When Ms. Walker asked for new lab equipment on an end of the year "wish list" she didn't know what to expect. When teachers left for summer break, there was no assurance that the equipment would be purchased. But summer is when Beth Hance, Financial Manager at Clay City, went to work facilitating the acquisition of new Vernier lab equipment through grant expenditures over the summer. Clay City Schools, under the new leadership of Superintendent John Neubaum, actively supports project based, hands-on learning that accompanies robust stem programs like Walker's. Ms. Walker earned her master's in science education from SIUC where she initially practiced using Vernier probes and became familiar with their power as a learning tool. Bringing both experience and expertise into the classroom, Walker enjoys seeing students actively engaged in learning opportunities like these in her classroom. Here 8th grade
has been observing chemical reactions and energy transfers in combustion, thermal energy, and chemical energy. Ms. Walker says her students "are excited to start using our new Vernier lab devices and probes to measure and record data in our activities this year."