A Tool to Get Kids Thinking about Engineering
Engineering may sound pretty boring to your typical tween or teen. Do you ever talk to your students about STEM careers in engineering? We really can’t expect them to appreciate all the creative possibilities without some “awareness raising.”
Last spring at my MiddleWeb blog, I posted an article with the title “Could Engineering Be the Coolest Job Ever?” In it, I shared some language we might use to interest students in researching the many exciting job prospects in STEM-related fields. I hope you’ll check it out. At the end of the article, you’ll find a link to download the content and adapt it for your own classroom.
Need something quick? Here’s another resource I’ve put together – the Engineering Interest Check-up. You could use it with my MiddleWeb post or as a stand-alone. It’s a 3-minute, one page student awareness survey. Click on the image below to download it as an editable Word document.
Just click!
Hi Anne
I am a researcher in India, working in the broader area of STEM education at the school level. I am passionate about training school teachers, especially changing their mindsets from syllabus completion and exam-oriented rote learning to freedom to learn. A major challenge is the curriculum and number of students in class. I am organizing a workshop to introduce a set of pre-service teachers to the STEM approach. Any suggestions and resources that may be helpful?
Sushma – We apologize for the slow response. Anne has been super busy… first working on a STEM curriculum for elementary level… and now finished up a very revised 2nd edition of STEM By Design. I’m her collaborating editor and I can tell you that it will contain some great messaging for teachers who need to be convinced about freeing students to explore STEM through engineering design projects and more. — John Norton, MiddleWeb.com
Can’t wait to read it