HEB ISD School & Family Magazine April/May 2016 | Page 10

BuildinG

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sTeM school of choice proGraM in heB isd

By: Kiera Elledge, STEM & School Libraries Coordinator

HEB ISD’s newest School of Choice programs
are custom-built for students interested in
science, technology, engineering, and math.
During the 2016 – 17 school year, pilot programs
at Stonegate Elementary and Central Junior High
will offer new and exciting STEM explorations.
STEM education thrives on hands-on activities
that let students learn by doing. Providing
students with the knowledge and tools to create
their own programs or build their own robots
empowers and encourages their innate sense
of wonder.
Combining new curriculum resources with rigorous
state and national standards in STEM subjects
will help young learners see the connections
between science, math, engineering, and
technology practices. STEM initiatives like this
one also support the learning and development
of foundational skills like creativity and problemsolving that help all study areas. The programs
will help create an HEB ISD community of
learners, thinkers, and global citizens.
School of Choice STEM experiences may
include school day experiences, after school
clubs, independent research projects, and nonschool day experiences. Every student will
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gain insight into what
STEM-related fields
of study suit their
skills and interests, or
build knowledge and
abilities that will help them branch out into other
pathways.

ELEMENTARY STEM:
If you build “it”, they will come. And “it” can
mean robots, baking soda volcanoes, ping-pong
catapults, and more! Introducing children to
STEM-related fields at the elementary level gives
our students the opportunity to make a more
informed decision about a STEM endorsement
when transitioning to a secondary school.
Elementary Schools of Choice will focus on the
STEM pathways that align with our secondary
offerings – Coding/Sequencing, Robotics and
Design/Architecture. At our STEM school of
choice, students as young as kindergarten and
first grade will be able to work with multiple
types of robots as they begin to learn to code.
These robots will be used to test their coding
abilities to navigate a complex maze, zoom
around a room, or speak in a foreign language.
Students may also begin learning the basics of
computer animated design and programming –
the possibilities are endless!