Project Lead the Way
Pacelli Catholic Schools (PCS) is committed to being a leader in STEM education. We offer an innovative curriculum called Project Lead The Way (PLTW) in grades K-12. Jobs in a STEM-related industry are poised for significant growth and will be in high demand over the next decade. With such an exciting future on the horizon, Pacelli Catholic Schools wants to ensure that our students are prepared to serve as leaders in our community.
Grades K-5: Launch
Through PLTW Launch, our program for kindergarten through fifth grade, students become problem solvers. Students use structured approaches, like the engineering design process, and employ critical thinking. They apply STEM knowledge, skills, and habits of mind, learning that it is OK to take risks and make mistakes. As teachers and students learn and discover together, education becomes far more engaging.
Grades 6-8: Gateway
Students at Pacelli Catholic Middle School can enroll in the PLTW Gateway program. PLTW Gateway provides engineering and biomedical science curriculum for middle school students that challenges, inspires, and offers schools variety and flexibility. Students get rigorous and relevant experiences through activity-, project-, and problem-based learning. They use industry-leading technology to solve problems while gaining skills in communication, collaboration, critical-thinking, and creativity.
Grades 9-12: Engineering, Computer Science and Biomedical Science
Pacelli Catholic High School offers a variety of options for students interested in PLTW.
Engineering: PLTW students have said that PLTW Engineering influenced their post-secondary decisions and helped shape their future. Even for students who do not plan to pursue engineering after high school, the PLTW Engineering program provides opportunities to develop highly transferable skills in collaboration, communication, and critical thinking, which are relevant for any coursework or career.
Computer Science and Software Engineering (CSE): In CSE, students create apps for mobile devices, automate tasks in a variety of languages, and find patterns in data. Students collaborate to create and present solutions that can improve people’s lives, and weigh the ethical and societal issues of how computing and connectivity are changing the world.
Biomedical Science (BMS): From the moment students walk into the classroom, they are immersed in the mysterious death of Anna and asked to investigate, document, and analyze evidence to solve the case. Case-based scenarios like this one span all PLTW Biomedical Science courses. Students explore a range of careers in biomedical sciences as they learn content in the context of real-world, hands-on activities, projects, and problems.