2. Proposal:
Today’s classrooms do not expose children to STEM young enough, often enough, and in
ways that students are engaged (https://www.theguardian.com/science/oc cams-corner/2018/jan/26/ch ildren-can-only-aspire-to-the-roles-visible-to-them-time- to-get-into-the-c lassroom ). Middle
School, where the members of this team met and attended school, has two local feeder
elementary schools. Because two middle school members of the STEM Impressionists’ went to
one of the elementary schools and completed a successful Hour of Code event
(https://www.slideshare.net/AngelaDeHart/2018-hour-of-code-126246497), high school members of the STEM Impressionists
wanted to expand on that success by holding a “STEM into Spring” event. Our plan is to invite
the school’s 5th-grade classes to come to explore engineering and the innovative world of
Science, Math, and Technology.
After the Event:
Kids will leave our event with an immense amount of hands-on STEM exploration,
creative juices flowing and whatever designs they engineered during the day. In addition, we
intend to give them take home ‘Engineering Kits’ so they can continue to explore their interests
and engage in STEM after the event, throughout their weekends, and into the summer.
Parents will leave with pamphlets (example: https://www.slideshare.net/AngelaDeHart/dot-dash-brochure) filled
with information about classes, where to find items we used with the kids, our contact
information for any questions or interests in attending our summer camp, as well as instructions
on additional activities they can complete at home in order to continue to help develop their
children’s STEM skills.
Summary:
Our objective is to expose and prepare students to participate in STEM clubs once they
attend middle school; we want to give students a positive STEM experience that will fuel their
thirst for knowledge about STEM later in their educational careers, and we want them to have
access to STEM materials that they can continue to explore STEM activities at home, on the
weekends, and over the summer.
3. The following engineering concepts and careers will be explored:
Creative problem solving: The home you live in, the clothing you wear, your toilet, and many
other things were designed by engineers. Engineering comes from the Latin word ingenium
meaning “cleverness” and ingeniare meaning “to design or devise” This would make sense
because engineers face issues on a daily basis, so it’s their job to think outside the box.
Aerospace Engineering: An area once only the birds had access, but now both us and the birds
can go into the sky as much as we want thanks to aerospace. Now we’ve surpassed the bird and
we travel to look at the planets and galaxies around us. We’ll be focusing on our access the sky
rather than space. We’ll be discussing or lift, propulsion system and thrust.
Chemical Engineering: Is defined as creating processes to transport, transform, and produce
materials. Most often you’ll hear the term to scale up which is when a chemical engineering
takes a small reaction and makes it happen on a much larger scale. Scale up is one of the main
differences between a chemist and chemical engineers. There are many problems that can occur
when you increase the number of materials the end result can change, so a lot of chemist focus
on planning things out before jumping right in. Which is why by doing the experiments we want
students to learn about chemical reactions, Newton laws of motion, buoyancy, lift, thrust, air
pressure, and experimental design.
Biomedical Engineering: Talks about the advancements for our help that we can take by
creating machines. This can also mean that the machines can help diagnose, help with the
treatment, make the medicine, or do the operation on the patient. This should not be confused for
bioengineering which can include other parts in the field of biology such as plants. This field is
quite modern in the engineering family and the oldest of biomedical engineering that we know of
is a wooden toe found on an Egyptian mummy. X-rays, crutches, and stethoscopes are one of the
most commonly used biomedical equipment. Stethoscopes have helped doctors hear your body
without the use of a tube and x-rays have allowed doctors to see inside the human body without
cutting it open ( like they did in the medieval times). In the activity, kids will get to see how the
human body works and how to replicate that with a machine.
Civil Engineering: Civil Engineering is one of the oldest forms of engineering and our world
has literally built on the accomplishments of civil engineers. Noticeable accomplishments would
be the ancient Egyptian pyramids, the tallest structure until the Eiffel tower was made, because
they joined structural engineering and constructional engineering to make something quite
impressive. Their efforts have helped pave the way for future civil engineers.
4. Software Engineering: The internet, tablet, phones, and TVs that we watch are all software that
was engineered by people. A software engineer design, development, maintenance, testing, and
evaluation of computer software. Students will be able to create, test, and evaluate their own
programs. Software engineering is really useful nowadays it helps keep people thousands of
miles away in contact, you can do work and send it instantly, and so much more. Kids are able to
use the product, but they don’t really get to be the ones making the product. After all, they've
seen or used these things all their lives. Which is why the students getting to be the ones making
the product will not only appreciate what they have but might even grow an interest in software
engineering.
