STEM Stories

STEM Stories is the bridge between STEM learning and our communities.

The STEM Stories Project, funded by the National Science Foundation, highlights and strengthens the connections between students of diverse racial, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds in all contexts such as schools, neighborhoods, and family by asking them to find STEM Stories everywhere. We seek to amplify the idea that all students are a part of the STEM community and to shift the deficit thinking about low-income families and families of color as sources of STEM knowledge.

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STEM Stories es el puente entre el aprendizaje de STEM y nuestras comunidades.

El Proyecto STEM Stories, financiado por la Fundación Nacional de Ciencias, destaca y fortalece las conexiones entre estudiantes de diversos orígenes raciales, étnicos y socioeconómicos en todos los contextos, como escuelas, vecindarios y familias, al pedirles que encuentren historias de STEM en todas partes. Buscamos ampliar la idea de que todos los estudiantes son parte de la comunidad STEM y cambiar el pensamiento deficitario en las familias de bajos ingresos y las familias de color como fuentes de conocimiento de STEM.

What is a STEM Story?

A STEM Story is a narrative about an experience that a person has had in their home, neighborhood, school, or anywhere in the world. The story documents the connections to Science, Technology, Engineering, and/or Mathematics through a visual, written, or audio format. STEM can be found and learned everywhere, formally and informally in homes, neighborhoods, markets, and all places of community. Wherever you see STEM in the world, you can find a STEM Story. STEM Stories increase interest and engagement in STEM subjects and allows students to expand their knowledge about what STEM is and where we find it.

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Traducción En español

¿Qué es un STEM Story?

Un STEM Story es una narración sobre una experiencia que una persona ha tenido en su casa, barrio, escuela o en cualquier lugar. La historia documenta las conexiones con la ciencia, la tecnología, la ingeniería y/o las matemáticas a través de un formato visual, escrito o de audio. STEM se puede encontrar y aprender en todas partes, formal e informalmente en hogares, vecindarios, mercados y todos los lugares de la comunidad. Dondequiera que vea STEM en el mundo, puede encontrar una historia de STEM. STEM Stories aumenta el interés y la participación en las materias STEM y permite a los estudiantes ampliar su conocimiento sobre qué es STEM y dónde lo encontramos.

We can't do this without Our Community:

No podemos hacer esto sin Nuestra Comunidad:

parents/
Padres

Parents are involved in the STEM and STEM Stories inquiry process alongside their students and teachers.

Students/
Estudiantes

A group of three students posing next to their final project

Students engage in storytelling and the gathering of stories from their communities to discover how our daily lives is fueled by STEM concepts.

educators/
educadores

Educators are partnering in the discovery with parents, students, and the community to cultivate a curiosity and passion for STEM through STEM Stories.

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Los padres mejoran su comprensión de STEM para ayudar a sus hijos a ver STEM en diversos contextos comunitarios fuera de la clase.

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Los estudiantes utilizan la narración de cuentos y comienzan a reconocer y conectar STEM a su vida diaria por su cuenta.

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Los educadores desarrollan la investigación de los estudiantes y las habilidades y conocimientos de STEM que les permiten tomar la iniciativa para hacer preguntas y encontrar los cuentos de STEM.

A student posing next to the entrance of the Giant Room - a wall with a red circle with the wordsthe Giant Room

with Castle Bridge School

A student posing next to a whiteboard that says "Welcome to Washington Heights Stem Center"

STEM Stories at Home

Our students selected people from their homes and communities to interview. Students used this time with their interviewee to gather STEM Stories. There were many STEM Stories gathered from various settings such as homes and work. These stories helped students expand their understanding of STEM practices within their own lives as well as their communities. Please visit our STEM Stories Gallery by clicking below.

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STEM Stories en el Hogar

Les pedimos a nuestros estudiantes que entrevistaran a alguien en su hogar o comunidad sobre cómo usan STEM para su trabajo o en casa. Esto les permitió ampliar su comprensión de las prácticas STEM e identificar STEM dentro de sus propias vidas personales. Haga clic para ver nuestra galería de STEM Stories.

