Standard 9

School/program provides within-school and extracurricular opportunities for students to extend STEM learning.

Standard 9 Narrative

At B.B. Comer, we pride ourselves over the multitude of opportunities presented to the students for them to extend their STEM learning. Students in 3rd through 6th grade are given the opportunity to apply to be on the E3 Team and BBCES Technology Fair Competition Team. All of these competition teams meet after school to practice working collaboratively through solving challenging math problems, completing STEM challenges, or enhancing their technology projects.

In addition to STEM competition teams, our students are provided with within school STEM learning experiences as well. BBCES has partnered with 4H to provide enhanced STEM learning experiences for our students. Every month 4H Club Meetings are held with all students in 4th through 6th grade. During these meetings, students participate in hands-on STEM experiences with a 4H employee.

The 2018-2019 school brought a new and exciting Rolling Study Hall. Students are able to get help from a teacher on homework, projects, listen to a story, or read a story. The bus is wired so the students have wireless connection on their device. Many of our BBCES students attend the Bridges after-school, extended-care program. The 21st Century BRIDGES Program integrates STEM into activities that are planned every week for these students in 1st through 6th grade. Various teachers lead these activities with the BRIDGES students to extend upon the learning that takes place during the regular school day.

Engaging Elementary Engineers Team

The E3 Team representative turning in the team's Egg Drop contraption.

Tiger Engineers

Each year, our school participates in the E3 (Engaging Elementary Engineers) Competition at the University of Montevallo. This year's theme was "Under the Big Top". We took two teams of students made up of 4th and 5th grade students. Each team was assigned a challenge with this theme in mind that they completed at the competition. Students stayed after school to practice and prepare for the challenges they would complete at the competition. This team had two challenges to complete at school that were judged at the competition. Each team had to design and build a Ringmaster's hat to display at their workstation. The whole team had to design and create an innovative egg drop contraction. The design had to keep an egg safe when launched through the air by a slingshot. Their contraption was successful!

One of our E3 Teams was The Acrobatic Engineers. This group had to design and build two acrobats that would balance and slide down an acrobatic string. One acrobat had to be fast and the other had to be slow. This team won the fastest Acrobat of the day at the competition.

Our second E3 Team was The Marvelous Crowd Engineers. This group had to design and build Clown shoes that could be worn. Students had to wear their shoes to complete an obstacle course. The students had to be able to take off the shoes and swap them with each team member to complete the course.

4H Outreach Program

4H Club Meeting

Talladega County 4-H Agent Assistant, Jera Culberson, works with fifth grade students on a STEAM related 4H project during their monthly 4H Club meeting. Students had to construct a car that met certain requirements using only the materials provided. They then had to test their cars and reflect upon whether or not they adequately followed the directions given to successfully complete the challenge.

Rolling Study Halls

Our School Superintendent giving a speech about the implementation of Rolling Study Halls.

For about 230 students in Talladega County Schools, the bus ride home is an opportunity to get a head start on homework, projects and interest, which can rely heavily on technology. Thanks to Internet superpower Google and its “Rolling Study Halls,” our students are now able complete work on the commute between school and home.

During the 2017-2018 school year, Google brought the program to six of the longest bus routes in Talladega County, where students can spend from 45 minutes to more than an hour before they arrive home. Those buses are equipped with a WiFi device and a teacher on-board who can assist with work. The laptops are also restricted to prevent students from just surfing the Internet.

At BBCES, we have two buses (20-45, 20-41) that are equipped with a teacher and WiFi access to expand student accessibility on their ride home.

Students not only complete assigned homework, but they get the opportunity to enhance their coding skills while riding the rolling study hall.

STEAM BRIDGES

After School Learning

Through a partnership with SAFE, students are given the opportunity to participate in the BRIDGES Extended Day Program. Each day students are assisted with homework, receive tutoring and also spend time completing STEM activities and challenges. Students love getting the extra time to use their creativity in our BRIDGES program. BRIDGES is also offered during the summer as an extracurricular activity. During the summer and afterschool BRIDGES Program, students participate in multiple PBL projects throughout the year.

Students are building bird houses to place around the school grounds during the summer BRIDGES program.

During the Summer BRIDGES program, students learned about gardening. Students got to help plant their own garden.

After the students harvested produce from their garden, students were able to taste test different fruits and vegetables they had grown.

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