June 13, 2013 11:08 am
Introducing…
…STEM Clubs
Children throughout the North East are discovering something new, inventing amazing things, and investigating the unknown… and they want you to join them!
STEM Clubs are an opportunity for school children to learn away from the confines of the classroom and national curriculum. Students can investigate and explore the science, technology, engineering, and maths that really interests them and STEM Club sessions could cover just about any topic.
Popular STEM Clubs have covered topics including: computer coding, biology and nature, maths puzzles (code cracking), robotics (and robot wars), engineering (and sustainable energy), rocketry, chemistry (and blowing stuff up), astronomy, physics, science talks, and the incredible things being discovered today.
The clubs are often held after school (from 3.30pm) or during lunchtimes but can take place at a variety of times and dates.
Get Involved
If you are already a STEM Ambassador it’s really easy to start supporting a local STEM Club. All you need to do is contact us at ambassadors@ncl-coll.ac.uk, or on 0191 200 4453, and we’ll find you a STEM Club that needs your help.
If you’re not currently registered as a STEM Ambassador, getting started couldn’t be easier: Simply register at https://db.stemnet.org.uk/register/ambassador and our coordinators will be in touch to arrange your DBS check and induction training.
STEM Advisory Network – STEM Clubs Evening
We would like to invite you to our STEM Clubs evening on Thursday 20 June 2013. The event is aimed at STEM Ambassadors, volunteers, and teachers interested in learning more about STEM Clubs. At the event you can watch demonstrations of STEM Club activities and meet with teachers, and other people involved in clubs, to plan and support the STEM clubs programme.
Thursday 20th June 2013, 4pm – 6pm
@ New Sixth Form Building
Newcastle Sixth Form College
Westmorland Road
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE4 7SA
Sat Nav: Newcastle College, Rye Hill Campus, Scotswood Rd, NE4 7SA
Map: Google Maps Link Unfortunately google maps still thinks we are a building site but the main entrance is very obvious now on Elswick East Terrace roughly where you can see the little red crane on the google map image.
Parking is available at the main car-park off Scotswood road: Map link for parking
Agenda
3.30pm to 4.00pm Registration and refreshments
RAEng “Winning Medals” kit
- Dave Thomas, RAEng Connecting STEM Teachers. Your chance to evaluate this resource and take it away for use in your school.
3D Printing, STEM Club activity and teacher CPD opportunity
– Mark Thirlwell, 3d Futures.
STEM Clubs Network support
– David Rogers, STEM Advisory Network.
Running a STEM Club | Demo activities
– Chris Bell, Sacred Heart High School.
Stories of success
– approaches to STEM, activities and events that have made a difference.
Plenary
The meeting will finish by 6.00pm.
June 6, 2013 10:34 am
Invitation to all school pupils and teachers to participate in AuroraWatch UK.
AuroraWatchNet is a project to build, deploy and operate magnetometers for detecting when the aurora borealis is likely to be visible from the UK and other mid-latitude locations.
AuroraWatch UK will provide 10 magnetometers for schools to use free of charge in their teaching of science, technology and mathematics. They will select the schools which will make the best educational use of the magnetometer data. Pupils and teachers from the selected schools will also be invited to a conference where they can share their results and learn more about the aurora from space scientists at Lancaster University.
If you interested in participating please nominate a member of staff to complete the competition form before 25 June 2013. AuroraWatch will announce the results on their website on 1 July 2013.
For more information about the schools’ magnetometer project and the competition please see http://aurorawatch.net/
May 24, 2013 3:40 pm
80 activities – 5 venues – tailored programmes for young people aged 7-19
ALL FREE
See the full programme and book your places at www.britishsciencefestival.org
From zombies to zebra fish, barnacles to bubbles, superheroes to sustainability…you’ll find them all in the British Science Festival Young People’s Programme Monday 9 – Thursday 12 September 2013 at:
Newcastle University
Northumbria University
Woodhorn Museum
Sunderland Museum
Newcastle City Learning Centre
Age 7-11: Turn everyday objects into smart devices or find out how science has saved lives
Age 11-14: Get blown away by explosive demonstrations or relax in a café made from waste
Age 14 -16: Investigate cutting- edge science from clinical trials and crowdsourcing to social diffusion and virtual reality
Age 16 -19: Discover how chocolate wrappers can clean up the atmosphere and whether science could make us superhuman
With over 80 activities at 5 venues across the North East, there really is something for everyone. Visit www.britishsciencefestival.org to register for updates, see the full programme and book your places.
