MOORE ELEMENTARY
Brentwood Borough School District
Moore Elementary : Making STEAM Education Come Alive
By Mrs . Bonnie Betler , Moore Elementary Principal rentwood Borough SCHOOL DISTRICT NEWS
Recently , much has been written about STEAM or Science , Technology , Engineering , Art , and Mathematics , education especially in this region . We are very lucky to be in an area where our teachers can get professional development and learn how to create and implement new lessons with our students that will hopefully spark a lifelong interest in these high demand career areas . At Moore , our PTA sponsored a wonderful presentation by Carnegie Science Center that focused on the adventures of “ Ion Jones ” as he traveled around the world using chemistry to solve a mystery . Our students were in awe of the different chemical reactions , especially the Mentos in Diet Coke . Who would have thought that a Mento dropped into some pop would have produced such fantastic geysers of sugar !
A lot of our staff members are coming up with creative and fun ways to infuse STEAM concepts throughout the curriculum including Mrs . Hagerty who is helping her fellow teachers teach math fact fluency in fun ways . Though a grant from the Moore Elementary PTA , Mrs . Hagerty was able to select and purchase math fact games for all of our classrooms . The teachers were then given the games and time to learn how to play them so that they can use them with the students . When students know their math facts , they are able to complete math problems quicker which is a necessary step in order to be able to complete more complex math problems and start the path towards foundational algebraic concepts . Taking a few moments each day to review addition , subtraction , multiplication , or division problems thorough games makes learning fun and engaging !
As we move towards state assessment season we sometimes get wrapped up in the assessments . All of the work that our staff has been doing to keep learning fun reminds us why we are in education … to spark the love of knowledge and learning .
66 Brentwood-Baldwin-Whitehall
The Science Factory By Mrs . Kate Smeltz
In January , Moore and Elroy Elementary schools were visited by The Scientist Factory . Each school participated in an assembly and an afterschool program geared towards interactive STEM ( Science , Technology , Engineering , and Math ) learning . In the assembly , “ Life the Assembly ,” students learned how life came to survive for billions of years on Earth . Students learned how adaptations allowed all living organisms to live in their environments and how chemicals helped life forms obtain energy to live .
The after school program invited students in grades three through five to conduct experiments on various topics . Students learned how molecules form and the ways in which elements differ from one another . Theories were tested through a series of explosions and reactions ! Students learned how electricity works and generates charges . Students experimented firsthand with electricity by generating charges and becoming human lighting rods !