Yeshiva of South Shore, a member school of Teach NYS, is running full “STEAM” ahead with their exciting STEAM Programs. YOSS is a boys’ elementary school with close to 700 students, located in Hewlett, Long Island. The thousands of dollars in NYSED STEM teacher reimbursement funding they received over the past two years has provided tremendous benefit to the school. It has freed up space in their budget, allowing them to secure additional resources and take their science education to new heights, much to the delight of their students and parents. Every Friday is “STEAM Friday” in the YOSS Lower School. Through this interactive weekly program, students have conducted many science projects, including creating their own racetracks and testing a structure’s ability to withstand an earthquake. They even had an “Invention Convention” in which students teamed up to create original inventions. These were then entered into a “Shark Tank” competition judged by parents! This program, led by YOSS’s elementary school STEM teacher, also includes projects related to the chagim, such as designing and creating menorahs and dreidels in the YOSS Chanukah Makerspace. Mrs. Girnun, Principal of YOSS Elementary School, also praised the middos of teamwork and compromise, which are strengthened as the boys worked together, and says she is always inspired by the problem solving and critical thinking skills the boys continue to display on “STEAM Fridays.” In the Middle School division, the STEM Teacher Reimbursement program provided the resources to hire a STEM coach who guides students to compete in the CIJE TECH Yeshiva Middle School Robotics Competition. Mr. Winkler, Principal of YOSS Middle School, notes that funds freed up by the STEM funding were also used towards covering the cost of materials and supplies – such a backup battery – for the last competition. Members of the YOSS middle school science team build robots that move and can pick up items, and they have also built an arena in which the robots train. The team came in first place in the competition in last year, actually using one of the backup batteries when their original one died mid-competition. Yasher Koach to YOSS for their impressive achievement and their innovative, invigorating, and hands-on approach to Science and Technology education.