Bookings open on 7 May 2013 and places will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Bookings will only be accepted via the online system. Although the event is free, cancellation charges apply once bookings are confirmed. Full conditions of booking are available in the programme and via the booking system.
3:13 pm
5 to 11 AUGUST 2013
5 to 8 you will be allocated and attend a local centre
9 to 11 will be held in Birmingham overnight
A week long coding and design event hosted by
Young Rewired State for those aged 18 and under
Web — youngrewiredstate.org
Twitter — @youngrewired #YRS2013
Facebook — facebook.com/youngrewiredstate
What is Young Rewired State?
Young Rewired State is a network of software developers and designers aged 18 and under which has been running for 5 years.
It is the philanthropic arm of Rewired State and its primary focus is to find and foster the young children and teenagers who are driven to teaching themselves how to code, how to program the world around them. The aim is to create a worldwide, independent, mentored network of young programmers supported and supporting through peer-to-peer learning. Ultimately solving real-world challenges.
Festival of Code: How it works
Festival of Code consists of a free week long event in August. Before the week we will gather details of YRSers, centres and mentors and assign you all to each other. You will spend the week building and creating awesome stuff before the big finalé in Birmingham.
You will be assigned a centre based on your location. We will have 60 centres throughout the UK. Monday — Thursday you will be making and breaking things and playing with data. Think of this as in introduction to the big weekend. Friday: you will travel to Birmingham the weekend. Saturday and Sunday will consist of showcasing what you have built during the week — climaxing with awards being given to the best projects made.
Level up coding skills/build digital prototypes to solve real world problems/work with professional programmers and open government data
Information for Parents
The Festival of Code is an annual event for programmers aged 18 or under, that has taken place in the UK since 2009.
It runs with the principles of community, open source and open data and is ultimately about finding and fostering every child driven to teach themselves how to code. We want to prevent the isolation that often comes with learning to program, and create a network of young people supporting each other through learning and solving real world challenges.
Young Rewired State is led by Emma Mulqueeny, who is a mum of two, a team of DBS-checked employees, vetted volunteers and part-time staff.
If your child wants to come along to the Festival of Code, we want to do everything we can to enable this and reassure you.
The weekend is FREE to attend
Information for Mentors
The mentor community is a huge part of the success of the Festival of Code. Traditionally it has been drawn from the Rewired State network, but as the popularity of the week has grown, so has the mentor network.
The role of the mentor is vital in the success of Young Rewired State. Duties include:
• providing expertise in programming, design, presentation skills, agile, ideation, robotics, open
data, open government data, graphics
• assisting the centre lead in running the room
• assessing skills and encouraging collaboration
It is a gentle art of being sensitive to the needs of the YRSers in attendance, some will require encouragement, some will need to be left alone. As the event progresses it becomes about focus and preparation for presentations.
If you have skills please visit youngrewiredstate.org/foc-signup
What you need for the week
Laptop, a motivated mindset and the desire to learn
For more information please visit youngrewiredstate.org
May 23, 2013 4:18 pm
Computing in Primary Schools – Robotics Trial:
The Royal Academy of Engineering is piloting a programme of Computing in Primary Schools, one element of which is a low-cost programmable robot. This is based around a programmable microprocessor controlling a pair of electric motors mounted to a lightweight chassis. The robot can be programmed to move under its own power and is influenced by the signals from a wide range of sensors.
The Academy have 100 robots to trial with associated KS1 & KS2 resources. The robots will be donated to schools involved in the pilot on a first come first served basis. The Academy is looking for 100 Primary School teachers to volunteer their time to work through and provide feedback on the supplied resources and robot. The robots will be supplied in kit form, and teachers will be expected to build the robot as part of the trial, which has been designed for teachers with minimal knowledge of computing. Teachers can also request the support of an STEM Ambassador with a background in Computer Science to help them with this. A short clip of the Robot in action is at: http://tinyurl.com/mkra7se
The robots will be delivered to schools in early June, so please respond quickly to take advantage of this trial. Should you be interested in taking part, or want more details, please Contact the project officer, Dawn Fitt: dawn.fitt@ntlworld.com
May 16, 2013 4:09 pm
The UK Space Education Office (ESERO-UK) is holding a conference to inspire science teachers to use space as a context to enrich the teaching of biology, chemistry and physics.
This conference aims to support secondary science teachers through keynote lectures from high profile speakers, all incorporating links to the new proposed curriculum, and a series of hands on, practical sessions designed to inform, inspire and support.
Date: 2 and 3 July 2013.
