In a course called Body Building and Building Bodies: Exploring Human Systems, TechStart students explored various systems in the human body. Collectively, they received a background to the nervous, digestive, circulatory/respiratory, lymphatic, and sensory systems. Students then developed Scratch animations depicting how their assigned system functions as a whole or how one part of it operates.
Scratch is an MIT designed programming language that makes it easy to create your own interactive stories, animations, games, music, and art -- and share your creations on the web.
Scratch is designed to help young people (ages 8 and up) develop 21st century learning skills. As they create and share Scratch projects, young people learn important mathematical and computational ideas, while also learning to think creatively, reason systematically, and work collaboratively.
Check out the Scratch project below from a TechStart student in our T.T. Minor Elementary class. Interact with the animation they created by clicking the image below and then following the prompts on the screen!
On Saturday, June 13, 2009 TAF will host a Robotics Competition featuring six of our TechStart after school robotics classes.
Highline School District students from White Center Heights Elementary, Beverly Park Elementary, Southern Heights Elementary, Hilltop Elementary, and Mount View Elementary as well as students who attend TechStart at our TAF office in the Genesee Business District will compete in the following challenges: Tug of War, Archery, Basket Bot, and Drag Race.
The event will take place at the White Center Boys and Girls Club, 9800 8th Ave. SW, Suite 105, from 9 AM to 1 PM.
The theme of the event will be the Olympics and our winner will receive the TAF Cup Trophy pictured below!
Check out our previous posts about our Robotics classes for more information, photos, and videos of our students at work!
In our Greening the Screen course, TechStart students in grades 6-8 studied how to build a green and socially responsible computer. Along the way, they looked at various other ways that technology and the environment relate to each other. One assignment asked students to create a presentation that examines this relationship and provides a solution to a specific environmental problem. Check out Project Tree below. (Click the button in the top right corner of the following box to get a full screen view).
Guest Post from TechStart Teacher Judith Blair (Robotics at Beverly Park Elementary & Mount View Elementary)
On Wednesday, May 6, the students in Beverly Park's Robotics class held a slowest car race. Four teams used gears to slow down the motors on their vehicles, which, according to the rules of the race, had to be running at 100% power. Other rules stipulated that the motors must run continuously in one direction, and the vehicle must have made visible forward progress within 30 seconds of the race start.
After an initial heat to reveal any tweaks that needed to be made, the four robots lined up on the starting line in Beverly Park's cafeteria:
Team one (Sunil, Cameron, and Hillary) had built a vehicle with a gear ratio of 5:2, and unfortunately for them their robot went the fastest.
Team two (Jesus and Gary) used a worm gear, giving their vehicle a gear ratio of 40:1, the slowest gearing possible with the Lego kit. The construction of their robot, however, did not use this gearing to its full potential, and their robot went too fast.
Team three (Dana and Erykah), like team two, used a worm gear. Sadly their robot did not get any traction on the smooth floor of the cafeteria and did not make any forward progress, disqualifying it from the race.
Team four (Lane and Harry) also used the worm gear, which, combined with enough friction and a well-designed robot, made it possible for them to win the race.
All the students learned something about gear ratios and how gears can help change how a machine uses power. The next project is a fastest car race, which will allow the pupils to explore using gears to increase speed.
Check out this video of the same challenge from our class at White Center Heights Elementary, taught by Bruce Cordingly.
Students in our Greening the Screen class are taking their work public with two recycling events designed to inform the public about the harmful effects of dumping electronics.
After researching sustainability, taking apart computers to see all the materials used inside and learning about Moore’s Law, the classes decided that their new knowledge could have a positive impact on the community. They agreed to do three things:
1. Help get rid of unused technology in environmentally correct ways 2. Help those who don’t have access to the technology 3. Support TAF by selecting an organization that would help us give back to the community
The results are two events that invite everyone to participate and Green the Screen!
The students found organizations that recycle electronics and are marketing the events themselves. They even sent letters to several neighborhood businesses to get their support.
