Motivate STEM Leaders of Tomorrow

Forum to Advance Minorities in Engineering’s (FAME, Inc.) CORE Enrichment Program has been operating our School Year Session from the fall of 2016 in through the spring of 2017. The program, which takes place from 9am to 12pm on the 1^st and 3^rd Saturday of the month at Alexis I. duPont High School in Wilmington, Delaware, is offered to all enrolled students (grades 7-12). While the School Year Session will conclude on Saturday, May 20^th 2017, our Summer Session will take place from Monday, June 19^th to Thursday, July 27^th 2017!

Since the beginning of the School Year Session, FAME students have been engaged in rigorous Problem Based Learning (PBL) activities that focus on the following academic areas: English Language Arts (ELA), Mathematics, Technology, Science Lecture, and Science Lab. In addition to academic learning, students have also had the opportunity to visit local industry leaders to become introduced to real-life STEM professionals and careers, including the Fraunhofer USA Center for Molecular Biotechnology in Newark, Delaware.

Continuing with the theme of bioscience, FAME students have been diligently working to prepare for a dissection of a fetal pig. This dissection was scheduled to take place on Saturday, April 1^st and will continue in through Saturday, April 8^th. There are four specific stages to the process, described by FAME’s science teacher Ms. Thompson: 1.) research and poster board presentation; 2.) paper dissection; 3.) virtual dissections; and 4.) fetal pig dissection. FAME students have competed stage three of the dissection process and have just began their fourth and final stage! Through this process, students have demonstrated their knowledge of major organs and their functions as well as outlined the procedure of dissection. They have also shown great motivation and have progressed through self-paced learning and teamwork!  

Links:

• FAME's Website

On September 14, 2016, the STEMulate® Change Outreach Initiative began operation at Silverlake Elementary School in Middletown, Delaware.  The eleven week session focused on Dr. Guillermo Gonzalez, a Cuban astronomer who pioneered the intelligent design of astrophysics.  Through STEMulate® Change, students worked in teams to learn and study the solar system and wider universe while also designing/engineering model solar systems.  In addition to programming at Silverlake Elementary School, STEMulate® Change has also been operating at: Richardson Park Elementary School, Heritage Elementary School, Baltz Elementary School, and Stanton Middle School, located in Newport, Pike Creek, Elsmere, and Stanton, Delaware (respectively).  Programming that began in the fall of 2016 will continue throughout the New Year!

According to one of FAME’s teachers, “There is always a great day at Richardson Park with STEMulate® Change!”.  The following excerpt is a testimonial from Mr. Warrick, a STEMulate® Change Science teacher from Richardson Park Elementary School:

“While teaching class, I posed the following question to my students, “Which planets have the most gravity in our solar system?”.  When asked this question, the answer I was looking for was Jupiter.  However, one male 4^th grader named Steven, enthusiastically raised his hand.  Once I called on him, he said something that took the air out of the room.  Steven shouted out, "THE SUN!".  The room got so quiet you could hear a pin drop.  Then all 20 students busted out in laughter and joy.  I quieted the room and congratulated the brave student because the Sun actually does have the most gravity in our solar system.  It’s the main force that keeps our planets and moons in orbit.  On that note, the whole class gave Steven a BIG round of applause!”

Links:

• FAME Website