June 2023

NWO is once again partnering with Washington Local Schools and their 3^rd annual exciting Summer Panther Camp programs to bring informal Science /STEM programming to the students participating in the camps.

WLS K-8^th grade students will have the opportunity to explore music, drama, STEM, and so much more this summer! The goal of the summer camps is to offer students out-of-classroom learning experiences in a wide variety of content areas. As a result, students will increase their love of learning and level of engagement in school.

NWO is working with our amazing and high-quality community partners to offer campers field trips to The Toledo Zoo and The Toledo Metroparks.

On-site programming and activities will be facilitated by NWO community partners such as the Challenger Learning Center StarLab, Heritage Sylvania, Crazy Craig, and Nature's Nursery. New this summer, The Right Direction Youth Development Program will offer a high-energy assembly-style program. TRD's Mission is to empower youth by increasing the impact and access to action sports as a tool for positive youth development.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-17zw7_qYX8

Administrators from Hawkins STEMM of Toledo Public Schools learned of their Ohio Department of Education STEM School Designation at the Ohio STEM Learning Network Innovation STEM Summit in May. Administrators shared the great news with students and celebrated the accomplishment. Stated teacher Cindy Madanski, “All students and staff were a part of our journey and we are so proud to represent and be a model of best STEM practices for other schools who will visit us next year.”

“Quality STEM education in our state will foster the next generation of Ohio innovators,” said Kelly Gaier Evans, Director of the Ohio STEM Learning Network for Battelle. “Each of the individuals and organizations honored at the STEM Innovation Summit have gone above and beyond in their dedication toward creating pathways to success for students.”

STEM and STEAM Designated Schools employ highly effective teachers and leaders who meet the needs of the whole child. In addition, these schools have well-established partnerships with businesses, non-profit organizations, institutes of higher education and other entities in their communities to prepare students for post-high school success. 

Hawkins STEMM Academy has a beneficial partnership SSOE, a local architecture firm in Toledo. One of four designated STEMM elementary schools in the Toledo Public Schools district, Hawkins teaches students curricula related to science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine, and is a feeder school to other Career Technology Pathway programs such as the TPS architectural drafting program and Toledo Technology Academy, both of which with SSOE has partnered with in the past to create high school apprenticeship opportunities in an effort to develop talent locally to stay local.

About the Ohio STEM Learning Network

The Ohio STEM Learning Network is committed to helping the State of Ohio inspire and train the next generation of innovative leaders. The network operates as a public-private partnership between the State of Ohio and Battelle. The Northwest Ohio Center for Excellence in STEM Education at BGSU’s College of Education and Human Development serves as the hub for the northwest Ohio region. For more information, please see: https://osln.org/.

The Xcite Learning/Toledo Zoo/BGSU partnership with funding from the Northwest Ohio STEM Center of Excellence and Project Impact at Bowling Green State University held a GLOBE in the Prairie Student Research Symposium on May 23, 2023.

 A total of 86 students in third - seventh grades and representing three school districts presented their research on the benefits of school prairies. The symposium took place at the Toledo Zoo and Aquarium, and student teams presented via poster or google slide presentations.

During the event, in addition to feedback from faculty judges, students listened to other presentations and gave their peers critical feedback about the strengths and potential growth opportunities for their projects. They also engaged in a hands-on animal experience and had time to visit zoo exhibits. Amy Poland, a Marshall STEMM Academy 7th grade teacher from Toledo Public Schools said "My students LOVED being a part of the symposium today. It made them feel special. They were raving about it the rest of the afternoon and telling their classmates back at school. You created a lasting memory for these kids. Great job today!!”

One of the co-sponsors and facilitators from Xcite Learning, Dr. Jodi Haney stated, “The teams did a fantastic job at sharing what they’ve learned and discussing their prairie happenings and research with students from other schools.” One such dialogue focused on how to manage a prairie by burning it as shared by a third-grade team from Waterville Primary School (Anthony Wayne Schools). Sixth graders from Hull Prairie Intermediate School in Perrysburg, OH then shared how their prairie was burned last year and went on to discuss the positive changes they’ve seen in their prairie as a result. The Toledo Zoo and Aquarium’s Project Prairie has installed roughly 70 prairies in our region. The GLOBE partnership fully embraces Project Prairie, and the partnership is much stronger as a result of collective work.

