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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Fifth-grade students at Canfield Village Middle School got some hands-on experience with an augmented reality sandbox at which the topography of the land was projected onto sand at the school’s STEM Day on May 20.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Dave Harris, of DPH Architecture, guided Canfield Village Middle School fifth-grade students in building a self-supporting bridge out of blocks and metal plates at the school’s STEM Day on May 20.
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Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Canfield Village Middle School fifth-grade students got an up-close look at animal skulls at the school’s STEM Day on May 20.
By ABBY SLANKER
Canfield Village Middle School fifth-grade students participated in two days of STEM activities, during which they experienced hands-on experiments and were exposed to a variety of STEM fields, on May 20-21.
The event was sponsored by Canfield PTA.
Six stations were set up by parent and community volunteers for the students to visit and learn about science, technology, engineering and math.
Julie Miller was set up at a science station to teach the students about the teeth of omnivores, carnivores and herbivores using animal skulls. The students could pick up and examine the skulls to figure out which classification of animal it came from.
A math station was manned by Bill Stilson, retired Austintown Fitch teacher, who instructed the students to use two cubes to calculate the volume of a life-size box.
At the other math station, students used body mapping to calculate the perimeter of shapes taped on the gym floor. Students used their arms, hand and legs as measurements.
At the technology station was an augmented reality sandbox, courtesy of the Ohio Farm Bureau and the Mahoning County Soil and Water District. The topography of the land was projected onto the sand, and the students could alter the topography by moving the sand.
“This is a totally new concept for our fifth-graders. They will learn more about topography in sixth grade. This station is sensory. They can play in the sand and move it all around and see how the topography changes,” Mandy Harris said.
One engineering station was set up by Dave Harris of DPH Architecture of Canfield. At this station, the children were tasked with building a self-supporting bridge out of blocks and metal plates.
The final station was a combination of science and engineering, at which students attempted to guide a laser through a maze using mirrors. The students’ met their goal of getting the laser though the maze if the completion signal lit up at the end of the maze.
“If the students get through the maze quickly, obstacles are added to make it more challenging. Another great aspect of this station is that the students are working together to succeed,” Harris said.