User:Vtaylor/k8engineering/about...

About

http://k8engineering.edublogs.org/about/

K-8 Engineering Open Learning Experience (OLE)

It’s a newsletter, a blog, an online resource, a collaborative project, a learning community, and so much more…

OPEN – All the resources are online Open Educational Resources (OERs) and available free of charge under the Creative Commons licenses.

Open Educational Resources (OERs) are web accessible – desktop, mobile, tablet, phone. They are learner-centered, self-directed, guided, facilitated, learning paths. They provide a range of options – media, depth, breadth. K-8 Engineering is using technology to support learning that is improved or not possible without it.

LEARNING EXPERIENCE – Everyone can be a contributor and curator as well as consumer, learner or lurker – you choose.

K-8 Engineering

Engineering is the E in STEM and STEAM but most people don’t know much about it. We are here to change that.

Engineering is everywhere. Everything in the “built environment” or “man made” – buildings, roads, water and power distribution, agriculture and space exploration are all the work of engineers.

This is a place where kids create and facilitate the online experience, suggest activities and recommend K-8 Engineering resources.

intro to engineering

http://k8engineering.edublogs.org/intro-to-engineering/

K-8 Engineering is presented as a series of conversations about key concepts and areas of interest.

Topics of conversation

We will explore how engineering plays a big part in our “built environment” as well as how scientists do their work with the help of engineers.

e4k mooc

https://engineering4kids.org/about/e4k-mooc/

mooc - massively open online course

MOOCs are the big new thing in education, whether for universities and colleges or business and special interest courses. "Learning is free, credit costs money." Typically all the information and teaching is available online free of charge. Courses may have a specific schedule with regular assignments, discussions, live webinar sessions. MOOCs may be entirely self-directed or facilitated.

e4k - engineering for kids

For many years, Engineering is been the silent E in STEM (or STEAM with the inclusion of Art). The new Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) have elevated Engineering to be the fourth thread as an equal to Earth, Life and Physical Science. The important practice of integrating Engineering will provide greater visibility for the application of the other sciences. More than just toothpick bridges with a one-time load test, Engineering becomes real. Bio-mimicry of animal adaptation to make a better robot is a better representation of the practice of engineering and the kinds of engineering careers that have broader appeal.

e4k mooc

Based on open educational resources (OERs), the units / modules address the topics covered in the NGSS starting from the Engineering perspective.

• address all the standards in the NGSS science curriculum
• focus on lower grades when kids are still interested
• lots of application, hands-on, self-directed, differentiation