Category: Engineering for kids
-
Make a Light up Card with a Simple Circuit!
I thought this year my son could make his teacher a special Valentine’s Day card. I wanted to use some of what we had learned about making a simple circuit from our Tinker Crate boxes. So I found a paper circuit kit, and we set off to make a special card for my son’s teacher!!…
-
Fizzy Homemade Valentines Cards
About a year ago I made some homemade valentines cards for my youngest son to give out to his class at preschool. We made valentine’s cards that included a small baking soda heart glued on, and made them a few days in advance, just to make sure they had time dry. The day of his…
-
Learning about Friction while Playing in the Snow
For Spring Break this past year, we decided to head to the grandparents’ house is New Mexico. There the boys could run outside, play in real snow, and experience some of my own childhood memories. Spending a whole week with my super active first grader trying to keep him entertained, did not sound like a…
-
Be a Process Engineer: Play “How’s it made?”
I’m teaching my oldest son about different types of engineers. By helping him learn what different types of engineers do, I’m hoping he’ll have a better idea what an engineer really is! To teach him about being a process engineer, I created a simple game called “How’s it Made?”! Play “How’s it made?” I spent half…
-
7 Great Construction Engineering Books for Preschoolers!
An important part of being an Engineer is understanding the tools used to build your designs. One kind of engineering, Construction Engineering, involves the designing and construction of roads, buildings, sewer systems, and other infrastructure. To plan a project correctly, Construction Engineers must know the different types of trucks and machines that will be used…
-
Teach Your Kid to be a Mechanical Engineer!
My first jobs out of college were at manufacturing sites (aka plants). My major role as an engineer was to make sure the plant ran effectively and efficiently. One way I did this was by identifying equipment showing signs of wear, which meant they could break soon. So how did I learn the signs? By…
-
Circular Motion with Star Wars
In a house of 3 boys (4 if you include my husband), Star Wars is pretty big in our house. Any given day you can hear my middle son saying “Shoon shoon!”, his sound for a light saber. And once my oldest gets home from school, the sounds get even louder as they both fight…
-
A Fun way to Teach Newton’s First Law of Motion
My kids got a lot of great learning toys this Christmas. None of them are your traditional “learning” toy though. One of their educational toys is one kids have been playing with since I was a kid. The toy is not traditionally thought of as educational, but while I watched him play with his new…