TechStart students in our robotics classes learn to design, build, and program robots using the Lego® Mindstorm™ system. In the Fall of the 2008-2009 school year, they learned about the Mars Rover and created their own robots related to the field of astronomy. In the Winter session, they studied biology and created a robot zoo, complete with plants, animals, and, well, some interesting creatures from the depths of their imaginations. Check out the video above for a look at the sled dogs one student was able to make in just a few short hours. Our robotics curriculum is provided by Technically Learning, a partner nonprofit dedicated to providing hands on science, technology, engineering, and math learning activities and resources to teachers and students.
TechStart classes last an entire school year, however they are broken up into 3 sessions, each consisting of 10 weeks. At the end of each 10 week session, families, friends, and TAF staff are invited into the classrooms for Open House to celebrate our students' accomplishments. Because TechStart uses Project Based Learning, these Open House events are typically a time when our students' final culminating projects are on display. In our course for 3rd-5th graders called You’re the Engineer: Building Sound Structures so London Bridge Won’t Fall Down, the final project was a toothpick and marshmallow bridge building challenge. Check out the video in this post to see and hear our students' families and friends cheer a bridge to victory while counting the weights as they are added!
In a course called Greening the Screen, TechStart students in grades 6-8 studied how to build a green and socially responsible computer. They took apart computers and learned about their components. They discussed how and where the components are made and figured out if there are better ways to make and design the hardware. Students also learned about a local computer recycling organization, InterConnection. A strong component of the course was on the anatomy of the computer and how the components work.
TechStart students display their understanding a number of ways - one of which is through writing assignments.
Here is an excerpt from one of those assignments.
One option for computer disposal would be donating to different schools, because if that school were to be very poor they probably wouldn’t be able to afford a computer. My second option for computer disposal would be to recycle. I would say recycle because if your computer is really old and you know that no one else is going to want it, you can just recycle it. Although you must make sure that you only recycle the parts that can be like the monitor. My third option for disposal computer would be to just trade it in for another. I think this is a good way to dispose of your computer because lots of computer companies have trade in programs.
One disadvantage involved with improper recycling of computers is that that the lead in the computer is poisonous and if that is gets in someone’s body it will probably be fatal. Another risk of improper recycling is that you could be fined some serious money if it is done wrong.
Some materials found in a computer that are not friendly to the environment are the lead and metal.
Students in our Grade 3-5 Winter 2008-2009 unit called You’re the Engineer: Building Sound Structures so London Bridge Won’t Fall Downcompeted against one another in a design/build challenge. Specifically, they learned about the components and architecture of bridges, while investigating famous bridges in history and infamous bridge failures. They looked at the physics of good design and came to understand the math behind force and compression, while also engaging in systems of measurement and geometry. Some classes used Google SketchUp (free!) to introduce to the idea of 3D modeling to students. Many imported models from Google's 3D Warehouse and arranged the components (example pictured above) and some tried their hand at creating models from scratch. Stay tuned for photos and videos from their competition!
In a unit titled The Science of Sound, TechStart middle school students studied sound waves, vibrations, and how the ear works. For their final project, the students created podcasts, and a panel of judges selected three finalists, based on the quality of the podcasts and the students' presentation of their work. The students are competing for college scholarships, ranging from $750-$1000! Click here to go to their Podcast page.
In the Fall of the 2008-2009 academic year, TechStart students in our Electricity course (Grades 3-5 in Seattle & Federal Way, 4-6 in Highline) learned the basics of electricity and circuitry, interacted with digital simulators, and created and illuminated their own version of the Seattle skyline.
(click the picture for a larger view) TechStart students become proficient in problem-solving through data analysis and team projects. Teachers work with confidence-building models to help kids master core subjects, including math, science and writing. Students in our Electricity course created visual models of scientific inquiry using MS Word 2007's new SmartArt tool. Visual models and diagrams are a perfect way to help students grasp scientific processes.
TechStart applicants are asked to write a grade level appropriate essay entitled "Why I Want to Be in TechStart." The essay is required, but it is not graded. We just want students to begin thinking about what they want to gain by joining TechStart and committing that to paper.
Welcome to the TechStart Student Work Blog. Scroll down to see our best of collection, list of classes, and archives.
TechStart is a free, yearlong after-school program from Technology Access Foundation for students in kindergarten through 8th grade. The focus of TechStart is providing science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) enrichment to underserved children of color through project-based learning and advanced technology tools.
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