Any teacher will tell you that getting students to work together effectively in teams is not easy. Simply telling students to work together won’t lead to productive collaboration. The term “collaboration” has many definitions, but most writers agree it’s more than just working in a group. Collaboration is the act of engaging in creative group work that sparks innovation and productivity. To accomplish this, teachers need to model productive collaboration and give students authentic opportunities to collaborate. Of course, this is always easier said than done. Because EiE values collaboration and views collaboration as an essential part of engineering (and of life), we developed curricula that models for teachers easy and effective ways to encourage productive collaboration.

Summer is a great time to take your mind off of work and relax with your friends at a backyard BBQ. But for the EiE team, there’s no such thing as a day off from engineering. Whether we’re at weddings, graduations, birthday parties, or baby showers, we’re constantly imagining ways we can use the Engineering Design Process to improve the festivities. And we don’t mean to brag, but we’re pretty sure we’ve perfected the summer cookout. So this summer, give our super practical BBQ technology tips a try. We guarantee that everyone will be talking about your gathering for years to come.

Today’s guest blogger is Kate Sokol, a curriculum designer for EiE.

This past March, a small EiE crew—a film producer, a sound engineer, and a handful of EiE curriculum developers—traveled across the country to explore NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), interview NASA engineers, and create a video introducing middle-school-aged youth to the field of remote sensing for our upcoming Engineering Everywhere unit Worlds Apart: Engineering Remote Sensing Devices.

Summer time is STEM time! Out-of-school-time educators can use our OST curricula, Engineering Everywhere and Engineering Adventures, in their summer programs—and parents can have a blast with STEM activities this summer, too! The EiE team can’t overstate the value of continuing to engage children in STEM activities when school isn’t in session. Check out some cool resources we found from parents, educators, and engineering enthusiasts to keep the STEM fun going all year long!

Have you used Engineering Everywhere (EE), EiE’s out-of-school-time program for youth in grades 6–8? This free-to-download curriculum empowers youth to become engineers and solve problems that are personally meaningful and globally relevant. EE units engage the youth in your OST program with context-setting videos, articles about real-world technologies, and exciting design challenges. If you’re curious, why not dip your toes into the water with Go Fish: Engineering Prosthetic Tails? It’s an EE unit that challenges youth to become biomechanical engineers as they design prosthetic devices that help animals in need.