We're always thinkin'

It may be May, but we are still thinking, and learning, and thinking, and learning...

Designing and Creating Structures

Beating his time solving the Rubik's Cube

Charting Data

Building Rockets

Getting ready to launch and the launch below

A successful launch

Taking a Final (Yes, I Said Final)

Geometric Wallpaper

Finding Examples of Simple Machines Around the Building

Reading background information

Discussing historical events and bias

Not Your Momma's Interview

Interviews are changing.  Gone are the days where we meet you for 30 minutes, ask you some questions, and then bam, you're selected.  This year, we've seen most of our candidates teach.  Whether it's a Fellow we've hired (because, let's face it, isn't the Fellows program a yearlong interview? - assuming there's an opening, of course).

In the pictures below, a prospective PE candidate taught an integrated health/fitness lesson to our 6th grades.  Spoiler Alert - we hired her!

Students rotated through stations for their warm-up.  Stations were highlighted by color-coded cones and technology that timed and transitioned students between activities.

A quick mini-lesson on "My Plate" to lead into the main event of the lesson.

Students worked in groups to "create" their plate.  Each item taken from the center had a physical activity to complete.

After gathering all their foods, students designed the healthiest option based on "My Plate's" portions.

A little yoga to mentally and physically end the class.

No Trash Talk

When science teachers ask you to save your "garbage," don't you wonder what they're going to do?  After all, why do they need all of those 2-liter bottles, jars, paper and other random products?

To create, of course...

See the pictures below as the race was on in one science classroom:  with the time and materials  given (paper and 1 meter of tape only), students were to create the tallest tower they could.  And, there was no trash talk allowed!

Prepping the classroom is messy work

The competition begins

Survival of the fittest

Building the tower

Another tower in process

And, of course, clean up

And then, we have the 7th grade parachutes, and more random materials...

Getting ready to drop

Measuring the speed

The culmination of all these crazy materials and experiments is getting kids to think critically.  Because we do such a great job of this, all 14 of our St. Louis Science Fair participants earned a ribbon, and one even earned a $200 prize from Monsanto.  Great job!

MAP's Over! So What?

Yes, the "big test" is over, but rigorous and relevant learning is not.  Check out what goes on at TMS after the MAP!

Teachers model investigations of gravity and speed.

Math practice happens with modeling and student feedback.  Notice the use of those white boards!

Students create their own videos to demonstrate understanding of weather.  I have to admit, it was clever!

And, here's another, complete with an original song and dance!

Student Research and Product Development

Annotating Text

Annotating Text and Vocabulary Development

Visual Representations of Learning

Collaborative Work