Berwick Innovation Center

BERWICK INNOVATION CENTER

The Makerspace in the Middle School is equipped with two Makerbot 3D printers which allow our students the opportunity to apply mathematical reasoning, artistic sensibility, and engineering design to solve real problems in tangible ways.

WELCOME

BIC? Darcy coffta Innovation Center Director

T

he Berwick Innovation Center (BIC) is an evolving program that reaches far beyond the physical Berwick Academy campus. BIC allows students the opportunity to follow their own intrinsic path to discovery.

Through BIC, students design, direct, and drive their learning.

Acknowledging that those roads are as different as every student, BIC provides the framework for students to pursue their passion, learn more deeply, and connect to the subject matter in new and creative ways. Drawing from our mission, BIC encourages creativity, engagement, and entrepreneurship, while promoting the ideals of “virtue and useful knowledge.�

ELEMENTS of BIC

B

erwick’s curriculum balances tradition with innovation.

Simply, some ideas, texts, or thinkers are timeless while others are timely. The Curriculum Council is constantly reviewing what we teach and how we teach it, so our students can participate in classes that are interdisciplinary, engage ideas at the forefront of innovation, and hone 21st century skills.

IPs INNOVATION PURSUITS

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he IP program is a curricular vehicle that allows students to fully engage an intellectual passion. IPs are endeavors that are driven, designed, and directed by individual inquiry. Berwick believes an IP is a valuable learning experience and can play an integral role in the college process.

INNOVATION JR.

CURRICULUM

MAKERSPACE

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he Makerspace, located in the Middle School, strengthens a mindset and culture of creativity, collaboration, trust, resiliency, and problem-solving in our community. The Makerspace is an incubator for innovation where questions are valued above answers, students learn by doing, and the final product is determined and assessed by the individual.

T

he power of play and explorative fun! Innovation Jr. is an afterschool enrichment program available to students in grades 1-4. Following a club model, Innovation Jr. meets weekly from October through March and students collaborate and creatively problem-solve while working on projects led by a session-mentor.

FUTURE

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hat excites us most about BIC is its ability to be an ever-evolving program, continually expanding and changing with our students’ interests.

The possibilities for the program are endless and we look forward to what the future will bring for BIC.

FEATURED IPs ON

“Fusion for fun”

2015

“there is no better way to apply and deepen what you learn in the classroom than by solving real world problems. The Innovation Center inspired and supported me as I did that.”

AIDAN COO KS

What’s my IP?

I

built a nuclear fusor to explore the potential of fusion as a viable energy source.

What I learned

M

y IP confirmed my love of science. I intend to use my IP as part of my college portfolio and pursue an engineering degree. Most importantly, my BIC experience provided me with a broad knowledge base and skill set that I can build on throughout my life.

BEN T HU T2 01

5

“AN Exploration into authentic music recording”

“I am thankful that BIC gave me the opportunity to academically and constructively pursue my passion for music outside of a classroom setting.”

What’s my IP?

I

explored audio recording and music production using traditional studio techniques. I also assumed the role of producer by managing artistic collaborations and mixing tracks.

What I learned

M

y IP was the first time I was able to comprehensively explore music recording and sound design. This experience was monumental in my acceptance to a month-long summer program at the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music at NYU. It was an amazing experience and inspired me to pursue my interest in the music industry in college.

built a ROV (remotely operated underwater vehicle). I oversaw the design and production of the frame, propulsion system, water collector, and temperature sensor.

What I learned

M

y IP challenged me to move past simply asking for an answer and allowed me to think harder about possible solutions. Working on this IP has strengthened my creativity and critical thinking skills, and I am hoping to explore this field as a possible area of study and career.

“R&D FOR A ROV”

1 S E 20 8

I

CA

What’s my IP?

AB B

Y

“I have been opened to a world of new possibilities with BIC and that has furthered me as a student, an engineer, and a person.”

INNOVATION JR. “The Lower School’s Innovation Jr. Program fosters discovery, creativity, and fun; these enrichment sessions provide our youngest learners with the opportunity to explore and experiment with new concepts and skills.”

