Toilet Paper Rolls and the Community

Who knew toilet paper rolls could build a bridge from school to community. Not an actual bridge mind you (that might not be structurally sound!) but a way for community members to connect with our students in a way that doesn't cost any money.

When I started the Makerspace at Burroughs, we needed supplies. I researched online and discovered that many of the items needed were other peoples recyclables. I put out a call to parents and staff for items and quite a bit were donated.

Fast forward two years later and on any given day you will find random bags of paper towel and toilet paper rolls in my office, waiting at my door when I get to work or handed to me at a party by a friend who's heard I'm collecting. Because people are still donating. Every week. I haven't asked anyone for them in months. Yet they still end up here. Along with egg cartons, old muffin tins, anything that people thing might be useful in a Makerspace.

People who don't have children, people who are low income, friends, and parents are continuing to use this project as a way to make a difference. And it does make a difference. And all of these items are useful.

Next month one of our sixth grade history classes will be building the civilizations that they have designed. This is a Problem Based Learning project that is weeks in the making. They have studied ancient civilizations during the year and are using pieces from all of the places to design their own civilization complete with government, buildings, and people. They will go into the Makerspace and build these places they have dreamed up with, yep, toilet paper rolls.

I've realized throughout this STEAM and Makerspace adventure that simply talking about the ideas and theories behind these projects isn't enough. We have to create the space, we have to collect the supplies, and we have to help these kids engage. By encouraging the community to engage with the students we all to reap the benefits, and see the amazing results.

Scrimmage Success!

On Saturday, October 26th, our All Girls Robotics Club went on the road. They traveled to Elysian Park Elementary School to compete in a practice competition for First Lego League. If I am being honest, we almost didn't go. Our coaches were feeling unprepared. This is the first year that we are competing and it has been a bit overwhelming. 

But the girls have been working hard before and after school to prepare for the upcoming November 10th competition and we thought it would be good for them to experience what the actual competition would look like. So we registered for the practice. 

I was not able to attend the event and was nervous all day thinking about the girls and the coaches. I was so excited when I got the results. The girls had not only shown up, they had shown what they were capable of!

Our two teams received 1st place in robot design and 1st place in project, as well as 2nd and 3rd place for total overall points. 

At the next after school practice, I asked the girls how they were feeling. Were they confident about the upcoming November competition? The responses from the girls was great, although they are still nervous. They feel like they have a long way to go and a lot of work to do. 

However, I encouraged them to be in the moment and celebrate the work they have done so far and then get to work! The future is BRIGHT! 

Yesterday I unveiled our new Robotics Club shirt design on social media and thanked the people who have donated money to make this design a reality. I was so happy to receive donations from several more people yesterday, including a former student and a complete stranger!

While I am working on raising the money and getting the shirts made, our teams are busy prepping for the competition. I love seeing them figure out challenges and smile when the robots move the way they intended.

I also want to mention that many other great things are happening on campus this week. Our theatre classes, led by Ms. Heath,  are working in the Makerspace to create newscasts with the green screen wall. Mr. Daniel Sanchez is prepping to start our mixed gender Vex Robotics Club that will meet in the morning. And, all of our students are having their vision checked by Vision to Learn because our students need to be taken care of to do the amazing things they are accomplishing!

Here We Go!

1 team to 2 teams to 3 teams!

Our All Girls Robotics club is off and running! When we started last year, as the All Girls STEAM Club, we had about 40 girls who participated during second semester. Our teacher mentors, Ms. Natalie Prystaloski and Mr. Victor Sanchez, have worked hard to make the program even stronger this year. As a result, the girls were able to sign-up and start practice with the LEGO Mindstorm robots this past week.

A lot of work has been done in the robotics lab and the girls are working on their t-shirt design for the competitions. The first competition is October 27, 2018.

One of the challenges we have faced this year is the amount of girls who are excited for this opportunity. Over 80 of our girls want to be a robotics coder and we love that! We are working out schedules for them all to participate.

As we start organizing the girls for competition teams we have increased from one team to two teams and are now considering adding a third team!

Keep checking back for updates as we continue on our exciting journey!

Not just STEAM Girls, Entrepreneur STEAM Girls!

Over the weekend, I read the book “Venture Girls” by Cristal Glangchai, PhD. Glangchai is who I want to be when I grow up. She has found a way to get girls interested in STEAM but she takes it a step further.

