Embedded Files
Students develop STEM skills and cross-cutting competencies that support workforce readiness.
Students develop STEM skills and cross-cutting competencies that support workforce readiness.
Concept 1 - School/program has identified discipline-specific skills and cross-cutting competencies (i.e. 21st Century Skills, soft skills) and aligned sources of student performance data for each of these areas.
Concept 1 - School/program has identified discipline-specific skills and cross-cutting competencies (i.e. 21st Century Skills, soft skills) and aligned sources of student performance data for each of these areas.
Concept 2 - STEM events, curriculum, and learning activities provide opportunities for career exploration and workplace experiences.
Concept 2 - STEM events, curriculum, and learning activities provide opportunities for career exploration and workplace experiences.
Fairhope West Elementary implements the Leader in Me to teach the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The skills are divided into three sections: Leadership, Culture, and Academics. The Measurable Results Assessment, MRA, is administered to 3rd-graders to determine the effectiveness of the cross-cutting competencies. The MRA assesses the 21st century skills and soft skills through the attitudes and behaviors of students in regards to the paradigms and practices of the Seven Habits. In May 2019, the MRA score for Student Leadership was defined as effective.
Breakout
Hour of Code
In addition to the Leader in Me framework, we utilize a 21st century framework from Battelle for Kids and the World Economic Forum’s report, “New Vision for Education: Fostering Social and Emotional Learning Through Technology.” The frameworks include foundational literacies, competencies, and character qualities. The strategy for implementing our vision for embedding 21st century skills includes the following STEAM learning opportunities:
Hour of Code and Computer Science Education Week
BreakoutEDU for critical thinking
3-D design and printing
Cooperative grouping and learning
Problem solving with self-help desk and technology
Explicit technology instruction through Technology Academy and coaching
Inquiry and problem-based units
During the Hour of Code and computer science week, all students in the school are expected to complete a coding activity in class. Teachers are encouraged to invite a parent or community member to the school to code with the class. As a culminating activity, students interview a computer science professional. The interview is played for the whole school on the morning announcements. The interview contains student reporters and student-created questions.
MRA Summary July, 2018 to June, 2019.pdfMRA Data
MRA data measures Student Leadership at 83 which is “Effective.” Student Leadership includes confidence, group leadership, interpersonal effectiveness, industry and perseverance, personal effectiveness, and others.
LIM.movOur math and science curricula and our guided reading books all feature career explorations for students. Each year, the first-graders of Fairhope West Elementary School host a celebration of careers. Parents are invited to speak to classes about their career. This learning is followed with a student parade in which students dress in their “dream” career clothes. Second grade girls who represented a female scientist at the Wax Museum were recognized on a special school display. Third grade girls may participate in a career club for girls where STEAM speakers educate females on women in science. Our library features a section of books focused on girls in science and other nonfiction career books. Female students present book club chats on the morning news, WFES, to encourage other girls to read about women in science. Finally, through our annual Silent Auction, parents offer experiences for students to work alongside them in many STEAM fields - veterinary science, Paleontologist for the Day, and local news and weather anchors.
MyStream_0.mp4Women in STEAM
Wax Museum.mp4Wax Museum
10000000_514499569116477_4821592645119770624_n (1).mp4Michael White from FOX 10 News does the weather with one of our students.
Our STEMscopes and Mystery Science curriculum incorporates the Engineering Design Process into classroom lessons to expose students to real-world issues and problems. These curricula include lessons that allow students to investigate. For example, students designed a hat that would protect them from the Sun, students designed containers for plants to determine under which conditions the plants would grow best, and students explored ways in which worms help soil.
Engineering Design Process
Analyzing Soil Samples
Building Containers to Maximize Growth
Our third-graders participated in a virtual tour of the makerspace at Black & Decker through Discovery Education. After this Livestream experience, students utilized our school makerspace to engineer inventions of their own.
SCE.movOur sixth-graders campaign for office in our school’s student council, serving as president, vice president, secretary and treasurer, developing skills required to organize and represent their peers. Additionally, sixth grade students develop their media production skills by summarizing historical events and their impact.
Our parents and businesses offer career exploration opportunities in veterinary science, paleontology, Skype opportunity with Saturday Night Live, Jr, Scientist for a Day at Weeks Bay, Park ranger for a day at Gulf State Park, and others. Experiences like these are preparing our children for 21st century careers and jobs that haven’t even been invented yet.
Sustaining Current Practice
Sustaining Current Practice
Continue with:
Club Day
FWES Live
Pelican's Nest Integration
GRITC Conference
eMints Teacher Training
Ron Clark Academy
Soft Skills
Leader in Me
Next Steps
Next Steps
Our MRA data indicated two pieces that “Need Improvement,” The student-led achievement score is 64, and the student engagement score is 69. Student-led achievement includes growth mindset, self-efficacy, academic goal achievement, and student motivation. Student engagement includes learning engagement and school belonging.
We would like to expand our sponsorships to partnerships so that students can participate in more real-world problem-solving. Now that we have intermediate students, we anticipate more scientists will see our students as capable of solving real-world problems.
More professional involvement (increase female presence)
Report abuse