Grade 7 and 10 Students Collaborate, Prepare for STEM for a Better World

By Linden Teachers Kelley Ruys de Perez and Sang Lee

STEM for a Better World is an annual highlight at Linden where students from Early Learners through high school put their knowledge of the STEM subjects into action. Each student selects an issue or cause that they care about, and develops a related project involving STEM skills with an emphasis this year on mathematics. We are excited to hold our first virtual STEM for A Better World on Wednesday, March 31, 2021. To find out how Grade 7 and 10 students collaborated and learned from each other to prepare for the fair, read on!

The focus of STEM for a Better World this year is Data. Students learn how to collect, organize, display and analyze data to make convincing arguments, informed decisions and predictions. Through research and data collection, students learn to be critical consumers of data and how to determine when data is being misrepresented. They develop the necessary skills to create infographics and make connections between the use of data and understanding the chance that something might happen.

During the week of January 25th, the Grade 7s attended two graphing workshops organized and run by Sang’s Grade 10 math students. The concepts covered included the technical aspects of creating graphs and charts, incorporating trend lines, and using linear regression models to predict future outcomes using software-generated equations. For instance, with the use of linear regression, students with the current iPhone price data are able to predict future prices using the equation produced from linear regression! The results were outstanding and we plan to do another workshop in the spring.

“I think it helps us become more confident with the material. Like you know that you know the material if you can explain it to someone.” —Grade 10 Student

“It was really informative and the students showing us how to do it were super nice and answered our questions.” —Grade 7 Student

“It gives you a reason to further your understanding of something. I had to relearn it in order to teach it. It was also just fun and a good chance to talk with other grades.” —Grade 10 Student

“I really liked learning from the Grade 10s — they explained everything so that I could understand and stayed online with us until we were finished.” —Grade 7 Student

“It furthers our knowledge of the topic that we are teaching and gives us an opportunity to enhance our leadership skills.” —Grade 10 Student