Ohio STEM Learning Network Design Challenge

Design challenges are activities or competitions that students participate in to solve real-world problems. Through the challenge, students engage in creative problem-solving, boosting skills like collaboration and grit.

For many schools, participating in the statewide design challenge was the perfect way to begin implementing high-quality STEM education best practices.

Competition opens August 7^th, for more information: https://tinyurl.com/4hp7hu49

OTEEA and Columbus State Community College Technology and Engineering Showcase

The Ohio Technology and Engineering Educators Association in partnership with Columbus State Community College will host a Technology and Engineering Showcase on Saturday August 12, 2023 from 10 AM to 3 PM at CSCC, and is seeking exhibitors and sponsors for this event. For more information: www.oteea.org

ESC of Lake Erie West STEM Professional Learning Opportunities

June 21, 2023: Using Desmos to Elevate Mathematics Engagements (in-person)
https://conta.cc/43kP8kW

June 27, 2023: Project WILD (in-person)
https://conta.cc/3MND4l0

July 11, 2023: Sharing Out and Communicating Results (virtual)
https://conta.cc/3paPoUt

July 18, 2023: STEM Identity - Creating a Positive STEM Culture in your Classroom (in-person)
https://conta.cc/3ASykVB

July 24, 2023: Grid Method Workshop (in-person)
https://conta.cc/3IOya6d

July 27, 2023: What’s your Problem? Understanding the Design Process (in-person)
https://conta.cc/421rwkn

August 2, 2023: Growing up WILD (in-person)
http://events.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=vbi4sukab&oeidk=a07ejtzxwcc9fa9bdc2

NASA Summer Offerings

Stay Active This Summer With NASA CONNECTS

Audience: STEM educators
Contact: hq-stemcop@mail.nasa.gov

Stay connected with NASA this summer and elevate STEM teaching by joining NASA CONNECTS. The NASA community provides access to a wealth of resources, from the latest NASA updates to exclusive events, and opportunities to collaborate with like-minded educators.

Help NASA expand its network of innovative educators by inviting colleagues to join CONNECTS.

Sylvania STEM Center: 4th-8th Grade FIRST LEGO League Challenge

There are two summer camp opportunities for skill building. If a participant does both camps Sylvania Center will discount the FLL Challange team fee to $100 (regularly $410)

1. Spike Programming & Engineering – July 24-28th, 12-2 pm
2. Spike Advanced Programming and Engineering – July 31-August 4, 12-2 pm.

Please visit website for this and other offerings: www.sylvaniastem.org

Sylvania STEM Center Contact info: Tom Burnworth – Tom@sylvaniastem.org, 419-283-3084

Ohio Learns 360 Offers Resources for Out-of-School-Time Learning

Ohio Learns 360, funded by the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, is a program to accelerate learning during out-of-school time. Through the collaboration of Ohio’s eight Public Broadcasting Service stations, Ohio Learns 360 offers free camp-in-a-box resources and more to summer and after-school programs for children in kindergarten through fifth grade.

GLOBE Mission Earth Professional Development Opportunity for Teachers

Learn how to collect GLOBE data during the Solar Eclipse occurring on April 8, 2024. By participating in this professional learning opportunity at the Toledo Zoo from June 26-30, 2023, you will be trained in GLOBE Atmosphere protocols, including Clouds, Air Temperature and Surface Temperature. GLOBE is the perfect citizen science tool to track an eclipse’s impacts on these phenomena as we experience it on April 8, 2024. Space is limited. By joining this opportunity, participants will become part of a worldwide community of educators, students and citizen scientists! To learn more about GLOBE, visit www.globe.gov. To learn more about GLOBE Mission EARTH, visit www.globe.gov/web/mission-earth. To register, visit GLOBE Summer 2023 PD

Virtual Field Trip Workshop – Create More Accessible Field Trips

Audience: Formal and informal educators within the U.S.
Event Dates: June 27 - 29, 1 - 2:30 EDT
Contact: sina.kirk@asu.edu

Immerse learners in cultures, histories, and landscapes that invite exploration and build connections. Learn how to create virtual field trips that provide student agency, increase equity, and make place-based education accessible to all of your learners. 

With Tour It, Infiniscope’s free and easy-to-use tool, teachers embed images, videos, and websites into interactive hotspots to deepen understanding and extend learning.

Click here for details and registration.