STEAM Family Night at John Cooper School

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- John Cooper School hosted its 25th annual STEAM Family Night event on Thursday, March 10. Since its founding in 1988, Cooper has been an educational exemplar in The Woodlands and throughout the greater Houston area. The John Cooper School is an independent, non-sectarian, coeducational, college preparatory day school. The School's mission is to provide a challenging education in a caring environment to a diverse group of select students, enabling them to become critical and creative thinkers, effective communicators, responsible citizens and leaders, and lifelong learners. The term “STEAM” is an acronym that stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math. We asked Lower School Educational Technology Coordinator, Katherine Navarra to tell us a little more about the annual STEAM Family Night.

“We started hosting a Family Night in 1999 to bring parents into the classroom to share the amazing things students are learning. Over the years it’s evolved by adding more activities, experiences, and community participation. We have Middle and Upper School student volunteers who help host interactive exhibits and learning opportunities for the younger students. As educators, our job is to instill a love of learning and here at Cooper part of our mission is to spark curiosity inside and outside the classroom,” said Katherine Navarra, Lower School Educational Technology Coordinator.

Some of the activities at the STEAM event included:

DROID MANIA
This activity allowed parents and students to see lego robots, Vex, and Sphero. They were available to all for interaction and control. Mr. Gorman, the upper school computer science/robotics teacher, and Ms. Wetzel had these amazing robots on hand to observe, drive, and code.


MAKE YOUR OWN SNOW
Families joined the fun as they learned about the process of making their own artificial snow! They created a nice winter wonderland.


LEAPFROG
Guests used measurement and graphing skills to leap their way down a line. Students measured their jumps and put a tally mark on the wall graph to show their distance. They challenged each other to see who could leap the farthest.


PENDULUM PAINTING
Families experimented with the scientific principles of inertia and motion! They used gravity & paint to make geometric patterns in paint.


MARSHMALLOW SHAPES
Kids created their own 2-d and 3-d shapes using toothpicks and marshmallows.


BATH BOMBS
Families learned the chemical process that makes the magical fizz we all love.


BUBBLES, BUBBLES, EVERYWHERE
Guests dived into the joy of bubbles! They experimented with wand construction to see how to make the best and biggest bubbles


CODING AWBIE
Kids coded AWBIE to make it through the maze. They used logic skills and problem-solving to help AWBIE travel.


FLOAT YOUR BOAT
Students made boats out of everyday items.
(Straws, cups, plates, and tape)
Once built, boats were tested for style, functionality, and speed in a boat race.


KALEIDOSCOPES
Kids made kaleidoscopes and had fun exploring light, reflections, and symmetry.


IPAD FEVER
Families experienced the virtual world of geoboards. Students used the IPADS to create figures on a virtual geoboard.


CATAPULT PAINTING
Kids worked on some engineering skills while creating an art mural for the school. They used the materials to build their own catapult, and then launch to paint the mural.


JUEGOS DE NÚMEROS
Kids participated in games and activities that made learning Spanish fun.


PAPER AIRPLANE CHALLENGE
Students created paper airplanes and launched them to see which planes could fly the farthest.


STARBURST OF PROBABILITY
Kids joined in to open up probability through a favorite treat of starburst!


$100 WORD CHALLENGE
Guests tried their hand at creating words that value $100. They discovered the value of their name.


About John Cooper School

A recognized leader in independent school education for 31 years, The John Cooper School is proud to have grown with The Woodlands. Since its inaugural opening day in 1988, Cooper has nurtured a love of life, learning, and the world around us.

Our history includes being part of George Mitchell’s initial vision for The Woodlands. In the early years of developing a new planned community, Mr. Mitchell set aside 43 acres for a private school and sought the guidance of renowned independent school educator Mr. John Cooper to counsel him about establishing a college preparatory school in his “new hometown.”

That vision became a reality when The John Cooper School opened on September 6, 1988, and the school has grown in both size and distinction to become one of the premier independent schools in the Houston area.

Cooper opened with an enrollment of 175 students in Pre-K through Grade 7 in 1988 and a grade level was added in each subsequent year until the first class graduated in 1994.

Now well-established and respected as a leader in independent school education, Cooper began its 2019-20 academic year in August with 1,280 students, breaking a student enrollment record for the nineteenth consecutive year. An active JCS Alumni Association now boasts 1,896 alumni.

Facility growth on campus continues to enhance educational opportunities. Added to major facilities in 2016 was a 50,000-square foot, three-story Rock Center for Math and Science Center that houses classrooms and labs, a computer lab, a robotics classroom, an outdoor roof garden, and a 135-seat lecture hall. The newest facility, a 4,250-square foot freestanding Lower School Library, complements comprehensive athletic fields and training facilities, the Mitchell Lower School, Middle/Upper School, Student Center, a freestanding 5th Grade Center, and The Glenn Performing Arts Center.

Remaining true to Mr. Cooper’s whole child philosophy, learning is valued in and out of the classroom.
A Cooper education combines traditional educational practices with innovative new methods that teach students to think, question, analyze, create, communicate, lead, and take responsibility for their world.

Cooper faculty are caring, committed and collaborative and believe that education is a lifelong experience. They embrace the opportunity to provide a learning environment that enables students to become critical and creative thinkers, effective communicators, responsible citizens and leaders, and lifetime learners.

Members of Cooper’s diverse student body pursue a variety of interests. Students are recognized locally, regionally, and nationally in a range of fields, including academics, visual and performing arts, and athletics. Upper School athletes compete in the highly regarded and competitive Southwest Preparatory Conference with five to 10 percent committing to athletic careers in college.

Extensive visual and performing arts offerings prepare those interested in pursuing the fine arts and include such unique courses as 3-D visual arts and aerial arts dance.

Service to others also continues to be a cornerstone of a Cooper education. Students give back to the community through varied division-level outreach opportunities each year. Annual schoolwide efforts include the student-led Habitat Project, currently building the 21st home for a local family, and the annual Empty Bowls Project which has raised over $100,000 over the past 15 years for local hunger relief efforts.

The John Cooper School continues to pave the way for students to go “from curiosity to wisdom.”

Website: www.johncooper.org

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