Yesterday there was a great turnout for the Newton Free Library’s second annual STEAM Expo, with 20 interactive exhibits. Thanks to all who organized, exhibited, and participated!
Monthly Archives: July 2016
Newton Free Library: Upcoming STEM Events in July
Upcoming STEM-oriented events in the Newton Free Library’s calendar:
- Einstein’s Gift to Us: Gravitational Wave Astronomy (July 18, 7-9PM): Talk by MIT Physics Professor Emeritus Dr. Rainer Weiss.
- Finch Robots (July 20 & 27 7-8:30PM): Second and third of a three-part series about programming robots, for Grades 6-12.
- Teen Tinker Club (July 21, 4-5PM): littleBits, Hexbugs, and LEGO WeDos, for Grades 6-12. Registration required.
- Hands-On Arduino (July 23, 10AM-Noon): Work with Arduino microcontroller kits to build interactive objects. Some previous coding experience required. Ages 18+. Registration required.
- Museum of Science Presents Blizzards — Outwit the Elements (July 25, 3-3:50PM): Hands-on engineering workshop. For kids entering Grades 1-6, with accompanying adult required for Grades 1-3 and encouraged for Grades 4-6. Registration required.
- 3D Printing for Teens (July 25, 7-8PM): Use the Library’s 3D printer. Register for waiting list.
Summer STEM Fun: Khan Academy + Pixar
Khan Academy and Pixar Studios have teamed up to create Pixar in a Box, a series of free online tutorials that demonstrate how STEM and the arts are used in film animation. Each tutorial focuses on the use of a concept learned in school and starts with a design-challenge lesson (for Grades 5+), followed by several different grade-appropriate lessons focused on particular math concepts. Topics include: Effects, Patterns (randomness), Rigging (controls), Animation (curves), Environmental Modeling (parabolic arcs), Character Modeling (weighted averages), Crowds (combinatorics), Sets & Staging (geometric transformations), and Rendering (algebra).
Newton Free Library: STEAM Expo, July 16
The Newton Free Library will host its third annual STEAM Expo on Saturday, July 16, 1-4PM. It’s an interactive gathering of tech enthusiasts, traditional crafters, artists, musicians, educators, tinkerers, hobbyists, engineers, and students. There will be 20 exhibitors in the auditorium, gallery, and outside plaza.
Mass. Bay iCREATE Summer High-School Robotics Program Presents Results, July 21
The Massachusetts Bay Community College offers its iCREATE summer program for high-school students — a month-long exploration of engineering design, electronics, and coding. This summer’s participants will showcase their work on July 21, noon to 1PM, on the MassBay Wellesley Hills campus (50 Oakland Street). The event is free and open to the public, with particular invitation to business/industry professionals, community organizations, and high-school students, teachers and administrators.
Mass. Audubon Offers “Virtual Internship” Simulation for Land-Science Education
The Massachusetts Audubon Society invites both formal and informal educators to apply to join the Land Science Educator Network LSEN and gain free access to Land Science, its online simulation of an urban planning firm during the coming school year. This “virtual internship” is suitable for middle- and high-school students, either in the classroom, in after-school clubs, or in other organizations. Over the course of 8 to 12 hours, students play the role of interns at a virtual urban planning firm and take on real-world STEM problems in land science that have no clear-cut, optimal solutions. Teachers overseeing these projects can share resources online via LSEN. For more information, contact Jen Klein, Mass Audubon LSEN Project Manager, at jklein@massaudubon.org.
Science Club for Girls is Hiring for the Fall
Science Club for Girls is hiring for positions in the Fall:
- Cambridge: Materials Logistics Coordinator, Manager of Volunteer Programs, Accountant
- Lawrence: Program Manager and Program Coordinator
- Boston: Program Coordinator.
The Cambridge headquarters is also seeking an Events and Special Projects Intern (unpaid): Write to jobs@scienceclubforgirls.org with subject line: “Summer 2016 Fundraising Intern.”
SCFG, in its 20th year, is a terrific non-profit organization that “fosters excitement, confidence and literacy in STEM for girls from underrepresented communities by providing free, experiential programs and by maximizing meaningful interactions with women in STEM.”
‘STEM in the City’ Summer Day Camp at Wheelock College
We wrote last December about STEM in the City, a summer day camp at Wheelock College in Boston for students entering Grades 8 or 9 in the fall. Registration appears to still be open. Students may register for one or two weeks during July 18-29. The focus is on STEM career and college awareness, with field trips to companies and organizations as well as laboratory classes and tours of Wheelock’s facilities. Week 1 will focus on Marine and Space sciences, and Week 2 will focus on Environmental and Health sciences. The cost is $400 per week. Register online.
“e” Inc. Summer Science Discovery Program
The “e” Inc. Discovery and Action Center (114 16th Street in Charlestown) has a few spaces open in summer programs for ages 6-12, running daily 9AM-3:30PM (or 5:30PM). See their site for registration forms and online payment. There’s also a form for donations to sponsor children via their Camper’s Fund.
- August 15-19: Energy Makes the World Go Round
- August 22-26: On Safari — Africa’s Big 7 Animals
Mass. ESE Adopts Voluntary Curriculum for Computer Science
As reported by WBUR, last week the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (ESE) adopted a voluntary curriculum framework for computer science. The Massachusetts Computing Attainment Network (MassCAN)to is collaborating with ESE to help districts implement the standards and the Education Development Center (EDC) is developing elementary school curriculum units to integrate computational thinking into math and science lessons.