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
Sustainability is the theme of this year’s Mathematics Awareness Month. Teachers will find plenty of activities, contests, and other free educational resources that link math with environmental applications, including the Energy Challenge, which teaches students the mathematics of their school’s energy use and then has them develop and implement an action plan to reduce energy consumption.
Is there something you use at school — in the classroom, on the field, in your science lab, on the playground, or anywhere on school grounds — that isn’t designed as well as it could be? Ratheon’s MathMovesU “Build It Better” contest is offering cash awards for the best ideas to improve those everyday items. Submission deadline is April 16.
Design competitions are a great way to get students excited about STEM, but finding up-to-date information in time to sign up can be difficult. Engineering Contests, a new aggregator of engineering competitions and scholarships for K-12 and college students, offers a one-stop shop that’s updated monthly.
3-D printers and electronic tattoos are just some of the inventions featured in a new video series launched to mark Thomas Edison’s 165th birthday. Produced in collaboration by NBCLearn, the National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the “Science of Innovation” includes 11 segments – with related lessons – illuminating the process by which scientists and engineers develop innovative ideas into patents and products. 
Seeing is believing, but what about hearing? To encourage more girls to go into STEM fields, the Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics has developed On The Air, an online radio series featuring stories of fascinating women scientists, engineers, and educators.
Why do airplanes fly? What is genetic engineering? To help K-12 students and teachers understand such topics, MIT has tapped its 10,000 brilliant young scholars to create engaging, short videos to supplement classroom instruction.
The goal of the Student Competition Research Project project is to promote the research and practice of student competitions. This is achieved through collection, dissemination, and interpretation of research and information about competitions.
If safe, clean drinking water flows from your tap, thank the teams of engineers who design, maintain, and upgrade the complex systems that deliver life’s most vital fluid. Indeed, engineering is all about identifying and solving society’s urgent problems–as your students will see in “Engineering a Difference,” an award-winning video series sponsored by the National Science Foundation.
