WILMINGTON — Eileen Koenig, a middle school science teacher at Ursuline Academy, spent two weeks over the summer representing the school as part of the 2023 Teacher Innovator Institute at the National Air and Space Museum. Every summer, this program brings together 30 teachers from across the United States who have gone through a rigorous application process to collaborate, learn and grow as STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and math) teamers, according to Ursuline.
Koenig, who is know to her students at “Eileen the Science Queen,” is now a Smithsonian Institute Teacher Ambassador. She will be sharing her new skills and resources with her students, the school said.
During the summer program, teachers explored “authentic engagement practices” in STEAM education. These included project-based, inquiry-centered learning; teaching with museums and museum objects; arts integration in STEAM; data literacy; student-centered assessment strategies; coding and computational thinking; cross-curricular project planning; technology integration; and creating cultures of making thinking visible.
