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Dr. Pat Taylor
Headmaster, Jackson Academy
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Greetings,
We are at a crucial moment in American history. It is time
for a paradigm shift in education that will transform the
purpose of school for students. Young learners must have the
experience of applying science, technology, engineering, and
math knowledge in activities that resemble those awaiting
them in future careers. This kind of change in education will
prepare students to solve the problems of tomorrow.
From thought leaders to servant leaders, we at Pitsco
Education want to help educators cultivate the next generation
of influencers. Through collaborative, real-world, hands-on
learning, students find relevance in their knowledge. They
discover how to persevere, pivot, and push themselves. They
take ownership of their learning. They develop the skills
necessary to be agents of positive change in the world.
We invite you to explore this issue of Leaders in Education.
You’ll learn about multiple independent and
private schools that have partnered with Pitsco
Education to shape the future by reshaping
learning for kids.
Enjoy,
Todd Smith
Q&A
Dr. Randolph H. Watts, Jr.
Headmaster • Brookwood School • Thomasville, GA
Introduction: Dr. Randy Watts
came to Brookwood School in
2014 after a six-year term as Upper
School Director at Saint Stephen's
Episcopal School in Bradenton, FL.
Prior to that he served as Dean of
Students at Saint Stephens. His focus
on STEAM at Brookwood has driven
recent district initiatives in
preparing students for
college and career.
Collaboration is key
Q: What is STEM to you?
A:
S TEM provides students with the opportunities to learn about
and access the world through an applied and hands-on manner.
We have taken the step of expanding to a STEAM program, which
has added the elements of creativity and aesthetics to what was
already an exciting and dynamic program.
Q: When did you start thinking about STEM and why?
A: I have had STEM/STEAM on the brain for several years. As I onboarded
as the headmaster of Brookwood two years ago, I was very excited to
learn that the school was in the process of developing its first STEM
lab. The inertia from this first lab (Lower School) created the demand
for a second one (Middle School). It is crucial in student learning to
access important disciplines in a thought-provoking manner.
I thought it helped to "float" the idea and let Brookwood's faculty
run with it. The vision-shaping was a result of the mental power
of all who were involved. I think it yielded a much better outcome
than simply dictating that we were going to become a STEAM
school. However, when consensus and excitement were building,
that was the time to show that the STEAM program was a vision of
the school firmly supported by the headmaster.
I would suggest that the lower grades are a great place to start. Lower
Schools, by their very design, tend to be collaborative and flexible in
nature. Middle School is a great place to continue to shape the creativity
and analytical skills needed to propel thinkers into Upper School.
Q: F rom your perspective, what do students experience in a
Pitsco lab that prepares them for tomorrow?
A:
Students need the ability to collaborate and look at problems from
multiple angles. Ultimately, they need to think critically and cope
with the fact that sometimes the first try is not the successful one.
This happens on a daily basis in our STEAM labs.
Q: H
ow did Pitsco partner with you in order to build and keep
your STEM vision growing?
A:
Partner is a great word. They served as a partner throughout the entire
process. They made sure that the lab would serve our school and
program. They asked great questions and made sure that the followthrough was complete and to our satisfaction. They made sure that
the relationship aspect of our work together was at the forefront.
Q: W
hat advice would you give to another headmaster about
starting a STEAM program at their school?
A:
Collaboration is the key. Inherently, a STEAM program involves a
range of teachers with different types of mindsets. The process
was as important – and interesting – as the outcome.
Leaders In Education
3
The STEM advantage
Independent school takes academics to next level with comprehensive STEM program
MOBILE, AL – By any measure, UMS-Wright Preparatory School is highly
successful – teachers and students are at the head of the line academically,
not only in the city of Mobile and the state of Alabama but also nationally.
Exhibit A: an average ACT score of 28 (national average is 20.3), 63 AP
Scholars, and three National Merit semifinalists in 2014. But Headmaster
Dr. Tony Havard and Academic Dean Dr. Keith Rice don’t rest on their
laurels, and neither do the faculty and staff at the prestigious school.