The conference commences at 10am on Tuesday with dinner in the evening, and finishes at 4.45pm on Wednesday.
Venue: National STEM Centre, University of York, York YO10 5DD
Cost: The conference is free and includes food, accommodation and a £70 travel bursary for teachers
To book a place complete the form at: http://teacher_space_conference.eventbrite.co.uk/#
This conference will be an opportunity to:
• Discover contemporary science resources and support that is available to enrich science teaching.
• Talk to teachers about their experiences of using space as a context for teaching science, including teachers in established networks such as the STFC Leading Space School Programme and the National Space Centre’s Space Academy Programme.
• Hear about the latest developments in the new draft science curriculum in England.
• Learn from organisations carrying out contemporary science within the context of the draft science curriculum.
Keynote speakers:
Professor Bob Cywinski, University of Huddersfield
Anu Ojha, National Space Centre
Professor John Zarnecki, Open University (TBC)
Laura Thomas, 2013 Institute of Physics Schools’ Lecturer
Professor John Cave, Middlesex University
Julia Willingale-Theune, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute
How to Apply:
To book a place please complete the form at http://teacher_space_conference.eventbrite.co.uk/#
If you have any queries please email with the subject ‘ESERO Teacher Conference’ to: enquiries@nationalstemcentre.org.uk
3:50 pm
Star Track – Network Rail Design Trainee/Apprentice course
Network Rail have designed a new trainee/apprenticeship scheme, with 20 placements in various locations. It is a 2-year scheme, offered in partnership with Sheffield Hallam University.
“The future of Britain’s railway is looking better than ever, and your future will too with Network Rail.
With hugely ambitious engineering projects under way across the UK, we’ve created a brand new scheme to train track design engineers. This is a fantastic moment to join us if you have good technical and maths skills and a real drive to succeed.
You’ll enjoy a varied and challenging training programme which includes producing your own designs for track layouts and seeing them installed on site. There is huge variety to the role, with real scope to develop a rewarding career in the rail industry.”
More information is available at http://www.networkrail.co.uk/careers/schemes/trainee-track-engineering-design-scheme/
3:34 pm
A maths competition for 16+ students, run by Transversal in partnership with Olympic gold-medal-winning sailor Sarah Ayton.
Maths competition
Put your maths skills to the test and win a sailing lesson with a double-gold Olympic medal winning sailor!
If you think maths is done from behind a desk, think again! The Transversal Maths Challenge gives pupils the chance to test out their maths skills in the real world – on the high seas. Open to UK students between the ages of 16 and 18 in full-time education, the competition challenges pupils to solve a series of maths problems centred on sailing.
The prize
The six finalists will receive an all-expenses paid trip to Port Hamble, Southampton on Thursday, 4 July 2013 to take part in a sailing lesson with double-gold Olympic medal winning British sailor, Sarah Ayton, whose most recent success came when her team won the Yngling sailing class during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The following day, Friday 5 July 2013, the students will put their new skills to the test as they take part in the annual Transversal Charity Cup. This sees teams compete in a yacht race from Cowes, Isle of Wight to Port Hamble, Southampton to win money for their chosen cause.
The questions to be answered for the competition and more details are available at http://transversal-cup.org/participate/maths-competition/.
Deadline: 31 May 2013.
2:42 pm
Date: 27 to 28 June 2013
Venue: National Science Learning Centre, York
Audience: post-16 teachers, science coordinators/leaders, secondary teachers and others
There have been significant changes in the careers education, information, advice and guidance landscape. Young people are facing increasing labour market uncertainty, a complex choice of routes and the need for greater career resilience.
This conference will provide a wealth of resources and information to raise awareness about the exciting STEM related careers available to young people.
Generous ENTHUSE Award bursaries are available for teachers and lecturers from state funded schools, academies or colleges.
For further information please download the conference flyer or to book your place please visit www.slcs.ac.uk/go/nat/pnac12114
May 7, 2013 9:55 am
Wednesday 8th May, 2pm – 4pm
Newcastle University,
Newcastle upon Tyne,
Tyne and Wear,
NE1 7RU
An afternoon to bring together motivated educators and to illustrate the ideas behind Enlighten.
“Our goal is to create programmes that will raise achievement from teaching systems that enable and empower the students to learn, to raising self-esteem through powerful academic techniques, motivational tools and critical thinking.”
Contact Karim – info@enlighteneducation.co.uk or
Pauline – pauline.vipond@gmail.com to book your free place.
www.enlighteneducation.co.uk
