Schools Tackle Steampunk-Inspired Dilemmas in Foxcroft School’s 13th Annual STEM Challenge
Foxcroft and The Hill School earn second place in their respective high school and middle school divisions during the annual science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) competition.
MIDDLEBURG, VA — Holton-Arms School from Bethesda, MD, and Village School from Arlington, VA, each claimed the top prize in their respective high school and middle school divisions during Foxcroft’s 13th annual STEM Challenge. The competition, designed for middle and high school students, saw girls from 15 schools in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., spend the day using their STEM knowledge, deductive reasoning skills, and common sense to solve challenges revolving around this year’s “Powered by STEAM” theme.
Holton-Arms School’s Textile Titans team, comprised of Audrey C., Brooke C., Rui F., and Leighton R., received a solar-powered robot kit and unique medals designed and fabricated by Foxcroft STEM students using the laser cutter in The Innovation Lab as their first-place prize in the high school division. Second place in the high school division went to Foxcroft’s Spindle Spirits (Taylor C. ’26, Ava D. ’26, and Valentina D. ’26). Bullis School’s Mill Mavericks (Skylar A., Victoria D., Sadie L., and Siana N.) from Potomac, MD, took third.
In the middle school division, the Village School’s Factory Falcons (Eloise L., Amy P., and Hannah S.) took home the middle school trophy. Second place went to the Fearless Finders (Addison S., Kendall L., Margot SG., and Sophie A.) from The Hill School in Middleburg, VA. The Engline Eagles (Lucy R., Kyra V., Chloe S., and Nicole V.) from Grymes Memorial School in Orange, VA, took home third.
Energy and enthusiasm filled Foxcroft’s Athletic/Student Center and Schoolhouse science labs as the teams worked through five unique challenges.
In the chemistry lab at the “Blast from the Past” challenge, competitors created rockets. Teams altered the amounts of baking soda or vinegar to produce pressure to determine the flight duration. In “A Pox Upon Your House” in the Briggs biology lab, participants were asked to step into the shoes of a physician in the year 1655. They had to use the four humors and the urine wheel to diagnose four patient cases, decide on a course of treatment based on descriptions of herbs available at the time and the process of bloodletting, and determine which herbs to place in the beak of their own plague doctor mask, for self-protection.
Back in the Athletic/Student Center at the “Temporal Twists” event, students had to break down a complex code of twisted symbols to help activate a time machine to get the “STEAM Rangers” (played by Foxcroft’s faculty in the video introducing this year’s theme) back to the present. In the “Eggcellent Ex-capade” challenge, competitors made a container to house an egg that would survive a second-floor drop while landing closest to an “X” target without breaking.
New event sponsors Hord Coplan Macht and Coakley Williams brought several of their female engineers to not only administer one of the challenges but also share their experiences and answer questions from the young competitors during a career panel. The team’s engineering challenge, “Under Pressure,” involved students building a structure strong enough to support a brick using only popsicle sticks and tape. If it passed the first test, it then underwent “seismic shakes” to see if it survived that, too.
Between challenges, students used Kindle Fires supplied by Foxcroft to answer trivia questions and earn raffle tickets for prizes ranging from gift cards to tech devices. Participants in the middle school competition learned a little more about Foxcroft’s focus on girls in STEM during a session with Head of School Cathy McGehee.
A leader in STEM education for girls, last year, Foxcroft announced plans for the construction of the Mars STEAM Wing to enhance its program to encourage girls to pursue studies in STEAM fields. The school offers an innovative curriculum that addresses challenges facing tomorrow’s workforce and provides relevant and stimulating learning experiences. A signature program at the school, the STEM initiative emphasizes inquiry-based labs, using technology with confidence and ease, and hands-on problem-solving that extends well beyond the classroom. The annual STEM Challenge showcases Foxcroft’s innovative focus on the STEM fields.
Photos courtesy of Foxcroft School.
Posted on: March 5, 2024