Post on 20-Apr-2018
STEM Newsletter
“By utilizing T-STEM
project-based learning in
my classroom, my
students are able to
deeply analyze classic
literature and apply it to
past, current and future
real-world issues.”
Marisol Garcia
AP Literature
IDEA College Prep Alamo
Contents
Holiday Wishes
STEM Leaves…
Google for STEM Education
The 12 Days of Christmas
Picture Gallery
Alliance Partners of the
Month
Get N-Spired Over the
Holidays
STEM Curriculum Spotlight
Fun Page / Contact Us
Professional Development
Calendar
Practice Conference
December 2013 / January 2014 ● STEM Center of South Texas ● (956) 984-6227
STEM Center of South Texas
December 2013 / January 2014
As I was reflecting on the role of the STEM
Center of South Texas, and the support that
we need to provide to the T-STEM
Academies, there was one revolving
thought in my mind: the power of
observation. A long time ago, driven by
necessity, the earliest human beings must
have been keen observers of nature. Even
so-called primitive people were able to
construct fairly sophisticated ways to
classify elements of their surroundings in
order to understand and adapt to the
environment. Simple tasks, such as
determining the edible and inedible,
required experimentation. Processes were
established to treat different materials to
produce clothing or shelter. Even the most
important accomplishment of humankind,
verbal communication, was part of the
evolution.
So now, let’s comeback to the present day
STEM Leaves… - Yuridia P. Gandy, STEM Coordinator
and examine our surroundings. What are
our students and teachers doing? Are
they engaging in the same proven
successful methods to understand this
new “modern” environment?
Observation, classification,
experimentation, critical thinking,
processes, product creation, and
effective communication are crucial
elements for our students to adapt to this
fast changing environment. If we are
providing our students with opportunities
to exercise these critical elements, we
can be sure that our work is well done.
The term “21st-century skills” is generally
used to refer to competencies such as
collaboration, critical thinking, problem-
solving and communication. But aren’t
they actually “old skills” that have been
used to adapt to the environment for
eons? To me, they are.
Page 1
Happy
Holidays
from our
TSTEM
family to
yours!
As we approach a festive time of year, the
Region One STEM Center of South Texas
would like to extend Seasons Greetings to
all members of our STEM family across South
Texas. The holidays are a good time to
reflect upon our experiences from the past
year, and express warm wishes for the year
to come. Looking back on 2013, we
would like to thank all of you for pushing
forward STEM initiatives at your local
campuses. We have enjoyed serving
you through our professional
development, cluster/alliance
meetings, and student events.
Looking forward to 2014, we
Invite you to stay connected
with the STEM Center of
South Texas as we will
continue our service to
our STEM community of
schools and higher
ed/community
partners.
Need to share your findings or resources
with the rest of the world? Just create
your own website on Google Sites.
Could this be used for STEM? Of course!
One of the key components of STEM is
creation and collaboration and you can
definitely do those using Google Drive.
So get informed and get to creating and
sharing with the world!!
Here’s a few links to see what Google is
all about…. http://www.google.com/drive/about.html
http://goo.gl/qj3gez
https://sites.google.com/site/colettecassinelli/
stem-google-docs
Google for STEM Education - Efren Rodriguez, Science Specialist
Elementary Kids engaged in an E
ngineering
Design Challenge
Google! When someone says this,
people normally think about searching
on the Internet. Or perhaps maybe they
start to think about their gmail account
or the self driving cars or those cool
glasses B-}. But what about creation,
collaboration, and accessibility? You
can do those things with Google too,
specifically using Google Drive! And
YES, there is even an app for it!
Google Drive allows you to create
documents, presentations, spreadsheets,
and drawings. You can keep them
private or share them with others. When
shared, they can be edited
collaboratively online; no need to send
an attachment back and forth.
Want to collect some data? You can
use a Google Form to quickly collect it.
The 12 Days of Christmas (for a T-STEM Academy) – Sylvia Escobar, STEM Specialist
On the 1st day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave to
me…an Advisory Board to o-ver-see.
On the 2nd day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave
to me…2 STEM conference fees…and an Advisory Board
to o-ver-see.
On the 3rd day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave
to me…3 iPad workshops, 2 STEM conference fees …and
an Advisory Board to o-ver-see.
On the 4th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave
to me…4 TI-NSPIREs, 3 iPad workshops, 2 STEM conference
fees …and an Advisory Board to o-ver-see.
