Tinkercad - web based, free CAD app

Tinkercad is a free, web based, CAD app that runs in your browser (need webGL enabled). It's easy to use and has some great features. Many CAD systems that engineers use are very complicated with thousands of features (I've used CATIA, ProEngineer, AutoCad, Cadkey) that students won't need.

Tinkercad allows you to create 3D models of pretty much anything, and even export them to 3D printers. The site has a getting started page that walks you through how to use it.

There is also a community of users for support and help.

This is a great resource for students and teachers to use in STEM Classes, or any class for that matter, to draw 3D models.




Related:

Google Sells SketchUp 3D modeling software - promises free educational version to continue
SketchUp for Education Site

Google Resources for Education

STEM Resources for Students and Educators

LibreCAD - free, 2D CAD Software for Windows, OSX, and Linux

Free Academic Program (incl CAD software) from PTC

TinkerBox - free physics puzzle educational game on iOS

TinkerBox is a free physics puzzle game for iOS. It has interesting science facts and teachers basic engineering concepts, in a fun game. You can create machines and share them with others as well as trying to solve the physics-based puzzles and mechanical concepts. It takes creativity and problem solving skills to be successful.

It is from Autodesk, creators of the CAD software AutoCad.

This is a great app for students in physics or engineering, or anyone who likes problem solving and puzzles.

Share it with your students and colleagues.

App Store: http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=415722219&mt=8

Related:

STEM Resources for Educators and Students

Business/Manufacturing ideas applied to education

 

Business and Manufacturing Practices in Education. It's not a new idea, but I'm not talking about treating students like a product. I'm talking about some business and manufacturing processes that can help with other aspects of education. I've written about this before, but covering different ideas.

United Technologies Corporation has a quality program called ACE (Achieving Competitive Excellence)© that I used when I worked at Pratt & Whitney and Sikorsky Aircraft. Every employee is trained on ACE and expected to use it. They have been using it for decades and it does work. ACE is a "set of tools that helps the organization identify process improvement opportunities, solve problems and assist with decision making processes."

There are some great ideas in here that can be used for education. 

6S (sort, straighten, shine, standardize, sustain, safety) and add Spirt (to continuously improve)

This is a method to keep things organized.  A place for everything and everything in it's place. It means that things are labeled and signed and people know where to find things. This could help in education with keeping classrooms, offices, supplies, and paperwork organized, clean and clutter free, along with allowing others to find resources when needed. It is simple - everyday, employees make sure that they are keeping their area clean and organized and that every thing is labeled and put away at the end of the day.

TPM Total Productive Maintenance: safety/lockouts, equipment cleaning/inspection, scheduled walkarounds, preventative maintenance.

Too many times in education we are only fixing things when they break instead of maintaining them. This includes computers, office equipment and facilities. There should be scheduled maintenance of all of these things to prevent issues.

Process Cert/Mgmt: make processes effective, efficient, & agile - while being controllable & standard.
This is a way of evaluating processes and making them work better. This would include how things are done, such as running testing, handling problems, organizing the school day, school schedules, etc. Instead of just having things being done as they always have, this makes people evaluate how and why they do things the way they do and if it is the best way of doing things.

Standard Work: work is simplified & structured for max consistancy, repeatability, and quality
This is a great idea for repeating tasks, such as school startup, state testing, assemblies, office procedures, and more. The tasks are assessed and the best way of doing the task is written down in a procedure. We could use this for the start of school as each year things are missed and have to be done last minute. It's a great way to make sure that things are done the best way, every time.

QCPC: record turnbacks, investigate and eliminate reasons, RRCA: Relentless Root Cause Analysis and Mistake Proofing
I put these three together for education. QCPC is a way to track any problems, issues, errors, and the like so that they can be analyzed and the reason behind them found and fixed. RRCA is a way to look at a problem or mistake and keep digging to find the root cause of a problem. Mistake Proofing is a way of preventing the problem or issue from happening in the future.

An example would be that a student is failing a class. Why? He doesn't complete his work and doesn't come to school enough. Why? He has issues at home. Why? Because he is tired and sick often. Why? Because he works at a job all evening, 5 days a week. Why? Because his family needs the money. How do we fix it? Find a way to help the family so that the student does not have to work that many hours.

Market Feedback Analysis: improve product quality through use of data from customers, in-house.
This is something schools do in a way. They collect data on student performance and attendance. But what about getting actual feedback from the students on what they think about school, how things are going, what they are doing in school, how things could be improved? We should also be getting feedback from parents and the community.

(EH&S) Environment, Health and Safety - mistake proof, risk analysis, environmental impacts, safeguards
EH&S is about having a safe and healthy environment. Keeping things clean and in good repair, and helping to keep staff, faculty and students happy.

Six Sigma is another program, similar to ACE, that is used by many corporations in a similar way and it also has some great ideas that can be applied to education.

I think education can learn a lot from business practices, especially when it comes to quality improvement. All of these things can be used to improve things in schools, without treating anyone like a product.

Related:

Apply Business Practices to Education - great ideas that can help education

5 Tips for Success - in school, business and in life

ACE vs. Six Sigma report

ACE Overview
ACE Overview 2

Six Sigma in Education

Using Six Sigma to Solve Issues in Public School System

Free Academic Program (incl CAD software) from PTC

PTC, makers of Pro-Engineer professional CAD software, MathCad, and more, has an Academic Program for Schools. This program provides Free 3D Design and Engineering software, Free Online Training, Cutting edge industry Design Competitions, Online Communities for collaboration and learning, and Support from their engineers and educators.

This free program is a great way to engage students in STEM skills and teach them technology skills (CAD) through the competitions and project based learning. They will also learn valuable skills for the future through these kinds of programs.

Contact them for more information: http://www.ptc.com/appserver/wcms/forms/index.jsp?&im_dbkey=121302&icg_dbkey=482


Check out FREE CAD videos, design competitions, and so much more on the PTC Academic Program Facebook Page.

I've used Pro-Engineer as an engineer. It is an excellent program and PTC provides excellent support.

About PTC

PTC is the leading technology provider in product development software. We provide Product Lifecycle Management solutions to over 27,000 companies in the Industrial, High Tech, Automotive, Aerospace and Defense, Consumer, and Medical Device industries. 

Passionate about Education
For more than ten years, our team of engineers and educators have been working with schools to enhance the teaching and learning of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education. PTC believes that the sustained success of our company, our customers, and society depends on empowering each generation to solve real world economic, social, and environmental challenges.

(Thanks to Dolores Gende, @dgende, for the tip)




Related:

STEM Resources for Educators

LibreCAD - free, 2D CAD Software for Windows, OSX, and Linux
My Top 10 Free Google Resources for Education - includes Google Sketchup 3D modeling software.

NASA 3D Resources - fun and educational - includes downloadable models to use in CAD.

10 Important Skills Students need for the Future

Technology in use in Engineering

Some More Ideas for getting students engaged in STEM subjects

Science and Engineering Visualization Challenge - great STEM opportunity

How to Turn a Teen Into an Engineer

TryEngineering - engineering simulations and info on engineering

Project Based Learning resources for Educators

LibreCAD - free, 2D CAD Software for Windows, OSX, and Linux

LibreCAD is a free, open source, CAD application that is available for Windows, Apple, and Linux.

LibreCAD is a 2D Computer Aided Design application that has all the features you would expect in a 2D CAD system. It is available in over 20 different languages and for Windows, Mac, and multiple Linux distributions.

It is easy to use, with an intuitive menu and user interface.

This is a great resource for students and teachers to use. Some of my students used it to design their bridges for our bridge project.

Related/Similar:


My Top 10 Free Google Resources for Education - includes Google Sketchup 3D modeling software.

NASA 3D Resources - fun and educational - includes downloadable models to use in CAD.

