New Year's STEM Sale

Start off 2016 right by engaging your students with STEM, and do it with these discounts on December 31, 2015 and January 1, 2016. Seven other bloggers and I are discounting 2 of our favorite STEM resources each, to help you ring in the new year and have a STEMTASTIC 2016! Click on the graphic below to go directly to all of the resources discounted:

I have just bundled two of my top STEM resources into a 20 STEM challenge set. With the bundle discount and the extra 20% off, you are getting one set almost free! The other bundle I have discounted is my STEM Tales BUNDLE!

You can get STEMTASTIC in 2016! This STEM  bundle is ideal for grades 2-6, though these challenges can be done with older students as well (or even used for team building with your colleagues!).

 

 The 20 STEM Challenges bundle includes the following challenges:

→ Design a Bridge

→ Design a Paper Airplane
→ Design a Shelter
→ Tallest Tower
→ Challenging Maze
→ Pompom Launcher
→ Float a Boat
→ Fast & Slow Sled (can be seen in action on this blog post)
→ What a Drag
→ Cantilever Challenge
→ BONUS: All Aboard the Gear Train

→ Design a Zip Line

→ Design a Windmill
→ Fidget Fix
→ Code Creator (create simple code with conditional statement IF ELSE, no computer necessary!)
→ Design a Musical Instrument
→ Bubble Maker
→ Elevator Challenge
→ Design a Hammock
→ Printing Press
→ Windshield Wipers (synthesize a 4-bar linkage)

Pictured above are two of the STEM Tales in action. STEM Tales use a familiar story to inspire STEM learning (Rapunzel, Robin Hood, and Goldilocks). Help Rapunzel escape from her tower, Robin Hood repay his debts and win the archery competition, and build a new bed for Goldilocks! These challenges are ideal for grades 1-3.

You can read more about the resources included in this promotion by clicking on the links below:

Introductory Engineering Design Challenges

Introduce Your Kids to the Engineering Design Process

These two STEM engineering challenges are a great way to introduce your kids to the engineering design process (EDP). If you haven't followed the EDP before, this is the perfect way to start. Want to know more about the process? These are the basic steps (click here to head to the post where you can download the graphic):

See the engineering design process in action here with a STEM fairy tale challenge (the steps will be the same).

The Engineering Design Process for Kids

The engineering design process is a way to solve problems in a methodical way. This simple, 5 step process will become second nature as you tackle more and more engineering design challenges.

STEM Challenge - Design a Transport Device

The first of the challenges is very basic: design a device to transport an object (where you don't use your hands at all). Two of the suggestions are to transport pencils and paperback books, and there are also suggestions for materials to use, though you can always use what you have on hand. All of these devices were made with paper, tape, cardboard tubes, string, and plastic cups.

Here is a fun design where the case slides back and forth. This one worked for both pencils and the books!

I love this idea to make a belt with a pencil holder! Here is the front:

and the back! It can be tied and untied. How fun!

 

Design a Tower STEM Activity

STEM engineering design challenge #2 is to design a power transmission tower. This challenge uses pipe cleaners, which are an interesting building material. They are fairly rigid but can be formed into other shapes by twisting and bending.

The warm up activity has tasks to introduce shaping the pipe cleaners. It's harder than it looks, and it is a great team building activity. This design challenge requires that the students take data in the form of measurements. The tower must fall in a height range (not too short or too tall), and must use a maximum of 50 pipe cleaners.

 

The towers might be on the simple side:

 ...or get really complicated!

You can always modify an engineering design challenge if it is proving to be too frustrating for your kids. We love using magnets for a quick recap/build in a lot of our building challenges!

Once you have worked through the EDP a few times, it will become more methodical and you can use it in future STEM challenges. If you have tried these challenges, I'd love to hear from you in the comments below.

Find more details by clicking on these resources:

Black Friday BUNDLE Bash TOMORROW!

The Black Friday BUNDLE Bash is happening 11/28/2014! Here is a detailed list of the resources I am offering:

Task Card MEGA BUNDLE for 3rd Grade

This Common Core aligned bundle will support you through a full year at your math centers. You can also use task cards in your interactive journals! All of these task cards have optional QR codes for self-checking.

Separately? $18.50

Black Friday price? $9.75! SAVE 47%!

Task Card MEGA BUNDLE for 4th Grade

This bundle includes my BEST-SELLING Fractions Task Cards! Most of these are word problems (with the exception of the Geometry pack), which always challenge students to apply their mathematical knowledge to real world problems.

Separately $18.00

Black Friday price? $9.50! SAVE 47%!

Pair Stare BUNDLE of Fry's First 300 Words

This is quickly becoming one of my best selling resources! You will find out why if you download and try out the FREE set here.

Separately $10.50

Black Friday price? $5.50! SAVE 48%!

Seller MEGA Pack

You don't have to be a seller to make use of these digital papers, frames, and design elements. Use them for newsletters or your own personal projects if you aren't a seller. If you ever decide to sell some of the resources you've created, you will have a pack to get you started!

Separately $13.50

Black Friday price? $3.75! Save 72%!

You can find all discounted bundles by clicking here:

This post wouldn't be complete without a shout out to Illumismart! THANK YOU for the amazing graphics, and for having this idea in the first place. I love it and hope it becomes a TpT tradition!

Black Friday BUNDLE Bash!

I am so excited to be participating in the Black Friday BUNDLE Bash! A group of teacher-authors at Teachers pay Teachers have decided to heavily discount up to FOUR bundles on Black Friday only. I will be discounting four bundles to prices lower than you would see at one of the big site-wide sales on TpT. So, how does this all work? On November 28th, just click on the image below or choose one of the following search options:

**PLEASE NOTE: If clicking the above picture yields 0 results, try this link instead (alternately you can search BLACKFRIDAY14).

Illumismart	KB3Teach	Meredith Anderson	The Candy Class
Crockett's Classroom	Comprehension Connection	Sandy's Spot	KinderLit
Strawberry Shake	Shelly Rees	Emily Ames	AZSunsetwoman
Kacie Travis	Sandra Farrell	The Teacher's Post	Joyful Explorations
Carol's Garden	Jill Bell	Amy Mezni	Teaching Momster
Yara ESL World	Yara Sea of Knowledge	The Lone Wolfe	Cara Taylor
Creations by Kim Parker	Jungle Learners	Teaching Superkids	Can't Stop Smiling
The Knitted Apple	The Teaching Treehouse	Curriculum Castle	Rick's Resources
JB Creations	Triple the Love in Grade 1	Angie S	Rainbow City Learning
OCBeachTeacher	Mrs M's Learning Resources	The World Language Cafe	A Grace Filled Classroom
Sara J	miss kim designs	Honey Homeschool Mama	Yearn to Learn
Kirsten Tulsian	Deb Hanson	Primary "Teach"spiration	What I Have Learned
Social Studies Success	Shanon Juneau	Joyful Music	Happy Helper
Woodward Education	Creating and Learning	Room 213	Miss Martin
Techie Turtle Teacher	Jackie Crews	The Fun Factory	Mrs Roltgen
AlwaysLearning	Martha Hach "The Owl Spot"	Heather J	Learn for the Long Haul
Glitter Meets Glue Designs	Magischool Magiland	PlayLearnTeach	1st Grade Salt Life
Kelly Whittier	One Arts Infusion Collaborative	Page Protector Printables and More