Dr. Lisha Cabral, Superintendent
50 Oliver St.
North Easton, MA 02356
For Immediate Release
Friday, Oct. 4, 2019
Media Contact: Benjamin Paulin
Phone: 781-428-3299
Email: ben@jgpr.net
Easton Public Schools to Host Second Annual STEM Week
EASTON — Superintendent Lisha Cabral is pleased to announce that Easton students will have several opportunities to learn about and explore the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields later this month.
During the week of Oct. 19, Easton Public Schools will participate in Massachusetts’ second annual STEM Week. The first Massachusetts STEM Week was held in October 2018 in an effort by the Baker-Polito Administration to support middle school students’ interest in STEM education.
The statewide theme for this year is “See Yourself in STEM.” Activities will show students across the state the careers they can pursue in the STEM fields.
This year in Easton, students will also be able to participate in STEAM activities, which is STEM plus the arts, and includes humanities, language arts, dance, drama, music, visual arts and design.
“STEM Week is a great opportunity for our students to explore different fields through many creative and educational activities,” Superintendent Cabral said. “We are thankful to our staff and the businesses and professionals who have done a lot of work to plan and participate in the events. I’m confident our students will enjoy the many activities going on during STEM Week.”
Easton Middle School STEM Career Discovery Conference
Saturday, Oct. 19, 1-5:30 p.m. at Oliver Ames High School
Current 6th, 7th and 8th graders enrolled in Easton Middle School are encouraged to attend the second annual STEM conference at Oliver Ames High School. Students will get the chance to explore various STEM fields, encouraging them to build a love for STEM and consider a future career in the field.
The conference will address six areas of STEM through a unique rotation-style classroom setting, including: engineering, medicine, mathematics, entrepreneurship and invention, space and computer science. The half-day conference will give students the chance to do activities in various STEM fields and hear about potential careers and areas of study from eight unique experts in these fields, including MIT students doing work in space research, a nurse practitioner and a computer scientist who designs video games. Students will also hear from a keynote speaker who is an Oliver Ames graduate and now holds a PhD in Marine Biology. The conference will also include a session led by current Oliver Ames students who will highlight the opportunities for STEM learning and extracurriculars at the high school.
All middle school students are encouraged to attend. Parents can learn more about the conference and register their children here.
STEAM Letters Display
Monday, Oct. 21, 12-3 p.m. at Center School
Over the summer, second grade teachers Christen Foote and Kim Krockta and Oliver Ames High School industrial arts teacher Tom Baldino constructed 4-foot letters spelling “STEAM” from various types of materials such as whiteboard, wood and metal. Several of the letters also have magnetic chalkboard surfaces. The goal of the project was to have an art sculpture that can also be used to showcase the STEAM activities being done across the grade levels.
The letters are in the final stage of completion and will showcase elementary STEAM work first. The letters will move from building to building after November so that teachers from all schools can showcase their students’ STEAM work.
i2 STEM Week
Monday, Oct. 21 to Friday, Oct. 25, 7:55 a.m. to 2:25 p.m. at Easton Middle School for all grades and 8:40 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Richardson-Olmsted for 5th graders
i2 STEM Week is an immersive program that transforms middle schools into STEM learning labs. During STEM Week in Easton, regularly scheduled course periods will be replaced by a hands-on curriculum developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a number of other leading STEM organizations. During the week, teachers and students work in teams to solve real-world problems where hands-on experimentation, critical thinking and collaboration are encouraged and used as teaching techniques to engage and inspire students.
Natural Resources Trust of Easton (NRT) Collaboration with Oliver Ames Science Department
Monday, Oct. 21 to Tuesday, Oct. 22 and Wednesday, Oct. 23 to Thursday, Oct. 24
NRT’s education department is partnering with Oliver Ames’s science department head Maria Annunziato to bring her environmental science classes to Sheep Pasture. Students will be participating in NRT’s new stream ecology program, which will get students involved in hands-on activities. Working in Sheep Pasture’s freshwater stream, students will collect and identify macro-invertebrates while running various water quality tests. Using their data, students will analyze their findings to determine the overall health of our stream environment.
MassCue
Wednesday, Oct. 23 and Thursday, Oct. 24, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough
The Massachusetts Computer Using Educators (MassCUE) and Massachusetts Association of School Superintendents (MASS) will host the 2019 Annual Technology Conference. They will be providing educators from across New England with exciting ways to enhance teaching and learning with technology.
STEAM Work Display
Thursday, Oct. 24, 5-7 p.m. at Queset House, 51 Main St., Easton
Students in grades K-12 work on STEAM projects throughout the year and their projects will be on display during this event. This event is open to the public.
Work-Based Learning for Educators at DePuy Synthes
Friday, Oct. 25, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at DePuy Synthes Co., 325 Paramount Drive, Raynham
Teachers and staff from area schools will engage in STEM activities that they can replicate with their students. Presentations by DePuy Synthes employees will highlight career or educational college pathways that can prepare students for future opportunities with DePuy Synthes. A tour of the facility will introduce participants to precision manufacturing. They will hear about the importance of skills in collaboration, communication and problem solving as well as STEM skills that contribute to the process of producing medical devices for national and international markets.
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