STEM career exploration for girls

Objectives: 

To introduce students to exciting STEM career options, highlight the importance of women in STEM and inspire them to explore STEM fields by connecting classroom learning with real-world applications.

Grade level: Middle to high school 

Duration:90'

Materials: Computer/Projector ; printed STEM career cards or a whiteboard; pens and paper; Internet access virtual guest speakers (optional); posters or videos of women in STEM careers

Activity outline

• Introduction (10')​

1.Warm-up discussion: Ask students "What do you think STEM is", "WhatSTEM careers can you think off?' Write down responses on the board. Encourage students to brainstorm a range of careers in STEM.

2.Present facts:: Share statistics of women in STEM, showing how women are unrepresented in many STEM fields but also highlighting inspiring role models (Ada Lovelace, Mae Jemison, Katherine Johnson). Emphasize why diversity in STEM matters.

• STEP 1 STEM Careers spotlight (15')

Divide yhe class into small groups: each group is given a set of STEM careers cards, each card detailing a specific STEM career ( mechanical engineer, computer scientist, biomedical engineer, data analyst)

Task: Each group read their career card, then presents the key details to the rest of the class, including:

-what the career is about

-what skills are needed

-why it is important

-example women in this career

• STEP 2 Meet a STEM Professional (optional) (10-15")

Guest speaker/virtual meeting : Arrange for a female professional working in STEM field to join the class virtually or in person. She can share her personal experiences, challenges and successes in her career.

Q/A Students can ask questions about her journey, the carrer path and the skills they need to succeed.

• STEP 3 Hands-on challenge (40')

1. STEM design challenge: engage the students in a hands-on activity related to one of the careers they explored. Examples include:

       -Engineering: build a bridge using posicles sticks and test its strenght.

. 

       -Technology: Code a simple program game using block coding (Scratch)

       -Science: perform a basic chemistry experiment, such as making a lava lamp or creating slime

. 

      -Math: solve a real-world problem using algebra (designing a budget or calculating angles for a design).

  2. Reflection  After the activity, students reflect on how the activity relates to a STEM career and why problem-solving is important in STEM fields.

• STEP 4 Career reflection (5-10')

1.Discussion: Ask students to think about which STEM career they foundmost interesting and why. What skills do they already have and what skills would they like to develop? How do they think they could make a difference in a STEM career?

2. Personal Goal-Setting: : encourage students to write down one action they can take to explore a STEM career further. For example visiting a science museum, joining a coding club, or reading a biography of a woman in STEM.

• STEP 5 ASSESMENT (3')

Extension:

Career research project: Students choose a STEM career they are interested in and research it in more detail for a presentation or essay.

Field trip: Organize a field trip in a local science lab, tech company or engineering firm to see STEM careers in action.

KEY message: Girls belong in STEM and their unique perspective are essential for innovation and progress.