What Is The STEM Education Ambassador Program?
Here at Thimble, we’re excited to roll out a special project of ours that we’ve been working on just for educators!
Our new STEM Education Ambassador Program aims to inspire students with next-generation STEM skills by making engineering and computer science education more accessible, inspiring and fun. Educators will be able to teach electronics to their students (while working one on one with Thimble employees!)
Thimble’s hands-on kits make teaching seamlessly with ready-to-go lesson plans, reusable components, and educational content that’s meant for beginners. We felt the natural next step would be to provide a hands-on way for teachers to get involved with our products and create lesson plans that align with daily classroom activities and after-school programs.
Educators from across Western New York applied to join our program, which will run out of our office right here in Buffalo! Over the course of three sessions held from August-October, educators will gain a strong understanding of how to navigate the STEM ecosystem, teach their students to be STEM career ready, and develop technical skills in engineering and computer science.
So What’s In It For Our Teachers?
Of course, there will be many perks for educators taking part in our program. To name a few, complementary products, the ability to beta test new products, training workshops at Thimble HQ, and the potential for educators to earn credits through their district to keep their training up-to-date.
Benefits will also include the chance to receive and create curriculum + lesson plans, and the chance to network with other educators in the field, as well as publish articles in newspapers, professional journals, and blogs (maybe even the Thimble blog!)
For educators in the US, we satisfy common core standards, next generation science standards, as well as skills and topics we have found valuable for a STEM career. We’re not just a team of hardware engineers and product designers; our team is active in the learning community through our partnerships with schools, Boys & Girls Clubs, museums, and makerspaces. We also received a New York state contract through BOCES which allows us to work with over 700 school districts.
We understand that everyone learns a little bit differently. That’s why we’ve created a flexible product line that caters to many learning styles. Thimble provides step by step tutorials, videos, and the ability to learn by doing to create our kits. Examples of kits include a weather station, WiFi robot, intruder alarm, cooking timer, and more!
We believe that this new initiative aligns perfectly with our values and mission. We are looking forward to working with our team of educators to continue developing the program.
Are you an educator who missed our first application for the program? Interested in joining us and our fantastic team of educators?
Want To Get Involved? Here Are Your Next Steps:
We believe that this new initiative aligns perfectly with our values and mission, and we are looking forward to working with our team of educators to continue to develop it!
Are you an educator who missed our first application for the program? Interested in joining us and our fantastic team of educators?
Follow this link to apply!