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Smart School Building

IoT smart buildingsStudents in grades 6 to 11 explore the practical, scientific, ethical, and environmental issues that emerge in creating “smart” buildings that meld environmentally responsible design with cutting-edge computing technology known as the Internet of Things (IoT). Working in teams, they design and perhaps later implement smart-building solutions to make their school a better place to inhabit.

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Learn With Real Engineers This Summer

Elementary teacher MacKenzie McNickle in RET at University of FloridaLearn how K-12 teachers across the country are transforming their STEM classes – and themselves – through NSF’s Research Experiences for Teachers in Engineering and Computer Science (RET) program. You, too, can apply to participate!

Photo: Florida elementary school STEM educator MacKenzie McNickle isolated rat tail collagen in her Read More

Activity: Catapult Marshmallow Launch

MashmallowsThis simple catapult activity for students in grades 4 – 8 teaches them how energy is transferred when a plastic spoon is pulled back, then released, rocketing its payload — a single marshmallow.

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Vector Voyage!

Vector Voyage IllustrationMiddle school students learn the concept of dead reckoning by using vectors to plot a course based on a time and speed, then correct their positions with vectors representing winds and currents. Includes a link to related activities on navigation and creating nautical charts.

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Lesson: Made to Sail

sailboat3In this lesson, students in grades 2 – 7 use simple materials to design and make model sailboats that must stay upright and sail straight in a testing tank. They will learn the basic components of a ship and how design represents a tradeoff between speed, stability, and ease of handling.

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Wind-Powered Sail Cars

TeachEngineering UCD Sail CarsElementary students learn about wind and kinetic and renewable energy while following the steps of the engineering design process to imagine, create, test, evaluate, and refine small, wind-powered sail cars built from limited quantities of drinking straws, masking tape, paper, and beads. Teams of two then compete to see which sail-car travels the farthest when pushed by the wind (simulated by the use of an electric fan).
Note: This NGSS-aligned activity is part of a unit in which multiple activities are brought together for an all-day school/multi-school concluding “engineering field day” competition.

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Move Like a Shark

MIT's SoFi robotic fishMiddle school students take on the role of marine biologists to investigate how sharks move in three-dimensional space (3-D). Understanding the mathematics behind shark movement will inform the design of a prototype joystick for a robotic exploration shark used to collect oceanic data.

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Diving into the Maker Space – with Sharks!

shark cage with diver and sharkStudents in grades 2 to 5 are introduced to the dangerous work of scientists who study great white sharks. They work in engineering teams to select appropriate materials from a makers pace to design a shark cage that will help a diver submerge safely into a tank of sharks.
Photo from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

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Scientists Suit Up

Scientists Get Dressed book coverIf you were an engineer or scientist, what would you wear to work? That’s the fascinating focus of Scientists Get Dressed, a new STEM-themed children’s book by award-winning author Deborah Lee Rose. The book, available this fall, includes an NGSS-aligned STEM activity called the Scientists’ Glove Challenge.

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