WESTFIELD — Seventh and eighth graders from Edison and Roosevelt Intermediate Schools received up-close, hands-on experience as part of two field trips in February and early March focusing on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math (STEAM).

The seventh-grade STEAM field trip ran from March 1 to 4 and included a stop at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tenn., and a visit to the Hatch Show Print, a working letterpress print and design shop since 1879, where event posters are created. The students received a hands-on lesson on the ages-old practice of block printing.

Afterward, the seventh graders traveled to Huntsville, Ala., and the Marshall Space Flight Center, home of Space Camp. Students self-selected groups to participate in a multi-day space-launch simulation and took part in many other activities and history lessons along the way.

One seventh grader noted that, “the true highlight was meeting and speaking to a rocket scientist who worked on the Saturn V launch vehicle.”

“Watching students have the opportunity to meet and interact with top experts in STEAM fields was amazing,” said Roosevelt science teacher Andrew Bausch. “Many of these students have dreamed of such interactions. Providing them this chance was very fulfilling.”

The first stop on the eighth-grade field trip, which took place February 2 to 5, was Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where activities included a video look at the history of space travel and a tour of the launch pad and various simulators.The eighth graders then moved on to Walt Disney World in Orlando, where the young scientists and engineers learned about the physics and design behind the popular rides.

“The students completed two behind- the-scenes tours and a full workshop,” said Edison mathematics teacher Ryan Belline, who has organized the STEAM field trips since 2017. “One tour brought students behind the scenes at Epcot to show how some of the rides are made. The other gave us a behind-the-scenes look at the Magic Kingdom to demonstrate all that Disney does to develop certain themes. Students had to model their own park with their own theme.”

“It was really fun and I made plenty of good memories,” said one eighth grader.

“The trip was so fun,” added an Edison student. “It was educational but in a great, hands-on way. This trip consisted of many once-in-a-lifetime experiences that I will never forget. Being with friends and being more connected with teachers was so fun. Another great thing about the trip was being with students from Roosevelt so we could get to know each other before high school.”

For more information about the parent-financed field trips and to join the email for next year’s trips, visit the 2025 STEAM Trip website.