Earth Day Resources
Posted on April 19th, 2013 by Mary Lord
Kids love exploring the world around them, and Earth Day offers a great way to introduce them to environmental science and engineering. The following sampler includes activities, lessons, and resources that promote green engineering and science learning.
Filed under: Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Grades K-5, Lesson Plans, Web Resources | Comment »
Tags: Class Activities, Curriculum, Environmental Engineering, Environmental science, Internet Resources, Lesson Plan, Lesson Plans, Resources for Teachers, Teacher Resources, Videos, Web Resources
Earthquake-shattered Haiti is a world apart from America’s grassy college campuses. Yet for a growing number of U.S. engineering undergraduates, the country serves as a living classroom where they can apply their knowledge and skills to help real people – half a million of whom still live under tarps or tents – recover from the worst natural disaster in modern times. 
Nanooze, a science magazine for students in upper elementary through high school, explores the exciting world of nanotechnology – and the “cool things that happen when you make things really, really small.” It’s distributed free to schools, in classroom packs of 30.
The Blended Learning Open Source Science or Math Studies (BLOSSOMS) initiative, a new project from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, creates videos with a STEM focus for use in high school classrooms. The program features a library with around 50 math and science lessons, available free for download or as streaming video, and also by request as DVDs and videotapes.
Its impact is visible everywhere, from airport security to the war in Afghanistan. But 10 years after terrorists crashed planes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the 9/11attacks have had little effect on U.S. schools or instruction. In fact, a forthcoming study finds that fewer than half the states explicitly identify the 9/11 attacks in their high school standards for social studies.
Want to incorporate engineering into your STEM curriculum but don’t know where to start? Stephanie Greer, a technology integration specialist in an inner-city Philadelphia school, faced that exact challenge last year. She shares her top tips for making the most of eGFI, which she calls her “go-to site” for inspired engineering lessons, activities, and more!
Ever since the Wright brothers ushered in the aerospace era a century ago, America has ruled the skies. Now, a unique Arizona industry and education partnership aims to lift the country’s future aviation expertise by building a seamless high-school-to-career STEM pipeline focused on off-board pilot technology and autonomous flight.
Can digital media and video games boost student learning? The Bill and Melinda Gates and Pearson foundations clearly think so. The pair announced a $20 million effort to create online reading, math, and science courses tied to new Common Core state standards that will use video, interactive software, games, social media and other digital materials. 
