Friday, June 23 STEMpower Expo!

After a week of incredible ingenuity, creativity, and persistence, our Builders, Designers, and Innovators put on their "City of Tomorrow" Expo! We're so proud of their work and are excited to watch them build this future. Thank you all for an amazing week.

Thursday, June 22

Builders

This morning, our builders spoke about the play spaces they have been to and brainstormed what future playgrounds could look like.

Designers

This morning, our Designers examined the evolution of bicycles throughout history and what future bikes could look like for city travel. Students designed bikes for multiple people and different species.

Innovators

Quote of the Day: "Discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes" ~Marcel Proust~

Word of the Day: Endeavor- serious determined effort actively toward a goal

This morning, the innovators examined what public transit could look like to make more mobile cities that were equitable to different travelers.

In the afternoon, the Builders, Designers, & Innovators were all introduced to our final collective project: Building a City of Tomorrow together. Each student received a city "block" and began designing whatever they want to put on it. We will all put all of them together for tomorrow's Expo. No sneak peak pictures now, you'll have to wait!

Wednesday, June 21

This morning began with a fantastic trip to the Ecotarium in Worcester, MA. Our students explored their choice of exhibits and stopped by City Science to help them with ideas for this afternoon's building challenge,

Builders

When our Builders returned from the field trip, they discussed what were different parts of the exhibit they liked and how could they could incorporate these ideas into a previous design.

Designers

Our afternoon challenge for the Designers was to imagine a public play space inspired by some of the outdoor areas of the Ecotarium. Students worked to to make the spaces fun and accessible for students of all ages.

Innovators

Quote of the Day : "Ultimately, we need to recognize that while humans continue to build urban landscapes, we share those spaces with other species". ~David Suzuki~

Word of the Day: Eutierria- A positive feeling of oneness with the earth and its life forces

The afternoon building challenged focused on the building of bridges. Students worked to recreate different types that spanned geological landscapes.

Tuesday, June 20

Builders

This morning, our Builders explored the idea of what makes a strong foundation. They learned about the engineering design process which starts with defining the problem. The students tested out protoptype made by their teacher discussed what wasn't working. They began to work on constructing a stronger and more stable base that could hold their own weight.

In the afternoon, our Builders continued the theme of "Building Up" and took what they had learned to build different types of structures that had strong foundations.

Designers

This morning, our designers warmed up with a challenge to make a a boat out of tinfoil that could hold the most amount of weight. They then were introduced to the Engineering design cycle which allows designers to constantly be improving their designs.

For their mornings challenge, they were asked to design and build a "School of Tomorrow". Designs included schools that were located on land, air, and sea.

In the afternoon, our designers were asked to take what they had learned in the morning and construct the "Home of tomorrow". Some built single family homes, while others worked on large complexes for hundreds of people.

Innovators

Word of the Day: Introspection

Quote of the Day: "Have no fear of perfection-you'll never reach it" ~Salvador Dali~

This morning, our innovators explored the idea of shared public space. Their morning challenge was to design a futuristic play space. Students made designs to target all different ages.

In the afternoon, our Innovators were challenged to make a public green space. Students focused on making accesible spaces that could be used for a variety of reasons

Monday, June 19

Builders

This morning, our Builders began by examining what the idea of a map is. They discussed how a map shows what is in a community and what types of places are in theirs. After making foam sketches, our students went out into the woods to collect natural materials to build a map. They named it "Bugtown" and included bridges, diners, swimming pools, and even a school for different types of bugs.

In the afternoon, the Builders switched to designing models of buildings in their own community or larger versions of the buildings in Bugtown.

Designers

This morning, our Designers began with a team building exercise where they worked together to cross a lava river with magic stepping stones. They reflected on how communication helps collaboration .

For their morning challenge, students were asked to build a tower. After sketching out their ideas in their Design notebooks, they got to building. Towers were built with all sorts of materials including wood, foam, and cardboard.

In the afternoon, our Designers continued adding to their towers to make them more stable, useful, and aesthetic.

Innovators

Word of the Day: Jubiliation

Quote of the Day: "Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried something new" -Albert Einstein

This morning, our Innovators began by redefining what it means to make a mistake and how we can learn each time something does not go as plan.

For their morning challenge, they were asked to build towers that could withstand an earthquake, modeled by a shake plate.

In the afternoon, the Innovators switched from towers to Skyscrappers. Each student discussed what was a "mistake" they had learned from to improve their design.

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