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Crompond students enjoy making connections — with wires and with each other.
It was wonderful to see our fifth-grade students speak so passionately and expertly about their tech-based ESTEAM projects at the April 24 Board of Education meeting.
From writing persuasive arguments to developing prototypes, this grade-level effort offered every student a unique opportunity to tap into their creativity and empathy through the use of Makey Makey kits.
Each kit comes with wires and a circuit board, but what truly makes them special is how the students use them. Assistant Principal Joseph Avdek said these kits “come to life as an interactive platform when connected to the hearts and minds of our students and staff.”
About two-dozen fifth-graders shared their incredible projects at Monday’s meeting. In the words of District Tech Specialist Amanda Burns, “Students in every fifth-grade class will demonstrate how everyday content can become more engaging, exciting, and inviting by integrating this technology into their learning.”
Some of the projects included designing interactive displays and posters for Black History Month and Women’s History Month, creating advertising campaigns for Fair Trade products, using technology to deliver their personal narrative writing project, and designing video games based on stories they wrote. One class even partnered with Yorktown High School’s nationally renowned Science Research Program to bring their prototypes to life.
Makey Makey was a hit with the students, with one fifth-grader sharing, “It was awesome to see our projects spark with electricity.”
In addition to showing off the students’ tech skills, each project was rooted in ESTEAM, the District’s empathy-based approach to STEAM learning. One class revisited the classic tale of “The Three Little Pigs” and attempted to empathize with the wolf’s point of view. They identified real-world problems that existed in the story — the spread of misinformation, lack of strong building materials, not enough access to food — and developed prototypes and presentations to address them.
As one student said, “We used the engineer-design process to create projects that will help others in need. Integrating empathy and technology is important to help us understand the world. By using technology to connect with others, we learn about different perspectives, solve problems, spread kindness, and we can make a positive impact on the world around us.”
Superintendent Dr. Ron Hattar was blown away by the students’ public-speaking abilities and thanked the teachers for their efforts in incorporating ESTEAM into their lesson plans. “You weave this in to everything you do because it’s the right thing to do for our children and I thank you.”
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