March Newsletter
March 26, 2018
2018 HS Showcase and STEM Signing Day Announced
PLTW High School Showcase & STEM Signing Day
Wednesday, May 16, 2018, 9:00am-1:00pm at WPI
 
The showcase will be an opportunity for students to present projects from PLTW courses to industry professionals. Borrowing from the athletics tradition, we will also celebrate the graduating seniors from our PLTW community with a STEM Signing Day prior to the recognition of awards from the showcase.

For more information about this event, contact Faith McDuffie today!
Classroom Spotlight
This month we had the great opportunity to see Chakara Cardillo at Randolph Community Middle School. See below for some tips and tricks!
Activators: Student in Mrs. Cardillo's class begin the class with a five minute activator activity to address misconceptions from previous lessons.

"The activator activities allow my students to review skills addressed earlier in the unit and allows them to continue to build those skills." -Chakara Cardillo

Pacing: Mrs. Cardillo helps to keep the class moving by setting time limits for each part of the lesson. After working in groups to identify their problem statements, students were given 10 minutes to sketch their own design for their adaptive toy design before checking in with groups.
Essential Questions: By reviewing the essential question at the end of the class for five minutes, students can link the days activities to prior activities. It also helps students practice healthy habits of collaborative conversations when working in teams.
Teachers, are your students doing amazing things in the classroom? We'd love to hear about it! Share your students' discovery moments with us and maybe their work will be featured in our newsletter! Email Faith .
MA Mentor Teachers
Earlier this month, Gateway and High School Massachusetts Mentor Teachers hosted a professional development day at WPI. It was a great day full of networking and learning. Watch a video of the day!


Reminders:
Roster your PLTW students
Thank you to all the schools that have rostered. Over 70% of schools in the network are rostered and we are hoping to get to 100%. Rostering helps to inform our programming. If you haven’t already, please roster today!
Participate in the Project Lead The Way Survey
As part of our statewide PLTW initiative, we are conducting student and teacher surveys. The surveys will increase our understanding about how PLTW creates engaging learning experiences that help students develop the skills required for success in college and careers. Further, the study will help Mass STEM Hub support PLTW teachers and students across the state by tailoring the opportunities to their needs. To participate in this exciting project, click HERE

Read the PLTW Survey FAQs on our website to learn more.
Follow Mass STEM Hub on Twitter!
Thank you to those of you who have started following us on Twitter! Here are some exciting things going on in MA PLTW Schools as shared on Twitter:
Share what's going on by tagging @Mass_STEMHub
Use   #pltwma   to stay connected with all the latest PLTW news in Massachusetts.
Student Gallery
Mass STEM Hub is seeking photos of exemplar PLTW student work to showcase on our website. The Student Work Gallery will be a place where we can showcase student work from PLTW classes for other educators, as well as industry professionals.

If you have photos or videos of student work that you would like to share, please email them to [email protected] with a brief description of what the photo shows. Please include: PLTW Course, Unit, Lesson, and Grade.

We look forward to seeing the wonderful work your students are doing every day!
Upcoming Opportunities:
STEM Education Day @ Fenway Park
STEM Education Day 1 - May 2nd
Focus on Science, Weather, and Engineering
STEM Education Day 2 - May 30th
Focus on NASA and Space
Verizon Innovative Learning Labs
PLTW and Verizon are offering free interactive labs that will expose students to new skills such as coding, virtual reality, robotics and 3D printing. The labs will be offered one Saturday a month at the Boston Verizon Destination Store ( 745 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02116 ).

Below is a list of upcoming dates and topics:

2018 Labs:
April 21 – Internet of Things
May 19 – 3D Printing
June 16 – Augmented Reality
Additional Funding Opportunities
Mass STEM Hub Collaborative Teaching Prize
The first Mass STEM Hub Teacher Prize is for interdisciplinary student projects based on PLTW coursework. We invite educators to develop or submit an existing lesson plan that connects a PLTW lesson to other disciplines (e.g., math, ELA, history). Lessons should reflect PLTW’s hands-on, rigorous approach.  Winning submissions will receive a prize of $500.

Submissions are due April, 25th 2018. To learn more, click here .
Alternative Fuel Foundation
The Alternative Fuel Foundation offers grants for schools ranging from $50 to $500. Schools may apply once a year and funding can be used to help fund science equipment such as 3-D printers. Applications are reviewed on a 60 day cycle. Click here to learn more about this opportunity.
Hearst Foundation
The Hearst Foundations has funding for educational programs. Schools may apply once a year for funding and applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. If you are looking for additional funding for your PLTW program, learn more about the Hearst Foundation's grant process by clicking here .
Students in the News
STEM Education Grants to Fund Project Lead The Way Initiatives
A $750,000 grant from the state and a matching $300,000 grant from the One8 Foundation will support STEM education through the combined partnership of WPI,  Project Lead The Way  (PLTW), and the One8 Foundation’s  Mass STEM Hub . Read the article here.
Grant will help NVTHS 'Lead the Way' in STEM
Nashoba Valley Technical High School receives a grant from Project Lead the Way, allowing the school to further its mission of offering high-quality career and tech education. Read the article here.
Uxbridge gets STEM grant for middle & high school
McCloskey Middle School and Uxbridge High School will use funds from the grant to bolster their Gateway programs in grades 6 and 7, as well as their biomedical programs in grades 8 through 12. Read the article here.
Hudson Public Schools receives Project Lead The Way grants
Hudson Public Schools received a grant from Project Lead The Way that will be used to implement Launch at all three elementary schools in the town and Gateway Computer Science and Biomedical Science at Hudson High School. Read the article here.
Salem's Collins Middle School receives STEM grant
Collins Middle School will be adding additional PLTW Gateway courses in computer science and flight and space. Read the article here.
Waltham Public Schools receives grant
Waltham Public Schools will be using the grant funds to offer courses in biomedical sciences and engineering at Waltham High School in the Fall of 2018. Read the article here.
Pembroke Public Schools District receives STEM grant
Pembroke Public Schools have received a grant from PLTW. The funds will be used for the district to begin its Project Lead The Way program first with the PLTW Gateway program. Read the article here.
Baystate Academy Charter Public Receives STEM Grant
Funds from the grant Baystate Academy Charter Public received from Project Lead The Way will be used to expand its biomedical science programs to further prepare their students to enter the healthcare field. Read the article here.
Qualters Middle School adding STEM classes in Mansfield
Qualters Middle School will begin offering PLTW courses such as Flight and Space and Design and Modeling to compliment their current STEM programming. Read the article here.
Do you have an idea for a student or teacher event? Are you an industry professional looking to get involved? Do you have a question about PLTW implementation? Are exciting things happening in your classrooms that should be shared in our newsletter?

Please get in touch by emailing Faith at   [email protected] .
Have a question for Mass STEM Hub?
Email us at [email protected]