T he S TA R B AS E Mo nthl y N e w s l e tt e r

Januar y 2 0 1 3

Launching STARBASE of California A glimpse into an extraordinary STARBASE experience. >>> page 2

Basic Additions Changes to Math Operations & Applications: B. Measurement. >>> page 5

LEGO Creations Event How STARBASE Robins is inspiring creativity. >>> page 7

LOOKING AT STARBASE THEN & NOW

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IN F O

D i s c o v e r STA R BA SE Today

LAUNCHING STARBASE OF CALIFORNIA: A g l i mp se i nt o an e x t raordi nary STA RBA SE e x p e ri e nc e .

TAB L E O F CO N T E N T S Lau n c h i n g S TARBASE of C a l i f o r n i a: A gl i m p se i n t o an | 2 e x t r a o r di n a r y S TA R B AS E experience. B a si c A ddi t i ons : C h a n g e s t o Math Operations & A p p l i c a t i o n s: B. M e a su re m e nt.

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LE G O C re a t i o ns Eve n t : H o w | 7 S TA R B AS E Robi ns i s in sp i r i n g c re at i vi ty. B u m p i n g i n to a S TA R B AS E Al u mnus

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Star ted o n J u l y 2 2 , 1 9 9 3 , S TARB AS E o f C a l i fo rn i a i n Sacr ame n t o , h o u s e d a t t h e Ol d S a c ra m e n t o Arm y D e p ot , was am o n g t h e o ri g i n a l S TARB AS E s i t e s t o re c e i v e fe d er a l f unding fo r t h e i r p ro g ra m . T h e p ro g ra m w a s o ri g i n a l l y directed by L i e u t e n a n t C o l o n e l To m Ed w a rd s a n d C a p ta in Susan M i n k e m a ; h o w e v e r, t h e c u rre n t d i re c t o r, S e rg e a n t Major Jo h n L a m b h a s be e n w i t h t h e p ro g ra m s i n c e 1 9 98 when h e s t a rt e d a s a n i n s t ru c t o r. U n d e r L a m b’s d i re c t ion , the p ro g ra m i s a ro a ri n g s u c c e s s , s e rv i n g t h o u s a n d s o f children a ye a r. Sacr ame n t o ’s p ro g ra m u t i l i z e s a n e x e c u t i o n a p p ro a c h t h a t diff er s fro m t h e t ra d i t i o n a l S TARB AS E m o d e l . I n a d d i t ion t o those cl a s s e s c o n d u c t e d t h e Arm y D e p o t , t h e p ro g ra m a l s o has seve ra l c l a s s ro o m s i n l o c a t i o n s a ro u n d t h e c o m m u n it y. It is wit h t h e s t ro n g s u p p o rt a n d e n d o rs e m e n t o f s e v e r a l sur roun d i n g s c h o o l d i s t ri c t s t h a t t h e S a c ra m e n t o p ro gr a m is ab le t o s e rv e m a n y c h i l d re n e v e ry ye a r. I n fa c t , l a s t y ea r they cel e bra t e d t h e i r 4 5 ,0 0 0 t h s t u d e n t a n d h o n o re d t h e mileston e w i t h a c l a s s p h o t o , s e e t o p o f p a g e 3 .

