STEM at Macdonough
Students at Macdonough School are exposed to interdisciplinary units of study that have at their foundation a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.
Students are provided the opportunity to become independent learners and thinkers through Project-Based Learning.
All of our projects focus on the Engineering Design Process in order to solve real-world problems.
Engineer of the Month
Our Engineer of the Month is Crystal from Miss Claffey’s fourth grade class! Crystal has been chosen as our highlighted engineer for the month of October due to her perseverance and critical thinking during STEM-related activities. Crystal uses the Engineering Design Process to find solution in steps and to encourage her groupmates to stay focused on solving the problem. She consistently asks questions about the tasks she is completing and enjoys sharing personal real world connections. She is super excited to continue working on her Tiny House for Project-Based Learning, in which she will interview a client and build a prototype for her client. Keep up the great work, Crystal!
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- Garden Explorer: Crystal enjoys making observations of different produce in our Macdonough garden. She hopes to grow her own garden one day.
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- All About Team Work: Crystal encourages her classmates to take risks during learning tasks, such as creating circuits.
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- Perseveres Through Challenges: Crystal challenges herself to use the Engineer Design Process to carefully design a plan and make changes to her plan as needed.
Farm to School
October Harvest Days were a success! Families were able to see the garden and take home produce. Miss the garden tour and harvest days last month? Stop by the garden at parent pick up on Fridays for a quick tour with Farmer Jenna.
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- Produce from October 15 harvest day at the school garden.
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- 5th grade students create garden agreements before exploring our school garden.
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- Families harvest collard greens with Farmer Jenna.
Engineering Design Process: Plan
At Macdonough, we encourage our students to use the Engineer Design Process to find a solution to a problem. During the plan stage, students are typically encourage to draw out a plan before they dive into creating a solution. Check out this resource that describes the effects of drawing on student learning.
Are you following us on Twitter?
Please don’t forget to follow us on Twitter! We provide weekly updates of lessons happening in the classroom, and our Governance Council provides updates on Macdonough events. Follow
@MacdSchool AND @macgovernance for examples.
