Polk Students Prepare STEM Projects
While preparing to compete in the Aggie STEM event in March, Polk students prepare STEMÂ (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) projects based on their experiences in classes. Polk Middle School will send two teams to the competition. The teams are made up of students who have expressed motivation and goals related to STEM. The students have been experiencing STEM through their classes in Engineering, Tech Apps, Science, and Math at Polk.
While preparing for the competition, students have completed projects in Tech Apps. Through completion of these projects, students are being introduced to the fundamentals of computer science through coding. Students research various apps to develop their own for other teens to use. Their final computer science project before they return from Winter Break will be to participate in a nationwide event called the Hour of Code.
Students look forward to discovering and building in the MakerSpace club at Polk. Some students are currently building projects with K’nex kits. Additionally, students were also working on and elaborate puzzle project a project. Teacher Cali Issac stated, “Our puzzle cube project was a month-long project. The project is based on helping a local office furniture company figure out how to turn wasted material into profitable products. Students used the design process; and the techniques learned during our drawing unit. Each student designed and built a puzzle cube comprised of only 5 pieces, made from 27 small cubes. At the conclusion of the project, students submitted a final portfolio; which included their puzzle cube, drawings, and a summary.”
Because of the experience in these classes, students are expressing high interest in the projects and thinking about careers in STEM. They are allowed to work across multiple subjects requiring critical thinking, problem solving, and practice around literacy.
