Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Charles County (BGCSTC) members wrapped up their 9 week Summer Camp with a hands-on STEM week! BGCSTC Club youth visited Boeing in August for a student engagement field trip. Club youth received a Prologue Room tour, spent time with Boeing employees, and enjoyed STEM activities in Makerspace. Club youth really enjoyed the flight sim and paper airplane/glider activities. They brought back the skills they learned and showed their peers how to make the different types of planes/gliders.
For STEM programming at the Club, BGCSTC utilizes DIY STEM, which is a program provided by Boys & Girls Clubs of America. DIY STEM is a hands-on, activity-based STEM curriculum which connects youth aged 9 to 12 to science themes they encounter regularly. Special attention is paid to connections of theory and application and the common interactions members have with these scientific principles. DIY STEM currently includes five modules: Energy and Electricity, Engineering Design, Food Chemistry, Science of Sports: Football. DIY STEM provides youth who might otherwise not have access to STEM experiences with simple, fun, hands-on activities. Exposure to science, technology, engineering, and math is critical during the tween years, when young people’s natural curiosity drives interest and builds capacity for success in these disciplines.
The team at Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Charles County is excited to share we have received additional project support from Dr. Pat Brown, Executive Director of STEM for Fort Zumwalt School District. His 2019 book is still widely read and used to inform science and STEM teachers practices. In it, he and co-author, James Concannon demonstrate how direct, hands-on experience in the science classroom can enable students to become more self-reliant learners. They provide a wealth of model lessons aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and offer advice on how to create lesson plans and activities to satisfy the demands of curriculum. With Pat’s support this summer, we know our overall Summer Camp program will have more robust, STEM opportunities for our learners of all ages and educational backgrounds.
The members at our Wright City Unit look forward to STEM activities as part of their daily program. The staff team out there continues to find creative ways to engage members at every grade level in unique, hands on STEM activities and events. For many of these members, this is their first opportunity to really explore STEM and see how the concepts can be incorporated in so many creative, fun ways. Our Wright City Unit opened this school year and it has been wonderful to see these new members, grades K-4, jump right in. Donor support from projects like our STEAMbotics Academy on GlobalGiving helps ensure we have the necessary program supplies, additional staff training, and extra STEM resources to make learning come to life.
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We are proud to announce the opening of our first school-based site in Wright City, MO. This site serves children in grades K-5 each day after school. The site opened on the first day of school for the district, August 22, 2022. We have 50 kids registered to participate with an average daily attendance of 47. Since the kids served here are younger, our STEM programming has started with more basic STEM concepts and a lot of hands on activities. The kids are really enjoying the opportunities to engage in STEM activities, especially since they do not have a dedicated STEM class or session during the school day. Starting a new site is a huge endeavor and has required significant financial investment. Grant, foundation, and community donors have been a huge part of this success and we so appreciate the investment in our kids, mission, and STEM education.
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Boys & Girls Clubs of St. Charles County is gearing up for our annual Summer Camp and three of this year's camp weeks are centered on STEM. Members will participate in hands-on learning, go on field trips, and enjoy guests speakers each week at camp. Week One kicks off "Out of this World" and members will visit the Science Center. They will also have the opportunity to connect via Zoom with NASA Engineers to learn more about all that goes into designing and engineering rockets. Week Two is "First Responders" week and during this time, members will have the opportunity to explore SWAT trucks, ambulances, fire trucks, and the like. During Week Three (the official STEM week of camp), members will visit the Magic House and Myseum - both hands-on, children's museums in our community. They will also have Lego build sessions and work hands-on with volunteers from Mastercard and Thermo-Fisher. We provide all the hands-on opportunities, field trips, speakers, and experiences to members ages 6-18 at no additional cost to families. We are so excited to see the magic that happens over the summer and are thankful for our many funders who allow us to turn dreams into realities for our kids who need us most.
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