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Gwinnett County Public Schools

STE(A)M Truck brings hands-on learning to Trickum Middle students

Trickum MS STEAM truck
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     Students at Trickum Middle School recently received hands-on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) lessons with real-world technology tools. These tools were brought onsite with the mobile maker lab STE(A)M Truck, turning a one-day event into a lasting impact.

Trickum MS STEAM truck

     Amazon reached out to Trickum Middle science teacher, Nicole Marte, to promote “Project Hail Mary,” a movie about a middle school science teacher in space, and to spotlight STEM and STEAM education at Trickum Middle.

     During the event, students moved through five different activity stations led by the STE(A)M Truck team. At one station, students worked together to build a dome shape, learning how shapes and measurements work in real life. At the Makey Makey station, students used a Makey Makey, a small device that lets everyday objects act like computer buttons, to play a computer game by connecting wires and clips to USB-powered circuit boards.

Students working on Trickum MS STEAM truck

     “The activities are centered around computer science and engineering and helping [students] connect the standards they’re learning about in science and math courses into real-world opportunities... and get them thinking about careers in these pathways,” adds STE(A)M Truck Team Member Darius Wiliams.

     Students also explored a snap circuit station, where they built electronic circuits using snap-together parts. These activities helped students understand how electricity flows and how movement and sound are created, similar to how a light switch works. Students also programmed a Photon Robot, which helped students think about coding using letters and numbers. Outside, students launched paper rockets to explore how force, pressure, and angle affect the distance and height rockets travel. 

     “I think science is meant to be explored, so giving [students] this real-world application paired with what we’re learning, puts it into perspective and shows [students] what they can do with the ideas they have,” Marte says.