Continually striving for improvement, two years ago Havard, Rice, and
an appointed team researched STEM programs that would align with the
many and varied career interests of their students. That search led them
to Pitsco Education. A site visit to Jackson Academy in Mississippi to see
Pitsco labs in action confirmed they would be a great fit at UMS-W.
“Even though tests are great measurements, in the real world and
in college today, you have to know how to work with people,” Rice said.
“And one of the things that we really love about the STEM program
is that it’s application based, it’s hands on, students are solving real
problems, they’re working collaboratively, and they’re learning that
everyone has a role to play and that they all have something to offer.
Those are the kind of intangible things that you can’t measure with an
ACT and you can’t measure with the AP exams.”
Making UMS-W unique among Pitsco’s thousands of curriculum
customers, the independent school went all-in and implemented
STEM across the board in its Lower School, Middle School, and Upper
School. Nearly every student had the opportunity to experience STEM
4
Leaders In Education
during the 2014-15 school year, entrenching it as a cornerstone of
curriculum right alongside English, math, and science.
“Using Pitsco on a whole, it’s a natural progression,” said Lower
School Principal Patricia Boehm. “Doing STEM and using the same
curriculum all the way through is going to benefit our students.”
Teachers were given the green light to teach STEM according to their
needs, leading to slight tweaks such as how much time to spend on
activities and which enrichments to use. But with Pitsco’s STEM programs
correlated to Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science
Standards, minimal adjustments to content were necessary.
Seventh-grade science teacher Jeff Kinard spent time creating
a comprehensive final exam by pulling from assessments in the life
science Modules in his lab, but that was a small price to pay for his
students to have advanced real-world experiences.
“In Plants & Pollination, they’re separating plant pigments. That’s
something I didn’t get a chance to do in high school, not until I
was a student in college,” Kinard said. “These seventh graders are
doing DNA extractions, they’re doing pigment separations, and
they’re doing photosynthesis activities. I challenge you to show me
a high school in our area where kids would do even one of these
experiments. From that standpoint, having the equipment, getting
the students that exposure, that is a huge, huge advantage.”
In today’s competitive climate of academic college scholarships,
schools must pull out all the stops to give their students every
advantage. For that reason, Rice was pleased when the dean of the
College of Engineering at the University of Alabama visited UMS-W
and gave his opinion of the school’s STEM efforts and plans.
Recalled Rice, “He said, ‘A lot of good schools do a great job of
sending us kids who know calculus, who know the basic elements of
physics. They know the science. But what we need are kids who know
that and know how to work with each other, how to solve problems,
how to think through those problems. That’s what your STEM program
is going to do for you, for us, and for those kids.’”
Following are examples of what UMS-W is doing with Pitsco
Education STEM curriculum and activities at each level.
Lower School
grade. Each grade this past year used a combination of Modules, Pitsco
Science (see related article), and teacher-led activities. In addition to
preferring hands-on exploration, most students also enjoy working in pairs,
according to Kinard. He was happy to see that high-achieving students
tended to pull up lower-achieving students when paired together. “I’m not
seeing any pulling down. I’ve seen a lot of lifting up.” Over the course of the
year, students are paired with peers they wouldn’t otherwise get to know.
“We know that you don’t like everybody you’re in school with. . . . They learn
a valuable lesson in that, ‘OK, I might not like you, but I’ve gotta work with
you.’ And that’s something you have to do in the real world.”
Upper School
• STEM Technology – At the ninth-grade level, a STEM Technology course
• S TEM in the Gym™ – A natural way to engage the youngest students
in school is with the simple machines that are part of Pitsco’s STEM in
the Gym curriculum for physical education classes. Students balance
themselves on a lever and fulcrum, use pulleys to quickly scoot across the
floor, and turn gears to simplify the process of moving a classmate. “They
are making their bodies work with these apparatuses,” said Lower School
Assistant Principal Debbie Reynolds. “When they talk about the pulley in
the classroom, they will have actually pulled it and made it work. . . . They
can relate to it.” PE teacher Terry Canova said he has enjoyed having PE
connected with core subjects, and he likes explaining things in terms the
children will understand. “We tell them, ‘OK, in your terms this is a seesaw,
but a seesaw is a fulcrum and lever,’” he said.
