Blog

Before we break to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with our family and friends, we’ve just got to take a minute to reflect on and give thanks for what an incredible, STEM-filled year 2015 has been for the Inventionland®Institute curriculum and our creative space-making capabilities.

Our project-based inventing curriculum may have started to take off in the classrooms of Pittsburgh’s The Kiski School early this year; but, since then, it’s been a whirlwind of hands-on, collaborative learning for us all!

Students in grades 6-16 from Avonworth Middle School, The Kiski School, DuBois Business College and South Fayette Middle School, who’ve implemented the Inventionland®Institute curriculum, have put their minds together to think through the new product development process and apply STEM-education subjects on a daily basis while doing so. On our end, we’ve welcomed countless new groups to our own creative space to learn more about the interactive curriculum; and, we’ve also been able to network throughout the Pittsburgh region to bring more of that project-based learning to students and educators alike.

Most recently, our team members have traveled everywhere from Philadelphia to Virginia to New Orleans to spread the word about the Inventionland®Institute curriculum and STEM-education, in general.

Just last week, Executive Director Nathan Field was at CareerTech Vision 2015 in New Orleans, where he was able to connect with other STEM-education enthusiasts from across the United States.

“These connections will be great to get the curriculum in schools across the country,” said Field. “We’re already planning to meet up with a few of those connections in the coming weeks.” 

At the same time that Field was in New Orleans, Director of Client Services Katie Doas traveled to Lansdowne, Virginia for the Society of Elementary Presidential Awardees (SEPA) Professional Weekend.

According to Doas, the SEPA Professional Weekend was a great way to share STEM-education ideas and be inspired by others who are utilizing STEM in their professional lives.

“It was so inspiring to see and hear the ways that STEM impacts professionals like astrophysicists, pharmaceutical professionals and pilots in their careers every day,” said Doas.

Now that our team is back in Pittsburgh, we’re gearing up to sponsor and judge the Carnegie Science Center’s upcoming Chain Reaction Contraption Contest, which challenges local high school students to put their STEM skills to use to build, engineer and operate a wacky contraption that will perform an everyday task. 

With so much to be thankful for in 2015, we can’t wait to see what 2016 may bring! Stay with us to see where our curriculum and creative options may STEM out to!

From our team to yours, have a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday!