Republic FC & SMUD Partner to Create STEM Goals
Republic FC and SMUD are growing their partnership to develop a tool for teachers that will create excitement around math and science and launch a competition for students in the region. With the assistance of Learn Fresh, a non-profit dedicated to providing innovative STEM learning experiences, “STEM Goals” – a soccer-based math game, has been designed exclusively for Republic FC and SMUD to provide educators with a resource that links sports and science in a fun and engaging way.
STEM Goals brings the world’s most popular game directly into the hands of students. The board game is a simulated soccer game where 5th and 6th graders answer age-appropriate, standards-aligned questions across science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines, working up and down the field to score goals using stats from Republic FC players. Chance and action cards give students the opportunity to learn more about soccer.
To kick off the first season of STEM Goals, Republic FC and SMUD are launching a ten-school pilot tournament, where teachers will utilize the board game as a tool in their lesson plans and instruction, leading up to a final tournament. Each school will send its champions to the STEM Goals Cup Final, to be held next year when the Republic FC season kicks off at Heart Health Park. Through a partnership with the PEAR Institute at Harvard, all of the STEM Goals participants will have an opportunity to participate in a skills assessment to see their growth through the game.
The fast-paced board game can be played in classroom settings, as an extracurricular activity, and with families to instill a rich connection with learning. Played in two, 10-minute halves, students will aim to drive their favorite Republic FC players up the field by answering questions about science, math, technology, renewable energy, and more, to different shooting locations on the game board, with different odds based on player stats, location on the board, and more.
