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They weld cars, explore Mars, serve drinks, and even crack jokes. Are robots conquering the world? Perhaps not as portrayed in science fiction, but intelligent machines are helping humans from STEM classrooms to hospitals. Your engineers will extend their grasp with this month's activity marking National Robotics Week April 4 - 11. Watch them reach for the stars!
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| Activity: Hydraulic Arm Challenge
Teams of students in grades 6 to 8 follow the engineering design process to develop and build a mechanical arm that can lift and move an empty 12-ounce soda can using hydraulics for power. One group designs and builds the grasping hand, another does the lifting arm, and a third does the rotation base, collaborating like real engineers.
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RELATED LESSONS
Robot Basketball (Grades 5-12)
Mars Rover Racers (Grades 5-9)
Robot Soccer Challenge (Grades 4-8)
1,2 Robot Hands Please Tie My Shoe (1-12)
MORE LESSONS:
Grades K-5 | Grades 6-8 | Grades 9-12
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Feature: Going My Way?
What if you want to travel across the country but don't have a driver's license or money to take a plane or bus? If you're a cute little robot named hitchBOT, you hitchhike. And amazingly, humans stop and pick you up!
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RELATED FEATURES:
'Bot Diggity: Teaching STEM with Robots for All
Cynthia Breazeal Designs Friendly Robots
Robots to the Rescue!
Ping Pong Champ vs. Machine
Teen makes brainwave-operated prosthetic arm
Kittens vs. Robots (video)
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| Spotlight: NASA to Teens: Game On!
 Meteorites, a mysterious dust that causes adults to lose consciousness, and a mission to save their parents. That's the premise of DUST, a free, multiplayer, alternative-reality game developed by college students working with NASA engineers to get teens - particularly young women and minorities - interested in STEM.
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Announcements
March Madness -- The NCAA basketball tournament is a great way to engage students in STEM. Check out eGFI's roster of activities and resources. Learn more.
White House Science Fair -- Tune in on Monday, March 23, for a live-stream glimpse of America's youngest scientists and engineers displaying their cool inventions. Learn more.
STEM Voice Video Contest -- Kids in grades 5-12 create videos about why they love STEM for a chance to win up to $1,000. Apply by April 17. Learn more.
Volunteer to Pilot NGSS Test -- The AAAS seeks science teachers to field test multiple-choice items on energy for students in grades 4-12. Register by March 31. Learn more.
Google Science Fair. -- Students 13 to 18 can win $50,000 in scholarships, trips to the Galapagos, and more in this global contest. Projects due May 19. Learn more.
Young Minds Design Contest. -- Middle and high school students create a product to solve a problem or improve a process. Enter by May 31. Learn more.
Internet of Things. -- Young women 13 to 18 design ways to improve the world by harnessing the power of connected technologies. New deadline: May 19. Learn more.
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 Want to engage your STEM students? Whether you seek fun, hands-on activities to enrich your classes or a chance to network with peers and engineering educators from across the country, the American Society for Engineering Education's K-12 Workshop in Seattle is the place to be on June 13! Early registrants may qualify for a $10 discount. Read more. |
 It's never too early to learn about engineering. Along with our 5th Edition magazine and classroom cards, Engineering, Go For It offers an engaging children's book in its collection of learning materials.
"If I Were an Engineer," from the American Society for Engineering Education, is a fun, 40-page rhyming book that introduces engineering to kids 5 to 8 years old. It includes a parent page that explains the various engineering disciplines. Price: $7.95 Now available in our store. |
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