 The National Science Foundation (NSF) has shared ways in which various NSF-funded researchers have been inspired to integrate art in their work and as a result, these scientists have transformed STEM into STEAM!
If you can’t choose between pursuing a career in chemistry or the arts, you don’t need to limit yourself to only one field of interest because both are important in the science of art conservation! The NSF mentions a student who studies pigments in historical paintings by using scientific equipment that measures how materials interact with light & identifies the chemical composition of specific pigments. Other scientists study how paintings deteriorate in order to better understand how to preserve paintings for future museum visitors. It was found that salt-like deposits called “lead soaps” develop in aging paint oil & affect the appearance of paint colors. As you may envision, this type of information has guided curators when it comes to improving restoration techniques. An organic chemistry teacher contributes to STEAM efforts by leading a program for students to collaborate on an interactive art installation piece for their local campus community. A biochemistry professor strengthens engagement in her community by taking her students to a local art studio where they demonstrate how to make “BioArt”, which are petri dishes painted with colorful strains of bacteria. When talking about the intersection between art and STEM, we can’t forget to mention origami, the ancient Japanese art of paper folding that makes for a perfect mathematical analogy. One mathematician uses formulas to predict how materials fold & has even discovered a couple origami patterns. Have you ever thought that new origami models could inspire solutions to age old problems in engineering? It’s true! A specific origami pattern was used to carefully fold and deploy a solar panel array on a Japanese spacecraft in the 1990s. Did you know that we’re still making colorful discoveries? A lab at Oregon State University accidentally discovered YlnMn blue in 2009, the first new blue pigment discovered in over 200 years! This vivid & non-toxic blue even inspired Crayola’s “bluetiful” crayon & has been approved for commercial use. This lab is now working on a new red pigment. Did some of NSF's STEAM-related research catch your interest? Read more! Contributed by Daria Teterycz, Northern New Mexico STEAM Coalition Intern
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 Round two of remote learning kicks off this fall. Many high school and college seniors will spend their final school years online, a whole new version of senioritis. Many 5 and 6 year-olds will not experience their exciting first days of kindergarten in person. So how can parents preserve and celebrate the moments that make school memorable? USA Today discusses and offers ideas in How to salvage special back-to-school moments amid a pandemic. We want to see! Share your first-day-of-school celebrations with us on social media using #nmSTEAMhub or email us at nmsteamhub@gmail.com! Contributed by Anjeli Doty, Los Alamos National Laboratory
 Stanford educator and researcher Dr. Jo Boaler recently released "We’re in this together: Supporting High Quality Math Teaching in Uncertain Times"— a report created in collaboration with educators from the Canadian organization Knowledgehook. The team then transformed the report into a short & easily-digestible booklet, with advice on ways to teach during COVID. It is so great. The digital & engaging format provides "a narrative on research-based best practices across four categories" each distilled to core recommendations. These categories are:
One of the things I appreciate most about this resource is that it directly evidences Dr. Boaler's mission on YouCubed— to transform education research into practical & accessible forms for teachers.  As a primary or secondary school math educator have you felt concerned about how a lack of face-to-face instruction will impact student achievement? Illustrative Mathematics (IM), a non-profit organization that provides guidance to school districts to help improve mathematics education at every grade level, has a brand new collection of math resources designed to help you plan for distance learning. The new resources include a PBS video learning series that supports fall-readiness for 6th-9th grade students, section planning guides that identifies essential lessons & activities, and video lesson summaries that highlight important concepts & vocabulary for students to review. IM created just in time curriculum adaptation packs to address unfinished learning for students. These packs help identify prerequisite skills that students need for each unit. IM’s cool-down supports identify opportunities for content revision in future lessons without necessitating falling behind for re-teaching concepts. IM provides resources to support families with their child’s engagement in math, including their IM Talking Math prompts that help initiate mathematical discussions at home and Family Support Materials which provide problems for families to work on together. Consider joining the new & upcoming IM Community Hub in order to communicate with IM and other educators around questions of practice in response to COVID-19. Take a look at the IM Certified Blog Corner for featured blog posts supporting remote education such as Links to Resources for Shifting Instruction Online and Links to Math Resources for Caregivers. Be sure to check out our "For Teachers" page here on the STEAM Hub for more tools for online teaching. Contributed by Daria Teterycz, Northern New Mexico STEAM Coalition Intern |
AuthorsContributors include the Northern NM STEAM Team, local educators, & advocates Archives
February 2021
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