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Successful Spring Festival Season Comes to a Close
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The North Central STEM Hub had a busy Spring Festival season with festivals in Marshalltown, Ames and Boone.
The third annual ISU STEM Fest had an overwhelming turnout with 40 exhibitors and over 2400 attendees.
The second annual Boone Family STEM Festival had 38 exhibitors and record attendance of over 450 people.
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Exhibitors at Boone came from business, industry, education and the public sectors. They created hands-on STEM interactions for students of all ages. Thank you to all our exhibitors for bringing STEM to Boone area families! The Boone Family STEM Festival was sponsored by DMACC in Boone, Boone County ISU Extension & Outreach/4-H and the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council.
Need information on hosting a STEM Festival in your community? Contact us at:
ncstemhub@iastate.edu
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Launching a Makerspace – Let the Davis Kids Show you How
“Where Out of this World Ideas are Launched,” are the words that greet students on the door to the Nevada Central Elementary Makerspace. But the school’s Makerspace ITSELF was designed and launched by students in Ms. Davis’s 3
rd
-4
th
grade class, also known as Davis Kids.
“We don’t want to create a room where there is just stuff being held. We want it to be used,” says Ms. Davis who had her class research, design and build the space. The class began by brainstorming ideas and researching Makerspaces through articles, books and videos. Then they got to work! The students formed committees. One committee designed and organized the space and decided where to place materials. Early in the process, the committee recognized some items should be placed at a level so Preschoolers could access the materials. Another committee asked teachers what their favorite books were and then created projects inspired by the books. The decorating committee researched wall designs and worked with the technology director, art teacher and janitor to paint and hang posters. The budget committee researched materials, created a budget and presented their proposal to the Principal for approval.
The multi-month project involved students engaged in authentic learning: communicating with partners through e-mail, testing the functionality of the space, building consensus within their committees and providing a tour to the School Board. At one point the students even had to change the location of the planned space and adapt accordingly. “These are the problem solving skills - being flexible, being adaptable. They have lots of empathy because they had to really think what is best for the whole school. It’s not just for me (the students),” explains Ms. Davis.
The space is filled with activities that engage the students in engineering, science and math. “I wouldn’t trade this for the world. They are so proud of what they did and what they accomplished,” say Ms. Davis. The result is a space with something for everyone that will grow and evolve with the needs of the students. Or as one student described it, “It’s just a really cool place to go and create.”
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Dr. Kelly Bergman
Iowa State University
1259 Stange Rd
Ames, IA 50011-1002
Phone: 515-203-7247
Email: kbergman@iastate.edu
Website: ncstemhub.iastate.edu
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STEM Education + Workplace Partnerships 2019 Summit Registration Closes Friday
The Future Ready Iowa Summit will be held on Tuesday, April 30 from 9 AM to 4 PM at the Iowa Events Center – Community Choice Credit Union Convention Center. Registration for the Summit closes at 10 am on April 23. This summit will focus on how to cultivate tomorrow’s Iowa workforce by building and expanding innovative education‐workplace partnerships across Iowa. The registration portal and agenda can be found here:
Volunteers are needed to help in various capacities at the Summit. As a thank you, volunteers can register for free! Volunteer by April 19:
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Upcoming Youth STEM Opportunities
Cyber Security Summer Camp for Girls at ISU, June 6
STEM InCYte Camp at ISU, June 10-14
ISU Engineering Kids Day Camps in Marshalltown, June 21 and 25
NIACC STEM Camp, July 10-12
Explore FIRST® LEGO® League Jr. (FLL Jr.) Camps, Various dates in July
More information on summer opportunities can be found on the STEM Hub Resources page:
Have an opportunity to list on our website: contact us
ncstemhub@iastate.edu
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2018-19 NC STEM Advisory Board
Lindsey Falk, St. Ansgar
Ashley Flatebo, Garner
Doug Jacobson, Ames
Sara Nelson, Ames
Michael Pedersen, Marshalltown
Ben Petty, Conrad
Kathy Rogotzke, Mason City,
Sarah Rosenblum, Marshalltown
Camille Sloan Schroeder, Boone
Kerry Weig, Nevada
Nancy Woods, Boone
Richard Wrage, Boone
Michael Young, Ames
David Zrostlik, Garner
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