Portsmouth High School has received a $5,000 grant to expand STEM learning projects through the Ohio STEM Learning Network Classroom Grant Program, funded by Battelle. The school’s grant is one of 233 issued this fall to create sustainable, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) learning projects.
“The goal is to find materials that I can use in the classroom that are adapted more toward the students’ needs. I have some students that still have gross- and fine-motor skills needs so it would be very hard for them to manipulate a microscope,” said High School Intervention Specialist Stephanie Taylor, who works in a low-incident classroom with students with disabilities.
“Now whenever I go to different lessons, I know I have material that can meet the needs of any kid in the classroom.”
Some examples of accessible STEM equipment are solar car building kits, tool practice materials, Lego, measuring kits, clean water, microscopes, and a hydroponic garden. Students in her classroom are already growing tomatoes, bok choy, spinach, peppers, and cucumbers.
“They absolutely adore these things. They don’t want to do any other work, they just want to do STEM activities and build stuff,” Taylor laughed. “There’s a little game on the microscopes, and they ran out the battery in the first two days because they loved it so much.”
Taylor’s classroom at Portsmouth High School is the first in Scioto County to receive funding from the program, which has already given more than a million dollars of funding to 162 schools.
“Every student should have access to the kind of quality STEM education that drives opportunity for families and leads to new jobs in their local communities,” said Kelly Gaier Evans, Director of the Ohio STEM Learning Network. “This program connects champions of STEM in local communities to a broad and deep network of STEM schools, STEM resources, and peer-educators.”
For more information about Portsmouth City Schools, visit them online at www.portsmouthtrojans.net, or follow the school’s page on Facebook.