The movies are beautiful examples of where the Arts intersect STEM. The movie industries have done a fantastic job illustrating the intersection between A and STEM. Besides making money, a career in the visual arts is beautiful—the artistic skills behind films demonstrate the beauty and power of having skills in the visual arts.
Although we all enjoy movies, do you know that many STEM principles are applied to bring a film alive on the screen? The arts and the artist must only not be choreographed beautifully and succinctly, but equally important are the STEM principles used to make the movie come alive. Take, for example, the physics in the cables holding Tom Holland in Spiderman or Zoe Zaldana in the Guardian of the Galaxy (vol. two), or the stunt man for Robert Downy, jr. in Ironman (three). I am particularly impressed with the use of the cable, crane, beams, buildings, and different towering structures gingerly cushioning the fall of the performing artists. Watching before and after special effects, you must admit that the imagination and creativity in the arts of performance would not be as infectious without STEM integration.
That's where we get the A from in STEAM. Pursuing a college degree and career in the STEAM fields is a beautiful thing and a source of empowerment for our BIPOC communities. Please encourage your kids and students to pursue college and careers in STEM and STEAM fields. Check out the tips below to engage to engage your students and kids, and the video, courtesy of the “The Thing” the thing - Search (bing.com).
Tips for teachers and parents:
Engineering principles and solutions are numerous in movies. For engagement, both parents are teachers could have their kids and students identify the engineering design processes in the film shown in class or watch at home aligned to STEM principles. You could discuss how they, as real or imaginary engineers, change or come up with a better design process to come up with a better solution or make a better decision than the ones in the film. You could provide students with rubrics and have students develop the solution to common problems by coming up with designs, testing designs, and iterating on their designs. Afterward, you could have a robust discussion with your kids or students. Also, check out 10 Great Movies for the STEM Classroom | edCircuit and tips for engagement activities. However, the key for success is using the NGSS Crosscutting Concepts to align Disciplinary Core Ideas (DCI) topics and principles to Science and Engineering Practices (SEP).
Spread the word and raise the roof!
Authored by Dr. Ayo Olufade, Ph.D.
Think College and Career in the STEAM Fields! You Have the Opportunity to Create the Future and The Privilege of Deciding What's in It! ~ Dr. Ayo Olufade, PhD
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