• M
issions Science – Students in Grades 3-5 work in four-person Crews
to explore science topics in an independent, hands-on manner, rotating
through a series of 10-12 Missions over the course of the school year.
Teacher Nancy Spence has been teaching elementary science for more than
40 years and says she prefers the Missions format over traditional teaching
methods. “I like this so much better because I feel like I know whether they
have gotten the concept and the skills because while they’re working, I
can go from table to table and I know who’s doing what, who’s gotten
what, and whether they’re getting it because I can talk to them. When it
was a whole-class situation, I couldn’t always tell if this person sitting over
here was even thinking.” Fifth-grade teacher
Susan Taylor echoed Spence’s sentiments, noting
that she feels as if she has students’ attention,
which is half the battle most days. “The mind
is more open, which means you have a greater
opportunity to teach them concepts that maybe
you wouldn’t have been able to do before. . . . I’ve
always felt the hands-on approach is better by
far. Because if they like it, they’re going to want to
do it, and they’re going to go home and tell their
parents about what they learned.”
introduces students to a variety of topics such as Construction Management,
Ideas & Innovations, and CNC Manufacturing. Viewed as a stepping-off
course, STEM Technology gets students thinking about what lies ahead in
the last three years of high school and in college and their careers. And they
get a taste of what professionals do on a day-to-day basis. “In Construction
Management, they have to create different building designs and a parking lot,
and then they have to change it for RSP requirements and fire safety. . . .
It’s very realistic,” said teacher Monique Thomas. Students also get excited
about advancing on to the Pitsco engineering courses.
• Engineering – Students interested in engineering have the option of taking
any of three courses: Engineering Through Flight, Engineering Through
Design, and Engineering the World. With all sophomores required to take
physics, the engineering courses enable students to see familiar physics
principles applied in a real-world scenario. For example, in Engineering
Through Flight, students advance through a series of aerospace-related
activities; they build straw rockets, water rockets, and then solid-fuel rockets.
Then they learn about aeronautics through design of a paper airplane, a Delta
Dart Kit, and then a wing fashioned from balsa wood. Says teacher Jana Price,
“They view it as fun, so I think they don’t realize they’re learning. And it’s more
learning through discovery and trial and error, so it’s not a lot of memorization.
The concept of lift, when you’re talking about flight, instead of just learning
the definition of what lift is, you see it applied.”
Middle School
• Modules and Pitsco Science – At UMS-W,
Earth science is taught in sixth grade, life science
in seventh grade, and physical science in eighth
Students at all grade levels experience STEM at UMS-Wright Preparatory School in Mobile, AL.
Above left, Missions curriculum gives students a chance to experience science hands on. At right,
high school students use the Z-Mill at the CNC Manufacturing Module workstation.
Leaders In Education
5
STEM
at every level
UMS-Wright Preparatory School, Mobile, AL, implemented in 2014 a
broad-based STEM initiative that impacts students at all grade levels within
the three divisions of the school (Lower, Middle, Upper). Students engage
in hands-on experiences in which they have the opportunity to reinforce
academic concepts they learn in other classes. They also gain valuable
experience in the application of soft skills such as teamwork, collaboration,
and problem solving. Students must think critically and communicate
outcomes effectively. Career connections are reinforced throughout the
STEM courses, helping students eventually transition to meaningful college
and career options. STEM programs at UMS-Wright include:
• K
5-Grade 2: STEM in the Gym™ – This program is designed to
introduce basic scientific concepts to students through play activities.
Students complete physical activities using simple machines: wedge,
lever, wheel and axle, screw, inclined plane, pulley, and gears.
