prey in their pellet, as well as other details from this data.
Lots of drying work... apparently vertebrae "run" when the glue isn't dry:)
Drying completed Dichotomous Keys! Each mandible used in the key is glued to the bottom
Love this key! It was fascinating to learn so much more about the prey, and narrow down more about the owl's diet through this investigation.
Moles have COOL jaws!
IN OTHER THINK TANK CLASSES....
PS3 and PK4 are in the middle of various studies, including "Buildings", "Insects" and "Trees". During Think Tank, students still have center choice with a variety of materials but our read-aloud and songs are content specific. I've been particularly impressed with how excited the students have become about measurement and creating structures that stable or unstable. Whatever the center, students continue to explore science concepts at their own pace.... perfect for their age!
FINALLY.... What do you do when you have indoor recess during construction? You make short animated videos using a great Stop Motion app! Thanks to Animation Chefs for the inspiration! I know that there will be many more of these types of videos to come. Here are our very first student made animated shorts from today!
PHEW..... I'm off to the National Science Teacher's Association Regional Conference in North Carolina bright and early in the morning so I better pack! I will be taking part in the Next Generation Science Standards NSTA training on Saturday and can't wait to bring what I learn back to DC! I'm so lucky to have such a great job, in a school and District that values #STEM!
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