A Day Devoted to Interdisciplinary Learning, Cooperation, and the Scientific Process
On June 3, 2019, the North Shore High School Gymnasium was filled with interactive, collaborative, scientific activity to celebrate IB Science Exploration Day. Juniors and seniors in the high school International Baccalaurates (IB) STEM classes invited the kindergarteners from each North Shore Elementary school to share in a day dedicated to interdisciplinary learning, cooperation, and the scientific process.
The older IB students who study IB Chemistry, IB Biology, IB Physics, & IB Computer Science at the high school were eager to meet and teach their much younger peers. Truly a lesson in “students teaching students.”
In the gym, various scientific stations were set-up to “wow” the kindergarteners. And, boy, did they do just that! They included: “The Density of Liquids”, “Finger Printing”, “Is it Alive”, “Slime”, “Animal Adaptions”, “Flower Fun”, “Sound”, “ Can You Spot It”, “Scients Solve Crimes”, “Magic Milk”, “ How Animals Survive”, “Electricity”, “Lava Lamps”, “Evolution, Animals Change Over Time”, and “The Food Chain” – just to name a few! In addition, the robotics club was on-hand to showcase their latest robot to the joy of all of th elementary students!
During this dynamic IB Science Exploration Day, concepts and scientific processes from across disciplines were shared, while students appreciated the environmental, social and eithical implications of science and technology. The goal (of this day) aimed to develop an understanding of the relationships between scientifc disciplines and their influence on other areas of knowledge.
Thank you to all of the, IB juniors and seniors, science teachers, administrators, and staff that helped to coordinate this successful scientific endeavor. Kindergarterners not only had a chance to visit the high school, but had the unique opportunity to engage in scientific inquiry with older students in a fun and educational way. They even were lucky to take home “goodgy bags” of samples of slime and other momentos from the day!
Students teaching students while cooperating and communicating in the scientific process – an event that everyone will remember for a very long time! Please ask your children all about their experiences during IB Science Exploration Day at the high school. You will be impressed!
Article by Shelly Newman with assistance from IB Director Dr. Kerri Titone Photos by Shelly Newman
