Our "STEAM" (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, & Mathematics)

STEAM is the integration of these disciplines by way of providing opportunities for students to learn through real world challenges, problems, and projects while infusing in 21st century skills as well.

Our middle school offers a unique experience for ALL of our students to have exposure to STEAM. Teachers offer STEAM activities all students sign up for, where they participate in their chosen activity. STEAM days will take place on Wednesdays and students are in their selected activity for six Wednesdays in a row. Our first STEAM rotation will begin October 11th, 2023. Sign ups for these activities will be done through Flex and communicated via Schoology and the website prior to sign-ups, as first-come-first-serve basis. 

STEAM Activity & Rotation #1

Signups will be held in school October 3rd using Flex.

Click the link below to watch a brief video on how to sign up!

How to Sign up for STEAM

8th Grade Activites

What’s So Cool About Manufacturing? - Statewide video//advertising contest promoting a local manufacturing business and manufacturing careers in general.

Magnetic Cars - Students will build and race their own magnetic cars. They will research a current Formula One team team and design their car to match it. They will time their car in race trials. Finally, they will race their car on a track against other teams' cars. 

Won in a Million - Do you love Shark Tank? Have you always wanted to start your own business? Or become a millionaire? See if you have what it takes in this STEAM activity where you'll create your own business and present it to an official panel of judges.  A prize will be awarded to the winning team. 

Egg Drop Challenge - Explore the world of physics by competing to build the best egg drop design with your group. You will compete against other groups to see which design is the best! The only catch is...your design has to survive a drop from the middle school's roof!

Paper Roller Coasters - Constructing a gravitationally functional and sturdy marble track…then a paper roller coaster.

Mystery Bag Challenge - For those that are brave enough to accept the challenge, you will be presented with a bag full of goodies, and a challenge to construct the best of the best! There will be three different challenges with mystery supplies and a different item to engineer each time. Can you think on your feet and win the Mystery Bag Challenge?

Mission to the Moon: Colony Competition  - Students will work in teams to design a habitat on the Moon that can keep a crew alive and happy! Learn about the challenges of living in space, research and design a colony, and build a 3D model using recycled materials. Then, upload a video and presentation for a chance to win prizes, get feedback from real STEM professionals, and compete with students around the world!  video link: https://youtu.be/FZjnhcOGP3I 

Tower of Pasta - Have you ever wanted to visit The Leaning Tower of Pisa? This is the spot for you! In this STEAM you will be building a tower of  Pasta using different pasta noodles and marshmallows. You will be faced with different challenges and will be judged each week based on the challenge.

History Explained - Students in this STEAM will choose a historical event, person, or product which they believe needs to be better known by the general public. Upon choosing a topic, they will research their selection, create a presentation style of their choice with relevant information, and present the final project to their classmates.

STEAM Olympics - Students in the STEAM Olympics will compete in a series of STEAM challenges designed to challenge there thinking and designing skills.  The team with the most points will win GOLD.

sTEAM WORK - A series of challenges that require students to work together as a team. Each challenge has limitations on materials and expectations which make collaboration essential. 

STEAM Archery - Learn about the science taking place while shooting archery.  Create your own compound bow to create artwork and target shoot.

Build It - Fly It - Float It - A series of competitive activities in which students will design and build planes, towers & bridges, and boats.

The Domino Effect - Who is ready to compete in the Domino Olympics? You will be given dominoes, additional materials, and a challenge to construct the best model to achieve the domino effect and earn points for your region.  Are you ready to accept the Domino Effect Challenge?

World's strongest structure. Can you hold it?! - Are you intelligent enough to design the world's next strongest structure? Humans have been designing and building structures required to support weight for thousands of years. From Roman aqueducts and the Colosseum, to the Eiffel Tower, and superstructures thousands of stories tall in Asia. Can you apply what they've learned to build the strongest structures in the Middle School?

3,2,1, BLAST OFF:  Bottle Rockets - Get ready to ignite your creativity and scientific curiosity with an exhilarating STEAM adventure: Design, Build, and Launch Your Own Bottle Rockets! 🚀  Embark on a journey that combines Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics in a hands-on, explosive way.

NAMS Building Beautification Project- This is designed for those with artistic and musical talents who have a serious interest and passion for promoting the arts throughout our building. Our goal is to bring art and music into focus by means of creating temporary murals and designs throughout our building that embrace the arts.

