STEM Matters
October 3, 2025
Ms. Costa, English Language Arts Educator
Each month, we will celebrate one of our Super STEM Teachers, with the Lab Coat Lift-Up Luminary Award! Based on our school's community values; A STEM (Safety, Trustworthy, Excellence & Mindfulness) State of Mind, SMBR teachers nominate a teacher to be recognized.
Check out what our STEM teachers have to say about Ms. Costa:
" ...works tirelessly for her 7th grade team and shows excellence through her determination, positive attitude and amazing relationships with our students!"
"... a true leader and collaborator. She goes above and beyond to support her colleagues, streamline team efforts, and ensure that grade-level goals are met. Her leadership is marked by professionalism, and a positive attitude."
"...embodies what it means to be an exceptional educator. She is the kind of educator who inspires those around her."
Our STEM Scholars collaborate every day, to solve real-world problems.
Each grade level has officially dived into the first semester School Wide Book Read. Each book is tied to the grade-level Essential Question, which serves as the foundation for your student's current real-world problem to be solved. Be sure to ask your STEM scholar about their Essential Question and corresponding novel. Happy critical thinking, scholars!
Science! It's like magic, but REAL!
From the desk of Ms. Christmon:
Our mini-laboratory explored the world of non-Newtonian fluids by making Oobleck!
What We Did:
Students mixed cornstarch and water to create Oobleck, a substance that acts like a liquid when you pour it, but like a solid when you squeeze it. It has high and low viscosity; its viscosity changes depending on the force applied. When handled gently, oobleck behaves like a liquid with a low viscosity. However, when subjected to a rapid force, its viscosity increases a lot, making it behave like a solid.
Some students took creativity one step further by turning their Oobleck into stress balls.
We were supported by our 8th grade lab assistants, who helped keep things moving and encouraged our younger scientists.
What We Learned:
Oobleck doesn’t behave like normal liquids or solids—it’s a non-Newtonian fluid.
This means its behavior depends on the amount of force applied.
Through hands-on investigation, students discovered how science connects to real life and with further inquiry, our 7th grade scientists are moving toward how we can use science, to help solve community issues; whether through engineering, materials science, or just having fun!
What It Was Like:
Messy? Yes. Scary…"Kinda" Fun? Absolutely! Educational? 100%!
Students left class with new knowledge, new memories, and maybe a few cornstarch marks on their Nikes and Crocs!
A special thank you to our 8th grade lab assistants for being role models and helpers in the lab. Your leadership made this experiment a success
National Food Service Workers Day!
September 25th was National Food Service Workers Day! This team of amazing ladies, arrive EARLY everyday, prepare and serve a healthy breakfast and then do the same for lunch. They serve with care and a smile. We thank you, for preparing healthy meals for our STEM Scholars!
News from our Science Department
Science Department:
Our middle school scientists are busy exploring exciting topics this month!
6th Grade students are diving into the properties of matter, discovering how the world around us is built from the tiniest particles.
7th Grade students are bringing creativity into chemistry with their Periodic Table Superhero Project, transforming elements into superheroes with unique powers and backstories.
8th Grade students are engineering cars and boats as part of a hands-on design challenge connected to our school-wide book read, Refugee. Through this project, they’ll blend science, problem-solving, and empathy as they think about the journeys of characters in the story.
Science is in full swing across all grade levels—full of curiosity, creativity, and innovation!
The Dream Center
Picture Day - October 3rd
inter-state.com/order
Use order code: 0221KKT
7th Grade Updates
The seventh grade team has begun to study our school-wide book read, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, the true story of William Kamkwamba, and how he helped his village by building a windmill for electricity and easier access to water. Students have analyzed information about Malawi, the African country that is the setting of our book, explored other continents to compare that to other civilizations, investigated the science of matter, and evaluated integers and the impact negative integers can have on values. At the end of October, our STEM scholars will have the opportunity to hike at Hocking Hills on October 21 or 22 depending on their homeroom teachers. Field trip permission slips will be made available the week of Monday, September 29! Please note that all physical copies of EMAs must be returned to the school in order for your scholar to participate in this exciting field trip.
6th Grade Updates
Our 6th graders have been busy exploring new ideas and building skills across the board! In math, students are wrapping up their statistics projects, learning how to collect, analyze, and display data, including measures of center and variation. Next, they’ll jump into the exciting world of Ratios & Rates. In social studies, our creative “Imagi-Nation” Map projects are nearly complete, and soon students will begin exploring timelines to understand how events unfold across history. Over in computer science, students are diving into HTML coding, discovering the language that powers the internet and experimenting with creating their own web pages. Meanwhile, in ELA, students are preparing to read The House That Lou Built and will start learning about different types of essays, getting ready to strengthen their writing skills. It’s been a full and exciting week of learning, and we can’t wait to see all the projects and work students will share next!
News from our Electives Team!
Band/Orchestra - All 6th grade band and orchestra students have performed their one month anniversary concert on September 30th and they’re excited to keep moving forward! Look for updates about upcoming events from your student’s teacher.
7th Grade band students are getting ready for their performance in November and 8th grade band students are excited for their October 10th football game where they join the HS marching band! Also, in November, all 8th and selective 7th grade band students will get to watch TBDBITL perform!!!
All 7th grade and 8th grade orchestra students are getting ready for our very first performances of the school year on Thursday, November 13th. After School rehearsals are Tuesday, October 7th, 21st, and the 28th! 7th grade is 6:00 - 7:00 PM and 8th grade is 7:00 - 8:00 PM at Livingston High School.
Computer Design - In Computer Science we are starting our HTML coding lesson. The students are learning the computer language of the internet.
Geographical Cultivation and Sustainability - In geographical sustainability, our class has adopted a cow to better understand the connections between agriculture and the environment. In October, students will explore agricultural practices and examine the impacts of human activity on the carbon footprint. Additionally, we will begin planting hardy winter vegetable seeds and herbs for indoor cultivation, providing hands-on experience with sustainable food production.
Physical Education - We are moving and shaking in the gym. We are exploring invasion games and working on our throwing skills. We just finished playing treasure chest , capture the flag , hideout, pinball and battleship. Play is work and work is play.
Video Game Design - In Video Game Design, we are working with the program Scratch to begin our introduction to coding. Students are brainstorming how movement is important in games and working hard in Scratch to make their characters move through coding. In the coming weeks, we are creating projects that relate to story, environment and scene design to bring their games to life!