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Back To School is right around the corner!
Back to School at RAFT will take place the following weekends: July 28 (Redwood City & Sunnyvale) August 4 (San Jose) New this year, a furniture blowout at our Warehouse and Volunteer Center on Saturday, July 28! We realize how popular our furniture is and wanted to make sure that we give our members the…
Read MoreEarth Day 2018 – End Plastic Pollution!
I just watched a fascinating PBS video on how much plastic is in the ocean. Counting down to this year’s Earth Day on April 22nd, the video got me thinking about how teachers can help students become responsible consumers as well as future caretakers of our earth! Take plastic waste, for instance. Do you realize…
Read MoreAs the End of School Approaches, What’s Keeping You Afloat?
Do you ever get that sinking feeling that you have so much yet to do with your class, but you are running out of time? Feel like you are about to hit an iceberg around the corner with the end of school activities approaching? Can you survive without a life jacket? Believe it or not,…
Read MoreCampbell STEAM Showcase 2018
The enthusiasm was infectious March 28th on the grounds of Monroe Middle School! Everywhere parents, students, and teachers from Campbell Union School District explored and celebrated student innovation and creativity in Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) at this year’s STEAM Showcase 2018! Hosted by Campbell Union School District, over 47 exhibits…
Read MoreWomen’s History Month: Women in Chemistry! Marie Skłodowska Curie, “Madame Curie”
Marie Skłodowska Curie, “Madame Curie,” was a Polish and naturalized-French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person, and only woman to win twice, the only person to win a Nobel Prize in two different sciences, and was part of the…
Read MoreCelebrating Women’s History Month: Women in Biology Meet Barbara McClintock
In honor of Women’s History Month, it is fitting to pay tribute to the woman who is considered one of the greatest biologists of the twentieth century! Barbara McClintock (1902–1992) was an American scientist and cytogeneticist who focused on color mosaicism in maize, or corn, during the 1940s. She was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or…
Read MoreTurn Daylight Savings Time into a Teachable Moment
Don’t lose sleep over this, but Daylight Savings Time (DST) is here! On March 11th it’s time to set your clocks forward and say goodbye to one hour of sleep! There’s no time to waste! Make this year’s Daylight Savings Time an engaging and meaningful experience for you and your students. RAFT has plenty of…
Read MoreAre you ready for Pi?
Time to get ready fer Pi Day at RAFT me hearties! Set yer compasses an’ sails fer FREE Pi Day activities on March 8th between 3:30 to 5:30 on th’ main poop deck (aye-aye in th’ “Kit Area”) at SJ RAFT! RAFT’s very own notorious wench, Jeanne Lazzarini (RAFT Math Master Educator), prepared a boatload…
Read MoreOrchard Students Turn RAFT Materials into Safer Wind Turbines for Birds
Ten third graders and twelve fourth graders in Kathleen Gould’s class at Orchard School District know to turn to RAFT when making creative design solutions! They’ve been on a 17-day Design Challenge journey studying how wind turbines kill hundreds of thousands of birds each year in North America—making turbines the most menacing form of green…
Read MoreCelebrating Black History Month with RAFT’s Makerspace in a Box
In honor of Black History Month, each week RAFT would like to pay tribute to African-American inventors, scientists, and engineers. The list of African Americans who have invented a multitude of items in the course of their lives is endless! These inventions range from practical everyday devices to applications in diverse fields, including physics, biology,…
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