SCIENTIFIC ADVENTURES
This organization has already been registered
Someone in your organization has already registered and setup an account. would you like to join their team?Profile owner : a***n@s******************s.o*g
Mission Statement
Scientific Adventures for Girls (SAFG), a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization, provides after school and summer STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) programs to young children with a special focus on girls, especially girls of color. SAFG's goals are to increase positive attitudes toward STEM in K-5th grade female students and to increase hands-on learning opportunities for girls everywhere (including in economically marginalized areas) to explore STEM concepts and encourage lifelong learning of STEM subjects.
About This Cause
Mission SAFG's mission is to remove systemic barriers to all girls’ participation in STEM starting in kindergarten, engage them through hands-on learning, increase their positive attitudes toward STEM, and equip them with 21st century skills. Vision SAFG envisions a gender equitable society, where all girls know their full potential and know they are capable of great things. They will be equipped with 21st century skills. Our Story After learning that children in elementary schools in California receive on average only 30 minutes to an hour a week of science instruction in school; discovering that many after school science programs were either too expensive or not facilitated effectively; learning how girls can start losing interest in science as early as elementary school; and finally, how greatly underrepresented females are in the country’s fastest growing, lucrative industries science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), Tiffany Sprague and Courtenay Carr Heuer, mothers of young daughters, decided to do something about it. Through a grassroots effort, Tiffany and Courtenay, experienced professionals in nonprofit management, started Scientific Adventures for Girls (SAFG) to address these problems head on. They deemed out of school time as a critical opportunity to spark, grow and sustain interest in these fields. They especially think it is important to start engaging children as early as kindergarten in STEM to start making it natural, acceptable and normal for girls to love and excel in STEM. Our Philosophy Scientific Adventures for Girls aims to keep kids engaged in STEM subjects through fun programs that instill inventiveness and intuition while connecting those invaluable qualities to the science and math lessons learned in the classroom. Our classes prioritize learning practical skills and applying them creatively. Our programs encourage child-led/peer-led learning, collaboration and doing for fun and self-fulfillment. Our programs will stress the value of doing or making and not the end-product. Our hope is these skills will keep kids engaged and confident while sustaining that joy of discovery in the long-term. Our Approach SAFG projects are carefully designed to successfully implement our goals. All projects are hands-on, providing opportunities to learn how to use tools. Our kids will work in small groups and be given chances to practice collaborating and communicating effectively with each other to achieve positive outcomes. SAFG teachers will focus the attention on the doing and the creating while teaching the kids, especially the girls, that it is okay - and expected - to make mistakes. We also strive to engage parents in the process as we understand that they play a role in encouraging future scientists. According to research at George Mason University, "We were surprised to learn that the family is more important than we ever thought in terms of igniting the passion of future scientists," says Lance Liotta, a study author and co-director of George Mason's Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine. What We Teach In addition to staying aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards and following its practices of teaching girls to ask questions, investigate, analyse data, design solutions, evaluate and communicate findings, SAFG also teaches girls: -Question, think and talk about science -Collaboration -It's OK to Make Mistakes -Confidence with equipment and tools -Assertiveness and risk taking -Patience, persistence and determination Role Models Research shows that simply exposing young girls to women in careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) can eliminate stereotypes and encourage girls to think that they can also have a career in a STEM field. Girls generally perform just as well as boys in science and math classes but opt out of careers in STEM because they simply cannot "see" themselves in this capacity. SAFG classes include time for the girls to meet with all types of female scientists (marine biologists, zoologists, chemists, mechanical engineers, etc.). They will have the chance to see how their own day-to-day interests in animals, making bubbles or computer games can be applied in a future career. The idea is if we increase exposure to female role models in STEM, or normalize this notion, girls can start to picture themselves in a career in STEM.