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H I STO RY

A t the i r si te , S TARB ASE of Calif or nia r u n s a fi v e - d a y p ro g ra m w h e re t h e c u l m i n a t i n g ac ti vi ty i s the launch of a solid p rop el l a n t ro c k e t . T h e i r s c h e d u l e c o n fi g u ra t i o n o f t h e appro ve d nati onal STARB ASE cur r iculum m a k e s i t p o s s i bl e fo r t h e i r p ro g ra m t o c o v e r 109 C a l i fo rni a State Standar ds, 4 1 at the 5 t h g ra d e l e v e l a n d 6 8 m a t h a n d s c i e n c e s t a n d a r d s at the 6-8th g r ade level, and p rovides s o m e o f t h e o n l y h a n d s - o n S T EM a c t i v i t y t i m e t h e st u de nts the y ser ve receive throughou t t h e i r s c h o o l y e a r. I n addi ti o n to a dedicated staff and ne i g h bo ri n g s c h o o l s y s t e m s u p p o rt , L a m b i s c l e a r l y a valuable asset to the Sacr amento p ro g ra m . Hi s e n t h u s i a s m a bo u t S TARB AS E i s p a l p a b l e, and he i s qui c k to ex p lain that he li v e s and bre athes STARB ASE 2 4 /7 . H e has pe rso na lly visited 1 3 d i ff e re nt STAR BA SE locations aro und the c o u ntr y and is ex cited t o se e m o re . T he contagiousness o f thi s e nthusiasm f or lear ning is e v ide nt i n hi s continued contact wi th fo rm e r students, sever al of who m have c o me b ack to STA RBASE o v e r the sum mer as counselor s f or t h e c am ps. L a mb i s c o nsta ntly on the look out f or ways to e xp and the connection b etwe e n the progr am and state e d u c ati o n e ffor ts and initiatives

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HI S TO RY and to g i ve stu dents more op p or tuniti e s t o wo rk wi th STEM concep ts f ollowing t h e AWA RDS A ND HON ORS hands-o n m o del. “The cool thing ab ou t » » 2 0 1 0 : Chapter III E ducation Awar d S TAR BASE i s th at we are a hands-on p ro g ra m . » » 2 0 0 4 : Hear t of a Hero Awar d I t ’s o nly c o o l if the students get to do i t ! ” » » 2 0 0 4 -2 0 0 6 : Teacher of the Year says Lam b. H e i s also part of the recently conven e d C a l i fo rni a D e pa r tment of Education’s S T EM Ta s k Fo rc e , and eff or ts like these have l e a d t o a rang e o f ex citing op p or tunities f o r h i s st u de nts and connectedness f or his pro g ra m . B e l o w are j ust a f ew ex amp les:

» » Acknowledg ed as an “ exemplar ” by the Califor nia Depar tment of E ducation as the only prog r am i n Califor nia that tr uly teaches all four STE M g oals and objectiv es for K-8 .

» » Parti c i pating in the Calif or nia Li n k e d L e a rn i n g Pro g ra m . T h i s i s a p ro g ra m c re a t ed i n re spo nse to an increase in dro p o u t ra t e s t h a t a i m s t o c re a t e a p a t h w a y fro m se ve nth gr ade up , f ocusing on p ro v i d i n g t e c h n i c a l t ra i n i n g a n d p re p a ri n g s t u den t s fo r i ndustr y or f ur ther p ostsecon d a ry e d u c a t i o n o p t i o n s . » » Ho sti ng y ear ly summer camp s serv i n g 1 0 0 - 1 5 0 s t u d e n t s i n t w o t o t h re e o n e w eek c am ps. » » Fo ste ri ng op p or tunities with lar ge r t e c h c o m p a n i e s i n t h e a re a . » » D e v e lo pi ng more advanced educ a t i o n o pti o ns, similar to STA RBASE 2 .0, fo r p a s t stude nts. » » Pro v i di ng op p or tunities f or stud e n t te ac he rs and classroom teacher s t o re c e i ve f ur ther tr aining to sup p o rt t h e i r te ac hi ng credentials.

“The cool thing about STARBASE is that we are a hands-on program. It’s only cool if the students get to do it!” says John Lamb.

D i s c o v e r S TA R B A S E To d a y | J a n u a r y 2 0 1 3

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CU R R I C U L U M UP D AT E

BASIC ADDITIONS C ha nge s to M a t h O p e r a t i o n s & A p p l i c at i o ns: B. M e asure m e nt .

