Located in Marietta, Simpson is surrounded by institutions of higher learning. We have partnered with several of them to enhance our students' access to the STEAM curriculum. Students in Enegineering & Technology classes have learned computer science from Dr. Bob Brown of Kennesaw State University as well as representatives from the Coder School. Seventh grade science students learned more about the life cycles of animals through visitors from Chattahoochee Technical College. Students from the Computer Science Program at Georgia Tech assisted Simpson students with coding through the coding club. Students from all grade levels worked with professors and students from Georgia Highlands college while completing STEAM Fair Projects and STEAM Challenges.
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Simpson Middle School is fortunate to enjoy a community of parents and stakeholders with a wide range of expertise and who are happy to share their experiences with our students. Simpson hosts parent speakers on a regular basis with the goal of exposing students to a variety of STEAM careers. Some examples of community STEAM speakers include: Mrs. Shelley O’Malley, First Officer Delta Pilot, visited with our 8th graders. Mrs. O’Malley talked about her career as both a Navy and a Delta pilot, about engineering and STEAM, and about technological revolution of our time. She addressed constant advancements in the aviation industry, as well as various forces at work a pilot must take into account when flying an airplane such as lift, weight, thrust and drag. She encouraged students to be curious, think big and not be afraid of failure. Students then had an opportunity to brainstorm and present ideas in various areas of improvement at home, school and community. Mrs. Jennifer Riser, Research Scientist at Kemira, visited with our 7th graders during their science classes. Mrs. Riser talked about her career and what chemists do, pointing out that chemistry in part of everything around us. She also reviewed with the students what they’ve studied about cells. Students then had an opportunity to use microscopes and view various cells, including cells from their own cheeks! They were very excited to see nuclei and other organelles up close. It was such a fun and amazing experience. Mr. Kirill Grouchnikov, Software Engineer at Google working on the Android project, visited with our 6th graders. Mr. Grouchnikov talked about computer evolution throughout the years, hardware and software components, programming and creating technology for the world we live in. He connected computers to space exploration, earthquakes, hurricanes, language, human brain, human body, cars and everything in between! He stressed that although computers have enormous speed and power, “without us they are just metal, plastic and glass.” Students showed great interest and asked lots of questions. Dr. Daniela Tapu, Professor of Chemistry, and two KSU students visited with our 8th graders and put on an incredible Halloween Chemistry Show, complete with explosions, luminescence, bubbles and a barfing pumpkin! She walked through every experiment, asked for student input, engaged the audience, all the while explaining the science behind the magic. The students participated in the fun and were amazed at the world of chemistry. Each season, the First Lego League team has an adult mentor for General Electric. The mentor assists the team in many aspects of the FLL competition from planning, building, and programming the robot to project management to presentation skills. The FLL and BEST robotics teams have also worked with engineers from Boeing and with Waste Management to further their knowledge of competition topics. Simpson eighth graders have learned about electromagnetic technology from American Mag-Lev then built their own Mag-Lev vehicles with advice from officials at the company. Officials from the Chattahoochee Nature Center have visited with Simpson students a number of times. On all occasions, students have had an opportunity to experience the animals that are native to our area. Birds of Prey and Snakes have been the biggest hits among the students. |
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