We Own Adventure

Scouting News for the DC Metro Area

stem lab

Will you build a crazy STEM contraption? Join STEMaTHON!

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The Great STEMaTHON Invitational includes a Rube Goldberg Challenge for all youth and adults. The aims of the Rube Goldberg Challenge are to apply STEM to create a series of chain reactions, in an over complicated invention, that performs one simple task: rolling a can of food a distance of at least 1 foot. Design yours and send it in to be featured – see below!

RUBE GOLDBERG CHALLENGE
Challenge:

• Design a RG contraption that rolls a can of food at least 1 foot.
• Bonus, incorporate as many of the below elements as you can:
o Points for each type of simple machine
o Points for each “step” in the “chain”
o Points for rolling multiple cans of food, or longer distances

Teaming:
• You can work with one friend/classmate/parent/grandparent, or with a team/unit.
• If submitting a video of a Rube Goldberg contraption with a team/unit, multiple videos stitched together are acceptable! However, each video clip must have at least 3 machine ‘steps’.

Submissions:
• Submissions are due by 9/2/2020 11:59PM EST.
• Submit your entry to 082stem@gmail.com via Google Photos or Dropbox. Please include the names of your RG team and grade levels (adult), so we can give due credit. If you’d like to submit your video another way, please send us an email!

Features:
• Your video will be featured in the STEMaTHON on September 5-6, 2020 (or bloopers reel!)

See more on STEMaTHON here.

STEM Scouts Info Session

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Do you have a burgeoning engineer or scientist growing up in your house? Have you ever caught your kid taking apart the TV to “see how it works?” Does your carpet bear the marks of past chemistry experiments?

We have an outlet for that STEM energy: STEM Scouts! 

Find out more:

Join us for a presentation and Q&A about STEM Scouts on August 22, 2020! Register here!

  • Hear about the program from experienced STEM Scouts Lab Managers
  • Meet the STEM Scouts team and ask questions!
  • [Network with other prospective STEM Scouts leaders and families in an optional break-out session!

STEM Program

STEM Scouts is a BSA program originally developed out of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Just as Cub Scouts and Scouts BSA teach the Scout Oath and Scout Law in an outdoor setting, STEM Scouts teach those same values in a STEM-based setting. Youth interested in STEM topics are engaged with hands-on lab activities designed by a team of STEM experts, while volunteer leaders show applications of the lessons of the Oath and Law as they work together.

Each year, educators design and vet curriculum and activities, the materials of which are shipped to the youth.  Meeting planning is done for you within the curriculum, and leaders need only bring enthusiasm!

Who is it for?

The activities and curriculum are designed for girls and boys in grades 3-8, with activities for each division (elementary school and middle school). This is a fantastic program for anyone who enjoys hands-on activities and wants to be prepared for a future of STEM literacy!

Covid-19 Adaptation

This year, BSA’s curriculum anticipated the need for flexibility in meeting formats.  Meetings may need to change from in-person to virtual as local public health conditions change. BSA re-engineered lab materials to  allow for virtual delivery by packaging them into kits for individual Scouts.  This means that no matter whether you choose to meet together or virtually,  all the supplies will be available to all Scouts.

Modules Overview

When you sign up for STEM Scouts, you sign up for 5 modules this year, each with 4 activity meetings. That’s 20 sessions! This year’s modules include:

Junior Lab (elementary school youth): 

  • Anatomy
  • Animation (by WozEd)
  • Magnetism
  • Earth Science
  • Astronomy

Technology Lab (middle school youth):

  • Film/TV
  • Mobile App
  • Animation (by WozEd)
  • SnapCircuits
  • Simple Machines

Read the detailed descriptions in the attachment to the right. And join us on Aug 1 to learn more!

Learn More:

Visit: www.stemscouts.org

Can’t make it, but interested? Send us a note: stem@ncacbsa.org

Registration ends on July 31st!

How can your Scout STEM at Home?

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“Seriously, STEM Labs, Nova, and Supernova are each different creatures. We need them all towards giving our Scouts the tools and opportunities to be the best they can be. STEM literacy is tantamount for future leaders. The labs are not a part of regular scouting. It’s not for everyone but for those that are interested, it should be a viable option.”

Marcus J Martin is the Associate Lab Manager of Junior Lab 9941, which pre-social distancing, would meet at the USPTO in Alexandria, VA. The sponsor organization for Lab 9941 is the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers – USPTO chapter.

STEM Scouts Labs
STEM Scouts is a BSA program focused fun ways for girls and boys to learn more about science, technology, engineering and mathematics in tandem with character development, leadership training, and ethical decision-making. Through hands-on activities delivered to you, this program is challenging, thought-provoking and fun.