• K 5-Grade 2: Early Structures, Early Simple Machines, and
Simple Machines – Through these programs, students begin
to create and manipulate models and explore the use of wheels,
axles, pulleys, levers, and gears. Students are encouraged to solve
problems and think critically as they complete tasks.
• Grades 3-5: Robotics – Simple machines, mechanisms, and robots
are used to introduce and reinforce STEM concepts. Students explore,
investigate, and solve a variety of tasks individually, with partners,
and within small groups.
• G rades 3-5: STEM-Focused Science – Students study science,
technology, engineering, and math through the Pitsco Missions
curriculum. Students experience whole-class, hands-on learning
while working within four-person Crews. Each student is given a
specific task to complete within the context of the group.
• Grades 6-8: Core Science – Middle school students explore science
through collaborative and small-group learning challenges. Each
classroom (sixth grade – Earth science, seventh grade – life science,
eighth grade – physical science) houses 12 experiential Modules,
through which student pairs rotate. Emphasis is placed on inquiry
through adherence to the scientific method.
• Grades 9-11: STEM Technology Rotation and Engineering
Electives – A Pitsco Module lab is used for the ninth-grade STEM
Technology course and Upper School engineering electives. Each
freshman is introduced to various STEM technologies via the Modules.
Students in Grades 10-11 have the option of completing semesterlong engineering electives including Engineering Through Design,
Engineering Through Flight, and Engineering the World.
6
Leaders In Education
From elementary Missions and robotics to middle-level science
to high school engineering, STEM is woven throughout the
curriculum across the UMS-Wright Preparatory School campus.
Preparation Beyond Measure
Career exposure enhances college prep curriculum, makes learning relevant
initiative within the district. Finding the right curriculum was next.
Lamar, MS - Preparing learners for tomorrow requires
With a group of Lamar leaders, Ballou began exploring options for
thoughtful planning, purpose, and exposure to something more
her students with an important question at the forefront of her
than traditional teaching. Lamar Head of School Leigh Ann Ballou
quest: “How do we expose our students to careers to help them
has been strategic not only in her commitment to growing future
make wise choices regarding what they want to study in college?”
leaders but also in the establishment of a framework that will
“We decided to visit surrounding independent schools with a
provide Lamar students with experiential learning opportunities
STEM focus,” shared Ballou. “We visited Jackson Academy
that will prepare them for college and career.
and that was our first exposure to Pitsco. We’d researched
One month into a year-long, teacher-designed STEM
other companies but when we saw the Pitsco solution
class for the middle level, Ballou knew that STEM learning
live, it really made Pitsco stand apart,” she said. Following
was essential on a broad, long-term scale in developing
the Jackson tour, Ballou and her colleagues traveled to
future-ready learners. “We identified STEM as a class with
UMS-Wright in Mobile, AL. “It was interesting to me that
hands-on learning to see how students would respond
they both had Pitsco labs but they were very different,”
to a nontraditional setting,” said Ballou. “We also wanted
Ballou stated. “At that point I knew it could be tailored to
to increase STEM awareness with our parents and what
meet our needs.”
better way than to allow students who are having success Leigh Ann Ballou,
Headmaster,
Through hands-on collaborative learning
in our STEM class to go home and share their positive
Lamar School
opportunities, Pitsco curriculum combines core content
experiences? Students were so receptive and they were
with real-world relevance. Exposure to more than 100 careers in
learning so much.”
both lower- and middle-level solutions infused with measurable
With an average student ACT score of 27 and 100 percent
development of soft skills made Ballou’s decision to implement
college placement, one might argue that transformation at Lamar
Pitsco solutions simple.
School was unnecessary. “We weren’t looking to change our
Lamar School had two Pitsco labs installed in summer 2015.
curriculum. It works. We simply wanted to enhance what we’re
“We wanted a STEM lab in the lower and middle levels. Those are
already doing,” shared Ballou. “Lamar is a college preparatory school.
such formative years,” Ballou shared. “We hope to grow our STEM
Our students transition to postsecondary very smoothly. They know
offerings through Pitsco as our facilities expand in the future.” Ballou
how to study and they work hard, but they have no clue what they
hopes to ensure Lamar graduates are ready not only for college
want to major in.”
coursework but also prepared to make informed career decisions.
