SEEDS blog

Could you make a solar-powered band? SEEDS After School students did! 

Students as young as third graders worked together using small solar panels and motors to make gadgets that played musical instruments when placed in the sunshine. This was only one of many activities in our spring pilot Clean Energy Art Challenge for SEEDS After School students!

"Connecting art with STEM subjects is a a great way to have a lot of fun. And learning that's fun is learning that sticks." Sarna Salzman, Executive Director

The purpose of this Clean Energy Art Challenge pilot was to see if we could provide hands-on learning experiences that inspire and empower youth to engage in the complex topics related to Energy. Through the lens of Clean Energy (Conservation + Efficiency + Renewable Technologies), we provided a multi-week series of STEM lessons and layered this with creative expressions that demonstrated and solidified what students learned.

In addition to the Solar Band, students across the region used a variety of other art mediums including sculptures that illustrate concepts like the visual light spectrum, and using photo-reactive paper to demonstrate how solar energy can be converted into chemical energy - and linking this process to the concept of photosynthesis.

Thanks to the Michigan Department of Education and to the Consumers Energy Foundation for making this learning possible!

SEEDS After School makes environmental education engaging and fun! Learn more here and connect with us!

See it for yourself! Pop-up student art exhibit at the Little Fleet, November 14!