From Friday, Jan. 24 to Saturday, Jan. 25, teachers from around Oregon came to OSU to spend most of their time learning new STEM curriculum for their SMILE Clubs and Family Math & Science Nights. Ultimately, they left with knowledge, lesson plans, and, hopefully, some fun experiences.
Several teachers from the event remarked that their students treat the math they do in SMILE clubs differently from the math they do in the classroom. That is, the students that are reluctant to do math in the classroom begin to better understand and enjoy it once experiencing it in the smaller, freer environment of an after-school club. Luckily, this workshop introduced several new math activities, from an exercise for students to model the movement of sea ice to one in which they analyze the sensor readings from RCRVs (Regional Class Research Vessels). You can learn more about the biannual workshops and download curriculum from the SMILE Winter Teacher Workshop webpage.