Virtual STEM Academy

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Virtual Stem Academy

Welcome to ECHO’s Virtual STEM Academy

ECHO VSA classes are standards-aligned, 6 lesson learning sequences for elementary-age students K-5th grade. Lessons have been pre-recorded and archived along with exciting at-home activity plans allowing for self-paced learning. ECHO STEM Academy classes are the perfect solution for keeping your student connected to their local community while taking the planning and guesswork out of at-home science instruction.

Interested in how the VSA Classroom works? Learn more.

ECHO is providing our VSA lesson library to educational organizations—including schools, home-schools, and librariesfree of charge. Ready to sign-up?

QUESTIONS?
Contact Elizabeth Nuckols at enuckols@echovermont.org

VIRTUAL STEM ACADEMY CLASSES

Grades K/1st

Champ in the LakeSIGN UP!
Join Caroline and Nina as we dive into the mysterious science of lake monsters. We will meet Champ’s living reptile and amphibian relatives, investigate what adaptations Champ would need to survive in Lake Champlain, interview those in-the-know, and explore what we can do to protect lake monsters and other aquatic animals.

Program Sequence

Week 1: Animal Types & Characteristics

Week 2: Animal Behavior

Week 3: Animal Habitats: Part 1

Week 4: Animal Habitats: Part 2

Week 5: Animal Life Cycles

Week 6: Protecting Animals and Their Habitats

Wavy pattern of sound waves. Colors are gradients from orange to pink and purpleSIGN UP!
In this exciting class, students will explore forces, motion, and sound through hands-on investigations and playful demonstrations. Join Carlie and Caroline as we learn about pushes and pulls and discover the science of sounds.

Program Sequence

Week 1: Introducing Forces – Pushes and Pulls

Week 2: Invisible Forces –  Magnets and Gravity 

Week 3: Speed and Direction 

Week 4: The Science of Roller Coasters 

Week 5: Sound and Vibration – Musical Instruments 

Week 6: Sound and Vibration – Animal Superpowers

Earth in the middle of outer space

SIGN UP!

Join Billy & Carlie on an adventure through time as we explore Earth’s seasons. This voyage will take us from the Sun at the center of our galaxy to the peaks of our green mountains. We will investigate stars, weather, and seasonal changes.

Program Sequence

Week 1: The Sun, the Earth and the Moon 

Week 2: Light from the Sun 

Week 3: Spring and Summer 

Week 4: Fall and Winter

Week 5: Severe Weather

Week 6: Weather vs. Climate

Grades 2nd/3rd

Under water scene in Lake ChamplainSIGN UP!
Join Chris and Cailee as we explore plants, animals, and the interconnectedness of life in the Lake Champlain Basin. We will go behind-the-scenes with ECHO’s live animals to learn about their diets and behaviors; conduct fun investigations of pollination, animal adaptations, and biodiversity; and catch-up with local wildlife biologists.

Program Sequence

Week 1: Ecosystems

Week 2: Biodiversity

Week 3: Interdependence in Ecosystems

Week 4: Adaptations

Week 5: Natural Selection

Week 6: Threats and Changes in Ecosystems

chemicals bubbling in a beakerSIGN UP!
There’s a lot of science happening all around us! Have you ever wondered what happens when two balls collide? Or what exactly happens when baking soda and vinegar mix? Join Cailee and Billy to engineer contraptions, transform materials through chemistry, and discover the answers to your most electrifying science questions. 

Program Sequence

Week 1: What is matter?

Week 2: Physical properties and interactions

Week 3: Exploring physical interactions through the Engineering Design Process 

Week 4: Chemical properties

Week 5: Chemical reactions

Week 6: Electricity and Magnetism

Vortexes coming up from the lake with clouds and wind.SIGN UP!
From the highest peaks of Mount Mansfield to the darkest depths of Lake Champlain, the landscape around us is constantly changing. Join Cailee and Caroline to adventure around our watershed—and around our world—to learn about the forces and processes that shape the planet we call home. 

Program Sequence

Week 1: The Lake Champlain Basin

Week 2: Water Cycle 

Week 3: Erosion & Deposition

Week 4: Weather and Climate 

Week 5: Climate Change

Week 6: Bonus: Ocean Exploration

Grades 4th/5th

Earth in the middle of outer spaceSIGN UP!
Carlie and Billy will guide you on an epic adventure from planet Earth to the far reaches of our galaxy. We will explore the forces that shape life on Earth and the possibility of alien life. Students will engineer asteroid-mining machines, witness the vacuum of space, and pose their most burning space questions to special guest
experts.

Program Sequence

Week 1: Earth’s Setting; a place among the stars

Week 2: Weathering and Erosion

Week 3: Human Interactions with Earth 

Week 4: The Earth’s Systems

Week 5: Observing Gravity

Week 6: Engineering Design Process for Asteroid Mining

chemicals bubbling in a beakerSIGN UP!
Join Billy and Carlie as we explore the building blocks of the Universe. We will examine the physical properties of objects to determine how particles invisible to the naked eye shape our world. Witness astounding chemical reactions, explore how energy transforms, and even shape water!

Program Sequence

Week 1: What’s (the) Matter?

Week 2: Phases of Matter

Week 3: Solid Conversations (Properties of Solid Matter) 

Week 4: Fluid Motions (Properties of Liquids and Gases)

Week 5: Conservation of Energy and Matter

Week 6: Unraveling the Plot!

food web for turtles, worms, fish, frogs, snailsSIGN UP!
Our world runs on energy! Join Cailee and Caroline to find out how energy flows through every living thing in our world and how those creatures get and digest the food they need to keep energy flowing.

Program Sequence

Week 1: Food Webs and Energy

Week 2: Plants and Decomposers

Week 3: Sight Adaptations 

Week 4: Hearing Adaptations

Week 5: Catching and Eating Food

Week 6: Eating Food and Getting Energy

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