NASA Simulation based Aerospace Resources for Educators

NASA's Simulation Based Aerospace Engineering Teacher Professional Development Program is a program geared towards helping educators become skilled in teaching engineering concepts. The program includes education materials, teacher internships, and industry and higher education partnerships. The program offers US STEM teachers the opportunity to work beside NASA engineers and mentors. It is focused on aeronautics modeling and simulation and teachers explore cutting-edge technology, aerospace engineering concepts, and develop hands-on lessons.

The site has lessons from previous sessions that teachers can download and use. The lessons include the simulation and lesson plan. The resource section has downloads, information on simulations, more lesson examples, and other STEM resources and links.


Related:

More great educational resources from NASA

STEM Resources for Educators and Students

TryEngineering - engineering simulations and info on engineering

TryEngineering is a great site about engineering. It has information on engineering careers, what engineers do, engineering colleges and more.

There are resources for students, teachers, counselors and parents about engineering careers, how to prepare, colleges and more. Students can explore what it takes to become an engineer, find a college, ask questions and get answers from engineers and engineering students, get news about engineering and technology and more.

The coolest part of the site though is the "Games" section. In this section, students can select from 27 different resources where they can design, model, and test products and solutions to problems, simulate engineering projects, answer engineering trivia questions and more. Projects include bionic arms, parachutes, solar cars, roller coasters, bridges and more. Some are hosted/created by TryEngineering and others are links to other sites. There are links to more information about each topic also. Some of the games are Flash Based, some Shockwave based, other HTML.

These "games" and simulations are a great way for students to learn about engineering and apply math, science, and problem solving skills to an authentic problem.

Related:

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math) Resources for students and Teachers.

(collection of resources, links, and more on science, technology, engineering and math lessons, careers and more)

10 Important Skills Students need for the Future

Report - U.S. Youth Reluctant to Pursue STEM Careers

A survey from ASQ shows that US Youth are Reluctant to Pursue STEM Careers. This report emphasizes the problem we have in the US with not enough students pursuing careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). STEM careers are what dry today's economy and will solve the issues and problems of the world. The US used to be a powerhouse in this area, but has lost ground to other countries. We, as educators, need to help and encourage students into these fields.

Students surveyed did say that STEM careers offered the best chance of getting a job in the future. But, they were concerned about obstacles that they would face. The obstacles: cost and time to get a degree in STEM is too high, their grades in STEM subjects aren't good enough, and STEM degree careers involve too much work and studying compared to other careers.

As an engineer (Worcester Polytechnic Institute 1992, Aerospace Engineering and 10 years as an engineer before becoming an educator, and still do consulting work) I would like to address these. First, you can attend in-expensive state schools and get an excellent engineering education. Second, as educators we need to help students improve their abilities and achievement in STEM subjects by changing how many of these classes are taught. The third one is an issue for me. Yes, STEM careers are hard and require a lot of studying and work. But this "obstacle" makes me think these students are lazy or uninformed. How many times do we hear students talking about become doctors, lawyers, nurses, accountants? These areas are part of STEM, yet many students don't think so. How many students actually understand that most college majors require a lot of work and effort?

As an engineering major, I had to do a lot of studying and work, especially with all the projects we did. But, I still got to be involved in other activities and have fun. After four years of college, I was able to get an excellent job in my career field. Many other careers required more education after your Bachelor's. Look at Social Work. You need a Master's degree and make half of what an engineer does.

STEM subjects and careers are very important to the world. We, as educators, need to encourage and help our students get interested in and pursue STEM careers. Have STEM career professionals visit your class. Take your class on a trip to see STEM professionals in action. Have STEM college majors who are graduates of your school come and visit and talk to students. Explore STEM careers in your classroom.

The world needs scientists, technologists, engineers, and mathematicians. Let's help our students become them.





Related:

STEM - description, ideas and resources for educators


STEM Resources for Educators


How to Turn a Teen into an Engineer


WPI Plan - A Great Educational Model for all Education


Engineering Resources for K-12


More Engineering Resources for K-12

Engineering is Elementary - STEM resources for children

Engineering is Elementary is a great site for introducing engineering and technical literacy in children. It has curriculum and lesson plans that integrate engineering and technology concepts and skills in elementary science concepts. The lessons can be used in any STEM class or even in literacy and social studies.

