New Hanover County Schools NCVPS Blended STEM Pilot

We are very excited that New Hanover County Schools will be participating in the Blended STEM pilot
program with North Carolina Virtual Public School (NCVPS). This is an amazing opportunity for our district, students, and teachers. Your child has been chosen to be a part of this pilot program in their Earth/Environmental Science and Integrated Math I classes this year. As part of these classes, your child will be participating in a course deeply integrated in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) content, project-based learning, in a blended learning environment. Lets look at what all that means! The Blended STEM Pilot utilizes a variety of effective teaching practices to create a unique learning experience for our students. 1. Blended Instruction- Blended instruction refers to a mixing of different learning environments by combining traditional face-to-face classroom methods with computer-mediated activities. Your student will have instruction and support from both a face-to-face teacher in the classroom as well as an online teacher. 2. Project based Learning (PBL)- PBL is the use of in-depth and rigorous classroom projects to facilitate learning and assess student. Students will have 4 projects that they will collaborate with other students to complete during the course of the semester. The projects the students will complete are based on the 14 Grand Challenges of Engineering. 3. STEM Lessons- Students will be integrating science, technology, engineering, and mathematics in their courses. 4. Mobile Resources- The students in the Blended STEM pilot will be using an iPad 3 to complete online lessons, conduct research, and communicate with their teacher and fellow students. The course will utilize various apps and websites to offer students a variety of online resources. 5. STEM Careers- Students in the pilot courses will learn about how what they are learning in the class are used in various STEM careers. Once again, we are excited to be participating with your child in this pilot that is one of the first of its kind in the country. If you have any questions or concerns during the semester please feel free to contact your childs face-to-face teacher and/or their online teacher. The teachers contact information will be available at the beginning of the school year.