East Cooper Montessori Charter School approaches STEM with hands-on education and a great partnership with Urban Wilderness out of Cincinnati, Ohio. This is their second year bringing science, engineering and math alive for adolescents.
Finding the middle of a thwart reminds kids fractions are essential. Steam bending is a perfect physics lesson; feeling resin harden after 30 minutes will make chemistry magical. The collaboration among teens strengthens their understanding of their place in the world. The process started on (Monday) Feb. 5 with raw materials, and on the following Friday, kids are ready to put their boat in the water and paddle their hand-crafted creation in the ocean.
This project speaks to kids in a way that classroom studies cannot.
Why, one might ask?
The work of the adolescent is to continue self-construction and develop human potential but also to transform themselves into adults and practice adult-like activities in their immediate environment and community. Their work is to become an independent adult who can meet their needs and productively contributes to the interdependency of human social organization. They must experience the value of their own role and contribution, as well as the value of the roles and contributions of others, so we create a structured social organization, a microcosm of society, for them to experience and practice in.
