Presented at EarthEd, Ballarat on 26th July, 2016

1. STEM in the Middle Years
EarthEd Centre, Ballarat
Activities that encourage science,
technology, engineering and maths
learning

2. What is STEM?
• The acronym stands for Science, Technology,
Engineering and Mathematics, but it is more
then the sum of its parts
• Not just a collection of content areas, but a
transdisciplinary approach that provides
authentic contexts for modern learning
• The focus is on developing skills such as
collaboration, critical thinking, creativity,
problem solving and effective communication

4. The STEM process
• Ask – Research, define the problem, what’s
the brief?
• Imagine – Generate ideas, brainstorm
• Plan – Choose a solution
• Create – Construct and develop a prototype
• Evaluate – test and troubleshoot
• Improve – Refine and adjust
• Communication - Results

5. STEM activities
• STEM activities can range from very simple,
low-cost, low tech (for example, cardboard,
paper or plastic straw construction) to high-
tech gadgetry such as 3D printing, robotics
and drones.
• You don’t need a state-of-the-art MakerSpace
or expensive electronic equipment to start
making!

6. Geodesic sphere
• A geodesic structure is
strong, light and based
on triangles.
• Challenge students to
create a dome or
sphere using just plastic
straws.

7. Tallest structure from playing cards
• Which team can
construct the tallest
structure using just
playing cards and no
tape, glue or other
fixings?
• The world record is 7.71
metres!
• https://www.youtube.c
om/watch?v=fgrJuW_u
KgI

8. Spaghetti marshmallow challenge
• How tall can you make a
tower from just
spaghetti and
marshmallows?

9. Paper chair for teddy
• Using only paper and
tape can you build a
chair that supports a
stuffed toy?

10. Paper aeroplane
• Using an A4 page, fold a
paper plane
• Decide what is the
‘best’ paper plane – is it
the one that flies the
furthest or the highest?
• Test and improve

11. Bridge Challenge
• How much weight can a
bridge bear?
• What is the span
length?
• There are four types of
bridge – beam, arch,
suspension and
cantilever.

12. Bridge Challenge
A bridge challenge can be suitable for a variety
of ages and take from 15 minutes to many days!
• Icy-pole sticks and glue (from 50 to unlimited)
• Straws and skewers
• Spaghetti and marshmallows
• Playing cards and tape
• Paper and string

13. Shadow puppets

14. Ice cube challenge
• Design a container to
keep an ice cube frozen
for the longest time.

15. Car launch
• How far can you get a
model car to travel
without pushing it or
applying external force?
• Use ramps and gravity
to launch your vehicle.
• Measurement, ordering
decimals, angles, forces

16. Marble Drop
• Design a maze for
marble or table-tennis
ball
• Can be attached to the
wall

17. Rube Goldberg
Machines
• Unnecessarily complex
devices that achieve
simple tasks, often
involving domino falls,
rolling balls, ramps,
tubes, levers and
wheels.

19. Create a Hologram

20. 3D Google Glasses – Virtual Reality

21. Soft Circuits

22. Wearable Tech
• Clothing and accessories with integrated
circuits
• FitBits, light-up shoes, GPS in AFL, smart
watches
• Smart helmets that monitor heart-rate etc
• Boxing gloves that track performance
• Backpacks with inbuilt solar panels
• LEDs and sensors on your fingernails

23. 3D printing
• Useful for custom design, such as prosthetics
and prototypes.
• Students can use programs such as Google
SketchUp to create their designs and then 3D
print them in plastic.
• “Moat Boat” is a challenge to make your
rubber-band powered boat travel the longest
distance.

25. Moat Boats
3D printed paddle
boats – how far can
a boat powered by a
rubber band travel?

27. Robotics
• Kibo – early years
• BeeBots and BlueBots - primary
• Sphero – rolling robots
• Ozobots – tiny light-sensing robots
• Dash and Dot – programmable with drag-and-
drop coding

32. ‘Sphero’ rolling
robots

33. Drones
Can you control
a drone?

34. Makey-Makey

41. Coding Resources
• https://code.org/
• Hour of Code: https://code.org/learn
• Unplugged:
https://code.org/curriculum/course2/1/Teach
er
• Computer Science Unplugged:
http://csunplugged.org/
• Scratch: https://scratch.mit.edu/