STEM Computer Games and Experiments PostedFebruary 1, 2021 UpdatedFebruary 1, 2021 Posted byBrittany Pomponio https://router-admin.net/articles/computer-games-experiments How does STEM improve student learning? It encourages students to develop in-demand skill sets. It also allows students to learn what makes them passionate and encourages them to learn more about things that interest them independently. Here are a variety of STEM resources available online. Read More Average Ratings 0 Reviews0 Q&A0
Partner Resource The Heart of the Matter PostedSeptember 28, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/lessons/view/cub_human_lesson05 This lesson describes how the circulatory system works, including the heart, blood vessels and blood. Students learn about the chambers and valves of the heart, the difference between veins and arteries, and the different components of blood. This lesson also covers the technology engineers have developed to repair the heart if it is damaged. Students also understand how the circulatory system is affected during spaceflight (e.g., astronauts lose muscle in their heart during space travel). Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Evolutionary Engineering: Simple Machines—Pyramids to Skyscrapers PostedSeptember 20, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/curricularunits/view/cub_simple_curricularunit Simple machines are devices with few or no moving parts that make work easier, and which people have used to provide mechanical advantage for thousands of years. Students learn about the wedge, wheel and axle, lever, inclined plane, screw and pulley in the context of the construction of a pyramid, gaining insights into tools that have been used since ancient times and are still important today. Through numerous hands-on activities, students imagine themselves as ancient engineers building a pyramid. Student teams evaluate and select a construction site, design a pyramid, perform materials calculations, test a variety of cutting wedges on different materials, design a small-scale cart/lever transport system to convey building materials, experiment with the angle of inclination and pull force on an inclined plane, see how a pulley can change the direction of force, and learn the differences between fixed, movable and combined pulleys. While learning the steps of the Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Build an Approximate Scale Model of an Object PostedSeptember 4, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/build_a_scale_model Students create models of objects of their choice, giving them skills and practice in techniques used by professionals. They make sketches as they build their objects. This activity facilitates a discussion on models and their usefulness. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Problem Solve Your School PostedAugust 27, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_design_lesson01_activity2 Students apply what they have learned about the engineering design process to a real-life problem that affects them and/or their school. They choose a problem as a group, and then follow the engineering design process to come up with and test their design solution. This activity teaches students how to use the engineering design process while improving something in the school environment that matters to them. By performing each step of the design process, students can experience what it is like to be an engineer. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Designing Ways to Get and Clean Water PostedAugust 18, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_earth_lesson3_activity1 In this scenario-based activity, students design ways to either clean a water source or find a new water source, depending on given hypothetical family scenarios. They act as engineers to draw and write about what they could do to provide water to a community facing a water crisis. They also learn the basic steps of the engineering design process. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Elementary School Engineering Design Field Day PostedJune 27, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/curricularunits/view/ucd_fieldday_unit This unit provides the framework for conducting an “engineering design field day” that combines 6 hands-on engineering activities into a culminating school (or multi-school) competition. The activities are a mix of design and problem-solving projects inspired by real-world engineering challenges: kite making, sail cars, tall towers, strong towers and a ball and tools obstacle course. The assortment of events engage children who have varied interests and cover a range of disciplines such as aerospace, mechanical and civil engineering. An optional math test—for each of grades 1-6—is provided as an alternative activity to incorporate into the field day event. Of course, the 6 activities in this unit also are suitable to conduct as standalone activities that are unaffiliated with a big event. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Algorithms and Everyday Life PostedJune 22, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/lessons/view/csm-2353-algorithms-everyday-life-... Algorithms are one of the foundations of our technological world, and are driven by the scientists and engineers behind the scenes that write all of these different algorithms. This lesson is intended to get students interested in the inner workings of algorithms and the capabilities associated with them. We start by engaging students with very simple examples of algorithms which they can associate with. We then discuss Google’s PageRank algorithm for ranking the importance of websites based on the other websites that link to them, and play a fun game that can be used to find the same results as the PageRank algorithm. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Design a Soundproof Room PostedJune 2, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/uod-2270-design-soundproof-room... Students are presented with the following challenge: their new school is under construction and the architect accidentally put the music room next to the library. Students need to design a room that will absorb the most amount of sound so that the music does not disturb the library. Students use a box as a proxy for the room need to create a design that will decrease the sound that is coming from the outside of the box. To evaluate this challenge, students use a speaker within the box and a decibel meter outside the box to measure the effectiveness of their design. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Wheeling It In! PostedMay 26, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_simple_lesson03_activity1 In this open-ended design activity, students use everyday materials—milk cartons, water bottles, pencils, straws, candy—to build small-scale transportation devices. They incorporate the use two simple machines—a wheel and axle, and a lever—into their designs. Student pairs choose their materials and engineer solutions suitable to convey pyramid-building materials (small blocks of clay). They race their carts/trucks, measuring distance, time and weight; and then calculate speed. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource String Telephones PostedApril 18, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_sound_lesson02_activity1 Students investigate how sound travels through string and air. First, they analyze the sound waves with a paper cup attached to a string. Then, they combine the string and cup with a partner to model a string telephone. Finally, they are given a design challenge to redesign the string telephone for distance. They think about their model as it compares a modern telephone and the impact the invention of the telephone has had on society. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Surfactants: Helping Molecules Get Along PostedApril 5, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/lessons/view/usf_surfactants_les1 Students learn about the basics of molecules and how they interact with each other. They learn about the idea of polar and non-polar molecules and how they act with other fluids and surfaces. Students acquire a conceptual understanding of surfactant molecules and how they work on a molecular level. They also learn of the importance of surfactants, such as soaps, and their use in everyday life. Through associated activities, students explore how surfactant molecules are able to bring together two substances that typically do not mix, such as oil and water. This lesson and its associated activities are easily scalable for grades 3-12. Read More Q&A0
Supporting Students’ Science Learning During COVID-19 School Closures PostedMarch 26, 2020 UpdatedMarch 26, 2020 Posted byKate Gramling http://stemteachingtools.org/news/2020/guidance-for-supporting-science-learning-... NGSS aligned resources that might be useful to educators, families, and educational leaders. Includes links documents - some editable - that can be adapted to different situations. Provided in English, Spanish, and Arabic. Read More Average Ratings 0 Reviews0 Q&A0
Partner Resource Right on Target: Catapult Game PostedMarch 21, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_catapult_lesson01_activity1 Students experience the engineering design process as they design and build accurate and precise catapults using common materials. They use their catapults to participate in a game in which they launch Ping-Pong balls to attempt to hit various targets. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Engineering in Sports: Energy Transfer in Athletic Gear PostedMarch 5, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/lessons/view/cub_intro_lesson04 Imagining themselves arriving at the Olympics gold medal soccer game in Rio, Brazil, students begin to think about how engineering is involved in sports. After a discussion of kinetic and potential energy, an associated hands-on activity gives students an opportunity to explore energy-absorbing materials as they try to protect an egg from being crushed. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Rock, Paper, Scissors Probability! PostedFebruary 22, 2020 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/nyu_rockps_activity1 Students learn about probability through a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® based activity that simulates a game of "rock-paper-scissors." The LEGO robot mimics the outcome of random game scenarios in order to help students gain a better understanding of events that follow real-life random phenomenon, such as bridge failures, weather forecasts and automobile accidents. Students learn to connect keywords such as certainty, probable, unlikely and impossibility to real-world engineering applications. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Space Shelter PostedDecember 19, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/space_shelter Students are given the following engineering challenge: "The invasion has taken place and we need to find a new home. To ensure your survival beyond Earth's occupation you must design a shelter that can be built on another planet." Then students research the characteristics of a planet of their choosing. They design shelter that enables them to survive on a new planet, and explain it in words to the rest of the class. This is a great activity to add to a unit on the solar system. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Stations of Light PostedNovember 15, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_energy2_lesson03_activity1 Student groups rotate through four stations to examine light energy behavior: refraction, magnification, prisms and polarization. They see how a beam of light is refracted (bent) through various transparent mediums. While learning how a magnifying glass works, students see how the orientation of an image changes with the distance of the lens from its focal point. They also discover how a prism works by refracting light and making rainbows. And, students investigate the polar nature of light using sunglasses and polarized light film. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Muscles, Muscles Everywhere PostedNovember 11, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_human_lesson02_activity2 This activity helps students learn about the three different types of muscles and how outer space affects astronauts' muscles. They will discover how important it is for astronauts to get adequate exercise both on Earth and in outer space. Also, through the design of their own microgravity exercise machine, students learn about the exercise machines that engineers design specifically for astronaut use. Read More Q&A0
Partner Resource Robo Clock PostedNovember 4, 2019 Posted byTeach Engineering Team https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/nyu_roboclock_activity1 Students learn various topics associated with the circle through studying a clock. Topics include reading analog time, understanding the concept of rotation (clockwise vs. counter-clockwise), and identifying right angles and straight angles within circles. Many young students have difficulty telling time in analog format, especially with fewer analog clocks in use (compared to digital clocks). This includes the ability to convert time written in words to a number format, for example, making the connection between "quarter of an hour" to 15 minutes. Students also find it difficult to convert "quarter of an hour" to the number of degrees in a circle. This activity incorporates a LEGO® MINDSTORMS® robot to help students distinguish and visualize the differences in clockwise vs. counter-clockwise rotation and right vs. straight angles, while learning how to tell time on an analog clock. To promote team learning and increase engagement, students work in teams to program and control the ... Read More Q&A0