NASHVILLE, Tenn (CLARKSVILLENOW) – The Tennessee Department of Education and the Tennessee STEM Innovation Network (TSIN) has released a new summer learning opportunity, the Summer STE(A)M Resource Hub, which will provide weekly challenges to guide students and families in exploring different careers and pathways through June and July.

The Summer STE(A)M Resource Hub builds on the COVID-19 STE(A)M Resource Hub, which engaged students with challenges around design activities, critical thinking, and career exploration throughout the months of April and May.

“After hearing such positive feedback from the spring STEAM Resource Hub, we are so excited to continue offering weekly challenges for our students and families to keep building STEM skills all summer,” said Commissioner Penny Schwinn. “These new challenges will provide students the chance to explore new careers and future opportunities they may not otherwise know are available to them. Thank you to TSIN and our network of teachers who worked to put these challenges together to help keep students inspired and exploring this summer.”

The Summer STE(A)M Resource Hub includes the three weekly challenges that can be done in the home. These challenges have been created in partnership with TSIN educators from across the state and are ideal for students grades 3-12, but younger students can also participate with parental assistance.

“The Network sees this summer as an opportunity where extraordinary learning can happen at a time when continued engagement for students in light of lost learning time due to COVID-19 is significant.  STEM professionals are needed within nearly every field, many with strong job growth prospects in Tennessee – including healthcare, agriculture, the arts, and information technology,” said Brandi Stroecker, Director of TSIN.  “Investing in K-12 STEAM career exploration will not only benefit students by exposing them to bright future careers, but also build the state’s economy with homegrown talent that has experience reasoning logically, collaboratively solving complex problems, and ideating novel solutions.”

The summer challenges will enable students to learn about careers clusters while building their STE(A)M skills in their own homes by continuing to focus students on #MakerMondayTN, #WonderWednesdayTN, and #FutureFridayTN. Like the spring challenges, families and educators can continue to share their work on social media using these hashtags.

Each activity comes with step-by-step directions for the activity, additional resources to continue exploring the topic, and an online portal for parents to ask questions and receive additional support.

The following schedule highlights the various careers that students will explore while completing the weekly challenges:

  • June 8- June12: Healthcare- Exploring Prosthetics and Assistive Technology
  • June 15- June 19: Transportation- Exploring the Future of Mobility
  • June 22- June 26: Agriculture- Exploring Sustainable Farming and Food Production
  • June 29-July 3: Business- Exploring Entrepreneurship and Product Design
  • July 6- July 10: Digital Arts- Exploring Creative Expression through Digital Artistry
  • July 13- July 17: Information Technology- Exploring Technical and Creative Skills through Coding

“During the period of school closures due to COVID-19, the STE(A)M Resource Hub provided fun, challenging, and authentic learning experiences for both the students that I teach and my own children at home,” said Katie McKee, Science Teacher and STEM Lead at Midway Middle School. “I know many educators are eager for opportunities to keep their students engage over the summer, and I am excited that TSIN and TDOE will continue to put out aligned and relevant activities through the Summer STE(A)M Resource Hub.”

The Summer STE(A)M Resource Hub is one more summer learning opportunity the department is providing to families and educators during the COVID-19 reality—including free access for all families to early education platform ReadyRosie and daily educational content through the PBS Summer Learning Series. Families and educators can access the Summer STE(A)M Resource Hub here: https://www.tsin.org/summer-2020-steam-resource-hub.

For additional information on the department’s COVID-19 related resources, click here. For Tennessee Department of Education media inquiries, contact Edu.MediaInquiries@tn.gov.