We are excited to announce our latest forum series, Girls walkSTEM®! In this series of forum posts, we will feature a number of posts highlighting Girls and Women in STEM, and the ways we are working towards a more equitable society here at talkSTEM.
Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas: A Tour of Camp Whispering Cedars!
Girl Scouts are known for their commitment to empowering Young Women by providing unique and opportunities to engage with STEM. That’s why we were so excited for the opportunity to partner with them to create a walkSTEM® tour at Camp Whispering Cedars for Scouts, Troop Leaders, and other visitors to this amazing space.
This was made possible thanks to generous support from the High Tech High Heels non-profit organization. We wholeheartedly agree with them in our belief that the world will be a better place when there is a diverse, qualified workforce with more opportunities for women in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). We join them in committing ourselves to work intensively to close the gender gap in STEM professions.
If you are able to, we hope you will visit Girl Scouts of Northeast Texas Camp Whispering Cedars in person but regardless, everyone can visit virtually by checking out our video content of the walkSTEM tour, now LIVE on our YouTube channel- walkSTEM® Academy!
In this playlist, discover how you can use slope, the ratio of height to horizontal distance, to better understand how stairs are designed based on international building codes to keep us safe. At Camp Whispering Cedars, Girl Scouts climb a winding series of steps to reach the top of an observation deck, where they can stargaze or have meetings. We also ask viewers to consider how they might estimate exactly how many people could have a fun stargazing sleepover party on the deck!
Scouts love visiting Camp Whispering Cedars for its amazing ropes course- great for bonding and pushing new boundaries! The course features a zip line, ropes bridge, climbing wall, and a towering three-person swing. The swing made us wonder- exactly how high is someone pulled to start the swing? In order to figure this out, we use shadows and similar triangles. Watch the video to learn more!
Ever look into a pool and think, “Wow- that’s a lot of water!” This thought prompted us to consider exactly how many showers one could take using water in the pool at Camp Whispering Cedars. We started by measuring the surface area and perimeter of the pool before determining volume, using the formula, Volume=(Area)(Height). You’ll be amazed at what we discovered!
Thinking about water also took us to the Crystal Charity Ball Exploration Center at Camp Whispering Cedars, where Girl Scouts can marvel at plants growing on the building! You might notice from the video that the roof is sloped. Gravity pulls rainwater toward the front of the building, where the water falls into the gutters. From the gutters, the water is moved plastic rain barrels, at the corners of the building. What an amazing example of sustainability and conservation efforts at work! We consider exactly how many toilet flushes you could save by using the water from one of the rain barrels.
Next, we visited the Texas Lodge. With its large common area and many rooms, the Texas Lodge makes an ideal place to hold large meetings. Sometimes, it makes more sense to gather everyone outside. We ask visitors and viewers to imagine the sun rising and the morning dew surrounding them and their friends, and consider- where exactly would you want to sit outside to prevent the sun from shining directly on your face? How can we use our understanding of the sun and the building’s orientation to determine this?
At the same site, we studied the pavers around the flag. If you look closely, you may wonder- do these pavers actually make a circle? How can we determine this?
Finally, we visited the Stuabach Sports Field to determine if other teams could use the field for a regulation sports game. We use non-standard units of measurement, like arm span, to estimate the length of the field. It truly is amazing how many activities Girl Scouts can participate in at Camp Whispering Cedars!
We hope this playlist will inspire you to subscribe to walkSTEM® Academy so you can stay in the loop as we post new videos. All designed to have you, educators, your children, students, and mentees cultivate your STEM mindsets. It’s a great way to take in the world around you and participate in STEM education.
Check back regularly for more updates and posts in our Girls walkSTEM® Series!
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Dr. Koshi Dhingra has dedicated her career to STEM education and is passionate about having every child live up to their potential. Seeing a lack of girls and other underrepresented youth in STEM programs, she founded talkSTEM in 2015 to address the imbalance. She has a doctorate in science education from Teachers College, Columbia University, has years of experience teaching in graduate and undergraduate programs, and has held leadership roles in universities. She advises and collaborates with a broad range of educational institutions globally. Dr. Dhingra began her career teaching science in middle and high school in New York. She lives in Dallas, Texas with her husband, three children, and two dogs.
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