November 25, 2014
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SECRET ROLES OF SOIL – Secondary Schools Poster Competition

‘SECRET ROLES OF SOIL’
Win £500* for your class!
Science-Art competition for S1, S2 and S3 pupils
Organised by Aberdeen Biodiversity Centre, University of Aberdeen

To celebrate the International Year of Soils 2015 Aberdeen Biodiversity Centre is inviting S1 to S3 classes to take part in a competition investigating the varied and important roles of soils in our environment.
The winning class entry will win £500* towards the cost of a field trip, or approved resources that will support classroom activities to help the pupils increase their understanding of this valuable resource. The Secret Role of Soils has been generously supported by the Mains of Loirston Trust.
The class will also hold the prestigious Aberdeen Biodiversity Centre Secondary School Shield at their school during 2015.
In small groups, pupils should create an A3 poster depicting at least one concept portrayed in the icons of our promotional flyer and show how the soil helps to achieve a healthy environment.

Copies of the flyer and guidelines can be downloaded from our website www.abdn.ac.uk/biodiversity
This competition aims to support cross-curricular links, not only in science and art but also with any pupils involved in eco-school activities etc. Learners will take part in this competition by representing their ideas in a poster (no larger than A3 size) which should be received by Aberdeen Biodiversity Centre no later than Friday 8th May 2015.
All entries should have the names of the pupils, their class, year and school clearly printed on the reverse of their poster and be addressed to: Aberdeen Biodiversity Centre, University of Aberdeen, Zoology Building, Tillydrone Avenue, Aberdeen, AB24 2TZ. If you require further information please contact Aberdeen Biodiversity Centre: Tel: 01224 274545 or email: biodiversity@abdn.ac.uk

November 20, 2014
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STEM e-bulletin

Sciences
• Explore the latest Twig and Tigtag updates and sign up for Reachout CPD
• Find out about the science RM Unify Tiles on Glow 365
• YESC 2015 Junior Saltire Awards – Design and build a wave energy convertor
• Our Environment Competition on Scotland’s Environment web
• Find a central contact for STEM at Scottish universities
• New – Aberdeen City N4/ N5 resources for Chemistry and Physics

Technologies
• Free computing clubs for girls – primary and secondary
• Higher computing science events in November and December
• Born to Build – a careers resource for 14 to 19 yr olds
• Game Masters – the Exhibition, 5 December until 20 April 2015

Numeracy and mathematics
• Professional learning resources for numeracy
• Assessing progress and achievement in numeracy & mathematics
• Annotated exemplars for numeracy and mathematics
• RM Unify tile to make numeracy lessons fun: 10 Monkeys Maths World

Did you know…….?
During October, wind turbines in Scotland provided the equivalent of 126% of the energy required for Scottish homes.

Video inspiration
Find out why solar scientists need our help

We’ve got loads more news to share! See our STEM blog for the latest updates.

November 19, 2014
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Updated N5 and Higher Resources guides for Biology, Chemistry, Human Biology and Physics

The highly popular Resource guides for N5 and Higher have been updated with the latest SQA information and new links.

Two versions are available on the Sciences Glow 365 site http://bit.ly/glowsciences

Got some good links to share? Then post using the edit online feature on the editable resource guide.

Or use the pdf version for Education Scotland’s latest update.

These guides can also be found on the NQ Course Materials portal at the following links

Higher Biology
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nqcoursematerials/subjects/b/nqresource_tcm4829573.asp

Higher Human Biology
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nqcoursematerials/subjects/h/nqresource_tcm4844711.asp

N5 Biology
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nqcoursematerials/subjects/b/nqresource_tcm4838382.asp

Higher Chemistry
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nqcoursematerials/subjects/c/nqresource_tcm4844708.asp

N5 Chemistry
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nqcoursematerials/subjects/c/nqresource_tcm4838371.asp

Higher Physics
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nqcoursematerials/subjects/p/nqresource_tcm4843582.asp

N5 Physics
http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/nqcoursematerials/subjects/p/nqresource_tcm4838378.asp

November 17, 2014
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Early Years and Primary Science

The sciences Glow 365 site continues to develop and is being populated with many resources to support the sciences curriculum.

A tile entitled Primary/Early Years Science is now available on the site through which you can access our newsfeed, resources and blog page. All are easily accessible and provide up to date relevant information for practitioners in each sector.

Our latest blogs include details about grants from the British Science Association, how to access the new FREE primary ReachOut CPD programme and you can download the recent Supporting Primary and Early Years science Glow Meet.

