If you ask someone to draw a picture of a scientist, chances are, they’ll sketch a figure wearing a white lab coat. Ask someone to draw an engineer, and they might sketch a figure wearing . . .  a white lab coat.

Scientists and engineers do have a lot in common, but they also have significant differences. The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) create new expectations that classroom teachers will integrate engineering with science instruction. But many teachers, and elementary teachers in particular, feel poorly prepared for this challenge.

With this need in mind, we've created a short video for our Spotlight series, a collection of videos that illuminate effective classroom practices for teaching elementary engineering with the EiE curriculum. “The Difference Between Science and Engineering” takes concise look at the connections between the two subjects, how they’re different, and why it’s important to teach them together in elementary school. 

The word “theory” has a precise meaning for scientists . . .  and often a different meaning for politicians (“An evidence-based explanation of a phenomenon” versus “Oh, it’s just a hunch”). In much the same way, the word “failure” seems to have one meaning in the engineering workplace and another in school (“Failure is normal, it helps you learn” versus “You got a failing grade”).

“As we bring engineering into elementary classrooms, we are bringing in a new way of thinking and speaking about failure,” says Dr. Pam Lottero-Perdue, an associate professor of science education at Towson University with a background in engineering. “Teachers will need to understand BOTH ways of thinking about failure—to become guides who help students navigate that border crossing.”

Recent changes in Massachusetts academic standards mean that teachers in the state will be integrating more engineering content and practices with the science lessons they teach.This new expectation for STEM instruction can be uncomfortable for elementary teachers, who don’t usually take engineering coursework as part of their teacher preparation.

A recent grant to the Museum of Science, Boston by the information technology company Oracle will help 20 Massachusetts educators boost their classroom engineering skills as they learn to use the award-winning Engineering is Elementary curriculum, developed at the Museum's National Center for Technological Literacy®

Just in time for summer camp, EiE’s Engineering Everywhere curriculum has two new hands-on curriculum units designed for middle school-aged engineers:

• “It’s About Time” poses a mechanical engineering challenge: Design your own timekeeping device
• “Plants to Plastics” is a chemical engineering challenge: Make plastic from ecofriendly plant-based materials 

The June 2015 online issue of Educational Leadership explores the theme “Improving Schools from Within.” The magazine invited educators to share stories of schools that changed for the better—and how they did it. 

Emily Hardee, a North Carolina STEM coordinator, tells the story of a Raleigh elementary school that transformed itself from one of the lowest performing schools in the district into a STEM school that’s a model for the state. We’re gratified to know that the Engineering is Elementary curriculum played a part in the change.