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To STEM and Beyond!

Posted 11/01/2021 by Stacy Thibodeaux (@stacythib)

As a chemistry teacher, I have always been intrigued on how to do what the engineering design and computer science teachers do in their classes. “Why,” do you ask? We are educating the future workforce. Our students are being trained and taught for jobs that haven’t even been created yet. The ever-changing technology field needs those that can problem solve, understand logic and persevere through a problem. This is what computer science and STEM offers our students.

Being a chemistry teacher, my programming background knowledge and skills were limited to a Fortran programming class way back in my undergraduate program. I was first introduced to TI technology for my chemistry classes as a data-collection solution and interactive simulation, so I knew about the graphing calculators and how they can be used with Vernier sensors. I was intrigued and followed up with training sponsored by TI on STEM in the classroom, where I was then introduced to the TI-Innovator™ Hub. I was hooked! Seeing all the engaging ways that were currently available for my students to learn coding and STEM projects using this equipment, I had to get my hands on some. I wrote several grants and acquired TI-Innovator™ Hubs, I/O kits and TI-Innovator™ Breadboard Packs.

I started a STEM club after school and had students come one day a week for the entire school year. They even learned how to code music and play it on the TI-Innovator™ Hub (Figure 1). We learned so much and had such a great time learning together. After seeing the positive impact on these students after school, I approached my principal spring of 2020 and proposed a full-blown programming/robotics course.

Here’s where it gets really good: A pandemic plus a new hands-on course? Was I absolutely crazy?

Figure 1: Students learn how to code music from sheet music. This music is played on the TI-Innovator™ Hub using Python programming and the code sound.note(“note”, time).
Figure 1: Students learn how to code music from sheet music. This music is played on the TI-Innovator™ Hub using Python programming and the code sound.note(“note”, time).


After a crazy spring of 2020, the start of the school year in fall was definitely not back to normal. I was unsure how I was going to teach a course that was so hands-on and project-based. At that time, my district was hybrid, A/B days with alternating A/B Fridays, so I knew continuity in coding was going to be tough. I started using TI’s 10 Minutes of Code for TI-Innovator™ Technology activities in TI-Basic with my students. This allowed me to teach skills scaffolded for my beginning students as well as for me, who was still learning how to code with TI-Basic. We completed the 10 Minutes of Code activities around winter break. When we returned back after break, I started with the Path to STEM Projects. I also used some of the I/O kits to add some engineering design to the course where the students were able to get creative and design their own automatic dispenser and even a jukebox!

The automatic dispenser used the built-in brightness sensor to turn a light on as well and turned a servo motor to dispense beans. The jukebox housed the TI-Innovator™ Hub, played songs and had a light show! Students used their geometry skills to code the TI-Innovator™ Rover through mazes that used the built-in RGB and range (distance) sensors. They created automated machines that used the TI-SensorLink Adapter and a Vernier sensor. Based on data input from the sensor, an action was taken. This activity was a modification from the TI STEM Project “Some Like It Tepid.” They also had an opportunity to use some of the TI STEM Projects, like the “Smart Irrigation System” and “Pet Car Alarm” projects (Figures 2, 3 and 4).

Figure 2. Path to STEM Project where students created and coded a speaker from magnetic wire, nail, a strong magnet and a Styrofoam cup.
Figure 2: Path to STEM Project where students created and coded a speaker from magnetic wire, nail, a strong magnet and a Styrofoam cup.


Figure 3. Engineering design project using the TI-Innovator™ Hub, TI-SensorLink Adapter and a servo motor. Based on pH values, the motor turned the cup to dump pH-lowering material. This activity was a modification from the TI STEM Project “Some Like It Tepid.”
Figure 3: Engineering design project using the TI-Innovator™ Hub, TI-SensorLink Adapter and a servo motor. Based on pH values, the motor turned the cup to dump pH-lowering material. This activity was a modification from the TI STEM Project “Some Like It Tepid.”


Figure 4. Automatic dispenser project using the built-in brightness sensor to turn on an RGB LED and turn a motor to dispense beans.
Figure 4: Automatic dispenser project using the built-in brightness sensor to turn on an RGB LED and turn a motor to dispense beans.


Fast forward to 2021, I still have my robotics course! School is looking more normal again, and this year we are all back full time. Last year, I started this little adventure with only one section of 23 students. Word got out on the fun we were having, and this year I have two sections with a total of 53 students! Some students have coding experiences from middle school or on their own; some have zero coding experience. All in all, they are doing a great job. With the additional capabilities of Python being available on the TI-84 Plus CE Python and the TI-Nspire™ CX II graphing calculators, we are able to use Python programming instead. I have chosen to change to Python instead of TI-Basic programming as our language for our projects because more and more industry avenues are wanting and using Python programming in their projects. This is further reason to add STEM to your classes and prepare our students for the ever-changing workforce.

We have just finished the 10 Minutes of Code for Python. We are starting to use the I/O kits for a variety of projects that I have been working on with other STEM teachers who also use TI technology. After all, everything is more fun with friends. As we work our way to the end of 2021 and next spring, I plan to do some of the same projects and content that I did last year, but now in Python. I also purchased some micro:bits, and we will take on some of those projects too!

If any of this interests you, please feel free to email me at svthibodeaux@gmail.com, or contact the TI STEM team or your local Educational Technology Consultant (ETC). Both can assist you with borrowing TI technology to try out STEM in your classroom, like me. You may just get hooked (and your students too! ) just like I did.

About the author: Stacy Thibodeaux is a T³™ Science National Instructor. She holds a Bachelor of Science in biology and chemistry and a master’s degree in educational leadership from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She is currently at Southside High School in Youngsville, Louisiana, where she teaches all levels of chemistry I and II. She uses TI technology in her Introduction to Robotics course and to assist in her teaching, data collection, and modeling of math concepts linking them to science content.

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