On the 5th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave
to me…5 P-B-Ls….4 TI-NSPIREs, 3 iPad workshops, 2 STEM
conference fees …and an Advisory Board to o-ver-see.
On the 6th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave
to me…6 community partners …5 P-B-Ls…4 TI-NSPIREs, 3
iPad workshops, 2 STEM conference fees …and an
Advisory Board to o-ver-see.
On the 7th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave
to me…7 blueprint benchmarks, 6 community partners …5
P-B-Ls…4 TI-NSPIREs, 3 iPad workshops, 2 STEM conference
fees …and an Advisory Board to o-ver-see.
On the 8th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave
to me…8 STEM career pathways, 7 blueprint benchmarks,
6 community partners …5 P-B-Ls…4 TI-NSPIREs, 3 iPad
workshops, 2 STEM conference fees …and an Advisory
Board to o-ver-see.
On the 9th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation gave
to me…9 college visits, 8 STEM career pathways, 7
blueprint benchmarks, 6 community partners …5 P-B-
Ls…4 TI-NSPIREs, 3 iPad workshops, 2 STEM conference
fees …and an Advisory Board to o-ver-see.
On the 10th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation
gave to me…10 Google Drive trainings, 9 college visits, 8
STEM career pathways, 7 blueprint benchmarks, 6
community partners …5 P-B-Ls…4 TI-NSPIREs, 3 iPad
workshops, 2 STEM conference fees …and an Advisory
Board to o-ver-see.
On the 11th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation
gave to me…11 capstone projects, 10 Google Drive
trainings, 9 college visits, 8 STEM career pathways, 7
blueprint benchmarks, 6 community partners …5 P-B-
Ls…4 TI-NSPIREs, 3 iPad workshops, 2 STEM conference
fees …and an Advisory Board to o-ver-see.
On the 12th day of Christmas, my T-STEM designation
gave to me…12 robotics kits, 11 capstone projects, 10
Google Drive trainings, 9 college visits, 8 STEM career
pathways, 7 blueprint benchmarks, 6 community
partners …5 P-B-Ls…4 TI-NSPIREs, 3 iPad workshops, 2
STEM conference fees …and an Advisory Board to o-ver-
see.
Page 2 December 2013 / January 2014 ● STEM Center of South Texas ● (956) 984-6227
November / December 2013 Trainings and Events
Page 3
T-STEM Alliance
Meeting #2
December 2013 / January 2014 ● STEM Center of South Texas ● (956) 984-6227
T-STEM Fall
Convening
Integrating
Robotics in
Math and
Science
STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES:
Comet ISON Challenge – Due January 15, 2014
http://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/cometchallenge/
28th Annual DuPont Challenge Science Essay Competition – Due January 31, 2014
http://thechallenge.dupont.com/
US Naval Academy Summer STEM Program – Due April 15, 2014
http://www.usna.edu/Admissions/stem.htm
Siemens We Can Change the World Challenge – Due March 4, 2014
http://www.wecanchange.com/
Engineering for You Video Contest – Due March 31, 2014
http://www.nae.edu/e4u/
West Point Bridge Design Contest – Due May 2, 2014
http://bridgecontest.usma.edu/index.htm
TEACHER/CLASS/SCHOOL OPPORTUNITIES:
ExploraVision – Due January 30, 2014
http://www.exploravision.org/
2014 School of the Future Design Competition – Due February 3, 2014
http://www.cefpi.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3550
2014 Siemens Summer of Learning – Due February 4, 2014
http://www.siemensstemacademy.com/index.cfm?event=showSTEMApplication&landing=1
GRANT OPPORTUNITIES:
NSF Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) – Due January 14, 2014
http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=504793
NSF Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) – Due February 11, 2014
http://www.nsf.gov/funding/pgm_summ.jsp?pims_id=5467&org=NSF&sel_org=NSF&from=fund
US Dept of Labor Youth Career Connect – Due January 27, 2014
http://www.doleta.gov/ycc/eta_default.cfm
January 10, 2014 – Last day for “Intent to Submit” email
January 13, 2014 – Poster online submissions will be accepted beginning this date
January 20, 2014 – Last day for online poster submissions (by 5:00 PM)
Page 4 December 2013 / January 2014 ● STEM Center of South Texas ● (956) 984-6227
Socrative Notability A FREE app that
brings student
response and ease
of use to a whole
new level.
