BC STEM's 3rd Annual Student Showcase

This week, current and prospective Battle Creek STEM Innovation Center families had the opportunity to visit BC STEM for the school's third annual Student Showcase event. During the showcase, students presented some of their favorite projects from throughout their time at BC STEM, as well as some of their key learnings. As parents and other guests traveled throughout the building to each classroom, student groups did a great job speaking in front of an audience and even fielding questions after their presentations. Presentations ranged from showing the audience how to extract DNA from a strawberry to explaining how they designed and coded their own video games and even allowing visitors to play them and try for a new high score.

Eighth-grader Miles Rinckey shared that getting familiar with the 3-D printer has been one of his favorite experiences while he's been in middle school. "I've always really wanted to get a 3-D printer and try it out, so that's been a lot of fun," he said. "Last year, I made a ziggurat (an ancient Mesopotamian pyramid-like structure)." Miles said he's had fun using Tinkercad, a free, web app that gives young designers an easy-to-use entry point into the world of 3-D design, but said he's looking forward to learning more advanced programs as he continues to learn. A big Star Wars fan, Miles aspires to use the skills he's gained to build his own set of clone trooper armor someday.

Battle Creek STEM Innovation Center is a new kind of middle school and the only one of its kind in Battle Creek and the surrounding area. At BC STEM, students are seen as innovators. Each innovator is empowered to ask questions and explore possibilities while researching, collaborating, and learning new ways of thinking. Through an integrated curriculum, students experience every school subject through the lens of creative exploration. BC STEM innovators develop critical thinking skills to help them create real solutions to the problems that matter to our students and to our community.