Over 800 students in Northern Lights Public Schools had the opportunity to explore science through hands-on learning activities from the Association for the Advancement of Science and Engineering Education (AASEE) last week.
"This was an amazing opportunity for students to learn about science concepts in a fun, engaging way from people with experience in science and engineering," explained Karen Draycott, Director of Learning - Grades 7 to 12 Instructional Support. "It helps them make the connection between what they are learning, how that can be applied in the real world, and their future career opportunities."
Volunteers from AASEE spent a week visiting schools in the division, providing workshops for students in grades 2 to 9. AASEE's classroom activities are designed to align with the Alberta science curriculum and inspire a passion for science and engineering. The workshops covered a variety of topics including sound, how computers work, buoyancy, electricity, and engineering design challenges.
AASEE's visit began at H.E. Bourgoin Middle School in Bonnyville with presentations on Making Electricity with Grade 6 students, followed by Buoyancy with the Grade 5's, and How Computers Work with Grade 4 students from Duclos School.
On May 5, AASEE volunteers invited Grade 2 students at North Star Elementary School to explore whether or not they could see sound. Grade 3 and 4 students also had the opportunity to learn How Computers Work. Computers were also the focus for Grade 3 and 4 students at Art Smith Aviation Academy on May 6, while grades 5 and 6 students explored Making Electricity and grades 7 and 8 students participated in an engineering design challenge.
Students from Kikino School travelled to Caslan School on May 7 to take part in activities, including How Computers Work, Making Electricity, and the Compound Balance engineering design challenge.
AASEE's final visit was to Ecole Plamondon School, where students in grades 3 and 4 explored How Computers Work, grades 5 and 6 had the opportunity to learn how to make electricity, and grades 7, 8 and 9 students took part in the Compound Balance engineering design challenge.
"We are grateful to AASEE for providing these interactive learning opportunities for our students and helping to ignite students' curiosity and learning," said Draycott. "We look forward to more opportunities to collaborate in the future to enhance instruction and expose students to the career pathways available to them in science and engineering."
More information:
AASEE - aasee.ca
