STEM Night at HES

STEM is an acronym that stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math and it is the new buzz word in Education.  Purposeful teaching in these areas will help our students succeed in the jobs they will find when they graduate from high school and college.  In order to foster the STEM approach, Hazelwood Elementary recently held a STEM Night.  Students and parents were involved in many hands-on experiments that had them problem-solving and synergizing to be successful.

Some of the interactive booths set up that evening included:  an engineering feat that had students try to build the tallest spaghetti tower, learning about force and motion by racing matchbox cars with only your breath, building an aluminum foil boat to hold the greatest number of bears, and a chemistry activity that resulted in students making pretend blood.  Another station had students making soil layers using cookies and cereal – a yummy treat to an energy-packed night.

Hazelwood Elementary follows the STEMscopes curriculum, which is aligned with the N.C. Essential Standards for Science.  STEMscopes is based on hands-on, inquiry-based investigation that helps students become tomorrow’s STEM leaders and innovators.  This approach allows students to experience Science.  As students dive into the investigations found in each scope, they develop their own contexts and meanings for the scientific concepts they are learning, retain more knowledge, and develop deeper understandings of the world around them.