Mechanical Engineering: Mechanical Engineering focuses on the construction, operation, the
maintenance of the mechanical system, and of the machine. Basically, any machine that can
move. One of the oldest inventions would be the wheel which was such a revolutionary thing
because we use it in cars, clocks, bikes, scooter, etc. We use it so often that some forget or don’t
realize that there was a time without wheels. Thus, leading us to the objective of these stations
which is that we hope that the kids get that feeling of awe or excitement when they make the
object themselves. Not to mention, mechanical engineering is the fact that we have robotic
engineering and aerospace engineering when we started to make machines that could fly or use
artificial intelligence (AI).
Robotics Engineering: Robotics engineers use computer-aided design, drafting (CADD) and
computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) systems to perform their tasks. Robotics research
engineers design robotic systems and research methods to manufacture items economically (i.e.
car manufacturers use robotic machines to build cars).
Planned Activities:
❖ Tallest Paper Tower
The students will have limited supplies. Their goal is to see who can make the tallest, standing tower
using a blank piece of paper. This will require them to think outside of the box. This is a necessary skill
as an engineer because you’ll face problems, meaning you’ll have to look at the situation from a different
angle in order to fix the problem.
Kids: 8 at the station for 10 minutes at a time
Time: 10 mins for each group
Engineering field: All fields of engineering
Learning outcome: Creative problem solving
Materials: (estimated total for event: $10.00)
1. Paper $6
2. Tape $2
3. Scissors $0, School/we already have
5. ❖ Bear Bridge
Students will build a bridge for the bears to cross using popsicle sticks. The team that can save
the most bears wins!
Kids: 8 kids: 4 kids per 6-foot table in teams of 2 OR 2 kids per 2 desks
Time: 15 min
Engineering field: Civil Engineering
Learning outcome: Creative problem solving
Materials: (estimated total for event: $50.00)
1. Plastic bears, $15
2. Paper to build the boat to hold the bears, $3
3. Popsicle sticks, $8
4. 2 tables/desks to represent to shores and the river in-between, $0
❖ Robot Hand
Students will design a robotic hand using cardstock, string, and straws. Students will figure out
the placement of the pieces by following directions and it will be the student’s task to figure out
how to pick up objects like a paper ball using the robotic hand.
Kids: 16 kids
Time: 20 minutes
Engineering field: Biomedical Engineering
Learning outcome: Develop a model
Materials: (estimated total for event: $30.00)
1. A sheet of cardstock or thin/ stiff cardboard, $2
2. Scissors, $0
3. Marker, pen, or pencil, $3
4. Clear tape, $1
5. 4 drinking, plastic straws (recyclable if possible!),$1
6. 10” long pieces of string (25 meters),$1
❖ Helicopters
Students will be given a jumbo and small-sized paper clip when making their helicopter. It will
be the student’s job to find out what is the best way to make the helicopter hover in the air for the
longest time.
Kids: 110 (8 kids come to the station for the 10 min time period)
Time: 10 minutes
Engineering field: Aerospace Engineering
Learning outcome: They’ll get to see firsthand how gravity affects objects.
Materials: (estimated total for event: $8.00)
6. 1. $2, 1 ream of paper
2. $0, Scissors, School/we already have
3. $2, Jumbo paper clips
4. $2, Small paper clips, School/we already have
❖ Slingshot Straw Rockets
Students get the opportunity to construct the rocket and slingshot it at a target. The first person to
hit the target gets candy.
Kids: 8 per 10 minutes
Time:10 min
Engineering field: Aerospace Engineering
Learning outcome: Newton’s Third Law of Motion
Material: (estimated total for event: $25.00)
1. Large straws-$2
2. Rubber bands-$3
3. Popsicle stick-$2
4. Paper fastener-$1
5. Card stock-$2
6. Masking tape-$2
7. Pencil eraser-$1
❖ Boxels
Kids will have the chance to engineer their own game using the boxel kits. They’ll get to create
gaming software. Many kids play Fortnite or other games at home, so now instead of playing the
game, they’ll be the ones creating the game.
Kids: 8 per 10 minutes
Time: 10 min
Engineering field: Software Engineering
Learning outcome: Career learning opportunity
Material: (estimated total for event: $0.00)
1. $0, Boxel kits, we already have 5 kit set
2. #0, Tablets: will be provided by the school
7. ❖ Turning Tumble
Turing Tumble is a mechanical computer that allows players to learn about how a computer
works by going through the logical puzzles
Kids: 10
Time: 15 min
Engineering field: Software Engineering
Learning outcome: Career learning opportunity
Material: (estimated total for event: $20.00)
1. $0, Turning Tumble game
2. $20, Replacement parts,
❖ Goldieblox
Goldieblox is owned by Debbie Sterling. The business was created based on her belief that
women and young girls interested in engineering or technology should be able to follow their
dreams. She started on Kickstarter, and now that business has grown exponentially over the
years. She has YouTube videos, kits, and a book targeted at young audiences for her platform.