7th Grade Activites

Travel Agency: Dream Vacation - Do you love to travel with your family? Students can plan their dream destination vacation from the perspective of a travel agent. Dream vacation allows you to choose your ultimate vacation destination for you and your family. You will have an opportunity to pick out your favorite vacation spot and plan it out with a pre- determined budget.  

The Super Bowl Fan-Made Commercial Challenge - The Super Bowl Fan-Made Commercial Challenge: Do you enjoy watching Super Bowl commercials? Have you ever wanted to create your own advertisement that could be seen by millions? Then this is the challenge for you! You will learn about persuasive advertising techniques and then use those techniques and your own creativity to create a commercial for one of your favorite products! 

Cupcake Wars - Students will work in teams while using their culinary skills to create a cupcake from mystery ingredients while competing with others for the top cupcake. 

Coding Game Challenge  - Create and design your own game!  Learn how to solve problems in coding to control your game elements.  Share your game with classmates to play.

Creation Stations -In this STEAM course, students will experience the design process by creating products and packaging that fit the needs of specific "clients." After designing, students will share finished projects with peers to gain feedback and improve the product. Projects include making slime, keychains, and greeting cards.

Design the House of Your Dreams - In “Design the House of Your Dreams,” students will spin the “Budget Wheel of Fortune” to determine their allotment for building their home. Students will create a blueprint of their dream house based on their budget and make adjustments to their home design as needed to stay within their budget.  Students will then partake in a gallery walk of these glorious home designs as they will be displayed in the hallway.

Stop Motion Animation -  Students will use a variety of objects to plan, create, and take photos.  The photos will then be used to create an animation.

Food Truck Wars -  Do you love food trucks? Did you ever consider designing your own food truck? If so, let's make this a competition. What food truck will you design that will make your fellow students here at NAMS vote for your food truck as being the best? You will be researching, creating, designing, and developing a food truck and menu, as well as learn about being an entrepreneur.     

Sudsy Soap - Step into the enchanting world of soap making in this interactive "Sudsy Soap" activity. Join us for a unique experience that combines creativity and relaxation where you will be creating your very own luxurious handmade soap.

Brains & Brawn - Design an Outdoor Fitness Trail -  Do you have the right mix of brains and brawn?  Find out by joining this STEAM activity!  Challenge yourself to design an outdoor fitness trail that will push you to your max efforts of both fitness and intellectual ability.  Students will design stations that incorporate athleticism and physical tasks along with brain teasers and challenges.  Students will work with a team to not only create but also complete the fitness trail in record time all while encouraging their teammates to make it to the finish line! 

Dream Cabin -  Who loves hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, mountain biking, or just the outdoors in general? Who wants to purchase their own recreational property when they are older so they can partake in any of these activities at their leisure? Who is into construction, engineering, and building things? With this steam we will research properties across the United States, select a property that fits our leisure activities that we would like to purchase, and design our very own cabin to build on our dream recreational property. This will give you an understanding of the expenses, as well as the designs for purchasing properties and building in the future. *Please note: The focus will be on hunting/fishing properties, but all future recreational property owners are welcome:)

Blue Eagle Championship Series -  The Blue Eagle Championship Series is a 6-day sports study that breaks down a professional organization from the owner to marketing to creating team logos, to drafting players to evaluating  player performance and beyond.  During this STEAM activity, students will be creating a new franchise from the ground up.  Each time we meet, students will explore different aspects of the team from a business perspective as well as from a performance standpoint.  At the conclusion of our STEAM, students will be comparing franchises and reflecting on improvements they can make to their own.  

Miniature Theatre Set Design - This activity is for anyone interested in analyzing musical theatre scripts and working on miniature set designs for theatre! Students may work individually or in small groups to come up with a set design for the musical Matilda!

Fly Fishing - Do you enjoy fishing and have you always wanted to learn how to fly fish but never knew where to start? This is the STEAM activity for you as you will learn how to cast with a fly rod, create your own fishing ties that will help you catch fish, learn about the entomology of insects, wildlife conservation, and lots of other fun activities!

Renewable Energy Creations - In this STEAM, we will explore the world of renewable energy, examine the advancements in renewable technology, as well as create and design two renewable energy creations. Compete to see which group has the best design and generates the most energy!

The D.A.B. Makers - Do you like engineering? In this STEAM you will design different structures to be put through various tests checking for safety, stability, and strength.

NAMS Building Beautification Project- This is designed for those with artistic and musical talents who have a serious interest and passion for promoting the arts throughout our building. Our goal is to bring art and music into focus by means of creating temporary murals and designs throughout our building that embrace the arts.