STEM
MEET MS. TRAFTON
I have been teaching at Lincoln Middle School since 2005, and this will be my 32nd year of teaching in my career. I graduated from Santa Clara University with a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics, University of Iowa with a Master’s Degree in Mathematics Education, and the Illinois Institute of Technology with a Master's Degree in Science Education. I am a co-teacher for IMSA Fusion after-school STEM class. Some of my favorite things are my family and friends, traveling, hiking, bicycling, baking, playing board games, planning and participating in service trips and projects, and finding mathematics in nature! (In my photo to the left I'm pointing to the words "Fibonacci Sequence" in the description of the trail's steps.) I look forward to an exciting and successful year!
STEM CURRICULA
6th Grade - Architectural Design
Learn and use the Design Thinking process that architects use to solve a variety of design challenges
Development of Chicago Architecture
Learn about a variety of architects and their works
7th Grade - Molecular Engineering
Nanotechnology
Viruses
Engineering challenges
8th Grade - Forensic Science
Learn how to analyze different kinds of evidence and interview "persons of interest" to solve mysteries and a crime scene investigation
Writing case summaries, like a detective, for mysteries
Practicing deductive reasoning skills with puzzles and games