Inspired by the positive commotion surrounding STEM learning
“Pitsco STEM curriculum allows us to do that, and it fits our mission
and its benefits, Lamar School parents and patrons gave generously
by preparing our students for postsecondary and beyond.”
to a capital campaign that would support expansion of the STEM
Leaders In Education
7
8
Leaders In Education
Seeing is believing
Headmaster on Pitsco STEM: ‘When I saw it, it took me about 20 seconds to buy in’
in the twenty-first century. The STEM curriculum is laced with
JACKSON, MS – “I don’t get it, guys. I’m sorry. I don’t get it.
career connections and experiences that enable students to see
It just doesn’t make any sense to me whatsoever.”
why math and science are important to their future.
Thus was Jackson Academy (JA) Headmaster Pat Taylor’s
“I think we’re seeing children think about science a lot
first impression after listening to a presentation about Pitsco
differently now,” Taylor said. “They don’t see science as something
Education STEM curriculum and labs. As the overseer of
that they just talk about. Science is something you do.”
academic programs, Taylor nearly put the
The more students do, the more they are able to think
kibosh on any hopes of implementing Pitsco
critically and solve problems – skills that translate to and
STEM at the independent school in Jackson,
improve all facets of life. For example, a JA student told his STEM
MS. But then came an invitation to visit Pitsco
teacher about an experience he had at home. “His parents were
labs in a neighboring state, which proved to
trying to put something together, and the child came in and did
be an eye-opener.
it for them,” Taylor recalled. “The dad and mom were shocked
“When I saw it, it took me about 20
and they said, ‘Where did you figure this out?’ The boy said, ‘I
seconds to buy in,” Taylor said of his visit
Dr.
Pat
Taylor,
Headmaster,
didn’t. I just know how you attack this kind of problem.’ It was a
three years ago to two schools in South
Jackson Academy
result of STEM. The child said, ‘I’m just going to do what I do in
Carolina. “When I saw it, I understood
science.’ And he worked it out for them.”
it. It was hands-on science, it was high tech, it was student
Regardless of the strength or potential impact of the
responsibility. It was all the skills that we’ve talked about
curriculum, the key to success is having the right administrators
teaching but traditional labs will not allow.”
and teachers in place to deliver it to the students. “Our
What exactly did Taylor see on his scouting trip to Pitsco labs
president, Cliff Kling, our deans, and all the way across the
that converted him from skeptic to disciple in a matter of seconds?
board, we have great leadership. We are just getting stronger
“The engagement of the children,” Taylor said. “I’m not a science
and stronger,” Taylor said. As for the teachers, “They’ve got
guy, I’m a history guy, but I could see the hands on, and I could
to be able to handle multiple things happening at the same
see what was happening in there was different. I said, ‘This is what
time. They have to be able to accept that children can work
education should be. This is what education should’ve always been.’”
independently without the teacher being the center of
With more than 40 years’ experience in education – mostly as an
attention. They have to be willing to let children make mistakes
administrator – Taylor has heard about and experienced all the trends,
and then let them figure out what the mistakes were because
the latest and greatest best practices to inspire and engage students,
there’s a tremendous amount of learning that goes on there.”
but there was something different about the student-centered
Whenever he has visitors on campus, Taylor takes them to
approach in a Pitsco lab. The inquiry- and project-based learning at the
one of the Pitsco labs to watch students in action. Recently, he
core of Pitsco’s hands-on STEM curriculum has been on the education
went to the Lower School lab, where students were discovering
drawing board as far back as the late ’60s, according to Taylor, but
the inner workings of electricity.
it took an infusion of technology and a creative design by Pitsco
“They were learning how electricity works, the positive and
curriculum developers to make it an effective reality in the STEM labs
negative charges,” Taylor said. “When they can actually hook it
that now are an integral part of Grades 1-8 at Jackson Academy and
up wrong and then hook it up right and see the results, they
thousands of other classrooms across the country.
really begin to conceptualize what’s going on in the process.