There are storybooks to introduce the students to the engineering problem, which they then have to solve in a hands on project.

This is a great resource to bring STEM topics and Project Based Learning to elementary students.



Related: 

STEM Resources for Educators

Getting Started with Project Based Learning

National Engineers Week Feb 19-25 - great resource for educators

National Engineers Week is February 19 - 25, 2012. This is a great time to expose students to engineering as a career and to incorporate engineering ideas and projects in your classes.

The National Engineers Week web site has resources for educators to use including lesson ideas, types of engineering, and much more. It's also a great resource for teachers to use all year long for STEM subjects.

The site also has information for engineers looking to get involved in spreading the word, including having them contact local schools to volunteer to come in and talk to the students about being an engineer. As educators, this is a great idea for us also. Bring in guest speakers to your classes to talk to the students.

Share the great opportunities and career that is engineering with your students. (I'm a little biased having been an Aerospace Engineer for 10 years before becoming an educator).

This falls on our February vacation week so I'm going to introduce it the week before and give them some interesting research to do over the break on a project we'll be doing in Physics class.


Related:

STEM Resources for Educators 

STEM Resources LiveBinder - lots of great resources

As a former engineer and current physics teacher, STEM subjects are a big deal to me. I recently created a permanent page on this blog to organize some of my favorite STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) resources and just found another great one that I've added to the list.

STEM Engineering Resources Livebinder is a Livebinder collection of great STEM resources. They are divided into categories - NASA Education, STEM Teacher Sites, Engineering Ed Resources, Blogs, News Articles, Student Resources, and Robotics. The resources and materials collected here are great for any teacher looking to increase or improve the STEM lessons in their classroom.

NASA - Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle site

NASA, which already has tons of great resources for education, has a great site about the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew vehicle. The Orion MPCV is the future for American manned space flight. It will be the exploration vehicle that will carry astronauts to space and then return them.



The site has information on the MPCV, information on the design, construction and engineering of it, and cut away views of the space craft.

This is a great way to get students excited and interested about STEM subjects and talk to them about the future of manned spaceflight.

Related:

NASA Education Resources

How to Turn a Teen Into an Engineer

photo from WPI Aerospace Engineer page

Thanks to Chris Fancher (@cfanch) for this article on how to get teens interested in engineering. As a former aerospace engineer, I know how important engineering is to the world. I try to use engineering examples and projects in my physics class to get students interested in engineering as a career. I'm a huge proponent of increasing and improving STEM education in K-12.

A recent study shows that teens are interested in engineering and that the most effective way to get them interested is to expose them to it. Engineers do some pretty amazing and cool things and we have to show our students this. Think about it. Everything around you was designed and manufactured by engineers! And, they make pretty darn good money. I am in my 10th year of teaching, have a Master's degree, and make about what I made over 10 years ago as an engineer.

Engineering has some characteristics that students like and help draw them to the career:

• average salary of $75,000 (although I just saw another report that says the average salary is $85k).
• career fairs well during recessions
• do really cool things!

The study showed that the students also became more interested in engineering when they really what engineers do and the opportunities that exist for engineers. Some examples cited where "rescuing the Chilean miners, delivering clean water to poor communities" and much more. The other big point was that more students became interested in engineering when they found out the role engineers have in music, social networking, and games. I also remind them that their smart phone had teams of engineers working to design and manufacture it. 

Girls are also getting more interested in engineering and organizations like the Society of Women Engineers helps get girls into engineering and keep them in the field. 

Some ideas to get them exposed to engineering:

• Discovery Education STEM resources and Streaming Videos ( )
• CBIA Engineering Careers resources and videos - these are great ways to expose students to engineering
• Bring in Engineers as guest speakers
• Take students to an engineering company and have them tour the facility and meet with engineers
• Take students to a college that has engineering programs and let them tour the labs and speak with engineering students
• Use Project Based Learning in your classroom so that students see how engineers work. PBL is about solving a problem and the process behind it. 

