Schools

PCIS Students Enjoy Science Thanks to Patriots

PCIS students construct helmets, build football teams, and build a stadium at Patriots Place.

Plymouth Community Intermediate School enjoys STEM experience on trip to Patriots Hall.

The Hall at Patriot Place hosted Plymouth Community Intermediate School for a STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) related field trip at its museum venue located in Foxborough, Mass., adjacent to Gillette Stadium.

The 117 students visited the Hall and participated in one of The Hall’s National and Massachusetts standard-based modules that show students the relationship between STEM topics and sports or the related equipment.

The Hall offers several STEM-related modules tailored to different grade levels, including a helmet design challenge in which students work in groups and use raw materials to construct a “helmet” which is then tested for its effectiveness. Students use the engineering design process to build, test and determine whether a re-design is necessary.

Another module involves groups of students being assigned a front office position for an NFL expansion franchise. Each group is given a player selection budget (salary cap), player salary data and statistical data, which they must analyze to select five offensive skill position players. The students also must determine what elements would be included in a new stadium, design a logo for their expansion team and present their work to the group.

The Hall offers other STEM modules as well as activities in journalism, marketing and physical education. It also offers periodic supplemental educational opportunities for students and also for teachers seeking professional development. Examples of supplemental activities include the Power to Hear Engineering Design Challenge, the annual Science of Sport Science Fair, a Black History Month essay contest and discussion, Mad Science demonstrations, the Train Like an Astronaut exercise/nutrition program, NFL Play 60 programs and teacher training on both physical education/nutrition and STEM.

The Hall has hosted more than 60,000 visitors on school field trips since opening its doors in September of 2008.


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