How to catch steam week 2022 Winner
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Read the Q&A with Library Media Specialist Ginny Daniels below to see how they spent the prize money, why she loves incorporating STEAM into her curriculum, and what they plan to do next year.
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Sourcebooks: Tell us about the project you created with your How to Catch STEAM Week winnings!
Ginny Daniels: I used our How to Catch STEAM Week winnings to purchase as many Chibitronics materials as possible: copper tape, LEDs, and Chibiclips! In collaboration with two fourth grade teachers, we created a series of five curriculum-based lessons that incorporated our new materials.
In the first lesson, students learned to build and light a simple and a parallel circuit. In the second lesson, we discussed eight principles of visual design: balance, alignment, emphasis, proportion, movement, pattern, contrast, and unity, and analyzed different examples, so students could begin to draft out how they wanted their finished mini-informational poster to look.
Working in small groups, students chose a 4th-grade topic from math, science, or social studies. With this topic, students worked to utilize reference materials (dictionary, thesaurus, glossary, atlas, online academic databases) to share information about the topic on their mini-poster. This gave students a review of the topic they studied while also giving them skills application for utilizing reference materials, print and online.
In the third lesson, students learned how to use a Chibi Clip and Microsoft’s MakeCode block coding to code their circuits/LEDs. Groups then worked on a secondary page to build their Chibitronic circuits that, when lighted, would emphasize different aspects of the information on their mini-poster.
In the fourth lesson, students had additional time to complete their circuits, coding, and informational posters.
In the fifth lesson, we took a gallery walk of each other’s projects to read, learn, and observe the ideas of others. We then took time to reflect and discuss the challenges of this project, the skills students felt that they acquired, and we gave each other positive and constructive feedback for future projects similar to this one.
Sourcebooks: That sounds wonderful! Why did you choose this project?
Ginny Daniels: The vision for our elementary school is “Preparing Today’s Children for Tomorrow” and the mission is “Educating Beyond Expectations.” Those two purposes help drive my decisions as I curate resources and tools for our school library. While I want students to have a space for inquiry, research, and reading, I also want them to have a space where they can be empowered to self-direct their learning as they create digital products that engage critical thinking and give them authentic experiences with collaboration and problem-solving. I learned about Chibitronics at Georgia’s Educational Technology Conference (GaETC) and knew that my students would benefit from the opportunity to incorporate art, visual design, and coding into what they learned in both their classroom and our library.
Ginny Daniels: I used our How to Catch STEAM Week winnings to purchase as many Chibitronics materials as possible: copper tape, LEDs, and Chibiclips! In collaboration with two fourth grade teachers, we created a series of five curriculum-based lessons that incorporated our new materials.
In the first lesson, students learned to build and light a simple and a parallel circuit. In the second lesson, we discussed eight principles of visual design: balance, alignment, emphasis, proportion, movement, pattern, contrast, and unity, and analyzed different examples, so students could begin to draft out how they wanted their finished mini-informational poster to look.
Working in small groups, students chose a 4th-grade topic from math, science, or social studies. With this topic, students worked to utilize reference materials (dictionary, thesaurus, glossary, atlas, online academic databases) to share information about the topic on their mini-poster. This gave students a review of the topic they studied while also giving them skills application for utilizing reference materials, print and online.
In the third lesson, students learned how to use a Chibi Clip and Microsoft’s MakeCode block coding to code their circuits/LEDs. Groups then worked on a secondary page to build their Chibitronic circuits that, when lighted, would emphasize different aspects of the information on their mini-poster.
In the fourth lesson, students had additional time to complete their circuits, coding, and informational posters.
In the fifth lesson, we took a gallery walk of each other’s projects to read, learn, and observe the ideas of others. We then took time to reflect and discuss the challenges of this project, the skills students felt that they acquired, and we gave each other positive and constructive feedback for future projects similar to this one.
Sourcebooks: That sounds wonderful! Why did you choose this project?
Ginny Daniels: The vision for our elementary school is “Preparing Today’s Children for Tomorrow” and the mission is “Educating Beyond Expectations.” Those two purposes help drive my decisions as I curate resources and tools for our school library. While I want students to have a space for inquiry, research, and reading, I also want them to have a space where they can be empowered to self-direct their learning as they create digital products that engage critical thinking and give them authentic experiences with collaboration and problem-solving. I learned about Chibitronics at Georgia’s Educational Technology Conference (GaETC) and knew that my students would benefit from the opportunity to incorporate art, visual design, and coding into what they learned in both their classroom and our library.
Sourcebooks: What were the kids’ reactions to the project?
Ginny Daniels: The students were very excited when their LEDs lit during the first lesson! It gave them a sense of accomplishment and they were highly invested in creating a mini-poster that was visually appealing and would light up in a unique way. Students loved working together to tackle a new coding platform. There were lots of exclamations of “Why isn’t it working?” and “Let’s see what else we can try,” as well as, “Oh! Now I get it!” and “It worked!”
Sourcebooks: Why do you think STEAM education is so important?
Ginny Daniels: STEAM education is important for today’s learners because it allows students to take their initial designs and test, evaluate, and iteratively redesign to achieve better results. This process provides students with problem-solving practice as they document and reflect on their progress.
STEAM education also provides students with practical skills, such as how to tear tape from a tape dispenser or how to use a screwdriver, and provides students with procedural knowledge for locating information, researching, and documenting. Because STEAM education is cyclical, students learn how to learn from mistakes and missteps as well as from successes and advancements.
Sourcebooks: Will your students be participating in How to Catch STEAM Week 2023?
Ginny Daniels: We will definitely participate in the How to Catch STEAM week next year! Students loved hearing a How to Catch a… story to gather ideas for their traps! We will try out different materials next year to see what other ideas students can construct.
Sourcebooks: Anything else you want to add?
Ginny Daniels: Thank you for the funding to make this project possible and for giving our students a chance to try something new and exciting!
Ginny Daniels: STEAM education is important for today’s learners because it allows students to take their initial designs and test, evaluate, and iteratively redesign to achieve better results. This process provides students with problem-solving practice as they document and reflect on their progress.
STEAM education also provides students with practical skills, such as how to tear tape from a tape dispenser or how to use a screwdriver, and provides students with procedural knowledge for locating information, researching, and documenting. Because STEAM education is cyclical, students learn how to learn from mistakes and missteps as well as from successes and advancements.
Sourcebooks: Will your students be participating in How to Catch STEAM Week 2023?
Ginny Daniels: We will definitely participate in the How to Catch STEAM week next year! Students loved hearing a How to Catch a… story to gather ideas for their traps! We will try out different materials next year to see what other ideas students can construct.
Sourcebooks: Anything else you want to add?
Ginny Daniels: Thank you for the funding to make this project possible and for giving our students a chance to try something new and exciting!
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