The Indian Hill School District congratulates Indian Hill Primary School (IHPS) teacher Amy Campa for leading second-grade students to win the Southwest Regional Ohio STEM Learning Network (OSLN) Design Challenge. Additionally, Campa’s students earned two of three Student Choice awards for grades K-5, taking the top prize for Most Innovative and Best Presentation.
Students in grades K-12 can participate in the science, technology, engineering, and math competition by identifying a problem in the community or globally and working through the design process to find solutions to identified problems. Campa's class identified environmental security within our community as a problem they would want to work together to solve. We wanted to learn more about their winning ways.
Indian Hill School District (IHSD): Congratulations on this outstanding achievement! For the competition, what was your driving question?
Amy Campa (AC): The driving question for this project was "How can we help the animals in our community thrive and survive during the change of seasons?"
IHSD: What did the students discover and create?
AC: The project started by investigating the animals we see in both our school and home communities. We researched about the wild animals in our community and brainstormed ways that we could help them. As part of our conversations, we decided that we wanted to focus on birds. The class read, researched, and met with experts like scientists from NASA and the University of Arizona. We also used resources from the Ohio Department of Wildlife to learn about what birds need to survive: food, water, shelter, and places to rest. We built and designed bird houses and bird baths. We also designed seating for students to come out and enjoy the space. Parents and community members donated bird feeders and bird seed.
Throughout the project we worked to solve problems like how to keep the squirrels out of the seeds and the best way to store the seeds. With the help of Mr. Mat Walker from WP Land Company who recruited Ohio Site Worx to help, we were able to cut a hole in a concrete tube in our area to allow us to watch the birds without disturbing them.
In the coming weeks we will finish our birdwatching station by painting a mural on the concrete tube in the style of Charley Harper's bird art.
IHSD: How long did they work on it?
AC: We started the project in early October and have been working to gradually improve and complete the project since then.
IHSD: Is there anything else you would like to add?
AC: We want to thank Miss Eubanks and Mrs. Graves's first grade classes for their help with the project. They also designed bird baths and seating for the area, as well as researched important animals in Ohio.
Photo caption: The Indian Hill Primary School students in Amy Campa's class were all smiles after earning certification as a "Schoolyard Habitat" from the National Wildlife Federation.