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District showcases K–5 design thinking, robotics and Storytime STEM; administrators plan vertical alignment
Summary
Quakertown staff described an elementary‑level computational thinking and Storytime STEM initiative that uses Bee‑Bots, Sphero, LEGO and squishy circuits in K–5 classrooms and told the committee they will finish vertical alignment next year and explore expansion into middle school.
Quakertown Community School District staff presented the elementary design thinking and Storytime STEM program to the education committee on March 10 and asked the board to approve additional storytime kits for classroom use.
Miss Clymer, a district staff member leading the K–5 design thinking initiative, shared classroom photos and described hands‑on lessons where kindergarten and first graders program Bee‑Bots, build race cars, construct circuits with conductive play‑doh, and animate artwork with Hummingbird robotics kits. She said activities are scaffolded by grade: kindergarten and first grade share projects, second grade has a separate set, and third through fifth rotate related projects designed to reuse equipment districtwide.
Staff described a rotation model that lets the district purchase fewer robot sets per building and rotate third–fifth grade use of the kits each year. Presenters said the program emphasizes collaborative problem solving, computational thinking and cross‑curricular connections (for example, using robot activities to reinforce geometry and measurement concepts).
District staff noted the program grew out of professional development and partnerships with Digital Promise and participation in the League of Innovative Schools. The district has been invited to present its K–5 model to superintendents nationally and staff said the approach — building a foundation from the elementary level and then moving upward — is drawing attention as an alternative to starting at the high‑school level.
Board members asked about middle‑school integration and expansion. Staff said the near‑term plan is to finish vertical alignment so each grade has a unique project next year and to fold projects into middle school courses strategically rather than immediately create a new standalone middle‑school design course. The district already uses Project Lead The Way and other tech‑education options at the middle level; staff said they will seek ways to align and expand rather than duplicate existing programming.
Administration requested board approval to purchase additional Storytime STEM kits (examples: Otter in Space, Dragon Land Adventures) to continue the elementary rotation. The committee discussed possible expansion to a stand‑alone elementary STEAM studio in the future, but emphasized the district’s present priority remains completing K–5 alignment and building teacher capacity.
No formal vote on purchases was recorded at the committee meeting; staff told the committee they would bring any procurement requests and final cost figures to a future board meeting for approval.