Kids: 2 kids per team. 8 kids at the station for the 10 minutes.
Time: 10 min
Engineering field: Civil Engineering
Learning outcome: Career learning opportunity
Material: (estimated total for event: $10.00)
1. $0, Goldieblox and the Spinning Machine, already own
2. $0, Goldieblox and the Parade Float, already own
3. $0, Goldieblox and the Dunk Tank, already own
4. $10, Goldieblox and the Movie Machine
❖ Dot and Dash
Dash and Dot are robots designed for kids under 11 to code and complete missions with the
robot. We plan on bringing the robot to the schools so that the kids can get to do some basic
missions and basic code. They’ll apply their knowledge about angles and will get the chance to
see the importance of planning ahead. If they make a mistake in the code they’ll be able to
experience the trial and error phase of engineering
8. ❖ Cue
This will be in the same vicinity as Dot and Dash, but it’ll be there for the kids that are in
the advance programs held in Fairfax Country. This model or robot has all the qualities of
Dot and Dash, but it’s been upgraded to include more. Some of the difference is Cue is
intended for the tween/teen crowd, and Cue is colored onyx, black with teal highlights,
While Dash is intended for 8-11 and is colored quartz white with yellow highlights. But
it’s not just a face-lift—Cue has more memory, a better processor, and improved sensors.
It also comes with an all-new app, just to name a few differences. We included this
activity to challenge them just as a real engineer would be.
Kids: 2-3 kid per robot
Time: 10 min
Engineering field: Robotic Engineering
Learning Outcome: Use of software to make robot work
Material: (estimated total for event: $0.00)
1. $0, 2 Dash robot
2. $0, 2 Dot robots
3. $0, 1 Cue robot
4. $0Tablets ( being provided by the schools)
❖ Cup Towers
Engineers are creating structures out there that are phenomenal. To give the kids some of that
experience, they’ll have the chance to stack cups to see who can make the tallest tower out of
cups in the shortest amount of time. This requires teams of two.
Kids: 8 kids at the station for the 10 minutes
Time: 10 min ( 4 min per round and 2 min for cleaning up)
Engineering field: Civil engineering
Learning Outcome: Civil engineers know that to have a sturdy structure that it’s good to have a
foundation that weighs more than the other layers that way it can hold/support the weight of the
structure. When you build the cup tower, the higher you go the more weight you put on the
bottom layers
Material: (estimated total for event: $16.50)
1. $16.50, Disposable Cups, 240 cups
9. ❖ Catapult
Engineering isn’t a new concept. Knights have been using it to project their weapons in order to
destroy kingdoms or to make life easier. This is a trip back into the past.
Kids: No teams, 8 kids every ten minutes
Time: 10 minutes
Engineering field: Civil Engineering
Learning Outcome: Career learning opportunity, Introduction to History of Warfare
Material: (estimated total for event: $35.00)
1. $8, Bottle cap, for 110
2. $2, 10 popsicle sticks
3. $2, 4 rubber bands
4. $8, Foam marshmallows
5. $5, Glue Gun
Balloon Car
Like other mechanics, the students will be able to create cars. That way they will get to
test their knowledge of math and what they know about cars from watching so many car shows.
Kids: No teams, 8 kids every 10 minutes
Time: 10 min.
Engineering field: Mechanical Engineering
Learning Outcome: Cars are vital to the American lifestyle or some sort of transportation, so
kids will get to experiment with toy cars. Students will be able to construct and critique
conclusions and explanations; develop models; obtaining and communicating information.
Material: (estimated total for event: $50.00)
1. $0, Cardboard
2. $2, Markers
3. $8, Foam Marshmallows
4. $11, Rubber wheels
5. $2, Balloons
6. $1, Straws
7. $1, thin rubber bands
8. $15, Steel axles
10. Chemical Rocket
Why not bring a classic baking soda and vinegar experiment and combine it with engineering?
Soon, we’ll be shooting up into the sky! During this activity, students will be learning about
chemical reactions and how different substances respond to one another.