A paid app ($2.99)
that is the answer
to all of your note-
taking dreams.
Google Tip of the Day: Make a CUSTOM search engine for your
students to use at: https://www.google.com/cse/
December 2013 / January 2014 ● STEM Center of South Texas ● (956) 984-6227
Alliance Partners of the Month
STEM Curriculum Spotlight
‘Hour of Code’ More Than Minutes for High School Students – Kelsey Sheehy
U.S. News & World Report – Education – High School Notes – December 16, 2013
"Don't just buy a new video game. Make one. Don't just download the latest app. Help design it. Don't just play on your
phone. Program it."
That's the message President Barack Obama had for students in a video kicking off Computer Science Education Week
on Dec. 9.
[See photos of the 2013 Best High Schools for STEM.]
Computing in the Core and Code.org, both nonprofits, held the nationwide event to honor the birthday of Rear Adm.
Grace Hopper, a computer programming pioneer. The campaign, which wrapped up Friday, encouraged kids of all ages
to get a taste of computer science by coding for an hour.
Many teens did far more than write code for a mere 60 minutes. High school students at Foshay Tech Academy in Los
Angeles taught parents how to code. At Augustus Hawkins Critical Design and Gaming School in Los Angeles, students
participating in Exploring Computer Science, a yearlong college prep program, taught their own teachers how to code.
[Find out how to hook girls on STEM.]
While Computer Science Education Week is officially over, the push to teach students high-tech skills is far from complete.
The Obama administration also announced last month a $100 million grant campaignto help high school students
become proficient in computer science and other science, technology, engineering and math fields. Those grants will be
awarded in early 2014, according to a White House press release.
To get inspiration for teaching computer science in your classroom, scroll through the tweets, Instagram posts and even
videos of high school students getting into the spirit of Computer Science Education Week. Then share your own Hour of
Code activities with U.S. News onFacebook, Twitter or Google+
Get N-Spired Over the Holidays! – Gustavo Perez, STEM Specialist
Get N-Spired over the holidays with free and available
math and science lessons from Texas Instruments.
Math and Science content is intricately connected as
new standards continue to bridge the thinking and
process skills in both disciplines. Scientific probeware
helps to bring equations to life by giving real meaning
to quantitative representation (equations, variables,
and numerical expressions). Mathematics is the
engine behind scientific reasoning of natural
phenomena, driving understanding of the natural
world. Check it out on the following links and discover
how you can bridge your content into other areas.
Need to brush-up on some skills? No problem! Visit
atomic learning and learn at your own pace.
Get N-Spired!
Links:
Learn at Your Pace
http://www.atomiclearning.com/k12/en/ti_nspire_nav
Math Lesson (All levels)
http://education.ti.com/en/timathnspired/us/home
Science lessons (All levels)
http://education.ti.com/en/tisciencenspired/us/home
Page 5
STEM Education for All
Page 6
Professional Development
December 2013 – January 2014
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Region One T-STEM Staff!! January 8-9, 2014* WS# 40628 Engineering the Future HS Curriculum Day 2
January 22, 2014 WS# 40624 iPad Technology for Math and Science
January 30, 2014 WS# 40632 Gaming Design in the STEM Classroom Day 2
January 31, 2014 WS# 40628 Engineering the Future HS Curriculum Day 3
WS# 40642 T-STEM Alliance Meeting #3
February 6-8, 2014
7th Annual Texas STEM Conference and 1st Annual Texas PBL Institute
*Change of date
Contact Information
1900 W. Schunior
Edinburg, TX 78541
Phone: (956) 984-6227
Fax: (956) 984-7647
Emails:
YuridiaP. Gandy (ypgandy@esc1.net)
Gustavo Perez (gperez@esc1.net)
Sylvia Escobar (sescobar@esc1.net)
Efren Rodriguez (erodriguez@esc1.net)
Elena Vallejo (evallejo@esc1.net)
STEM Web Site:
www.esc1.net/T-stem
Region One Staff Development:
www.esc1.net/staffdevelopment
December 2013 / January 2014 ● STEM Center of South Texas ● (956) 984-6227
STEM-Cryptogram
STEM-Cryptogram ANSWER: “You can teach a student a lesson
for a day; but if you can teach him to learn by creating
curiosity, he will continue the learning process as long as he
lives.” – Clay P. Bedford
STEM-Sudoku