Science Soars at Saltonstall

Science is getting a boost at Saltonstall School, thanks to the efforts of teachers.

On Sept. 7, the School Committee unanimously accepted a $12,950 grant from the Gelfand Family Charitable Fund to be used to fund KnowAtom, a supplemental science curriculum at Saltonstall School.

Teachers Sue Brown, Susan Spang, Pam Shorr and Rich Stafford spearheaded efforts to secure funding for KnowAtom.

Following a district-wide presentation on KnowAtom last year and the determination that it was out of the district's price range, Brown said her friend, a retired teacher involved with the KnowAtom, told her there might be a way to find funds available to fund the curriculum.

According to Shorr, students currently have one hour of science lab per week with Teacher Teegan Von Burn.

"We also teach science in the classroom, but we don't have all the equipment; we don't have all the materials [for labs]," Shorr explained.

Stafford said students at Saltonstall have had the opportunity to experiment with a number of scientific units, which have included bridge-building to study structure and the use of parachutes to complement lessons on gravity. The school uses kits from the Museum of Science's Engineering is Elementary program, which is "a big part" of the state's Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM) intiative dedicated to encouraging a focus on scientific studies in the classroom, Stafford said.

Though Saltonstall students are already scientifically-oriented, KnowAtom will grant them the opportunity to get more hands-on time with science. According to Shorr, the kids are better able to grasp scientific concepts when they can "see and touch."

Additionally, KnowAtom provides interdisciplinary literature so that students' science studies dovetail with the rest of their studies.

"There is a literature piece and and expository writing piece," said Spang. In a section dedicated to the study of light and rainbows, students will also read Native American folktales that relate to the scientific portion of the unit.

The School Committee commended teachers involved in securing the grant and encouraged others in the district to be on the lookout for grants that supplement classroom education.

According to the Saltonstall team, every little bit helps when it comes to providing students with the very best in classroom education.

"We're excited to get this," Brown said of the Gelfand Family Charitable Fund grant. "It's very generous."