The School of Geosciences expands its K-12 outreach with the SupportSTEM grant

Fossil horse (Pic: James St. John)

Dr. Jennifer Hargrave is the recipient of the SupportSTEM grant program sponsored by the Joe W. and Dorothy Dorsett Brown Foundation.

The program supports STEM curriculum implementation plans for K-12 schools. Dr. Hargrave’s project will create STEM fossil kits for area high schools. The kits will contain replicas of fossil horse teeth and companion assignments to examine evolutionary changes in horse teeth. It will allow students to "do" science instead of just "learning" about science.

This STEM project acknowledges the state’s core shift to interdisciplinary science standards and will allow teachers to integrate real-world phenomena and scientific concepts into their classrooms.

Fossils bridge the biology and geology disciplines, and this program will offer experiential activities for the students to better grasp the relationships between the life and physical sciences by examining how horse teeth evolved over time in response to climate and landscape changes.

Additionally, the program will provide teachers with training on how to best implement the activities into their classrooms while meeting the state's standards.

Interested high school faculty should contact Dr. Hargrave at 337-482-0678 or jhargrave@louisiana.edu to participate in the program.