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J/J STEMPALOOZA

A New School-Wide Event Hits Jordan/Jackson!

J/JSTEMPALOOZAA New School-Wide Event Hits Jordan/Jackson!

Jordan/Jackson has been buzzing with STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) activities over the last 6 weeks in order to encourage collaboration, open-ended exploration, creativity, and critical thinking in our students. Classes were actively engaged in a wide variety of tasks in Grades 3-5 that enhanced many subject areas. The event culminated with STEM Museums where students in each grade level showcased their models for their peers. The pride and excitement was evident!

Grade 3

Mrs. Galvin and Ms. LePage's classes were inspired to make their own "Box Creations" by the book What To Do With a Box by Jane Yolen. There were castles, luxury RVs, birdhouses, Hovercars, and so much more! Click on photos to enlarge.
Mrs. Chiappone, Mrs. Ewick, Mrs. Risotti, Mrs. Franklin, Mrs. Enright, Mrs. Gentili and Ms. Haapaoja's classes combined their study of weather with the fairy tale The 3 Little Pigs to design homes that could withstand the huffing and puffing of the Big Bad Wolf. The prototypes were put to the test, and so many of them survived. Great work kids!
Mrs. Shevlin's class used their knowledge of forces and friction to investigate, "How can you slow down a quarter as it rolls down a ramp on its side?" Mrs. Reeder's class was challenged to make the longest paper chain possible with one piece of paper. Mrs. Vantran's challenge was to create the tallest free-standing tower using index cards. They are all winners for their enthusiasm and effort!

Grade 4

Mrs. Parent and Mr. Curry's classes created their own Animal "Create-ures". These new species needed to be able to move, survive in their climate, get food, and protect themselves from predators.
Mrs. Conroy, Mr. Cripps, Mrs. DiCenso, and Ms. Shruhan's classes have been reading The BFG by Roald Dahl. Their task was to engineer a fork for The BFG so he can stop using the gardener's tools. Each inch of their prototypes was equivalent to 1 foot. Great use of math!
Miss Keller and Mrs. Pruell's classes have been engrossed in the book The Wild Robot by Peter Brown. Each class was challenged to use the Engineering Design Process to create a Robo Arm for Roz that had the ability to pick up a cup. Mrs. Gilmore helped Miss Keller's class create blueprints for their prototypes in Art class, and Mrs. Pruell created a life size model of Roz!
Mrs. Battell and Mrs. Kirk's classes have also been enjoying The BFG. They used paper cutting techniques from the book The Perfect Square to design a new type of Dream Catcher out of a 12" x 12" square of construction paper. They were so creative and interesting to look at. Way to go!
Ms. daGraca's class had a great time putting their knowledge of energy transfer and simple machines into action by designing Rube Goldberg machines that made a simple job complex. Check out how watering a plant, throwing a cup in the trash, unrolling a roll of toliet paper, and popping a balloon just became more interesting!

Grade 5

Mrs. Tighe and Mrs. DeAngelis's classes have been studying matter in science. Using their knowledge of chemical changes, the students designed Chemical Reaction cars to see which chemicals would power their prototypes the furthest distance. It was a messy business, but these scientists had success! Their perseverance was second to none.
HIgh flyer alert! Between the Cote Catapults and Mrs. Ulrich and Mrs. O'Connell's classes paper airplane designs, 5th graders were ready to launch. Research was clearly done by Mr. Cote's class as they represented five different catapult designs to compare their capabilities. Paper airplanes were carefully crafted in the 2nd floor West to see which would get the most air time and travel the furthest distance.
Inspired by the NCAA March Madness Tournament, Ms. Freedman and Mrs. Cogan's classes were challenged to create towers that could hold a basketball using only newspapers and tape! Impossible, right? Nope! To add to the madness, Ms. Memoli taught the students about measuring their heart rate in Health, comparing their resting heart rate to the rate of performing physical activities, like dribbling a basketball. The science behind different basketball shots was also investigated.
Mrs. Ouwinga and Mrs. Logan's classes have a secret...secret messages for General Washington that is! In this terrific integration of science, social studies, writing, and reading, the students made invisible ink to communicate during the Revolutionary War. In addition, a follow-up STEM activity challenged students to keep their tea dry in the harbor. Well done, 5th graders!

77 Simple STEM Activities for Families

Continuing the Momentum

We are really looking forward to the EnVision the Future STEM Expo at J/J on March 30th. Over 150 students will be attending from Grades 4-7. The event was filled within 2 weeks! Looking forward to seeing you there!