Engineering is a career that has hundreds of specialty areas and affects every aspect of human life. We need more students to get into engineering and educators can help them get interested. 

Related:

STEM - description, ideas and resources for educators

Aerospace Students - resources for all aspects of Aerospace Engineering education

I seem to be on some sort of roll, or in a rut, and keep finding and posting about STEM resources for educators and students.

The newest one is specifically for Aerospace and is Aerospace Students. The site is the "home for future Aerospace Engineers". I'm a little bit biased as I was an Aerospace Engineer.

The site has a variety of resources and information and including a study guide. Then, for each year (1st - 4th) it has "courses" based on different subjects the future aero engineer would be studying. For example, the Introduction to Aerospace Engineering course has links, videos, exercises, formulas, and more.There are classes on aircraft structures, calculus, engineering drawing, materials, aerodynamics and much more.

These resources can be used by students or educators in full as an engineering program or in part to integrate into other classes.

The materials are of high quality and are easy to use.

Related

Engine Education - great resource from Pratt&Whitney on how engines work

Rockets - a great project for the end of the year for any class

STEM - description, ideas and resources for educators

New High School STEM Resource from MIT

Engineering Interact - Interactive science & engineering for 9-11
year olds

Discovery Education STEM resources

More Engineering Resources for K12 Educators and Students

Some More Ideas for getting students engaged in STEM subjects
Infographic - critical components for STEM schools

Some More Ideas for getting students engaged in STEM subjects

Engineering is a passion of mine. I have a BS Degree in Mechanical Engineering-Aerospace, from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and worked for 10 years as an engineer before making a career change to education. I still do some engineering consulting work also. I use engineering concepts and ideas in my physics class, encourage students to look at engineering as a career, and run an after-school pre-engineering program at my school.

One of the ways I get students interested in science and engineering is to show them some of the cool things that scientists and engineers do. I use a variety of resources to find things to share with them and do lots of projects in class. I let them chose a project topic each year also so that they can investigate anything that they are interested in (as long as it has some relation to physics, which pretty much everything does).

There are some great videos out there from Discovery Education, on TV, and on YouTube that show technology related to something the students know. I love doing amusement park physics and let them design their own roller coasters.

You can also have guest speakers come into your class and speak to the students about their career as a scientist or engineer or mathematician. A former VP of Sikorsky Aircraft (and test pilot) was a graduate of the high school I teach at so I had him come in and speak to the students. I also take some of them to Sikorsky Aircraft for a tour of the plant and engineering.

Here are some pictures, with descriptions, that you can use with your students to get them excited about STEM topics.

Boeing Sikorsky RAH-66 Comanche Helicopter

Stealth, composite structures, very fast and manueverable

Engineer's workstation - high powered desktop with CAD software on left screen and internet on right. Very cool to use. This is my workstation from one of the consulting jobs I did recently. 

Engineer's work bench. Work on prototypes. 

Laser Cutter. Uses laser to cut through metal up to 1" thick. 

CAD drawing of a printer. 

Analysis view of a race car. Airflow analysis. 

Schlieren photography of a hairdryer showing airflow due to temperature differences. 

CAD drawing of a large tractor. 

Cutaway drawing of a Pratt and Whitney Turbofan Engine. 

FlowJet - uses a high pressure stream of water to cut metal. That always gets them excited. 

Cutaway of a Boeing 777. 

CAD Drawing of a small aircraft. 

Pictures, videos, guest speakers, field trips, and projects are all great ways of getting students more interested and engaged in STEM subjects.



