Marshmallow Challenge Kicks Off Valley View’s Discovery Academy

• Photo: Brooks seventh-grader Jonteya Parker, Addams eighth-grader Bertin Garcia and Bolingbrook High School freshman Mariana Diaz focus on their “marshmallow challenge” on the opening day of VVSD’s Discovery Academy Monday.

Valley View School District 365U launched its Discovery Academy for middle and high school students Monday with a team-building activity, an introduction to videogame creation and some computer app work.

The team building activity involved 20 sticks of spaghetti, a yard of tape, a yard of string and a marshmallow. Each team of four students was asked to design and build a free-standing structure with the marshmallow on top.

Over the remaining days, students will learn how to create an app for a mobile device, develop a video game, build a website, explore careers and colleges, and discover the joy and excitement of science.

The two-week academy is designed to foster skills, confidence, and interest in scientific and technological fields. The 60 Discovery Scholars will engage in hands-on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) activities while developing technical skills necessary to be successful in their post-secondary lives.

Discovery Scholars are working in small groups that are facilitated by Joliet Junior College and Illinois State University students who are studying to become science or math teachers. Instruction is led by ISU Assistant
Professor Dr. Rebekka Darner Gougis, Romeoville High School teacher Sandrine Clairardin and others from ISU and Joliet Junior College.

Discovery Academy is being offered through a partnership with JJC and ISU thanks to a grant Dr. Gougis secured from the National Science Foundation.

Submitted by Valley View School District 365U