Texas EcosySTEM Newsletter
Education Service Center Region 11 - November 2020
What is STEM?
STEM is not a commodity to be bought, sold, earned, or awarded. It is an awareness, recognition, and acceptance of reality. A symbol of a way forward with confidence and hope!
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Texas EcosySTEM - Region 11
Newsletter Signup: From the dropdown, select TEXAS ECOSYSTEM!
Visit our Site: https://www.esc11.net/STEM
Vision: To provide quality solutions that build the capacity in STEM learning opportunities.
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STEM Showcase
Showcase Your Campus/District STEM
If you have a STEM event or program that you would like to feature in a Texas EcosySTEM newsletter, please send your information and a picture to Cheryl Bowden. We would love to help you show off the great things happening in your school!
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Free STEM Curriculum
Free Teaching Engineering Curriculum
TeachEngineering is a digital library comprised of standards-aligned engineering curricula for K-12 educators to make applied science and math come alive through engineering design.
Educators have FREE access to the ever-growing collection of activities, lessons, units, maker challenges, sprinkles, and living labs. many generous sponsors and partners have helped to establish, develop, and promote this collection to help make teaching science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) easy and accessible for K-12 teachers everywhere.
Check it out here: TeachEngineering
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STEM Resources
The Science Mill
The Science Mill is a family destination offering a fun, interactive learning environment for all ages. Through cutting-edge technology-based exhibits, games, and programs, the Science Mill expands students' understanding and appreciation of science in their everyday lives. By igniting their curiosity and inspiring them to pursue post-secondary education, the Science Mill experience starts students on the path to a life-long career in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).
Check it out here: The Science Mill
12 Ways to Start Teaching STEM in Your School
Want more STEM experiences for your students but don’t know where to start? Want to infuse art into science and boost STEAM experiences?
Before exploring how to do STEM, let’s define what it is. Everybody teaches science and math—STEM adds technology and engineering to the equation; STEAM adds art. Common elements of quality STEM learning include:
Design-focus: using design tools and techniques to attack big problems or opportunities (challenge-based, problem-based learning).
Active application: applying knowledge and skills to real-world situations and constructing or prototyping solutions to challenges (maker, project-based learning).
Integration: real-world problems aren’t limited to a discipline—solutions almost always draw from many fields.
The following are 12 tips for learning about STEM (and STEAM) experiences and implementing them in your school.
Texas EcosySTEM Resources
The Texas Education Agency has developed tools to help districts engage with families through STEM Education programming and build awareness throughout the community by expanding learning beyond the classroom.
TEA STEM Toolkit
Planning Tools:
- STEM Model Identification Guide
- STEM Education Program Planning Guide
- STEM Leadership Roles and Responsibilities
- STEM Sustainability Tool
Implementation Tools:
U.S. Department of Education STEM & Computer Science
You can subscribe to the topics that most interest you. We encourage you to invite your colleagues and friends to sign up as well!
What is a STEM Advocate?
A STEM Advocate does one or more of the following:
- Pursues solutions to problems that impact us locally, regionally, and or globally with a basis in one or more STEM disciplines.
- Does whatever is necessary to teach children to read and problem solve. Learning at all levels requires a person to read and write proficiently and problem-solve using critical thinking skills. Such abilities are the foundation for all learning and innovation.
- Promotes providing STEM experiences and opportunities to students of all backgrounds, starting as early as possible and continuing through graduation.
- Promotes rigorous preparation of teachers, especially in mathematics and science in the elementary grades.
- Promotes science specialists teachers in the elementary grades.
- Promotes more rigorous certification requirements, including pre-service teaching experience.
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Contact Us! Region 11 STEM Lead - Cheryl Bowden
Each Education Service Center will provide free membership for districts to join the local STEM EcosySTEM.
EcosySTEM membership includes:
- Monthly STEM communication including information from the state and federal level
- Regional STEM goals developed by a local STEM Design Team and aligned to the local STEM labor market data
- Regular STEM ecosySTEM meetings to share local STEM opportunities and address local concerns
- All districts will have access to the free TEA STEM planning and implementation tools as well as family engagement tools
Email: cbowden@esc11.net
Website: https://www.esc11.net/Domain/1338
Location: 1451 South Cherry Lane, White Settlement, TX, USA
Phone: 817-740-7755
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/esc11science/?ref=bookmarks
Twitter: @ESC11Science