I have spent the last two years working to expose my female students to STEAM activities in the hopes that it will stick to some of them, and they will pursue careers in the male-dominated professions of math and engineering. Glangchai points out that hoping it sticks is not the best way to go about this. She writes about taking girls' interest in science, math, and engineering and turning them into entrepreneurs. 

Her organization, Venture Labs, takes girls as young as five and helps them to create business plans and products that solve real world problems that they see. The book gives so many examples of how girls have so much to contribute to society but are constantly being told they are not good enough. Teaching them to be entrepreneurs gives them the option to make a way for themselves instead of waiting for the world to catch up. Here's to something new for the next two years...

Already Hitting our Stride

Mr. Sanchez, one of the STEAM coaches & me!

It's hard to believe that the 2018 - 2019 school year started four weeks ago already. I recently heard a quote, "The days are long, but the years are short". And I find this to be truer and truer as as each school year comes to a close and another one opens. At Burroughs we have started the school year off strong. There's an excitement and a sense of positivity in the air that I haven't experienced in a few years.

When our All-Girls STEAM Club kicked off in January we didn't really know what we were doing. It took a while to reach our stride. This year we are starting right away. Our two faculty sponsors, Ms. Prystaloski and Mr. Sanchez have already got over 70 girls signed up. Honestly it is more than we planned for but we are working on a plan. I do not intend to turn away any girl who wants to be part of the group. We are changing the name to the All-Girls Robotics Club, it embodies what they are doing better and we are excited for the change!

This year we will have competition teams. The girls will compete in the Lego First Challenge in November. I am hoping that the exposure to building the robots, coding them, and participating in a competition will boost the confidence of the girls and allow them to shine in ways that are new.

Additionally, our professional development for teachers has kicked off strong this year. This week we are introducing Rocket Notebooks to the staff, if you don't know what these are, Google them, you will want one too!

Still Dreaming...

I am finishing my 13th year as an educator. Ask me where the time went and I can't tell you. I still vividly remember my very first day. At age 24, I was three weeks in to a move from Michigan to Yuma, Arizona and was teaching 7th grade English. All of my student teaching was done in 1st grade and Kindergarten. I was young and had big dreams for changing the world one student at a time. I was so utterly unprepared for the world I was entering.

In my three years in Arizona, my first three years as a full-time teacher, my world got so much bigger. I met new people from all over the country. I established norms in my classroom. I worked hard to stay ahead of the kiddos, never an easy task. Many of my students were from Mexico and South America or first generation Americans and struggled with the American education system. The school had a gang problem. At the end of that first day of my first year I called my mom and asked her to come get me (spoiler alert - she did not!). I was overwhelmed at the job ahead of me. College hadn't prepared me to teach students who were facing challenges that I had never faced, let alone in seventh grade.

If you ask anyone in education, most could tell you a similar story. The plight of the educator has been national news for a while now but it is not new. Teachers are underpaid, overworked, exhausted. It's true, but it's not the only truth. The other truth is that we love our careers, we are fulfilled by them. We could not do it, day in and day out otherwise. We are committed to changing the world, leaving it better than we found it.

This past school year has been challenging. It's fresh so it feels more so than other years. At this time last year I was invigorated by the idea of bringing STEAM to Burroughs and creating a Makerspace. My biggest concern was raising enough money to buy the paint to make our green screen wall. I am proud of what we have accomplished this year. The Makerspace gets used often by our teachers. They bring their classes into the space to use the green screen or spread out and make projects. We are learning as we go how to do more, how to do better.

And one of the biggest accomplishments of the year was not mine. I am so proud of Ms. Prystaloski and Mr. V. Sanchez for the work they have done in creating our All Girls STEAM Club. I have helped with logistics and been a sounding board but the daily work has been all them and the girls who are coming in at 6:45 in the morning or staying for an hour after school to learn about robotics and how to code them. As with anything, the program is evolving into something more defined for next year. We have plans to compete in a competition. We are going to fundraise so that we can provide the students with everything that they need.

When I think about the past 13 years, I am so grateful that I didn't give up that first day. I kept dreaming and it has turned into something wonderful. Right now my biggest concerns are more than paint but they are also just as bright and exciting. How do we keep going, how do we use our momentum for the next year?

I cannot wait to get started in August. But for now, we'll wear our new STEAM shirts this year and celebrate what we've done -- students and teachers together. Education is all about teamwork. It's all about learning new things. And after 13 years I'm so glad that every day still brings new experiences, new challenges and new chances to change the world.