About Mrs. Cartwright
“While educational technology does make learning visible, it is the teacher that makes learning meaningful.” - Lindsay Portnay
I see my role as a STEM Specialist as being a catalyst for student creativity, problem-solving and wonder. I teach to inspire a love of curiosity and to build an environment of perseverance while promoting ethical and innovative problem-solving. Helping students develop a growth mindset around engineering, the design process and using technology to enhance their learning is what I feel passionate about.
I believe that as a STEM teacher in my community it is my job to strive to educate the whole student. In my classroom, I look out for the social and emotional well being of my students as well as their physical and academic needs. When children enter the STEM Lab, they learn to imagine, curate and create while working to build an attitude of perseverance.
To develop a culture of perseverance and creativity, I work to offer my students lessons that inspire them to find their own solutions to engineering problems. I think that by offering a variety of choices in how they respond to the work we are doing gives them ownership of their
-
BS Elementary Education - UW River Falls
-
MEd Elementary Education - UMN Twin Cities
-
K-12 Technology Integration Certificate - UMN Twin Cities
learning. I can do that by allowing them to choose the technology tool they will use. I believe that my students need to be given the opportunities that challenge their thinking and inspire them to create.
In my role as STEM Specialist, I believe it’s really important to help students understand that technology is a tool. It isn’t about giving them screen time in a computer lab. It’s about helping them understand that we use technology to create, communicate and learn. I like to offer choices in how my students use technology to share and communicate. My main goal is to teach them a variety of tools that they can use and then allow them to pick the one that helps them explain their thinking and learning. One of the best ways I know to give them choice is to teach them how to use different coding platforms as a means to create and share their learning.
The single most important thing I think I can do for my students is to make learning accessible. Providing equal access to technology tools and creative lessons is an important goal for me in the STEM Lab. Having access along with a culture of choice and creativity builds engagement and perseverance in my students.
