Every Thursday on the EiE Blog we provide teaching tips and resources for your engineering classroom.

Reading the storybook? Download the illustrations!

When Brittney Armstrong taught her first Engineering is Elementary unit to second graders at Slaughter Elementary in Louisville, KY, she was concerned. "It took us two entire class periods to complete the storybook and discuss it," she says. "That was too long for second graders."

When she shared her concern with another EiE teacher, Brittney got a helpful tip: You can download the illustrations for each of the 20 EiE storybooks from the project website!

What features would YOU like to see in a digital storybook?

When teachers talk, we listen. You told us you love the storybooks that introduce each Engineering is Elementary unit . . . but you’ve also shared ideas for enhancements. So we’re pleased to announce a new project here at EiE: the Digital Storybook Initiative. Digital storybooks are books you read on a tablet or computer; we’re creating digital versions of all 20 EiE storybooks that will have a host of flexible features to support every learning style.

Now we need your help! Please share your thoughts on the most useful features for this new kind of book by taking a brief online survey.

See you at the NSTA STEM Forum!

The National Science Teachers Association holds its annual STEM Forum and Expo later this week in Denver. A team from Engineering is Elementary will be there, and we’d love to see you. Find us at booth #527 in the exhibit hall, and check out five sessions featuring hands-on EiE in-school and afterschool activities. Review the list below and mark your calendar today!

Travel to Mongolia on your next Engineering Adventure!

India and Jacob are off on another adventure! In the latest installment of “Engineering Adventures,” our afterschool curriculum for grades 3–5, the globe-trotting duo is posting reports from Mongolia, where they’re attending Naadam, a traditional festival featuring wrestling, archery, horseback riding, and music. But there’s a problem: the festival loudspeakers aren’t loud enough. Can the intrepid duo engineer an amplifier to save the day? The kids in your out-of-school-time program are invited to help!

Children learn in different ways. Some students respond particularly well to kinesthetic or embodied learning—learning through body movement and dance. If you’re teaching the Engineering is Elementary unit Marvelous Machines: Making Work Easier, here’s a brilliant idea from Amy Williams, the dance teacher at Indianola Informal K-8 in Columbus, Ohio: integrate dance with your students’ exploration of simple machines.