Kids: 8
Time: 15 minutes
Engineering field: ChemicalEngineering
Learning Outcome:Newton’s third law of motion
Material: (estimated total for event: $30.00)
1. $0, 2 plastic bottles, already have
2. $2, 4 wooden dowels
3. $1, toilet paper
4. $1, string
5. $1, adhesive tape
6. $1, a cork
7. $0, Corrugated Cardboard Cutter, already have
8. $2, white vinegar
9. $1, baking soda
Chemical Car
Kids love to play with toys, but how can they experiment with them? Luckily for us, we’ve got
some options! We’re going to turn a toy everyone loves to play with into an experiment that
every kid will love to do. They’ll get to learn about chemical reactions between different
elements and how it can be useful in the real world.
Kids: 8
Time:15 min
Engineering field: ChemicalEngineering
Learning Outcome:Newton’s first and third law of motion
Material: (estimated total for event: $25.00)
1. $1, Water bottles
2. $2, Vinegar
3. $1, Baking soda
4. $1, Pins
5. $2, 4 wooden dowels
6. $11, Rubber wheels
7. $2, Balloons
8. $1, Straws
11. 9. $1, thin rubber bands
10. $15, Steel axles
Prizes for Students
Material: (estimated total for event: $50.00)
1. Personalized Engineering Certificates
STEM Goodie Bags
Material: (estimated total for event: $565.50)
1. $150.00, Drawstring backpack
2. $10.00, Printed instructions for at least 3 STEM experiments + YouTube directions
a. Make playdough
b. Make squishy circuits
3. $150.00, STEM trading pin
4. $40.00, Parent color brochures
5. $215.50, Electrical engineering kit
Virginia has a science curriculum and using the curriculum, we have comprised a list what the
students will get to learn by going to this event.
1. Develop and use an experimental design in scientific inquiry.
2. Use the language of science to communicate understanding.
3. Investigate engineering using technology.
4. Apply scientific concepts, skills, and processes to everyday experiences.
5. Experience the richness and excitement of scientific discovery of the natural world
6. Make informed decisions regarding contemporary issues,
7. Develop scientific dispositions and habits of mind including curiosity; demand for
verification; respect for logic and rational thinking
8. Develop an understanding of engineering,
9. Explore engineering-related careers and interests.
These activities and compete lesson plans will have a ‘trial’ run with different students
before the ‘STEM into Spring’ Event. We are using the Middle School’s celebration of National
Engineering week to test out some of our engineering activities. That will give us a chance to
refine and/or replace any activities that need to be revised.
12. We are hoping that these fast-paced activities will keep the kids curious, and interested in
STEM all day long. We plan on recruiting SWE and collegiate personal to assist the kids with
their activities as well as share their experience in their respective engineering fields.
Budget Table:
Project Estimated Cost
Tallest Standing Paper $10.00
Marshmallow Bridge $50.00
Robotic Hand $30.00
Helicopters $8.00
Cup Towers Slingshot Straw Rockets $25.00
Catapult Boxels $0.00
Turning Tumble $20.00
Goldieblox $10.00
Dot, Dash & Cue $0.00
Cup Towers $16.50
Catapult $35.00
Balloon Car $50.00
Chemical Rocket $30.00
Chemical Car $25.00
Prizes for students $125.00
Student take home STEM goodie bags $565.50
Total $ 1,000.00
*Once we are done with the plastic straws and cups/bottles, we will recycle everything*
The Feminine Advantage
It’s widely accepted that women bring unique skill sets to the table in the workplace. The
top qualities of a leader: intellectual stimulation, inspiration, participatory decision-making and
Setting expectations/rewards are most commonly found in women like Bhavna Dalal, CEO of
Talent Power Partners and a global Leadership Development company states. Skills like team
13. building and persuasion also come naturally to women. An NYU professor researched women in
Wall Street and found that women were more risk-averse. We could have avoided the recession
of 2008 had women been in charge of big banks. The presence of female leaders in STEM can
surely prevent and help advance intelligence because diverse solutions come from better decision
making, creative innovations and faster problem solving due to the presence of different
perspectives.
❖ Stove Top designs
➢ Hard to clean with little crevices, knobs don’t mirror burner layout
➢ Women could have solved this problem when it was first invented; the users are
the best problem solvers
➢ Women use a lot of engineering technology but are not part of the design process.
They are constantly a target market but are rarely involved in the design and
construction of technology.
❖ Biopsy Tables
➢ Uncomfortable, not fitting for some women
➢ First was invented by a man who wouldn’t use this technology and therefore
wouldn’t see all the drawbacks as a woman would.
