FARMINGTON – Mt. Blue High School chemistry and physics teacher, Maria Howatt, was recently awarded a $3,000 STEM4ME grant sponsored by the Fast Track Grant Program of the Perloff Family Foundation and the Maine Space Grant Consortium, which are administered by Maine Community Foundation.
In preparation for the possibility of distance learning next fall, Howatt’s project, “Home STEAM Labs for Remote Learning,” will provide Mt. Blue chemistry students with take-home lab kits so they can safely continue with hands-on learning and experiments at home.
Each kit will consist of essential measuring tools- a metric scale and thermometer, a graduated cylinder, and six test tubes- for students to conduct STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) experiments at home with ingredients and additional materials provided every two weeks. Similar to what happens in the classroom, Howatt will provide online instruction during the labs and students will use class data to create logical arguments and lab reports. The project also includes providing Mt. Blue physics students with a 10m tape measure to perform kinematic and projectile experiments.
For more information on the Perloff Family Foundation and their commitment to funding educational innovation in Maine, please visit perloffgrants.org.
Congratulations. That will be a great boost should school need to be at a distance in the fall.
Great job Maria for going the extra distance to help out the students.
Congratulations!
Congratulations! That’s an excellent plan for students, allowing them the hands-on excitement of chemistry without the elbow-to-elbow risks we all face in this year of Covid virus!
Congratulations Mrs. Howatt. Hopefully the kitsch won’t be needed, but way to be prepared if they are.