JENNIFER BREWER, Lower School Librarian

RECENT Innovation Jr. Sessions: • Celebrate a Hero Using iPads • Chinese Calligraphy • Digital Scrapbooking and Paper Journal Making • Eat the Rainbow: Fun with Food • Fiber Arts • Image Play: Fun with Digital Photography • Lego Robotics • Math Games • Printmaking Marathon • Soap Making • Yoga

MAKERSPACE

“I believe that students will invent, they will collaborate, and they will persevere when they are empowered to follow their interests. For me, the Makerspace is a judgement free zone where students are able to act on their own curiosity and experiment playfully; thus encouraging the pursuit and application of useful knowledge.�

MARC SMALL, Middle School Science

IDEA in THE MAKING

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group of Middle School students is hoping to create a Berwick version of the famous “Powers of Ten� documentary from 1977. By mounting a camera and GPS tracking device to a weather balloon, these students hope to capture aerial images from at least 30,000 feet.

They will then use a microscope camera to capture images of a cell at 400x magnification. These images will be used to create their own version of this famous documentary.

TIMELINE 2008-2009

Researched best practices, programmatic decisions, structure, and policy

2009-2010 5 IPs

1st

4th

YEAR

YEAR

Inaugural Innovation Celebration, May 2010

2010-2011 13 IPs

Presented to Trustees Mission and Culture Committee; Innovation Celebration, May 2011

2ND YEAR

2011-2012 20 IPs

Innovation Celebration, May 2012

3rd YEAR

6th

YEAR

2012-2013

2014-2015

Launched Makerspace, Fall 2014;

36 IPs

Reidy Interactive Lecture Series, Portsmouth, NH, September 2014;

Launched Innovation Jr. in the Lower School, Fall 2012; Innovation Jr. Celebration, March 2013;

Connected Librarian 2.0, September 2014;

ISANNE, Conference for Academic Program Leaders, Meredith, NH, October 2012;

Innovation Celebration, May 2015

NAIS, Boston, February, 2015;

Chosen as a “School That Shines� by WCSH Newschannel 6, January 2013; Follett Challenge Award, March 2013; State of Maine Legislature Commendation Award, May 2013;

2013-2014

Innovation Celebration, May 2013

40 IPs

Innovation Jr. Celebration, March 2014; Innovation Celebration, May 2014;

5th

YEAR

International Society for Technology in Education conference, Atlanta, July 2014; Dover Mini Maker Faire, NH, August, 2014

BERWICK INNOVATION CELEBRATION

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he annual Berwick Innovation Celebration takes place in the spring and is a time for the community to come together to celebrate and showcase our students’ creative and original Innovation Pursuits (IPs). The celebration begins with a keynote address from both a guest and student speaker. Recent guest keynote speakers have included Dr. Yet Ming Chiang of MIT and Dr. Saeed Arida of NuVu Studio.

The main purpose of the celebration is for our students to present their IPs to a group of panelists who come from the Berwick community, local schools, businesses, and organizations. Our panelists play a critical role in the evaluation process of all IPs by providing useful feedback that is shared with the student and mentor.

INNOVATION CELEBRATION KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

DR. YET-MI

HI NG C

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,M NG

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r. Yet-Ming Chiang is a Kyocera Professor of Ceramics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology whose research focuses on the design, synthesis, and characterization of advanced inorganic materials and related devices.

Dr. Chiang was a recipient of The Economist’s Innovation Award in 2012 for his research in battery technology.

WHERE OUR PAST PANELISTS HAVE COME FROM

GOOGLE

DR

. SA

ee d a

rida, nuvu stud

io

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r. Saeed Arida is the Founder and Chief Excitement Officer at NuVu Studio, a magnet innovation center for young minds in Cambridge, MA. At NuVu Studio, students learn in a hands-on environment with coaches who help students create projects and move through many, many iterations. Dr. Arida received his PhD in architecture from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

ELIZA CORPORATION

BOSTON SEED CAPITAL

NEWMARKET TECHNOLOGIES

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