O v e r the past few months, the new lo o k a n d c h a n g e s t o t h e c u rri c u l u m h a v e be e n hi g hli g hte d i n Discove r S TARBAS E Today t o p ro v i d e m o re i n fo rm a t i o n a n d i n s t ru c t i o n t o e a ch si te abo u t how these changes wil l a ffe c t y o u . T h i s m o n t h ’s i n t ro d u c t i o n t o t h e n ew B asi c Me asure ment lessons p lans is n o e x c e p t i o n . I t has be e n c ha llenging to make our s t a n d - a l o n e m a t h l e s s o n s m e a n i n g fu l a n d i n t e gr a t ed i nt o o ur c urri c ulum. One area that typ i fi e s t h i s c o n c e rn i s t h e c u rre n t m e a s u re m e n t c u r ri c ulum o pt ion: “Metr ic Mission.” To a l l e v i a t e t h i s p ro bl e m , t h e C u rri c u l u m C o m m it t ee has m ade so m e modif ications to this s e c t i o n o f t h e S TARB AS E c u rri c u l u m t o be t t e r ac co m m o date and f acilitate f uture grow t h i n t h i s c o re a re a . T h o s e c h a n g e s a re o u t l i n ed b elo w. T he se lessons are still in the pro c e s s o f fi n a l a p p ro v a l a n d w i l l s o o n be a v a i l a b l e o n the STAR BAS E web site.

Change i n O b j e c ti ve s P re v i o usly, there was one Math O p er ati o n s & Ap p l i c a t i o n s : B . M e a s u re m e n t o bj e c t i v e: “ T h e le arne r will select and ap p ly ap pro p ri a t e s t a n d a rd u n i t s a n d t o o l s t o m e a s u re le n g th, are a, volume, mass, and degree o f a n g l e s .” T h i s s e t u p re q u i re d p ro p o s e d l es s on plans to i nc o rp or ate all the measureme n t c o m p o n e n t s i n t o o n e a c t i v i t y t o m e e t t h e o b je c ti v e . T hat one ob jective has now be e n s p l i t i n t o t h re e o bj e c t i v e s . T h i s c h a n g e a l l ow s f or the de ve lo pment of strong lesson p l a n s a n d a c t i v i t i e s t h a t c a n s a t i s fy a p p ro p ri a t e m e asure m e nt ob jectives without stretc h i n g t o i n c l u d e t h o s e t h a t m i g h t n o t fi t .

Mo vi ng A ngle s Work wi th m e a sur ing angles will b e re l o c a t e d t o t h e C . Ge o m e t ry s e c t i o n , a n d t h e M e asure m e nt s ection will cover length , l i q u i d v o l u m e , a n d m a s s .

“B asi c ” Desig na to r T h e thre e le sson p lans in the Measurem e n t a re a l a be l e d “ ba s i c ” a re re q u i re d l e s s o n s , i nc ludi ng “Basic Measurement: Length ,” “B a s i c M e a s u re m e n t : L i q u i d Vo l u m e ,” a n d “Ba s ic M e asure m e nt: Mass.” It is likely this “ ba s i c ” n a m i n g s c h e m e w i l l be a d o p t e d i n o t h e r are as o f o ur c ur r iculum to f acilitate th e i d e n t i fi c a t i o n o f t h e l e s s o n s t h a t a re re q u i red t o b e i nc lude d i n your schedule. T h ese thre e le s sons include inf or matio n a bo u t h o w t o i n t ro d u c e s t u d e n t s t o t h e s e e s s e nti al m e as urement skills and choi c e s fo r a c t i v i t i e s t h a t w i l l p ro v i d e s t u d e n t s t h e hands-o n e xper ience vital f or their core u n d e rs t a n d i n g o f t h e s e c o n c e p t s .

