District 54 Rocketry Clubs a blast

Hundreds of District 54 students wrapped up weeks of design work at the annual Rocketry Club Rocket Launch on June 8 and 9 at Olympic Park in Schaumburg.

This school year, District 54 has expanded science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) opportunities for students. Few STEM topics generate as much excitement as rockets. The scientific, technological, engineering and mathematical foundations of rocketry provide exciting opportunities for authentic hands-on experimentation.

In September, 500 students began the exploration of aerospace engineering through the NASA Rockets curriculum as part of Rocketry Clubs at 27 schools. The activities emphasized hands-on science, prediction, data collection and interpretation, teamwork, and problem solving, and provided students with background information about the history of rockets and basic rocket science.

The students constructed their own rockets and had the opportunity to apply their rocketry expertise at the Rocket Launch this week.