Why STEM? Presented by the Sacramento Regional Science & Engineering Fair Foundation 1

STEM is… Science Technology Engineering Mathematics 2

Why STEM? STEM is all around you! From your iPhone (Technology) to your allergy medicine (Science) that you take to get to school - Sacramento’s Tower Bridge (Engineering) to your parents budgeting for groceries for dinner (Math), STEM is a part of everyday life! 3

What is a STEM project? A STEM project is starts with a question or a problem to solve. The question or problem can concern any topic area – buildings, energy, environment, animal health, coding, etc… You want to be sure to choose something YOU are interested in – it makes projects more fun! 4

Traditional steps to complete your project – Ask a Question – Do Background Research – Construct a Hypothesis – Test with an Experiment – Analyze Data – Communicate Results 5

Example of the development of a STEM project A student lives in a house with a whole house fan. Simple definition: “A whole-house fan is a type of fan designed to circulate air. It pulls air out of a home and forces it into the attic space.” The student is in charge of taking the temperature readings from outside the house and from inside the house at different points in time to see when the best time would be to turn on the fan. The student turns on the fan and opens the windows to the home when the temperature outside is lower than that inside the home. The whole-house fan cools the home by pulling the hot air from the home into the attic and allowing the cooler outside air in. 6

Example of the development of a STEM project Problem: The student in question is tired of having to check the temperatures, open all the windows and turn on the fan. Solution: The student designs a model house with a whole-house fan & programs an Arduino redboard to automate the whole-house fan. And there you have it! An Engineering Project! 7

Explanation of student’s STEM project The student in the story took a “simple” problem that they faced during the summer – they didn’t want to have to run around opening and closing windows! STEM project development can be that easy! What can you think of in your life that would work as a great project? 8

WHERE TO DO A RESEARCH PROJECT? Home School College or University Public or Private Labs Industrial Center Medical Center Field Study 9

STEM project Resources for 2014/15 Synopsys Sacramento Regional STEM Fair – Science Buddies – Science Fair Project Resource – Topic Selection Wizard – Steps of the Scientific Method – Ask an Expert – Non-profit –

Synopsys Sacramento Regional STEM Fair To be Determined We hope that you will enter your STEM project into the regional competition. 11

WHO CAN ENTER You! Any student in grades 6 through 12 Students can enter in teams of 3 in 17+ STEM categories! 12

SUGGESTED PROJECT TIMELINE December: Brainstorm and refine your project idea. Right before Winter Break: Finalize the project topic. Winter Break: Complete research portion, finalize procedures, complete Synopsys Sacramento Regional STEM Fair online registration. 13

SUGGESTED PROJECT TIMELINE January: Begin experimentation, collect data and record in data book. February – March: Complete experimentation, record data, write conclusions, design graphs, revamp abstract, and design board. 14

SUGGESTED PROJECT TIMELINE March 13: Set up your project for preview night. March 14: Student Orientation at 8AM, judging to follow. Attend workshops, College and Career Hands on Event, and panel events throughout the day. Enter the raffle for prizes! March 14: Award Ceremony begins at 5:30PM. 15

Teacher / Student Guidelines Start with an open-ended question or demonstration Gather responses and subsequent questions from students with little comment or direction Require students to collaborate on designing experiments or methods of inquiry Student teams conduct experiments or gather data 16

Teacher / Student Guidelines If time allows, re-evaluate question based on new data and re-experiment or collect new data based on revised question Students present findings as an oral presentation, a poster presentation or an evaluative write-up 17

OTHER STEM COMPETITIONS Intel International Science & Engineering Fair Intel-Science Talent Search (STS) Society for Science and the Public Middle School Program Junior Science & Humanities Symposium Discovery Education / 3M Young Scientist Challenge More information can be found on our website at: 18

SRSEFF CONTACTS Questions or Comments: Bianca Gutierrez, Fair Coordinator (916) Michele Hastie, Fair Director