Science Buddies Blog (Page 17)

10 Reasons to Do the Ping Pong Pickup Engineering Challenge

January 31, 2023 8:00 AM

Why do the 2023 Ping Pong Pickup Engineering Challenge? Here are 10 reasons this is a great STEM challenge for your students. The annual Science Buddies Engineering Challenge makes it fun for students to try engineering. Each year, the Science Buddies Engineering Challenge presents an innovative and engaging engineering task and challenges students in grades K-12 around the world to use the engineering design process to brainstorm, design, build, and… Read more

Ninth Annual Science Buddies Engineering Challenge Announced with Support from EPAM Systems

January 19, 2023 8:00 AM

K-12 students worldwide are invited to explore engineering with the annual Science Buddies Engineering Challenge. Every year from February to March, in conjunction with Engineers Week, student teams work to solve a new engineering challenge using a short list of simple materials like paper and tape. The 2023 challenge, Ping Pong Pick Up Challenge, has students build a device that can pick up a ping pong ball from a distance and return it to a start line. How far away can students retrieve… Read more

Optical Illusion Science Projects

January 10, 2023 12:00 AM

Explore optical illusions and trick the eye with these science fair projects, experiments, and STEM activities. How Do Optical Illusions Trick the Eye? Optical illusions (also called visual illusions) can be fun, mind-boggling, mesmerizing, puzzling, and surprising! Our eyes don't always see what they should. An optical or visual illusion occurs when there is a disconnect between our brain and our eyes or when something goes wrong in the visual process. Science related to light, vision, and… Read more

Teacher Combines Computer Science and Engineering Design for Middle School Students

December 15, 2022 8:00 AM

This STEM teacher gave students in grades 6, 7, and 8 each a different challenge to explore engineering design and computer science with real-world context. Engaging Students with Engineering Design and Computer Science Teaching students the engineering design process helps them understand a model of designing, building, testing, and iterating that they can use to approach problems or to innovate and invent new things. When engineering design is… Read more

Build a Water Sensor Circuit for the Tree

December 9, 2022 6:00 AM

With a bit of creative engineering, a simple circuit can do double-duty as a fun decoration and a helpful water-level monitor! Creative Engineering When faced with a problem, engineers come up with innovative and creative solutions! Keeping a cut holiday tree watered is important for preserving the life of a fresh tree, especially during dry winter days. With a bit of crafty science and engineering, one of our staff scientists added a circuit with a… Read more

Tools to Manage Science Projects and Science Fairs

November 29, 2022 8:00 AM

Find tools to help streamline assigning, managing, and assessing student science projects. We also have resources to help you plan your science fair! This is part 4 in our STEM education series on the value of science projects and science fairs. Are you feeling overwhelmed by the thought of assigning science fair projects? We can help! Science Buddies has a number of free tools for educators to help manage the student science fair project, from start… Read more

Green Chemistry and the School Science Lab - Safer Chemistry for Today and Tomorrow

October 10, 2022 8:00 AM

Lessons and student projects to support educators and students learning about chemistry and experimenting with green chemistry principles in mind. To make them safer and more environmentally-friendly, chemistry classrooms and labs are changing. Are your labs, chemistry demonstrations, and classroom experiments green? If not, read on to learn more and find green chemistry options to use with your K-12 students. What is Green Chemistry? Green… Read more

Teach About Simple Machines

September 12, 2022 8:00 AM

Use these free STEM lessons, projects, and activities to teach about simple machines with hands-on science experiments to investigate how levers, pulleys, ramps, screws, and wheel and axle systems offer mechanical advantages that make it easier to perform tasks. What Are Simple Machines? A simple machine is a machine with few or no moving parts that makes it easier to perform a certain type of work. Simple machines do not create energy, which must be… Read more

Students Explore Solar with Junior Solar Sprint Cars

August 31, 2022 8:00 AM

Junior Solar Sprint engages students in grades 5-8 with solar power science and electronics. Plan now to do this challenge with your students! Exploring Solar Power & Electronics with Junior Solar Sprint Junior Solar Sprint (JSS), a program of the Army Education Outreach Program (AEOP), is an annual STEM challenge for grades 5-8. Students participating in Junior Solar Sprint explore solar energy and engineering by building and racing solar-powered… Read more

20+ Color Science Experiments

July 21, 2022 8:00 AM

Dig into the science of color with colorful, color-changing, eye-catching science experiments! 23 Color Science Experiments and STEM Activities for Science Class and Science Fair Some experiments are "colorful" because they use colored water, paints, or other materials as part of the demonstration of science concepts. The collection of student science fair projects and STEM learning resources highlighted here is "colorful" in a different way. These… Read more

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