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STEAM at Chiswick School
What is STEAM?
It stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics.
At Chiswick School we recognise that our students will be the world’s future leaders - pioneering new technologies. To do this they will need to be problem-solvers and collaborators, working in teams. They will also need to be creative and make interdisciplinary connections, using transferable skills. It is therefore our aim to equip students with the necessary knowledge, skills and tools to be successful in tomorrow’s world.
In order to do this, we will be building upon and developing our STEAM provision continuing to provide engaging and challenging lessons and enriching opportunities. We will also be working with industries to provide ‘real world’ context and promote STEAM careers.
Stay tuned for some exciting STEAM enrichment days.
For further information on all things STEAM please contact our STEAM co-ordinator on hcl@chiswickschool.org.
Girls Who Code
Girls Who Code was a project launched towards the end of last year. It consisted of 14 girls using an online portal to conduct different programming activities. The girls have been working very hard on these projects and will now be entering the Chiswick Cyborgs with robotics. The girls were visited by the GWC institution showcasing some of their fantastic skills.
By the end of the project the girls will have an online website which will allow them to showcase their program. The girls have been coding using Python programming language which also ties into the national curriculum for computing. They really enjoy the scheme and it enhances their confidence levels with programming. Many of these girls have a strong passion for coding and this is a brilliant event for them to showcase their passion.
Year 8 girls who are involved are:
Kiera (Project Manager), Samantha, Diyani, Goda, Lilian, Jaina , Savannah , Demi, Sofia, Rosa, Maria, Hanin, Sara.
Product Design in Action Conference
Year 13 Product Design students had a fantastic visit to the Emmanuel Centre in London to participate in the Product Design in Action Conference. The day involved a series of inspiring talks and was led by designer and artist Pascal Anson, a practising designer who also teaches at Kingston University.
Wayne Hemingway, who is perhaps best known for his design label 'Red or Dead', reflected on his fascinating and diverse journey from thrifty market staller to international and morally-responsible designer. Funny, inspirational and thought-provoking, this talk showed how self-belief and passion can be the keys to creative success.
Anna Ploszajski from the Institute of Making explained that Materials Engineering is all about looking at stuff and trying to understand what makes these materials hard, soft, fluffy, squidgy, heavy, elastic or tasty so we can start building things and solving problems.
Bibi Nelson from Bare Conductive asked ‘What is a designer, and is there a process?’
Daniel Charny, an internationally recognised creative director and lecturer in the field of contemporary design, talked about Social Design and challenged the students to see this as a key approach to design activity.
Overall the day was highly thought-provoking and encouraged students to see a range of approaches to design and also a range of routes into a career in design.
Year 11 Design and Technology Thorpe Park Trip
Year 11 Design and Technology students had a fantastic visit to Thorpe Park where they took part in a structures workshop. The aims of the workshop were to understand the performance of structural elements in the design and building of rides and to understand how more advanced mechanical systems can be used to enable changes in movement and force.
Students were challenged to work in teams to build a structure which could hold three large marbles, the height of a pencil above the table top, using only A4 paper. They then designed a new ride for Thorpe Park and pitched their ideas to the rest of the group.
