Engineering Discussion Starters


Discussion Starters - Educational Innovations NewsletterNeed help launching a class discussion on engineering? We’ve compiled some awesome ideas.  Some of these websites offer ready-to-go lessons… others share exciting interviews with scientists involved in engineering.  All of them are worth a visit!

If you find a worthy site that we haven’t mentioned here, please let us know in the comments section below. Read the rest of this entry »


Engineering TV


EI TV - Educational Innovations BlogWhy would someone want to become an engineer?  What do engineers do?  Videos are a great way to answer these questions.  If you’ve enjoyed videos on this topic, please share them with us!

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You Said It! Engineering Product Reviews


You Said It! Product Reviews - Educational Innovations Newsletter

We know that teachers are always looking for new ways to bring hands-on science into the classroom, and that certainly includes engineering materials.  Who doesn’t love building things?

Educational Innovations is proud to offer an unmatched array of new construction materials as well as an impressive collection of simple machines… just to name a few of our many engineering-related products.  These materials promote exploratory learning, and encourage students to stay actively engaged in their work.

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Classroom Coasters, Mazes and More!


Chris Herald

By Chris Herald
NSTA STEM Teacher Ambassador 2017

I always love when Spring arrives because we start physics topics in my eighth grade physical science class!  Don’t get me wrong—my first love is chemistry and I have a Master’s degree to prove it—but there’s just something about physics in the Spring.  My students delve into the topics of speed and momentum with great gusto.  Two highlights?  Rolling marbles down a ruler and designing their own Hot Wheels experiment.  Not only are these students exploring some key physics topics, they are ALSO getting a chance to dabble in engineering:  a great combination!

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What Does It Take to Be an Engineer?


What Does It Take to Be an Engineer? - Educational Innovations BlogBy Cathy Byrne

This is one of my favorite team-building, icebreaker activities.  It’s also a great way to introduce your students to engineering!  It can be done with students at many different grade levels.  At the beginning of class, I start by welcoming my students to the staff of [Insert-the-name-of-your-school-here] Engineering Company.

I split the class into small groups and tell them: your team has been tasked with constructing the tallest free-standing tower you can build with the materials provided.  I give each team a bag containing 20 pipe cleaners and I let them dive right in.  It doesn’t take long for the teams to figure out that they need a strong base to hold the flimsy pipe cleaners.

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