Beyond its innovative design and ability to capture students’
We need to get down to the fundamentals of the science that
attention, the STEM curriculum helps make sense of science
we teach. Students have read about it and they’ve heard about
and math. As a school with a strong academic pedigree, JA was
it, but they need to do it.”
looking to take another step toward preparing students for work
Leaders In Education
9
Learning by
“doing” in STEM labs
By Patti Wade, Jackson Academy
JACKSON, MS – How does wind work? What does skin do to protect
us? What is an “intelligent home”? Students in second through eighth
grades at Jackson Academy will not only ask these types of questions,
they will answer them in tangible ways through experiences in three
new STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics)
labs. The labs, coupled with a supporting, robust curriculum, expose
students to science, math, and other subjects, such as robotics
engineering, in ways that are fun and engaging. STEM education helps
build the life skills necessary for success in the 21st century.
“Exploration in STEM curriculum enables students to make sense of
the math and science they previously had learned in isolation. In STEM,
the subjects are brought together, often through the use of technology,
in hands-on, real-world applications that show students how and why
things work,” said Pat Taylor, headmaster. “STEM is a course where the
proverbial lightbulb comes on in the minds of most students.”
10
Leaders In Education
In STEM labs, students experience subjects by “doing,” which
increases understanding and retention of core academic concepts.
“We are seeing a great deal of excitement as students get to touch the
instruments and models used in STEM labs,” said Matt Morgan, Middle
School dean. “Students’ cognition and sensory skills are engaged
through the STEM experience, enabling students to connect core
content knowledge with tactile experience and learn collaboration
and critical thinking along the way.” The kinesthetic experiences ignite
the interest of students, helping them connect concepts to real-world
applications.
Ready for Takeoff
In STEM Missions Lab, second- through fourth-grade
students work in teams of four following a NASA crew model
on topics such as space, electricity, skyscrapers, rocks, and
rockets. Serving as Commander, Materials Specialist, Information
Specialist, or Communications Specialist, students develop skills
of communication and collaboration while observing how their
contributions affect the results of the entire team.
“It really has been a huge hit with the kids – and I’m having
a blast as well!” said Cliff Powers, Lower School STEM instructor
and 21st-century learning specialist. “The STEM lab is incredibly
stimulating, interactive, and engaging.”
state of Mississippi,” said Peter Jernberg, president. “Lower- and
middle-level students will become intimately familiar with the
science and math behind subjects such as rocketry, applied physics,
alternative energy, chemical reactions, and simple machines.
Students’ 21st-century skills of critical thinking, problem solving, and
collaboration will be well established, and they will be eager to learn
these subjects more deeply when they enter upper school.”
“By implementing Pitsco Education’s STEM programs that have been used
in more than 5,000 labs across the country, Jackson Academy is positioning
itself as a leader in STEM education in the state of Mississippi.”
– Peter Jernberg, president, Jackson Academy
Yes, It Is Rocket Science
Understanding rocket science is the focus of one of the
hands-on workstations in the Middle School STEM lab. Fifth-grade
students make use of 12 workstations that illuminate subjects
through explorations on aquaculture, climate and biomes, and even
garbology. Sixth-grade students experience 12 workstations that
include Heart Fitness, Carbon Footprint, and Plastics & Polymers.
Seventh- and eighth-grade curriculum includes Microbiology,
Applied Physics, and robotic engineering.
“By implementing Pitsco Education’s STEM programs that have
been used in more than 5,000 labs across the country, Jackson
Academy is positioning itself as a leader in STEM education in the
Pitsco Education developed the STEM labs and curriculum.
