STEM Day at ASU Three Rivers
Over one hundred 4thgrade gifted students from Arkansas schools in the Dawson Education Service Cooperative, including our very own Malvern Elementary, participated in a STEM Day activity Friday on campus at ASU Three Rivers.
Mes/wilson Intermediate GT Instructor, Brenda Rush, works closely with her colleagues and fellow GT teachers, Kristen White from Fountain Lake SD and Laura West from Hot Springs SD, to organize and pull off these STEM Day events for gifted intermediate-level students from around the state. They’ve had several such events for 5th- and 6th-grade students at ASU Three Rivers, but Rush said the Jan. 27 STEM Day was the first they’ve held for 4th-grade.
Each STEM Day presents students with fun and interesting tasks they are challenged to complete in the most creative and successful ways they can think of. The last STEM Day at ASU Three Rivers saw 5th-grade GT students tasked with building roller coasters using unconventional items like popsicle sticks, straws, paper plates, cardboard tubes, and other materials.
The most recent STEM Day set a daunting challenge before the students, as they were asked to build Moon Rovers and accompanying scenes using items that make the task look more like Mission Impossible than a fun field day away from school. But the smiles seen on the kids’ faces and the easy camaraderie witnessed between them made it clear they were up to the challenge and enjoying the chosen activity.
Rush and her colleagues found the special learning activity through the California Institute of Technology’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, as part of NASA’S “Engineering in the Classroom” tool for educators. Activities through this learning tool follow the Next Generation Science Standards adopted by multiple states, which were established to elevate the learning standards in America and ensure kids reach common benchmarks in education.
The “Planetary Pasta Rovers” classroom activity is explained in-depth online, with an overview of the activity, a list of materials, tips for time management of the task, and clear procedures for the students to follow. The site also gives interesting background information to explain the significance of the task, stating:
“The Mars rovers Spirit, Curiosity and Opportunity have collectively driven over 35 miles on Mars. Some days a rover may drive less than one meter, or not at all. Other days may see the rover drive over 100 meters. The engineers who plan the drives, called Rover Planners, must define their criteria for success–what the rover must do for the drive to be considered a success. They must also take into consideration the constraints that may limit the rover’s ability to successfully complete a drive. What obstacles are in the way? Is there a slope along the way? Is it too steep for the rover to safely drive? Does the terrain change part way through the drive?
“Some of these things depend on which part of Mars the rover is driving through. Some are based on how the rover was built. Like Rover Planners, students in this activity will have to define what a successful drive will look like and identify the limiting factors they will face on their drive.
“Using only pasta and glue, students must design a rover that will travel down a one-meter ramp and then travel an additional one meter on a smooth, flat surface. Students use the same engineering design process that JPL engineers use to improve their designs.”
“They are in teams with only kids from other schools, and they were given a bag of supplies,” Rush said of the planned activity. “We have about 10 different pasta shapes that they can add… They could make astronauts and equipment, they could build a planet, they can give it a name,”
Rush said notable creators were recognized in the following prize categories:
Galaxy Grabbers--best overall theme/design
Ufos--unidentified Far
thest Object for the rover that traveled the farthest on the Optimum terrain ramp
Rocket Scientists--best and most creative use of resources
Mission Control-best team dynamics and most team spirit
Shooting Stars--the judges' choice of overall best in design/presentation/team cohesiveness.
Winning students received gift bags filled with toys, treats and cool items related to each category. STEM Day is one of many ways Rush and other educators hope to inspire a deeper love for learning science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), as these subjects are critical for future advancement. For more information about the many creative and challenging learning activities available through the Engineering in the Classroom tool, go to www.nasa.gov/ stem.