I began by surveying the teachers about what they needed/wanted in a PD. I created a simple Google Form for teachers to fill out that would show me what sessions I needed to include. I asked the principals at all three sites to send out the Form for me, so that (hopefully) more teachers would fill it out. I gave teachers about 1.5 weeks to complete the form, sending out a reminder email (or two).

Part of the Form included a questions about presenting a session. This was my call for volunteers, or at least my way of seeing if anyone was interested in presenting/leading a session. There were about 8 teachers that volunteered to present a session or two. That was great! I contacted those teachers to confirm the sessions that they would be comfortable leading. I even reached out to a few district level coordinators to ask them to present too!

​Once I had my results from the Form and had confirmed with my presenters, I began planning the session schedule. This part was a little tricky, since I wanted to keep presenters doing multiple sessions in the same classroom. I moved the sessions and presenters around like a puzzle until the pieces fit. I also created descriptions of the sessions, so that the attendees could choose the session that was right for them.

I shared (emailed) the Schedule and Description with the teachers who would be attending about 5 days before the event. I wanted them to start planning out their afternoon, so that they could make the most of their time. 

A few days before the event, I confirmed the room numbers and double-checked the technology available in those rooms (projector, connections, desktop, etc.). I also worked with the administrator at the hosting site to purchase snacks (water bottles, trail mix, granola bars) and chocolate for the day of the PD. Once everything was planned and set up, I sent a final email out to teachers (the morning of the PD) with all of the attachments they would need - schedule, descriptions, kick off slides, self-paced learning slides. I spent the morning of the PD organizing the snacks, printing out signs and maps, getting Chromebooks ready for teacher checkout, and organizing last minute details. Then, all that was left was to wait for the teachers and the PD to begin!

May 19th was the 2nd Annual STEMfest at Stuart Mesa elementary. This event provided an opportunity for 6th - 8th grade students to share and present their learning with family and community members. The STEM-focused projects ranged from Virtual Reality to Scratch coding to Aeronautics.  Students displayed their STEM notebooks, model or prototype, and a tri-fold board with information about their project and their process. As visitors approached the tri-fold board, students were expected to share their work for approximately 2-3 minutes, answering  questions and demonstrating their prototype. The event was overall a celebration of the students' hard work and learning this school year.

Are you wanting to try Design Thinking with your students? Would you like some guidance with creating and implementing a Design Thinking unit? The James Dyson Foundation provides a kit called the "Ideas Box" that can help you implement a Design Thinking style unit with your students in grades 4-6.
The "Ideas Box" contains a Teacher Manual, 6 brightly-colored, engaging posters, a DVD with informative videos, and a Dyson Air Multiplier fan. The box is on loan to the teacher for 4 weeks, then must be returned with the included mailing label. The Teacher Manual walks you and your students through the steps of the design process, providing real world examples and ideas along the way. The lessons can be taught as is, or easily modified to meet the needs of your students.
I just finished using the "Ideas Box" with two 5th grade classes. Some modifications that I made include choosing items from the STEM Lab that needed to improved. I also wrote a letter to the students about each item, explaining the issues that the items have, and what I would like to be improved. This helps to bring in the EMPATHY piece, so students understand that design engineers must consider the needs of others when designing. I also allowed students to use Tinkercad to design in 3D, and then 3D print their prototypes. Some students also created cardboard prototypes to communicate their ideas.
The students were engaged and empowered to make a better product that others could use in the STEM Lab. They were so creative and loved designing their ideas in 3D. I would HIGHLY recommend reserving an "Ideas Box" for your students!
Here is the link to the Jame Dyson Foundation for more information.