Launching STEAMeD, a professional development program for teachers

New outreach program enables teachers to bring food and cooking experiments into their classrooms

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Harvard University’s long-standing efforts to equip a new generation of teachers with cutting-edge teaching methods takes an exciting turn with the creation of a new venture, SteamED.

SteamED is a collaboration between the Science and Cooking program, developed by the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), Young Chefs, and the Harvard Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC).

It adapts exercises from the popular Science and Cooking course and Young Chefs to fit Massachusetts state science standards, and is a rare opportunity for highly motivated teachers to bring these exercises into their classrooms. Teachers, community program instructors, and after school program leaders are invited to register (see link below).

Participants will earn 18 PDP points in STEM for participation in the workshops and will receive exclusive access to curriculum and resources, including 27 lesson plans for use in a variety of classroom settings and covering a range of concepts, from experimental design to physical science. Teachers also receive equipment necessary to implement the four lesson plans covered in the two Saturday course sessions.

Dates and times:

Saturday, Nov. 11, 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 18, 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Lessons:

“Chili Infusions: Exploring solubility is so hot right now”

“Pickles: Not your basic vegetable”

“Tortillas: The corny processes of polymer crosslinking and starch gelatinization”

“I Lava Science: Exploring heat diffusion through molten chocolate cake”

Requirements: