Teaching Resources

Biomimicry (http://www.biomimicryinstitute.org/education/k-12/curricula.html)
Biomimicry is the science and art of emulating nature’s best biological ideas to solve human problems.  Site contains lessons and other resources to promote biomimicry in your classroom.

Cardboard Chair (http://www.scribd.com/doc/2264633/Cardboard-Chair-Design-Brief)
Classroom lesson which engages students in the design process to create a cardboard chair.

Design Squad (http://pbskids.org/designsquad/)
Companion website to the PBS reality-based television show featuring teams of 15-19 year olds who are presented with raw materials and a challenge to transform them into workable solutions. Website offers downloadable resources, descriptions of the show’s engineering challenges and solutions, and video clips that highlights the role of engineers in society.

Discover Engineering (http://www.discoverengineering.org)
Site designed for middle school students but the careers profiles and facts and some video challenge activities could be adapted for use with high school students.

Engineering Go For It (http://egfi-k12.org/)
By the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE). Contains a wealth of resources to promoting and enhance K-12 STEM and engineering education. Teachers can access lesson plans and sign up for e-newsletters.  Students will enjoy the virtual magazine featuring articles about innovative engineers. 

Teach Engineering (http://www.teachengineering.org/)
A digital library comprised of teacher-tested, standards-based engineering content for K-12 teachers engineering content for K12 teachers to use in science and math classrooms. Engineering lessons connect real-world experiences with curricular content already taught in K-12 classrooms. Mapped to educational content standards, TeachEngineering's comprehensive curricula are hands-on, inexpensive, and relevant to children's daily lives.

Try Engineering (http://tryengineering.org/)
Developed for students, teachers, counselors, and parents, Try Engineering features lessons plans, contains a bank of student design challenges, highlights engineering careers, and connects students with answers to their engineering questions through the “Ask an Expert” feature.

Vocational Information Center http://www.khake.com/page82.html
An education directory of lesson plans and activities for technical education and related vocational learning.

 

STEM Resources Designed for Girls

BrainCake (http://www.braincake.org/)
The Girls, Math & Science Partnership's mission is to engage, educate, and embrace girls as architects of change.  Working with girls age 11 - 17 and their parents, teachers, and mentors, we draw organizations, stakeholders, and communities together in an effort to ensure that girls succeed in math and science. 

Engineer Girl (http://www.engineergirl.org/)
Though aimed primarily at middle school girls, this National Academy of Engineering resource offers profiles of women engineers, information about engineering careers, shares "fun facts" and sponsors an annual engineering essay contest for girls in grades 3-12.

Engineer Your Life (http://www.engineeryourlife.org/)
An online guide to engineering careers for high school girls. Short video vignettes and photo essays showcase female engineers working to solve problems - saving lives, preventing disease, reducing poverty, and protecting our planet.

National Girls Collaborative Project (http://ngcproject.org/index.cfm)
A national effort aimed at facilitating the coordination of girl-serving projects, organizations, and institutions focused on creating and sustaining gender equity in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Radio Stories (http://www.womeninscience.org/)
Listen to stories about fascinating women working and learning in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields; and learn about programs and practices throughout the U.S. designed to broaden the participation of women in STEM. Suggestions as to how teachers might use these in their classrooms are included.

References

A Sightseer’s Guide to Engineering (http://www.engineeringsights.org/)
Take a virtual trip across the country to learn more about how engineers make our lives safer, easier, and more fun!

Extreme Engineering (http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/engineering/archives/archives.html)
Take virtual tours and interactive journeys of incredible mechanical feats and amazing constructions including Boston’s Big Dig, New York’s New Subway, TransAtlantic Trains, Tokyo’s Sky City, and more. From the Discovery Channel.

Grand Challenges for Engineering Grand Challenges for Engineering (http://www.engineeringchallenges.org/)
The National Academies of Engineering (NAE) Committee on Engineering's Grand Challenges has identified 14 areas awaiting engineering solutions in the 21st century. Site includes background information on each identified challenge and provides a platform for global thinking of these challenges.

Greatest Engineering Achievements of the 20th Century
(http://www.greatachievements.org/)
A listing of the top 20 achievements of the 20th Century. Users can click on an item in the list to learn how engineering shaped a century and changed the world.

Occupational Outlook Handbook
Handbook describing hundreds of jobs, the training and education needed, earnings, expected job prospects, what workers do on the job, and working conditions.

The 15 Coolest Cases of Biomimicry (http://brainz.org/15-coolest-cases-biomimicry/) This site showcases biologically inspired engineering.

Wind Power in Maine (http://www.windpoweringamerica.gov/ne_projects.asp)

Wind for Schools RFP (http://www.windpoweringamerica.gov/schools_wfs_project.asp)

 

Engineering and Tech Design Standards

Maine’s Learning Results

Standards for Technological Literacy

Advancing Excellence in Technological Literacy

Benchmarks for Science Literacy

National Science Education Standards

 

Organizations, Associations and Universities

Boston’s Museum of Science Engineering the Future

Engineering the Future Discussion Board

University of Maine College of Engineering

University of Southern Maine Department of Engineering

Technology Education Association of Maine

International Technology Education Association

 

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