STEM Scouts

STEM Scouts is a national pilot program from the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), focused on fun ways for girls and boys in grades 3-12 to learn more about STEM subjects. The STEM Scouts program follows the Scout Oath and Law with the goal of producing young men and women who are leaders, display confidence, realize their skills and limitations, are respectful of others’ opinions, are problem solvers in all aspects of life, look for opportunities to serve others, are good citizens and demonstrate integrity in all phases of life.

STEM Scouts meetings are coed and typically take place after school. Hands-on activities, field trips, and interactions with STEM professionals use the Scouts’ natural curiosity to help build interest in STEM-related subjects and careers. Scouts rotate through different roles within the group to learn leadership and cooperation. Incorporating the Scout Oath and Laws provides an opportunity to teach character development as well as STEM subjects.

STEM Scout’s learning modules are designed and vetted by STEM educators and professionals to be fun and age-appropriate. Hands-on activities help students learn the academic concepts behind the experiments. Scouts work through a series of four-week modules, while middle and high school Scouts explore subjects in six-week modules. The depth and detail of information increases as Scouts move from one age group to the next. When STEM Scouts reach high school, they have the opportunity to work with mentors and even publish their work in a peer-reviewed journal.

In 2017, the CASIS STEM team designed a STEM Scouts module for middle school called “Mission to the International Space Station.” It is being piloted with about 1,000 groups in the 2017-18 school year.

The Boy Scouts of America is one of the nation’s largest and most prominent values-based youth development organizations. The BSA provides a program for young people that builds character, trains them in the responsibilities of participating citizenship and develops personal fitness.