Partner Resource Engineering for the Three Little Pigs PostedJune 29, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_earth_lesson1_activity1 The purpose of this activity is to demonstrate the importance of rocks, soils and minerals in engineering and how using the right material for the right job is important. The students build three different sand castles and test them for strength and resistance to weathering. Then, they discuss how the buildings are different and what engineers need to think about when using rocks, soils and minerals for construction. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Traveling Sound PostedJune 18, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_energy2_lesson05_activity2 Students explore how sound waves move through liquids, solids and gases in a series of simple sound energy experiments. Understanding the properties of sound and how sound waves travel helps engineers determine the best room shape and construction materials when designing sound recording studios, classrooms, libraries, concert halls and theatres. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Powerful Pulleys PostedJune 18, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/lessons/view/cub_simple_lesson05 Students continue to explore the story of building a pyramid, learning about the simple machine called a pulley. They learn how a pulley can be used to change the direction of applied forces and move/lift extremely heavy objects, and the powerful mechanical advantages of using a multiple-pulley system. Students perform a simple demonstration to see the mechanical advantage of using a pulley, and they identify modern day engineering applications of pulleys. In a hands-on activity, they see how a pulley can change the direction of a force, the difference between fixed and movable pulleys, and the mechanical advantage gained with multiple / combined pulleys. They also learn the many ways engineers use pulleys for everyday purposes. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Natural Disasters: Earthquakes, Volcanoes, Tornadoes & More PostedJune 18, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/curricularunits/view/cub_natdis_curricularunit Students are introduced to our planet's structure and its dynamic system of natural forces through an examination of the natural hazards of earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, tsunamis, floods and tornadoes, as well as avalanches, fires, hurricanes and thunderstorms. They see how these natural events become disasters when they impact people, and how engineers help to make people safe from them. Students begin by learning about the structure of the Earth; they create clay models showing the Earth's layers, see a continental drift demo, calculate drift over time, and make fault models. They learn how earthquakes happen; they investigate the integrity of structural designs using model seismographs. Using toothpicks and mini-marshmallows, they create and test structures in a simulated earthquake on a tray of Jell-O. Students learn about the causes, composition and types of volcanoes, and watch and measure a class mock eruption demo, observing the phases that change a mountain's shape. ... Read More Q&A0
8 Great Videos to Teach the Engineering Design Process PostedMay 14, 2019 UpdatedMay 14, 2019 Posted byEric Iversen http://start-engineering.com/start-engineering-now/2019/4/3/8-great-videos-to-te... Videos about the engineering design process can make an abstract, seemingly vague topic into something interesting and fun for students to learn about and apply. These 8 videos run the gamut of approach and emphasis, but all deliver a useful, engaging treatment of the issue. There’s something here for all ages, from elementary to high school. Read More Average Ratings 0 Reviews0 Q&A0
Collaborative problem solvers are made not born – here’s what you need to know PostedApril 30, 2019 UpdatedApril 30, 2019 Posted byKate Gramling https://theconversation.com/collaborative-problem-solvers-are-made-not-born-here... Evidence suggests that, for the most part, students aren’t being taught the skills needed for effective collaborative problem-solving. Read More Average Ratings 0 Reviews0 Q&A0
Partner Resource Up, Up and Away! - Airplanes PostedApril 16, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/curricularunits/view/cub_airplanes_curricularun... The airplanes unit begins with a lesson on how airplanes create lift, which involves a discussion of air pressure and how wings use Bernoulli's principle to change air pressure. Next, students explore the other three forces acting on airplanes—thrust, weight and drag. Following these lessons, students learn how airplanes are controlled and use paper airplanes to demonstrate these principles. The final lessons addresses societal and technological impacts that airplanes have had on our world. Students learn about different kinds of airplanes and then design and build their own balsa wood airplanes based on what they have learned. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Make Some Waves PostedMarch 27, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_soundandlight_lesson1_activ... In this activity, students use their own creativity (and their bodies) to make longitudinal and transverse waves. Through the use of common items, they will investigate the different between longitudinal and transverse waves. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Cutting Through Soil PostedMarch 26, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_cutting_through_soil Students pretend they are agricultural engineers during the colonial period and design a miniature plow that cuts through a "field" of soil. They are introduced to the engineering design process and learn of several famous historical figures who contributed to plow design. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Biomimicry Project: Do Ptarmigans Have Snowshoes? PostedMarch 19, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_ptarmigan_activity1 Students learn about the amazing adaptations of the ptarmigan to the alpine tundra. They focus on one adaptation, the feathered feet of the ptarmigan, and ask whether the feathers serve to only keep the feet warm or to also provide the bird with floatation capability. They create model ptarmigan feet, with and without feathers, and test the hypothesis on the function of the feathers. Ultimately, students make a claim about whether the feathers provide floatation and support this claim with their testing evidence. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Power to the People PostedMarch 16, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_energy2_lesson09_activity4 Students read and evaluate descriptions of how people live "off the grid" using solar power and come to understand better the degree to which that lifestyle is or is not truly independent of technological, economic and cultural infrastructure and resources. In the process, students develop a deeper appreciation of the meaning of "community" and the need for human connection. This activity is geared towards fifth-grade and older students and Internet research capabilities are required. Portions of this activity may be appropriate with younger students. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource NXT Ball Shooter PostedMarch 11, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/umo_robotsandhumans_act2 This activity helps students understand how a motor in a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot uses electricity produced by the battery to move a robot to do useful work in the form of throwing a ball. Students relate the concepts of electricity and battery to the movement of the LEGO NXT motor and connected links.**Note: This activity uses the retired LEGO NXT robot which is no longer available for purchase. Read More Q&A0
Afterschool Engineering Is a Gap Ready to Be Filled PostedMarch 11, 2019 UpdatedMarch 11, 2019 Posted byEric Iversen http://start-engineering.com/start-engineering-now/2019/2/7/afterschool-engineer... Afterschool clubs feature engineering less often than other STEM fields. Content knowledge, equipment, and learning materials can seem like big obstacles. But a wealth of resources, often free or inexpensive, can help educators get started on the right foot. Read More Average Ratings 0 Reviews0 Q&A0
Partner Resource Kidney Filtering PostedFebruary 19, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_human_lesson08_activity1 Students filter different substances through a plastic window screen, different sized hardware cloth and poultry netting. Their models show how the thickness of a filter in the kidney is imperative in determining what is filtered out and what stays in the blood stream. Read More Q&A0
Teacher Responses that Foster a STEM Mindset PostedFebruary 19, 2019 UpdatedFebruary 19, 2019 Posted byKate Gramling https://www.definedstem.com/blog/teacher-responses-that-foster-a-stem-mindset/ Being mindful about the way we communicate with our students can allow them to grow in a mindset that embraces imagination and inquiry. Read More Average Ratings 0 Reviews0 Q&A0
A Principal’s View: How Introducing STEM Has Radically Changed My School PostedFebruary 13, 2019 UpdatedFebruary 13, 2019 Posted byKate Gramling https://www.the74million.org/article/a-principals-view-how-introducing-stem-has-... Sundai Riggins, EdD, principal at Washington DC's Hendley Elementary School, shares her thought on how STEM transformed her school. Read More Average Ratings 0 Reviews0 Q&A0
Partner Resource Assessing the Situation PostedJanuary 8, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/csm_amazon_lesson1_activity1_tg Finding themselves in the middle of the Amazon rainforest after a plane crash, students use map scales, keys, and longitude and latitude coordinates to figure out where they are. Then they work in groups to generate ideas and make plans. They decide where they should go to be rescued, the distance to that location, the route to take, and make calculations to estimate walking travel time. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Geology and Major Landforms: Sea to Sky PostedJanuary 7, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/lessons/view/cub_earth_lesson6 Sudents learn about major landforms (such as mountains, rivers, plains, valleys, canyons and plateaus) and how they occur on the Earth's surface. They learn about the civil and geotechnical engineering applications of geology and landforms, including the design of transportation systems, mining, mapping and measuring natural hazards. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Sound PostedJanuary 5, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/curricularunits/view/cub_sound_curricularunit Students learn the connections between the science of sound waves and engineering design for sound environments. Through three lessons, students come to better understand sound waves, including how they change with distance, travel through different mediums, and are enhanced or mitigated in designed sound environments. They are introduced to audio engineers who use their expert scientific knowledge to manipulate sound for music and film production. They see how the invention of the telephone pioneered communications engineering, leading to today's long-range communication industry and its worldwide impact. Students analyze materials for sound properties suitable for acoustic design, learning about the varied environments created by acoustical engineers. Hands-on activities include modeling the placement of microphones to create a specific musical image, modeling and analyzing a string telephone, and applying what they've learned about sound waves and materials to model a controlled ... Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Movement Task Using Sensors - Humans and Robots PostedJanuary 2, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/umo_robotsandhumans_act4 This activity helps students understand the significance of programming and also how the LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot's sensors assist its movement and make programming easier. Students compare human senses to robot sensors, describing similarities and differences. Read More Q&A0