Pinecrest Academy South Charter School
AdvancED STEM Certification
Indicator 1.6
Self-Assessment Rating: 4
Opening our doors in 2006, Pinecrest Academy South has an established curriculum which incorporates recognized state and national standards. Teachers work collaboratively to create problem-based learning lessons that are incorporated within our pacing guides. Our STEM disciplines are integrated through various experiences for our learners. Through common grade level planning on a weekly basis, teachers meet to develop unit plans which encompass all areas of the curriculum with a focus on life skills such as interpersonal and communication skills, numeracy skills, and literacy.
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Mr. Hernando Ortega, another Pinecrest parent, presented to third and fifth grades about the use of STEM in the world of architecture. His work focuses on buildings with a glass façade.
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Dr. Joshua Hutcheson, a Biomedical Engineer with the Hutcheson Cardiovascular Matrix Remodeling Lab at Florida International University was introduced to us by a parent. Together with a group of colleagues, he showed the relevance of STEM and the importance in research to help remedy tissues in the heart. These experiences motivate our learners to understand the many career paths they can take as they craft their future.
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At times, focusing on real world applications itself presents a challenge as part of an elementary school. Although we value its importance, we also have to gear our education to the appropriate age levels of understanding. We will continue to seek and plan for STEM lessons that involve current events and real-world knowledge.
Every year, we ensure that each grade level completes one STEM project per quarter and we incorporate an MEA (Model Eliciting Activity) gathered from CPALMs. These cross-cutting experiences are showcased every quarter in events for which parents are invited and asked to be active participants (i.e. Science Fair Night, Awards Ceremony, etc.) Each grade level has at least one member on the STEM Committee. As a result of STEM committee meetings, the team plans for school-wide activities and showcases. Some of these activities include the Science Fair, STEM Family Night, Math Competitions, Fairchild Challenges, STEM career presentations, Vex IQ Robotics, and SECME competitions.
The learning experiences that we offer are available to all students in kindergarten through fifth grades. Ensuring the validity of our STEM real world applications is not only accomplished within the classrooms but also through Project Lead The Way Launch (PLTW). In PLTW Launch, our learners work on the modules that focus on real world needs. The activities are hands-on giving the students the opportunity to design, create, and develop an engineering mindset. Our young kindergarteners begin the program through the engineering process and their very first problem-based experience is the design and creation of a paintbrush. This introduces our primary learners to the structure and function of engineering to carry throughout their elementary modules.
Through on-going STEM presentations,accomplished through our partnerships with parents and community partners, our students have the opportunity to learn about
Students testing out their Puffmobiles. The goal is to have a sail that is powered by puffs and it must move a distance of two meters in the least amount of puffs.
This STEM project involved researching different kinds of bridges, designing, and creating a group bridge that will sustain the most weight.
Through STEM, students researched and developed a plan for cleaning up an Oil Spill.
careers in the STEM fields. Captain Bruce Young, a pilot for United Airlines and a father to one of our students, has been one of our parent presenters. He presented to the fourth and fifth grade classes about balanced and unbalanced forces and showed cabin pressure through the use of syringes.
Captain Bruce Young in action.
Mr. Ortega explaining how glass is used in architecture.
Dr. Hutcheson showcasing the heart and what the lab at Florida International University does.