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There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
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Atlanta, GA | Posted: August 15, 2019
Summary Sentence:
The end of July wrapped up the seventh and final week of the 2019 CEISMC Summer PEAKS (Programs for Enrichment and Accelerated Knowledge in STEAM).
Full Summary:
Over the course of two months, rising 4th-12th grade students from the Atlanta area and beyond participated in one to two-week long science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) programs that aimed to increase summer learning and encourage students to explore their interest in the STEAM field.
2019 CEISMC Summer PEAKS
2019 CEISMC Summer PEAKS
2019 CEISMC Summer PEAKSIn late-July, the Georgia Tech Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics & Computing (CEISMC) wrapped up the last session of the 2019 CEISMC Summer PEAKS (Programs for Enrichment and Accelerated Knowledge in STEAM) where many students came to the Georgia Tech campus to participate in a variety of summer learning programs.
Sirocus Barnes, Program Director at CEISMC, explains, "This summer we had another successful year of Summer PEAKS programs. Daily, we saw students excited about learning about various areas of STEM.”
Over the course of two months, rising 4th-12th grade students from the Atlanta area and beyond participated in week-long science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM) programs that aimed to increase summer learning and encourage students to explore their interest in the STEAM field. CEISMC Summer PEAKS offers a wide range of STEAM-focused activities that are created to meet the specific interests of all age groups.
“We worked hard to ensure the program’s success while learning in the process,” said Tabitha Lowe, Educational Outreach Coordinator at CEISMC. “I believe we made sure that every student had a pleasant and enjoyable yet successful time this year at Summer PEAKS.”
To reflect this, one session in particular, called Biology Bonanza, was geared toward 6th-9th grade students interested in studying life sciences by providing inspirational labs and hands-on experiments. To jumpstart student interest, Biology Bonanza tackled unique topics such as marine biology and modern biotechnology.
As displayed in the first two images, the students at Biology Bonanza are seen experimenting with different soap brands to test which soap was the most effective at removing oil from the coated feathers. As they observed, the students recorded the results on a notepad to share with their peers. A few students even discussed with an instructor and asked a few questions in order to examine their unique findings.
In addition to the individual week-long workshops, sessions such as the Advanced App/ Games Workshop provided students with the opportunity to continue to explore their interests. This workshop allowed students to collaborate with their peers in order to take the concepts they learned in a previous Mobile App/Games Workshop to the next level.
In the final picture, taken at the Mobile App/Games session, an instructor cheers on a focused student. “You Win!” is displayed on the screen in bright colors and together they celebrate his achievement.
Barnes reflects on the importance of these moments by stating, “I believe this program is important because it gives students a chance to explore different areas of STEM in a fun and engaging way through our weekly programs.”
With over 30 sessions, CEISMC Summer PEAKS provided diverse programs for students to find their passion and expand their STEAM knowledge over the summer. From 4th graders spending a week exploring what it means to code their own animated piece through the “Artbotics” program to high school students taking exploration to the next level through the “Energy Unplugged” program, there was a place for everyone this year at CEISMC Summer PEAKS.
As Tabitha Lowe explains, whether it was inside or outside of the classroom, “[t]his program allows the children to be innovators, inventors, engineers, scientists and more. It also opens their eyes to possible future careers that they didn’t even know existed. Programs like [PEAKS] encourage students to be whomever they want to be.”
