Lower School Teachers Share Collaboration Successes at CSLA Conference

St. Margaret’s Lower School Library teacher Melissa Fisher and Lower School science teacher David Beshk were speakers at the California School Library Association 2019 Conference in the City of Industry, in a presentation titled “Incorporating Science Curriculum Into Library Lessons.”

Mrs. Fisher and Mr. Beshk have closely collaborated on many units, including an extensive grade 3 interdisciplinary STEAM unit that explores and solves the challenge of feeding astronauts in space—in particular for longer missions like a trip to Mars.

The grade 3 students are brainstorming the complex issues related to nutrition, taste, texture and weight, packaging and menu fatigue to “think like a food scientist” and determine which foods would be smart to pack for a round-trip flight to Mars. They have conducted research and learned about the solar system and food in space in science and the Library, including the history of human understanding of the solar system, as well as present-day research on how astronauts have been affected by extensive time in space.

Mrs. Fisher then had students design a utensil for astronauts to use in space, and transferred their design to be 3D-printed using TinkerCad in the Lower School STEAM Center. Mr. Beshk will have students designing and creating prototype food packaging that incorporates colors, pictures and innovative designs to make the meals more inviting while simultaneously supporting the physiological well-being of astronauts on a multi-year trip to Mars.

 
Mrs. Fisher and Mr. Beshk have also collaborated on units related to rocks, insects, animal life cycles, animal adaptations, and weather.