Weekly Media Roundup: May 29, 2019

STEM Learning Disguised as After-School Sailing, Chesapeake Bay Magazine (Maryland)

In the Downtown Sailing Center’s afterschool program, Baltimore public school students buckle their life vests as they learn to operate sailboats on the Chesapeake Bay. The program uses sailing to expose students to new experiences in nature, keep them active and spark their interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). “All aspects of sailing involve STEM. Sailing in of itself is physics and aerodynamics, so the kids learn the mechanisms about how the boat moves whether it’s from using the tiller, which is essentially a lever, or using pullies, which are simple machines,” instructor Johanna Murphy told Chesapeake Bay Magazine.

After School Robotics Program in ASD Setting New Trend and Possibly Improving School Day Academic Performance, Anchorage Press (Alaska)

Students on the robotics team at Mt. View Elementary in Anchorage, Alaska learn engineering skills while practicing teamwork, perseverance and problem solving. The team is part of the school’s 21^st Century Community Learning Center afterschool program. Funded by a grant from LEGO, the robotics program challenges students to design robots to perform specific tasks such as pulling weights. The team targets students who are struggling during the school day in order to help them discover a love of learning. “These are the kids that need something to look forward to after school…For some of them, the opportunity to work with the robots is what keeps them engaged during the school day,” Site Manager Marcy Richards told the Anchorage Press.

Girls Inc. Changes the Future for Girls in NYC, Pix 11 (New York)

Girls Inc., NYC works to develop female leaders through mentorship, education, college scholarships and more. The afterschool program teaches girls about wide range of topics including data science, financial literacy, and mental and physical health. As girls progress through the program, they mentor and tutor younger students as well. Student Fargana Abden credits the program with increasing her self-esteem at a time when she was self-conscious about her Bengali heritage. “When I joined Girls Inc., I was told everything about me is fine,” Abden told Pix 11. Next year Abden will be the first in her family to attend college due, in part, to a scholarship the program awarded to her.

Green Street After-School Programs Get A+, Brattleboro Reformer (Vermont)

More than 70 percent of students at Green Street School in Brattleboro, Vermont take part in afterschool programming. The school’s programs are run by its teachers, who choose topics and activities they want to share with students three or four days a week. In one program, students work in teams to solve challenges using creative problem solving and compete in local and global competitions. Other programs have included TV production, furniture refinishing, drama, STEM, rock band and more. In all of the programs, students form closer relationships with teachers as they learn new skills together. “[Students are] more willing to learn when they see their teachers are learners themselves,” School Librarian Shannon Kelly told the Brattleboro Reformer. “Some of the adults want to be in the after-school programs.”