Mrs. Brubaker
When you were in High School, did your school have a football team? Probably! Did your school have a basketball team? Most likely! Did your high school have a Satellite team? Probably NOT! North Idaho STEM Charter Academy high school students launched a nanosatellite, known as a Cubesat, in December of 2018. As a part of their educational mission, NASA selected the Project Da Vinci team as the only high school to launch in in this round, among other prestigious institutions, such as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and MIT.
Welcome to Project time at North Idaho STEM Charter Academy! We are learning many skills, including teamwork, time management, communication, and technology.
My name is Mrs. Brubaker, and I wear several different "hats" here at the North Idaho STEM Charter Academy, including Project Coordinator and Schoolwide Enrichment Specialist. My background includes a Masters' Degree in Gifted Education from the University of Connecticut and over 20 years of experience in the field of gifted education. I have had the privilege of coaching FIRST Lego League teams for over 18 years, one team which was selected as one of only six teams in the world to attend the World Festival in Copenhagen, Denmark. Our 2014 STEM Charter First Lego League team was selected to attend the Canadian International Invitational tournament in Toronto, Canada. I am currently serving on a national Lego Education Advisory Panel. In 2012, I was selected as the Idaho State G.I.A.N.T.S. award winner, which stands for the Governor's Industry Award for Notable Teaching in Science. My son graduated from Rice University in Houston, Texas, with a major in Mechanical Engineering with an emphasis on Aeronautical Engineering. His senior design project team created a dual containment drill that will be on the next Mars Rover. In my spare time, I love to work with my 5 month old colt.
WEBSITES GALORE!
http://www.inventidaho.com INVENT IDAHO
https://inhub.thehenryford.org/icw/competitions/us-nationals-landing
NATIONAL INVENTION CONVENTION
https://inhub.thehenryford.org/curriculum-resources/invention-convention-curriculum
www.firstinspires.org FIRST LEGO League, Junior FIRST Lego
Invent Idaho is an excellent opportunity to encourage a life skill in our students by encouraging them to become problem solvers. Will they all become future inventors? Probably not. However, they will have gained the valuable self-image of themselves as a capable problem solver. We hope to encourage the generation of numerous ideas, as well as to inspire our students creative talents and inventive spirits! Parents, here's an idea: rather than solving your child's next "crisis" for them, ask your child to generate possible solutions to their problem. As they work through the process, students often find better solutions to their problems than we, as parents, might have thought of for them. Encourage your child to let their creativity and inventiveness shine!