After installation, Jackson Academy faculty members received
professional development, led by Pitsco trainers, to become familiar
with the lab Modules and the accompanying curriculum.
Faculty and staff of Jackson Academy admit they can’t contain
their excitement about STEM and its benefits to students. “The
breadth and depth of our STEM and robotics program as well as our
approach is distinctive,” said Cliff Kling, JA president elect. “Schools
that implement STEM-based curriculum frequently experience
improved student performance in math and science in particular.
Case studies of this are quite compelling. We are thrilled to be a part
of STEM advancements in education.”
Leaders In Education
11
The Animal Adaptations Mission gives
Monte Cassino students the chance to
look more closely at feathers and other
fascinating features of various creatures.
12
Leaders In Education
Early commitment
to science is essential
Dedicated teacher and lab
at the elementary level give
Tulsa students an edge
TULSA, OK – Before science performance
can be improved at the high school level,
thereby keeping the US competitive on the
international stage, it must receive more
attention at the elementary level. And one
surefire means of yielding stronger performance
in elementary science is to commit more
resources to the effort – such as a full-time
teacher in a dedicated room that’s more a
combination of a zoo and an arboretum than it
is a classroom.
Elementary Principal Lisa Beardshear of
Monte Cassino School in Tulsa, Oklahoma,
says a dedicated science lab is more than just
a larger work space where water is readily
available and labs can be conducted.
“Students have the animals down there they
get to see and help take care of,” Beardshear said.
“It’s a different space and a different place. So many
of the kids, if you ask them what their favorite
subject is or favorite room, they’ll say science. A lot
of it has to do with being in a different space and
getting to do hands-on activities.”
Pitsco Missions comprise about half of the
science curricula for first through fourth graders.
And under the direction of fourth-year science
teacher Janou Farrell, students have flourished.
On the science portion of the 2007-2008 Iowa
Test of Basic Skills, second graders finished
in the 95th percentile while third and fourth
graders finished in the 99th percentile.
“If you have a set time for science, then
they’re going to do it rather than sometimes
it may get lost in the home room if things
come up,” Farrell said. “This way they have it,
it’s consistent, and they stay on track. It’s not
something that’s going to be left behind.”
Monte Cassino School Director Sr. Mary
Clare spearheaded the effort to add Missions
in 2005 after seeing how excited and enthused
seventh and eighth graders were in the
Modules lab during the previous several years.
“We needed to generate in the elementary
school the excitement and the love for science
in the first through fourth grades.”
Continuity found in a consistent curriculum
delivery model benefits students as they work
their way toward high school, and the Missions
program is a great first step.
“You can’t go wrong,” Farrell said. “The first
graders have it step-by-step in pictures. The
second graders have it in simple reading. And
the third and fourth, everything is so easily laid
out. You can’t mess it up. It’s really a foolproof
system, especially for teachers that might not
even have the science background.”
Leaders In Education
13
Submitted photo.
The Exploratorium
Miami prep school wants to give every student every advantage in STEM
MIAMI, FL – Enrichment. Supplement. Reinforcement.
Complement. Regardless which “ment” is meant, results are
all that matter. The STEM-filled Exploratorium at Hochberg
Preparatory in Miami, Florida, delivers on what it’s meant to
be – the key piece in an educational puzzle that enhances
student understanding of science, technology, engineering,
and math concepts taught in regular classrooms within the
pre-K-8 school.
Exploratorium is an apt name for the uniquely outfitted room laden
with Pitsco and LEGO® curriculum and overseen by Facilitator Sirena
Buchholz. From prekindergarteners to eighth graders, all students
spend time exploring age-appropriate, hands-on activities that help
them make sense of concepts they might struggle to understand in
their rows-and-columns classrooms of the Jewish Day School.
14
Leaders In Education
“The Exploratorium ties nicely in with K-8 homeroom studies for
math, science, and technology,” Buchholz explained. “For example,
I work with teachers on providing basic vocabulary and concepts in
science that are then reinforced in homeroom classes and assessed.”
