German and Etymology teacher Nichole Mathews has always loved science fiction, particularly steam punk. Expecting for students’ work drives to dwindle following spring break, Mathews made a plan- she would incorporate her passion into a class activity for her German students. This way, students would have something fun to focus on once they returned to school.

Steam punk and German? At first glance, the two don’t really seem to click. However, Mathews was able to come up with a way for it to work.

“In class, we’re talking about German speakers from German speaking countries,” Mathews said. “Inventors, people who have created something that’s totally new, or innovators, [people] who took something that was already there and improved upon it.”

Following this, Mathews’s German students then had the chance to work on their own research project. They were given the choice between researching their own German inventor and brainstorming ways to improve on their work, or creating their own invention that fit into a genre of their choice. Mathews also allowed them to dress up for the occasion, wearing garments such as silly hats or steam punk goggles.

They will dress up and be discussing the pieces that they came up with on Friday, April 21, while Mathews is wearing her “steam punk garb, just for fun.”