STEM Superstars and GEMS is a special Academy for 5th grade students only. Students are chosen to participate in this Academy based on teacher recommendation of the student’s interest in all things STEM. (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) There are two parts to this Academy. Part 1 is the afterschool Academy where students learn about computer programing and problem solving using robots and Rigamajig. Part 2 is what we call the Parkside Pipeline.
The Parkside Pipeline is a series of field trips designed to show students a direct path from Parkside Elementary to a local STEM career. We start by visiting a local business with a STEM focus. In the past we have visited Algenol Bio Fuels, Oracle software, and the Naples Zoo. There, students met with employees and learned about what the business does. Then, we visited a college, FGCU, and met with different members of various departments including computer science, engineering, astronomy, and chemistry to show students what their option are. We then took students Lely high school to meet with students and teachers to talk about what their options are when they attend and the importance of getting good grades. We end by visiting Manatee Middle School to meet with students and teachers there to get a better idea of what to expect in middle school. The overall goal is to get students to start thinking about the end goal, their future career, so they can make better choices in school.
GEMS (Girls in Engineering, Math, and Science) is part of STEM Superstars. We make sure that the group is evenly split between boys and girls. We also provide time for the GEMS to meet and work alone, without the boy, to make sure they have a chance to learn and explore surrounded by other girls. We have also worked with our business partners to find female employees/students to spend time with our girls on special field trips where we featured female scientist in the community or by having other girls come visit and spend time with our GEMS to make sure they have local female role models.