To access the site http://bit.ly/glowsciences

The site is work in progress and further developments will be introduced as the Glow 365 platform takes shape

You can also access information and discuss the latest developments with colleagues through the Learning Together site www.bit.ly/learningtogetheredscot

#primary science

November 13, 2014
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Disruptive Innovation Festival

Hopefully you will have had the chance to see some of the outstanding sessions available as part of the online Disruptive Innovation Festival which has been running from 20th October to 14th November 2014. For those of you that have not managed to catch any of the sessions or missed some due to other commitments we are delighted to announce that many of the events have been recorded and will be available to view for another 30 days.

Visit the DIF website archive at DIF Archive to access the sessions that are still available until 14th December 2014.

Here is a small sample of some of the events that will be available to view until 14th December:
• 3D Printed materials and the Circular Economy
• Internet of Things
• Circular Economy Classroom Activity
• Biomimicry Classroom
• William McDonough (Cradle to cradle): Redesigning the Future
• Jeremy Rifkin: The Next Industrial Revolution
• Mark Miodownik: Made to be Made Again
• TU Delft: Pioneers of Design -Longer Lasting Products
• Sir Ken Robinson: Inspiring a Generation

Please share this information with colleagues who might be interested: STEM subjects, Geography, Business Education, Economics, Modern Studies and anyone interested in inter-disciplinary learning.

If you are inspired to introduce your pupils to the circular economy but would welcome some help in getting started please do not hesitate to contact me by email at jen.barrett@ellenmacarthurfoundation.org

November 11, 2014
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Royal College of Surgeons Edinburgh, Christmas Lecture 2014- The Definitive Human: Using Computer Graphics to Improve our Understanding of Human Anatomy

Digital Design Studio (DDS) is a specialist department of the world famous Glasgow School of Art.

Launched in 1997, DDS focuses upon true-realistic digital 3D visualisation in the areas of Medicine and Architectural History. It produces images which are faithful reproductions of the real object in digital 3D, images with which the public can truly engage and interact.

Join Professor Paul Anderson on Monday 1st December 1.50pm for the Glow Meet where he will examine how computer graphics can be used to improve our understanding of human anatomy for both training, educational and research purposes.

For further information about DDS http://bit.ly/1v03hBA

November 6, 2014
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Roayl Academy of Engineering:Deployable Structures kit

The Royal Academy of Engineering provides leadership and promotes excellence across all fields of engineering.

The Academy has a diverse range of partners and a long history of delivering STEM enhancement and enrichment programmes in schools to inspire the next generation of engineers and technicians.

Teachers can access resources created by teachers and engineers that aim to engage school students with science, technology and mathematics by placing these subjects in engineering contexts

The most recent resource is Deployable Structures.

These resources allow the learning of maths within the engineering context of deployable structures. There are a range of Third level maths topics covered including density, nets, transformations, scale, conversions, circles, area, compound shapes problem solving. A source of challenging material for Second Level learners.

The resources consist of a teacher’s guide to explain how the activities could be used, six activities and two case studies about engineers involved in deployable structures. Please read the safety advice in each activity.

Further information about the Royal Academy of Engineering resources can be found at

http://bit.ly/1vOIFqH

November 5, 2014
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Glow TV’s Watch Again Service for Higher Physics

On Monday 3rd November, at Ardrossan Academy, Professor Martin Hendry, Head of the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Glasgow, gave a talk on the astronomy and cosmology content in the CfE Higher Physics course.

The talk can be seen on GlowTV’s watch again service by following this link.

https://meet.glowscotland.org.uk/p9u46a3qkp6/

November 4, 2014
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STEM @ university contacts

As part of the Scottish Universities Deans of Science and Engineering education groups work to support Scottish Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) education in schools many Universities in Scotland have recently set up a single e-mail address for teachers who have STEM related enquiries. It is not expected that the person receiving the initial e-mail at the University will always give a direct response but it would be expected that they ensure a response is made from a related department within the University or to direct you to the appropriate contact within the University.
University of Aberdeen – STEM@abdn.ac.uk
University of Abertay – STEM@abertay.ac.uk
University of Dundee – STEM@dundee.ac.uk
Glasgow Caledonian University – STEM@gcu.ac.uk
University of the Highlands and Islands – STEM@uhi.ac.uk
University of Glasgow – STEM@glasgow.ac.uk
University of Edinburgh – STEM@ed.ac.uk

For a brief overview of STEM study options within each University please refer to the following brief document. (Please always refer pupils to University prospectus and websites as this document may not always be up to date).
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Wg-EaXb-X30TUkT5y1Ok7bm-ll-38zXgF4NsLJ1jgeg/edit?usp=sharing
Please feel free to share this information with other colleagues in STEM departments.’