Other STEM Resources:

STEM - description, ideas and resources for educators

More Engineering Resources for K12 Educators and Students

More Engineering Resources for K12 Educators and Students

Engineering is a passion of mine. I have a BS Degree in Mechanical Engineering-Aerospace, from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and worked for 10 years as an engineer before making a career change to education. I still do some engineering consulting work also. I use engineering concepts and ideas in my physics class, encourage students to look at engineering as a career, and run an after-school pre-engineering program at my school. I think that engineering is an excellent career choice for many students and the engineering process is a very powerful method of solving problems that all students should learn. I also think that WPI's educational model is one that K12 can use ideas from.

I recently posted about STEM and engineering resources and the emphasis on STEM being placed on schools.

I've posted engineering resources before, but I wanted to share some new ones along with re-sharing some oldies but goodies.

Engineering Interact is a great site to introduce engineering concepts and processes to 9-11 year olds.

The site has 5 different games based on different science topics that give students a chance to learn while playing. The games teach students about the concepts. The concepts are: Light, Sound, Forces and Motion, Earth and Beyond, Electricity.

There are also links to other resources about science and engineering.

This is a great resource for younger students, but the games can be used with older students also.

NASA at Home and City is a great site from NASA that shows examples of how technologies developed for space exploration are used and applied on Earth.

The site is graphic based, easy to use, and very informative. It's a great resource to share with students to show them how developments for one thing can apply to another.

PreK-12 Engineering is a site with free resources for educators to integrate engineering concepts and activities into preK through 12th grade classrooms. The activities are linked to the Massachusetts Science and Technology/Engineering Curriculum Framework.

The activities are really well thought out and developed and I have used many of them.

Things are sorted by grade level for easy searching.

For more resources on engineering: http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/10/engineering-resources.html

American Society for Engineering Education - great resource with information about all types of engineering, educator resources, and more.

Engineering - Go For It! - this site is produced by the ASEE (see above) and is completely devoted to promoting engineering. It has resources for educators and students, as well as lessons and career exploration resources.

American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics - has resources for aerospace engineering careers. Educators can join for free and get even more resources.

Society of Automotive Engineers - has resources about engineers dealing with the automotive industry.

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineer - resources about engineers in the electronics and electrical engineering.

Engineering Challenges - this site lists and explores the greatest challenges facing engineers in regards to world issues. This is a great site to use as a starting point for your own classroom projects.

Discover Engineering - another great site that explores engineering as a career.

CT Business and Industry Association - CBIA has an education section. They have a great resource about Engineering. The site also has videos you can show to your students.

Next Generation Manufacturing Center - this is a cooperative group of manufacturers, CBIA and CT's Community Colleges. They work to get more students interested in engineering and manufacturing. There are some great videos on the site, too. They have a lot of great programs, including the Engineering Challenge. They also sponsor summer externships for teachers. These externships pay teachers to spend the summer at a local manufacturing company learning about their industry and coming up with ways to get more students involved in engineering and manufacturing. I was able to participate two years ago and found it to be a great experience.

Please share any resources you have and spread the word to your students about engineering. Even the President has said that students should avoid careers as lawyers and accountants, and instead look at engineering, science, and education.

STEM - description, ideas and resources for educators

STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) is a term that has become more and more popular lately as the federal government is pushing for improvements in student performance in these areas. The United States needs more students to enter these fields and, in general, the public needs to be more educated about these topics to be better informed citizens.



There are a lot of initiatives, programs, and resources related to STEM and I will try to share as many as possible while explaining what they are.



The White House has the Educate to Innovate campaign to “improve the participation and performance of America’s students in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).” The campaign is also being supported by companies, foundations and science and engineering societies. Discovery is one of the major players and they already have a huge number of resources for STEM (many listed below). The goal is to increase STEM literacy so that all students can think critically and learn in STEM topics.



One of the things happening on the national level is a new Science Framework that is being developed to pave the way for new science standards. The new framework will emphasize depth over breadth, using scientific inquiry and the engineering design process as part of their learning experience, and having core scientific concepts revisited at multiple grade levels to help build on prior learning and facilitate a deeper understanding. Part of this includes more science education at the elementary level, including training for teachers. There is a strong emphasis on engineering and technology in the framework. The engineering design process is an excellent way to teach problem solving and engineering and technology is the application of the science concepts students are learning. NextGenScience is the site related to this topic and teachers can find more information. You can download a free PDF book about the New Science Framework here.