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C U R R I C U L UM UP D AT E Hands-On Ac ti vi ti e s T h e Curri c ulum Committee under stand s t h a t t h e re a re o p p o rt u n i t i e s w i t h i n o t h e r l e s s on s t h a t g i v e i nstructor s strong p laces to i n t ro d u c e t h e c o n c e p t s o u t l i n e d i n t h e s e t h re e m e asure m e nt lesson p lans. These acti v i t i e s o ffe r i n c re a s e d u n d e rs t a n d i n g be c a u s e o f t h e i m m e di ate app lication of the skill. T h ere wi ll be two typ es of hands-on a c t i v i t i e s o u t l i n e d i n e a c h B a s i c M e a s u re m e n t les s on plan: 1. I nstruc tor s will have the choice t o c o n d u c t t h e i n d i v i d u a l a c t i v i t i e s p re s e n t e d in the o ri g i nal “Metr ic Mission” les s o n p l a n . T h e s e a c t i v i t i e s a re a l l e m be d d e d i n ea ch Basi c Me asurement lesson p lan. I f t h e re i s a n a s p e c t o f “M e t ri c M i s s i o n ” yo u r s it e wants to continue utilizing, the a c t i v i t i e s a re a l l s t i l l a p p ro v e d . 2. T hro ug hout the STA RBASE cur r icu l u m , a c t i v i t i e s w i l l be i d e n t i fi e d t h a t c a n be u s ed as the ha nds-on activity f or each s k i l l a re a . I n t h e s e l e s s o n p l a n s , t h e s ym bo ls be lo w will indicate where these a c t i v i t i e s a re l o c a t e d * , a n d a l i s t o f a p p ro v e d hands-o n activities is included i n e a c h B a s i c M e a s u re m e n t l e s s o n . Ex a m p l e s o f t h e type s o f these activities are liste d be l o w. I n s t ru c t o rs w i l l fi rs t n e e d t o p re s e n t t h e i ntro duc tor y mater ial ab out each s k i l l a re a , bu t t h e h a n d s - o n c o m p o n e n t c a n b e c o nduc ted in the contex t of the a p p ro v e d a c t i v i t y. T he Curri c ulum Committee strongly b e l i e v e s t h i s re v i s i o n o f t h e M a t h Op e ra t i o n s & A ppli c ati o ns: B. Measurement section w i l l s t re n g t h o u r o v e ra l l c u rri c u l u m a n d i n s t ru ct ion f o r o ur stude nts. We hop e that you an d yo u r s t u d e n t s w i l l e n j o y t h i s n e w a p p ro a c h .

E x a m p le s o f A p p ro v e d B a s i c M e a s u re me n t A c t i v i t i e s

Le ngth

» » Rocketr y Ap p e n d i c e s » » Introduction t o N a v i g a t i o n a n d M a p p i n g Ap p e n d i c e s » » Pop ! Goes t h e F i z z » » Introduction t o Ph ys i c a l a n d C h e m i c a l C h a n g e s » » Pop ! Goes t h e F i z z

Li qui d Volume

Mass

» » Rocketr y Ap p e n d i c e s » » Fluid Inves t i g a t i o n s » » Eggb er t

*The symbols indicating the location of the activity in each activity will be added as the lesson plans are revised into the new format.

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C O MMU N I T Y C O N N E C T I O N S

LEGO CREATIONS EVENT H o w S TAR B A S E Ro b i n s i s i n s p i ri ng c re at i v i t y.

