Robots
and programming weren’t the only activities that kept the summer buzzing with
activity. Thirty students from Beth Shields, Pierce and Turkey Creek middle
schools embarked on a four day, fun adventure making real-life connections with
the world of renewable energy during FLATE’s energy camp. 2014 is the fourth
year, FLATE has been hosting the energy camp at Hillsborough Community
College’s South Shore Campus, and is the first year for students from Turkey Creek
to attend the camp.
Participating
students are currently enrolled in Hillsborough County’s AVID (Advancement Via
Individual
Determination) Excel program, many who are first generation,
college-bound students. “For our student body, this is one of the best programs
to help them in building their language skills” said Susan Alamillo who teaches
Spanish for the AVID Excel Program at Turkey Creek Middle School. “They loved
this experience, especially the hands-on activities which makes them willing to
work on their language skills and boosts their confidence building
commonalities with other students” said Alamillo.
For
many, the four day camp was an exploratory, yet educational experience as they
learned about renewable and alternative energy sources. “It was fun and I
learned about different things that I did not know about before” said Irasema
Fraoyer, a 7th grader at Pierce Middle School. Curriculum for the
camp focused primarily on non-renewable resources, as “that is what is being
heavily used and depleted all around us” said Kayla Donlevy who has been
teaching the energy camp since the program started in 2011. Donlevy says “the
number one goal of the camp is to get them excited about science, take risks
when doing experiments and think critically.”
Using
that as a basis, campers constructed water wheels and did a tidal wave
experiment. They also created
solar cookers, worked in solar power-based
experiments to power a movie theatre in a make-believe town. They also got a
look at windmill generators and hydrogen fuel cars. “I learned how you can save
energy through conservation and how conserving energy can also help you save money”
said Jacquelyn an 8th grader at Beth Shields Middle School.
The camp transported students beyond the
parameters of everyday classroom learning. “It’s like a ‘eureka’ moment where
they are able to solve challenges and problems” said Dawn Simon who has been
leading the AVID Excel program at Pierce Middle School since it first started
offering the program. Simon says the camp enhances kids’ understanding/curiosity
about science. “We have a lot of girls who are interested in science and
mathematics which in turn has stirred interest of other girls in the school to
those subjects.”
To witness real-life applications of
what they learned through the challenges, campers visited TECO Energy
plant in
Ruskin, FL, where Timothy Conway, senior consulting engineer showed students
and teachers turbines, generators and transformers used in industrial settings
to create and/or conserve energy. “Before when I was in science class I thought
energy was just turning the switch on or, off, but now I know there is much
more technology involved” that goes behind the scenes, said Paulino Ramirez, a
7th grader from Turkey Creek Middle School. Through it all, teachers at all three schools
hope the camp will help develop scientific, critical thinking skills, but more
importantly “students will learn how to deconstruct a task and use analytical
skills to derive a solution.”
Impact from the energy camp has been
tremendously positive. “We tracked the very first group of students who did
this camp during the academic year and they did phenomenally” said Dawn Simon,
teacher at Pierce Middle School. According to Simon, the program has gotten
students thinking, seriously, about college and what program they’d like to
pursue in college. Simon noted students’ grades significantly improved to
mostly A’s and B’s, and she noticed a greater commitment to succeed
academically and to secure leadership opportunities in school.
Indeed post camp survey conducted by
FLATE reflected:
100% of the participants said they learned new things about energy and that overall the
camp was a good experience
83% said that they
believe the camp made them think about a career in clean energy
72% said that
they believe the camp would help them make a future career choice
56% said that they might consider a career in energy now
94% said that the instructor allowed everyone to participate
“I appreciate FLATE for giving these
kids the opportunity as every year they look forward to attending the
energy
camp” said Simon. “They love it and spread the word among their friends. It’s a
program that is needed, is making a difference, and I expect it to grow in the
coming academic year.” Susan Alamillo and Sevigny Ball, teachers at Turkey
Creek Middle School say the program not only benefits AVID Excel students, but
they can implement some of the learning strategies with other students as well.
“I hope the Governor will see the benefits of the program and will continue to
support the program.”
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