What did we learn from our students' STEM Stories?

"We did the parent interviews and a lot of kids were like, I can’t interview my parent. One child said, 'My dad is a DoorDash driver, so that has nothing to do with STEM.' I did say wait, you have to think about that a little more. Being a DoorDash driver takes more than just delivering someone’s food. It’s not that simple.

We had a very rich conversation discussing all of the things that a DoorDash driver needs to consider and then that student came up with the conclusion herself, like yeah, I never thought of it that way. Really, it’s one thing to teach them STEM is everywhere but it’s another thing for them to see it and have their parents as an example, that they’re using STEM. So, we were talking about the routes, like how her dad has to take different routes and sometimes he has to ignore the GPS, the technology, because it’s giving him slower routes and that could affect his tip and that could affect so many things. So, there’s the math involved with money, and also spatial orientation and thinking about how long it takes for food to cool off even though he has a bag that has thermal heating and all this technology that is supposed to help keep the food fresh."

- Jazlyn, Castle Bridge Teacher

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¿Qué aprendimos de las historias STEM de nuestros estudiantes?

- reflection from interview with jazlyn-

STEM Stories in the Community

After learning how to identify STEM stories in new contexts, our students had the opportunity to learn more about real-world applications of STEM by going out into the community and finding STEM Stories there. The different visits were centered around their projects they created for their Biomimicry Unit. According to the Biomimicry Institute, Biomimicry is a practice that learns from and mimics the strategies found in nature to solve human design challenges—and find hope. Our students worked in teams to take inspiration from their observations of nature to solve everyday problems within their communities. We structured our field learning experiences around the engineering design process as shown below:

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Visitando la comunidad

Después de aprender a identificar historias de STEM en nuevos contextos, nuestros estudiantes tuvieron la oportunidad de aprender más sobre las aplicaciones de STEM en el mundo real yendo a la comunidad y encontrando historias de STEM allí.

The engineering design process supported the students in reframing their approach to STEM and how they communicate their understanding of STEM concepts as well as their application of those STEM concepts for innovation. Students discovered the many ways they interact with STEM on a daily basis and how it is truly intertwined with their lives. Designing products to solve problems they observed in their daily lives help them learn that they can take any lived experience and become a STEMist. We hope our students will begin making observations on the world that surrounds them and ask, "What is the STEM story behind this"?

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For their Biomimicry unit, students began the design process by making observations to identify and define a problem they believed was important to solve for their community. Students used that information to write a problem statement that would guide their inquiry for the rest of the unit. Teachers made arrangements for students to visit the Bronx Zoo and their local playgrounds to observe living and non-living things in environments as close to their natural habitats as possible to glean inspiration for innovation. At the zoo, students engaged in different activities at the Bronx Zoo in an effort to discover the different ways animals adapt to their environments in hope that those adaptations may spark ideas for an innovative solution to their problem. Story fueled the inquiry and innovation.

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Students learned about different tools available to them for their Biomimicry projects at the Washington Heights STEM Center. They learned how to use a laser cutter for engraving plexiglass to personalize their project with images or their team name. Students also learned about circuits and experimented with electrical components such as breadboards, LEDs, and motors. Using the tools available to them, they got to brainstorm solutions for their projects.

Proposed Innovative Solutions:

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Project Prototypes:

Pieces of cardboard and foam cut up into shapes that altogether make the body of a tiger: four legs, a body, and two ears

The Stressed Club

A robot with a motor and two wheels with foam cut into a shape of a hamster attached on top

Team Hammy Cleaner

Cardboard cut into the shape of a monkey

Spider Monkey Lunch

In the last phase of the engineering design process, the students took their prototypes to The Giant Room! Students tested and improved their prototypes at this hub of innovation. They added motorized parts, LED lights, laser cut designs, and 3D-printed parts to refine their model. Each team of STEMists brought their designs to life, strengthening their confidence in the engineering design process and the overall STEM field. Students proudly displayed their new prototypes, a culmination of their hard work and experience of going through the entire engineering design process. The students took a MAJOR step forward in their STEM journey.