After 20 years of teaching at Brookfield Central, I am saying goodbye. Although I spent the majority of that time in the physics classroom alongside my learners. That changed for my last 18 weeks. I ended up in a place similar to where I started, teaching chemistry and biology. So, rather than dealing with juniors and seniors at the end of their high school careers, I was in classrooms with freshmen and sophomores still trying to find their place. At the same time, I was learning and teaching a set curriculum I hadn't taught in over a decade. So, we were learning. But, of course, I already knew the content. The point of this post is to take a step back, reflect, and share the gratitude from the last students I had in my 20 years at Brookfield Central High School, as expressed through the cards and notes they made for me on my last day with them. I don't take many "yay me" moments. But after 20 years, I'll soak this one in.
It's almost like once you're made aware of how broad STEM fields are, one starts seeing them everywhere. Today, we went to see the new film Joy by David O. Russell which tells the story of inventor, business mogul, and STEM girl Joy Mangano. Joy's ideas come from the world around her. Her innovations solve authentic problems she faces. At a young age, she saw that her dog would tie itself up and choke itself. This was a problem of importance to her and she looked for a solution. So, her first great invention was a dog collar that had reflective tape for visibility and an anti-chocking release. Sadly, she didn't have the resources to have it patented and others eventually sold a similar collar idea to be manufactured by the Hartz Mountain. The invention that brought her success was the Miracle Mop. A truly innovative device I remember from my youth. The idea was born from a need that Joy had. Her creativity ma...