I am a former engineer. I received my BS Degree in Mechanical Engineering - Aerospace, from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and worked for 10 years as an engineer before becoming an educator. WPI has a project based curriculum and I use many of their ideas in my classroom now. WPI is even creating a STEM Education center to help train teachers.I teach Physics and use engineering in my classes all the time. I teach the students the engineering design process and we do a lot of projects. I also run an after school pre-engineering program at my school (CPEP). My engineering education and experience has given me the skills to solve problems, think critically, learn on my own, and apply knowledge to applications. I feel that this is what we need to be teaching our students.



The engineering design process is a cycle. It emphasizes that things don’t always work the first time and that you analyze what happened, redesign, and try again. I like to share with students the fact that most of what they see around them was designed by teams of engineers who had failures and had to redesign and retest before they got it right. Failure is ok. The process is a great model for using in any field, and any problem.



So, how can teachers incorporate more STEM into their classrooms?



Science teachers should discuss engineering careers and topics related to the subject that they are teaching. They should also explore some of the technology used in their discipline. Teach students the engineering design process as a way to solve problems.  Math teachers can relate the math concepts to science and engineering applications. History, English, Music and Art teachers can all relate things that they are teaching in their class to a STEM subject. For example, in Art and Music there is a lot of physics and math in both that can be related. English teachers could have students read articles about science instead of other topics and even relate things in the books they are reading. History teachers could bring in how STEM has affected societies and the course of history. Teachers can even talk about fiction, TV, movies, and such and explore the STEM concepts, even the incorrect ones, in them.



Schools should also look to after school programs that deal with STEM topics such as CPEP, First Robotics, JETS and more. Many are self-funded so there is no cost to the schools.



There are a lot of great resources for teachers to use to find ideas, lesson plans, and other information to incorporate STEM into their classrooms. They do not have to do it alone and it does not have to take a lot of time or effort to incorporate STEM topics and ideas into any classroom.

STEM topics can be incorporated into any class, about any subject. If you are not a STEM teacher, ask someone who is for some ideas and help. Work together with other teachers to come up with some interdisciplinary projects and lessons. Have fun with it!




RESOURCES:

NASA Engineering Design Process - NASA’s definition and outline for the engineering design process


WPI Plan - WPI’s project based, integrated curriculum. Good model for all schools to use.


Simplified Version of Engineering Design Process


Discovery Education Siemens STEM Academy - great, free resource, with tons of information and lessons. - excellent resource.


Introduction to Engineering presentation - presentation I created for students that introduces them to engineering careers and concepts.


Engineering Interact Interactive - lessons for using engineering topics


High School STEM Resources from MIT


Science of Everyday Life - free resource from Discovery Education that has great ideas and resources for relating science to everyday life. - excellent resource.


Engineering Career Resources from CBIA (CT Business and Industry Assoc.) - free career descriptions, videos, and teacher resources on science, engineering and health careers. - excellent resource.


Science Channel’s Be The Future - resources, links, lesson plans, and more all about STEM.


Change the Equation - resources to improve teaching and learning in STEM



STEM Coalition - resources, links, lesson plans, and more for STEM Education. - excellent resource.


Pratt and Whitney - How a Jet Engine Works


NASA at Home and City - space developments related to life on Earth


Technology in Use in Engineering


PreK-12 Engineering - teaching engineering concepts in any grade


List of Engineering Resources to use in school with students. Lots of great resources listed here.


Ask Polaris - engineering career help and advice


Head Rush - great show on the Science Channel about science. Spin off from Mythbusters (another great way to get kids excited about science).



Forensics are another great way to get students excited about STEM subjects:

CSI The Experience Web Adventures - great resource

PhET - Online, free simulations and virtual labs for science and math










Share your resources with us!