Editor’s Note: This story has been revised following feedback received from the Department of Education and participating students.
Instead of relaxing over the summer vacation, around 70 middle and high school students spent the last several weeks preparing for and displaying projects at the Math and Science STEM Summer Research Academy at St. Croix Educational Complex High School.
All students are invited to participate—but those that applied were praised for their curiosity, enthusiasm, and interest in science. The project ideas were developed by the teachers, who designed them to be both age-appropriate and engaging. Throughout the program, teachers worked closely with students, providing structure, encouragement, and guidance as they explored each stage of the scientific process—from forming a question and conducting background research to testing hypotheses, analyzing results, and presenting conclusions.
There were more than a dozen projects and each student was responsible for describing the process and their group’s results. Depending on their interests, the number of participants in each group varied.
Charles Walter, grade 7, and Jordan Nandlal, a raising sixth grader, explored the “Engineering Design Process” and, as a result, built a working robot with a motion sensor.
“I like building stuff. This was fun for me,” Nandlal said.
The Cut Sew Save group worked with used clothing, first measuring it and then recycling the items into new garments. The goal was to waste as little fabric as possible. They constructed some of the clothing they were wearing — decorated jeans and shirts and sewed designs using scraps.
“We did waste a bit, but it was better than 100%,” Fawziya Aderahumme, grade 9, said.
Other groups studied and tested financial literacy, made a balloon-powered car, studied waves and one couple made an anemometer to measure wind.
Individual students created displays to demonstrate their future goals. One created, with clay, a tongue with taste buds indicating the various tastes. A student who wants to be an anesthetist created the molecules of the drugs to sedate patients, and another who wants to be a cosmetologist talked about the uses of coconut oil.
Tuesday was the final day of the students’ exhibit.
