In my opinion, it is more important for us to teach our students HOW to think than WHAT to think. Critical thinking and problem solving skills are important to all students, regardless of race, gender, or career interests. These are skills I hope to develop with our new robotics club.
I teach middle school STEM classes and I have a great group of students.
They come to class excited and ready to learn almost every day. Most are still at that stage where they are constantly asking questions and wondering about the world around them. This makes it fun to teach them. Our middle school has a diverse population consisting of students from 23 different countries, with about 10% being ELL students. Roughly 41% my students qualify for free or reduced lunch. I've seen this diversity as a strength, however, and not a barrier. Our students are very close and accepting of each others' differences.
My Project
After speaking with my coordinator, my principal, and some parents, I've decided to form an after-school robotics program for our 6th-8th graders. They will compete in the FIRST Lego League competition held locally at our university. We need Lego mindstorms kits. We will meet after school each week to create and program a robot that meets the challenge requirements of the competition. This will be a great opportunity for the students to practice communication and collaboration, two more important life skills. We will continue to meet once the competition is over so that the students can be a little more creative with their designs.
I would love for my students to have the opportunity to participate in such a fun and challenging activity.
Our robotics club will let students put 21st century skills like creativity, critical thinking, communication and collaboration to use in a real world setting. This will hopefully inspire them to think more about and explore STEM related careers, but will help them no matter what career path they choose.
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