Totally Giving Back

Totally Giving Back: Families explore STEM together

Toothpicks and jellybeans, Popsicle sticks and dry ice became learning tools at the Science/STEM Family Night at Coldwater (Ohio) Elementary School.

About 175 boys and girls in kindergarten through fourth-grade attended the event on March 27, 2018. The students interacted with their parents, grandparents and siblings to complete a variety of hands-on science, math and engineering activities.

Positive feedback

School officials said the educational activities were a big hit with everyone.

Several parents had this to say about the evening:

• “Just wanted to say thank you for last night’s STEM Night! The activities were awesome, and our son woke up talking about it this morning. Thanks for putting in the extra hours and dealing with the extra mess!”
• “I wanted to send you a quick message to thank you for all your hard work on Science Night. We had the best time last night! I know what a huge undertaking it is to do events like this, but they are always done so well at Coldwater Elementary School.”
• “The kids won’t soon forget all the fun they had, and neither will their parents. Thanks!”

What is STEM?

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. It is a curriculum-based program for educating students in a hands-on, applied approach. STEM integrates each topic into learning experiences for real-world applications.

STEM makes learning fun

Teachers often organize each aspect of STEM Family Nights. Coldwater’s staff set up three “stations” for each grade level; some of them involved timed activities. Students and their families worked as a team to create projects, experiment and find solutions to various problems.

One of the stations challenged each group to fly paper airplanes through hoops to knock over cups. In another room, the students and their helpers filled balloons with baking soda and vinegar to create carbon dioxide. With lots of “oohs” and “ahhs” from spectators, the gas inflated the balloons right before their eyes.

Also on hand was a photo booth where families could dress up and capture great memories. Guessing Jar winners received prizes from Topsy Turvy Toys of New Bremen, Ohio. The staff also gave away door prizes such as tickets to museums and other learning centers. Totally Promotional donated customized water bottles.

We applaud Coldwater Elementary School for their hard work in helping students and their families learn more about science and STEM! Good work and GO CAVS!