Program Structure: STEM Scouts has programming organized in 2 divisions: Junior Labs for grades 3-5 and Technology Labs for grades 6-8. Every meeting starts with the Scout Oath & Law, involves a hands-on experiment, and wraps up with discussion of a STEM Innovator.

Youth Leadership: Youth work in teams of three and rotate through roles of Principal Investigator, Co-PI and Project Manager.

What can you do during Covid-19?
Start this in your family or neighborhood, provided you are complaint with social distancing guidelines. Safety first! Activity kits are shipped in bundles for 5 youth, and lessons and lab journals are online in the STEM Scouts portal. Once you get the kits, host your virtual Lab through ZOOM!

Need help getting started?
NCAC STEM is here to help! To find out more, visit www.stemscouts.org or contact stem@ncacbsa.org.

Nova Awards
Nova Awards offer activities and recognition for youth in traditional programs: Cub Scouts, Scouts BSA, Venture Scouts, Varsity Scouts and Sea Scouts. Read the requirements at www.scouting.org/stem.

What can you do during Covid-19?
Join NCAC’s STEM@Home program: https://scoutingevent.com/082-STEMatHome
STEM Committee volunteers and Nova Counselors are offering virtual STEM Nova events so your youth can advance in pursuit of Nova Awards.

Can you also work on Novas within your unit?
Absolutely! Be sure to work with a registered Nova Counselor. Contact supernova@ncacbsa.org with questions.

Supernova Awards
Supernova Awards offer recognition for youth in traditional programs who go the extra mile in their pursuit of STEM. Read the requirements at www.scouting.org/stem.

What can you do during Covid-19?
Check out the requirements online, then connect with a registered Supernova Mentor to get started! Contact supernova@ncacbsa.org to identify a Mentor

You can also join a STEM@Home Speaker Series event .

Note: Conversations with scientists or engineering professionals fulfills requirement 7 in Dr. Luis W. Alvarez Supernova for Cub Scouts and Dr. Charles H. Townes Supernova for Webelos. The conversation partially fulfills #6 in Dr. Bernard Harris Supernova for Scouts BSA and Dr Sally Ride Supernova for Venturers and Sea Scouts.

NCAC Continues to Grow Welcoming Nine New Units During Pandemic

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Starting a new unit in Scouting takes a lot of legwork, but starting a new unit during a pandemic presents special challenges. Through the tenacity of incredible volunteers and leaders, the National Capital Area Council, Boy Scouts of America will be welcoming four new Scouts BSA Troops for girls, one new Scouts BSA Troop for boys, three new STEM Labs, and a new Sea Scout Ship this month.

In March the Council offices were closed due to COVID-19. While adjusting to the new normal, many Council staff members and volunteers began working to ensure Scouting continued. There efforts included starting a virtual Merit Badge Program, creating Scouting at Home resources for parents and youth, and holding virtual meetings. Now new units formation is added to the list of Scouting at Home activities.

There are multiple steps involved in starting a new unit, from finding a chartered organization to recruiting Scouts. The leaders of these new units jumped in to the process with both feet, glad to help create new Scouting opportunities. Even a once in a lifetime event like a pandemic won’t stop them from shaping the next generation of youth.

Burt Wagner, Junior Lab 9941’s Lab Manager says, “STEM Labs fill a gap in Scouting.  Just as traditional Scout units focus on “hands on” with outdoor skills, the “hands on” component was missing for many STEM topics. Having a STEM Lab allows Scouts to go from “look at this cool STEM thing” to “come here and do this cool STEM thing.”

Leaders in NCAC believe that creating new units during the pandemic teaches Scouts that although the road may be rough, it is not impossible. Scoutmaster Tony from Troop 350 adds that even as they were completing the paperwork for Scouts BSA Troop 350 for girls, the Troop is, “Zooming through Merit Badges and advancement requirements as they prepare for their trip to Summit.”

Lorrie Hartwell, NCAC’s Sea Scout Commodore, states, “Someday soon we all hope our boats and Scouts will be OUT on the waters leading, learning, feeling those breezes and just having FUN. The Scouts’ enthusiasm turns the administrative challenges of starting a new unit into small obstacles that are easy to overcome. Just ask and help will come!”

The Scouting program provides so much for our youth in the D.C. metro area, especially during this difficult time. It continues to inspire youth to advance, get outdoors, serve their community, and make friends all while using the proper precautions to stay safe. This time in their lives will never be forgotten and the history made by deciding to join Scouting during a pandemic will forever be etched in their memory.

To learn more about how to start a new Troop, Ship, STEM Lab, or other Scouting unit, please contact us and a member of our local Scouting team will be in touch.