The Exploratorium is the brainchild of Head of School Dr. Linda
Marks, whose goal is to eventually transform the already-highachieving Hochberg into a STEM-focused school where students
learn primarily through exploration, discovery, teamwork, and
problem solving.
Curriculum in the Exploratorium begins with LEGO StoryStarter
for kindergarteners; continues with LEGO Simple Machines for first
and second graders; goes to a combination of Pitsco Missions and
LEGO WeDo, BuildToExpress, and renewable energy for third and
fourth graders; and concludes with a combination of Pitsco Modules
Hochberg Prep
students put their
heads together to
solve a problem.
and GreenSTEM Academy as well as LEGO BuildToExpress and
renewable energy for students in fifth through eighth grades.
“As the STEM specialist here at Hochberg, I am given the time,
the resources, and the encouragement to bring students out of their
comfort zone and enrich their core studies with advanced sciences,
math, and technology,” Buchholz said.
Regular classroom teachers are fully supportive of the
supplemental content and experiences their students gain in the
Exploratorium, particularly the way they learn to work cooperatively.
“The feedback I receive from homeroom teachers is that they
observe students stepping up and taking on more leadership roles
in the classroom, particularly my third and fourth graders,” Buchholz
said. “Students express themselves with more confidence and have
the assurance they can succeed when they keep trying.”
Students are responsible for their own learning because of the
self-directed nature of the primarily hands-on curriculum, thereby
putting Buchholz in the position of facilitator rather than the
traditional commander of the classroom who calls all the shots.
“Being a facilitator is fantastic. It encourages students to take
ownership of their learning,” she explained. “Working with my
students in the STEM lab allows me to actually observe science
being learned and not just taught.”
Prior to joining the ranks at Hochberg last year, Buchholz worked
for 10 years as a science and IB technology teacher. So, she was well
prepared to head up the Exploratorium, and she was excited for the
possibilities of what she terms a “holistic approach” to building skills
that prepare students for higher-level thinking.
Following three different training sessions with Pitsco and LEGO
curriculum experts, any concerns she had were quelled and she was
prepared and excited to take on her newest teaching challenge.
“I was equipped with the information, skills, and
understanding I needed to run a full-on
STEM lab,” Buchholz said. “Due to my
Pitsco training, I was not nervous at all.
Each member of the Pitsco staff
helped me prep my bins and
labs ahead of time.”
Whetting their STEM appetites
With students ranging in age from 4 to 14 entering her Hochberg
Preparatory classroom each week, Sirena Buchholz capitalizes on the
occasions when materials used by a crew of older children are left
out and observed by youngsters. Because she can’t change out all
materials for activities every time a new group comes in, Buchholz
makes the most of these teachable moments.
“I constantly have multiple stations set up and ready to run at
any given time,” she says. “Therefore, it really makes it nice when
younger ages see what the older kids are working on.”
For instance, she allowed her first and second graders to explore
the concepts of force and distance when the Straw Rocket Launcher
was left sitting out as part of the Going Green Module used by middlelevel students. “This project gets their inquisitive minds intrigued and
looking forward to new, exciting concepts each year,” Buchholz said.
“It promotes a further interest for science and technology.”
Leaders In Education
15
Providing meaningful
STEM professional
development
for Grades K-10
Pitsco Education’s comprehensive professional development includes classroom
resources, STEM content, and instructional methods designed exclusively to
provide the most positive and productive learning experience possible.
As an educator, what do I take away from the seminar?
• A better understanding of STEM
• Group discussion with other teachers
• A personalized definition of STEM
• Practical applications that transfer directly
to the classroom
• Methods for making relevant STEM connections
to classroom activities
• Products that are ready to use with students
Contact a Pitsco Education consultant for more information: 800-828-5787.
“Overall, the entire training was very helpful and makes me excited, instead of dreadful, of the implementation
of STEM into our school. Now I want to be more involved in STEM. The projects are awesome!”
– Joscelyne Thompson, Special Education Teacher, Casper, WY