O n J anuary 5, 2 0 1 3 , STA RBASE Rob ins a n d t h e M u s e u m o f Avi ati o n o n the Rob ins A ir Force Ba s e i n Ge o rg i a t eam e d to g e th er to sp onsor the FIRST L E GO L e a g u e S u p e r Reg i o nal Ro bo tics Tour nament. This ev e n t w a s a s e c o n d ro und c o m pe tition f or teams that had p a s s e d fi rs t ro u n d quali fi c ati o ns at a local level b ef ore a d v a n c i n g t o t h e s t a t e le ve l c o m pe ti tion at Geor gia Tech. Fort y t e a m s p a rt i c i p a t e d i n the all-day event, including two STARB AS E 2 .0 t e a m s . A s a pre c urso r to this event, STA RBASE Ro bi n s a n d t h e m use um he ld a Faceb ook camp aign ca l l e d t h e S TARB AS E Robi ns L EG O Creation Event to get the w o rd o u t a n d st im ulate i nte rest. Star ted in 2 0 1 1 , th e c re a t i o n e v e n t a s k e d parti c i pants to “imagine,” “design,” a n d “c re a t e ” a u n i q u e c re a t i o n u s i n g L EGO bri cks and parts and sub mit a p icture of the c re a t i o n t o be u p l o a d e d t o t h e S TARB AS E Ro bin s Fa ce bo o k pag e. Par ticip ants could subm i t u p t o t h re e d e s i g n s , a n d t h e re s p o n s e o v er t h e last two ye ars has dr awn entr ies f rom a v a ri e t y o f a g e s a n d l o c a t i o n s a ro u n d t h e c o u n t r y, i nc ludi ng particip ation f rom other STA RB AS E s i t e s . S o m e o f t h i s y e a r’s e n t ri e s a re p ict u red b elo w. F rom the submissions p osted, the win n e r o f t h e e v e n t i s ra n d o m l y c h o s e n a n d re c e iv es a S TAR BASE Ro bi ns t-shir t as a p r ize. Wes l e y Fo n d a l , d i re c t o r o f S TARB AS E ROB I N S , s a y s , “ We ho pe c re ati o ns like these lead to an in t e re s t i n ‘S T E M ,’ s c i e n c e , t e c h n o l o g y, e n g i n e e r in g and m ath. Thi s is not a comp etition, j u s t a w a y t o s h o w w h a t k i d s c a n d o w i t h L e g o s . ” E v ents li k e this one that reach out to t h e l a rg e r c o m m u n i t y, t h i s t i m e u t i l i z i n g s o c i a l m e di a to o ls, ser ve a vital p ur p ose to s u p p o rt t h e S TARB AS E m i s s i o n a n d e n h a n c e o ur nati o nwi de ST EM education initiatives .

“B-1B”--Mike

“Moo Life”--Hannah

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STAR B AS E A L UM N I

BUMPING INTO A STARBASE ALUMNUS

St u de n t s a t STARBASE K e l l y go t a l o o k a t a STARBASE al umnus i n ac t i o n wh e n bo ardi ng a C- 5 ai rc raft f o r a t o u r l at e l as t ye ar, Ro n Ja c k so n re po rt e d re c e nt l y. O n e o f t h e i r e s c o rts w as a yo ung f e m a l e l o a d mas t e r, A1C Jaql ynn D e L a Ro sa . She s ai d ho w happy s h e w a s t o be abl e to he l p s i nc e s h e h a d c o mpl e te d the STARBASE K e l l y p ro g r am 10 ye ars ago . Su re e n o u g h , s he had att e nde d a STA R B AS E K el l y s umme r c l as s e s in Ju l y o f 2002. Se rvi c e me mbe rs l i ke Ja q l y n n a re a gre at ro l e mo de l f or o u r S TA R B ASE s tude nts .

SE E KI NG S TA R BA S E A LUM N I To c o m m e m orat e the 20th anni ve r sar y of the DoD STARBASE Prog r am, we are lo o k i n g f o r STARBASE graduat e s who hav e g one on to STE M career s, hopefull y in p a r t f ro m the i nf l ue nc e o f t he ir STARBASE exper ience. We are happy to sh o w c a se a n y STARBASE al umni , b ut we are especially interested in finding gr a du a t e s f ro m the o ri gi nal 1993/9 4 classes. Please send any infor mation ab o u t a S TA R B AS E al umnus to Erni e Go nzales, at er nie.g [email protected].