The Barnesville School
partnership with KID Museum has given us the opportunity to integrate a maker mindset into our existing
cross-curricular approach to learning. We were delighted that KID Museum offered to host our annual Family Fun Night! Utilizing one of our best community events was an excellent way to show our parent community the value of our special partnership with the museum as well as a way for our families to engage with each other through STEM-based learning.
Exploring with KID Museum
Six hands-on, maker activities set the stage for a night fueled by family fun! Engineering, electronics, robotics, physics, fabrication, and digital media were presented by KID Museum educators and volunteers, and each activity was facilitated by our very own Barnesville School faculty.
EngineeringThrough teamwork, collaboration, and problem-solving, our families built an oversized ball run course as part of an engineering-focused activity called “Pipe Dream”. The activity highlighted the effects of force and motion in relation to the runs that were engineered.
CircuitsThe circuit table was a hit with students of all ages. By building their own circuits our students tested various outputs such as lights, motors, and buzzers, and showed their parents what they learned about the basics of electricity.
Robots
Ozbots are small robots that use colored lines on paper to receive information about how fast or slow to travel. During this screen-free activity, students enthusiastically drew lines for their robots to follow and provided the coding for the robots, by using different colors, to indicate the speed. From slow (black-red-black-red-black) to turbo (black-blue-green-blue-black) there was no shortage of drive at the robotics station.
PhysicsAt the physics station families used the engineering design process to prototype, test, and create designs that would fly with ease through vertical wind tubes. The wind tubes provided participants with the chance to experiment with the forces of flight by testing out the amount of lift their rockets would have based on their designs.
FabricationUsing power tools to collaborate on a sculpture was one of the many highlights of Family Fun Night. Students of all ages learned how to use a power drill and practiced making holes in pieces of wood. Then, they used fasteners to connect their drilled pieces and by the end of the night a wooden masterpiece was created.
Digital MediaPlaying dress up can be a lot of fun, but combining it with digital media makes it even more so! The digital media station showed our families how green screen technology works. After dressing up, participants stood in front of a green screen to have their picture taken and then were able to see what they looked like in an image with a digitized background.
We are dedicated to providing a joyful learning environment in which our students can imagine, explore, grow, and achieve. It is with much gratitude that we would like to thank our
parent volunteers and KID Museum for helping us share our mission of joy, support, and excellence with our wider community.