– Let the children try, wonder, explore and be practical
When students step into Newton Hvidovre, they are invited to explore, question and experiment. Newton Teacher of the Month, Laila Bjergmann from Denmark, believes that true learning happens when children are given the space to try things for themselves.
Name: Laila Bjergmann
Age: 51 years old
My Newton Room: Newton Hvidovre
Location: Hvidovre, Denmark
Has been a part of Newton since: August 2020
Professional Background: School teacher with a diploma in didactics of natural science.
Life Outside of Work: She loves taking walks and riding her bike in the park, and spending time at her allotment. She is married to Morten and has four children.
What sparked your interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths) in the first place?
“I have loved mathematics since I was a child and had a lovely maths teacher. My interest in STEM has grown over the years as a teacher. The wondering and exploring you do in science and engineering are very exciting.”
What do you love most about working in a Newton Room?
“I love giving the students the opportunity to work with STEM – to work in a practical and exploratory manner. Furthermore, I like giving them an interesting and different experience outside their normal classroom.”
What’s your favourite topic or module to teach, and why?
“It is really hard to choose, because every single one of our modules has really nice qualities in different ways. I like having both the younger and the older students.”
What do you hope students and teachers take away from their visit to your Newton Room?
“I hope they have had a great experience working in an exploratory way, and that they have gained an understanding of how important STEM is in our lives and in the development of, for example, the environment and the climate.”
Can you share a fun or inspiring story that happened in your Newton Room?
“A student once told me that the day in the Newton Room was his best school day ever.”
How can we best inspire children and young people to pursue STEM education and careers?
“By letting them try it. Letting them wonder, explore and be practical. We as teachers need to teach in a dialogic way, so that it is the students who bring both the questions and the answers. We must also show the students that the subjects of STEM have an impact on everything around them.”
If you could meet one famous scientist, past or present, who would it be and why?
“Without a doubt – Inge Lehmann. She was a really cool scientist who had to fight hard to get recognition for her work.”
What are three things on your bucket list?
“I would love to travel to the Galápagos Islands. To follow in the footsteps of Darwin and to experience the amazing wildlife. More professionally, I would like to become even better at teaching STEM in an exploratory way, and I dream of being able, together with all my coworkers in the Newton Room, to make more Newton Modules available for the students in the schools in Hvidovre.”
About Newton Hvidovre
Newton Hvidovre was established in 2015 with support from Boeing and was the first Newton Room established outside Norway.
The room is situated at Risbjergskolen in Hvidovre, a public school with approximately 800 students. Hvidovre is a town located just outside Copenhagen. The room receives students from all the schools in Hvidovre.
Newton Hvidovre is running three modules this school year: for 3rd graders (9–10 years old), “What does a city need?”, which resembles the module “WeDo – Oppfinner”; for 5th graders (11–12 years old), “Programming, robotics and mathematics” (SPIKE Prime); and for 8th–9th graders (14–16 years old), “Engia”.
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