New series of educational training videos focused on STEM curriculum to benefit educators and students

Sacramento, CA (Nov 22, 2011) – “Strengthening STEM education is vital to preparing our students to compete in the 21st century economy and we need to recruit and train math and science teachers to support our nation’s students.” President Barack Obama.

Use a paper clip to measure angles!

Resource Area for Teaching (RAFT) of Greater Sacramento in partnership with KVIE Public Television recently launched six training videos to provide teachers with greater access to training in core STEM topics. “KVIE’s mission extends far beyond the airwaves into direct service to children and educators. We are proud to partner with RAFT to create this new resource for educators,” says KVIE VP of Education & Outreach, Arcelia Chávez.

These STEM training videos complete the three-pronged STEM toolkit along with RAFT’s proven and established resources (Idea Sheets and Activity Kits). This toolkit will equip educators with easy-to-use resources for bringing hands-on STEM activities, inside and outside the classroom. They also aid educators in engaging students, and increasing retention and academic achievement.

The six videos give a detailed visual explanation of the Idea Sheets using the materials provided in the Activity Kits. The videos further explain the various terms used in an activity and are an interactive, educative tool. Explains Mark Anderson, Executive Director of Greater Sacramento, “Adding videos to our Activity kits and Idea Sheets help explain them better, and the impact is far greater. Now even parents and grandparents who don’t have a science or math background can refer to these videos detailing the activities and teach their kids about Newton’s Laws or optical illusions!”

The topics in the six videos range from Trigonometry (Dangle Angle Activity Kit), plant growth – Botany (The Germinator Activity Kit), optical illusions (Black and White Make Color Activity Kit), to Newton’s Laws ( Puff Rocket Activity Kit), vibrations in music (Glove-a-Phone Activity Kit), and light spectrum (The Colors of Light Activity Kit). For more info on the videos, visit www.raftsac.org. Some of these Activity Kits can be purchased online at www.raft.net.

RAFT (Resource Area for Teaching), a non-profit has been promoting hands-on interactive learning for 18 years. RAFT of Greater Sacramento is an affiliate of the original RAFT, based in San Jose. In its three years of service, RAFT of Greater Sacramento has grown to serve more than 2,500 local educators, who in turn work with over 70,000 children grades pre-K to 12. With over 1,000 volunteers RAFT of Greater Sacramento distributes 20,000 cu. ft. of low cost materials a year to educators in schools, after school programs, and other children’s groups across the region.

The STEM Alive project was funded by a grant from the Morgan Family Foundation.

RAFT chosen as one of three non-profits in the Bay Area for broad impact on the education of children

San Jose, Calif. (November 15, 2011) – Microsoft is expanding its reach in Silicon Valley by opening retail stores and partnering with local non-profit organizations including Resource Area for Teaching (RAFT) to strengthen educational impact in the society.

The technology giant, one of RAFT’s long standing partners, is committed to building community support for non-profits, by working to improve learning for children. In celebration of the store launch, the Seattle based tech company has offered RAFT a substantial grant in technology resources, valued at up to $350,000.

Jeremy Champlin, RAFT IT Specialist says, “Microsoft’s support of RAFT will allow us to offer new workshops for educators focused on the latest versions of Microsoft’s productivity software. Not just here in Silicon Valley but also in Sacramento and Denver, Colorado where our two affiliates are located. Our staff will be more efficient allowing more time to be focused on serving the needs of our educators.”

RAFT, recognized as a leader in the educational arena for its ‘hands-on’ methods of learning, has benefited by this collaboration over the years. With partners like Microsoft, RAFT is able to work efficiently toward its mission – ‘to help educators transform a child’s learning experience through ‘hands-on‘ education to one that inspires the joy and discovery of learning’.