Ms. Walsh's STEAM Class Site
Name: Siobhan Peterson-Walsh (aka Ms W)
School: Pfeiffer-Burleigh School
School Phone: (814) 874-6750 ext # 8880
E-mail: spetersonwalsh@eriesd.org
Room #: Library
Classes: K-5th grade
Welcome to my STEAM class webpage which, I hope, will give you a window into what we do in class day to day. I am so thrilled and honored to be teaching this class here at P-B because we are the ONLY school in the district that offers it! I know the students here will help the program thrive with their creativity, curiosity and hard work. The students and I are really excited about the projects and challenges we are doing and you will be able to view our progress on some of those projects here and even find information about how you can do these activities at home. The goals for this page are to:
~ communicate with students and their families about upcoming events and potential opportunities to be involved in something extra
~ provide information about what we are doing in the classroom
~ share the work being done with family, community and other students
“[Science]“[Science] is more than a school subject, or the periodic table, or the properties of waves. It is an approach to the world, a critical way to understand and explore and engage with the world, and then have the capacity to change that world..."
— President Barack Obama, March 23, 2015
Students explore hands on projects integrating the following subjects:
S
T
Technology
Science
Systematized knowledge of the world around us using the scientific method.
Practical understanding and application of science and industry.
E
Engineering
Applying what you know (math, science, social, practical, etc) to solve problems, invent, innovate, design, maintain, research and improve life and the world around us.
A
Art
Expression or application of human creativity and imagination using mediums like visual art, dance, music, etc.
M
Math
Fun with numbers and patterns- that's right, I said FUN.
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What is STEAM?
The easy answer is that it is learning that happens when you work on questions and projects that combine Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math. The more complicated answer is that it is an educational approach that allows the teacher and students to share questioning and the attempt to answer those questions with a little project based learning (PBL) and a little arts infused learning. To quote another STEAM/ arts integration specialist educator, Susan Riley, "STEAM is an educational approach to learning that uses science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics as access points for guiding student inquiry, dialogue, and critical thinking."
Students are expected to keep in mind the 4 C's, collaboration, critical thinking, communication and creativity, as core skills that will help in the STEAM classroom and beyond. These are the 21st century skills that will be so important going forward into a quickly changing world. As President Obama has famously said, we need to "educate to innovate." Cultivating great ideas and then turning those ideas into a contribution takes practice like any other skill and it HAS to begin in elementary school. It is more often than not that students have the greatest of ideas that no adult has even considered yet.
March
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