❖ Space Junk
➢ There is a numerous amount of junk in the Earth’s orbit that threatens the safety
of our planet
➢ Male engineers continue to tolerate the debris that is caused by collisions and
explosions which started over 60 years ago along with aerospace research.
➢ The standard that women have to clean, especially after men, has been ingrained
into them for thousands of years which would lead to women taking extra
measures that would prevent or limit space junk.
14. Getting in and staying in
Over 20% of engineering
students are women but only 11% end
up as practicing engineers. How they
have treated plays a big part in this. The
implicit bias women are exposed to on a
daily basis makes them feel like they are
not valued in their careers, giving them a
reason to leave. According to a 2014
study by Catalyst, an action-oriented
research nonprofit organization, 53% of
women in STEM fields leave their profession for other industries. The same organization also
stated that this gap is even higher for women of color, who make up less than 10% of working
scientists and engineers.
In order to prepare young girls for a career in which they will be one of few, we must advise
them to...
● Not be afraid of failure
● Practice leadership
● Seek out help and mentorship
● Work on self-acceptance and emotional intelligence.
Women in STEM should feel so comfortable and grounded within themselves so that
they can chase their dreams without discrimination and insufficient self-worth disrupting their
inner peace.
The team is made up of girls from the nonprofit organization, The STEM Impressionists.
The oldest members are sophomores in high school. The 5th graders will be learning from
facilitators closer to their age, with over 3 years of hands-on STEM training and experience. We
have a shared history because we went to the same schools as the students that will be attending
the event. These students are from our own community. This project will allow us to model a
diversity rich engineering field because we will be presenting ourselves as female engineers.
According to a study by Microsoft, girls that engage in STEM activities outside the
classroom are more likely to pursue it when they are older. Most schools systems don’t have the
kind of 21st-century learning environment they need to. We want this kind of STEM exposure to
transcend our service project. We want schools to incorporate our ideas into their curriculums
and extracurricular. Engaging kids with engineering games and activities are the perfect way to
cultivate interest and passion for STEM. Parents can also use our lesson plans to teach their
children at home!
Middle School
ES #2
ES #1
15. The work that goes into planning and facilitating this project will also us help organize
and teach a stem summer camp which will be held August.
About our Community…….
Our community is made up of two local elementary schools that feed into the Middle
School. Both elementary schools teach a high number of minorities; ES #1 has an 68% and ES
#2 has an 81% minority population.
Schools with an overwhelming amount of students of color are majority low-income lack
funded resources. “The National Center for Educational Statistics show that nationwide about
three-fourths of both African American and Hispanic young people (compared to about one-third
of white students) attend schools where most of their classmates qualify as low income”.
Belvedere, Parklawn, and Glasgow qualify as low-income schools.
Girls of color aren’t represented in the STEM field enough as “Just a quarter of the over 5
million tech jobs last year were held by women, but the percentage of women of color –
particularly Black and Hispanic workers – in the industry stands at single digits.” There aren’t
enough programs presented to underrepresented females in the STEM culture. However,
research has shown that girls of color can excel in the STEM field when they feel confident of
what they would be learning, meaning opportunities need to be open to them, but this isn’t
happening as the communities they are a part of don’t offer the opportunities needed to excel.
To address the lack of females of color in the STEM community, the STEM
Impressionists, as a group of females of color, have consistently used their skills to learn, and
then teach others about STEM. We have introduced VEX Robotics to girls of color; lead the
ES #1 ES #2 Middle School
16. middle school’s Hour of Code since 2014, and are looking forward to facilitating the STEM into
Spring event. We are dedicated to helping girls build the confidence and understanding about
what STEM is so that they will have the confidence to enter STEM-related careers.
Bibliography
1. “Women & STEM: It's Not Just a Numbers Problem.” Six Policies to Reduce Economic Inequality | Haas
Institute, 11 May 2016, haasinstitute.berkeley.edu/women-stem-its-not-just-numbers-problem.
2. Parker, Paulette. “Why Are There so Few Women of Color in STEM Careers?” State of Opportunity,
stateofopportunity.michiganradio.org/post/why-are-there-so-few-women-color-stem-careers.
3. Emerson,Sarah.“Study Finds Women and Minorities in STEM Are Discriminated Against,to the Shock of
No One.” Motherboard,VICE, 9 Jan. 2018,motherboard.vice.com/en_us/article/8xvvya/study-finds-women-
and-minorities-in-stem-are-discriminated-against-pew-research-center-tech-science.
4. Janie Boschma,Ronald Brownstein.“Students ofColor Are Much More Likely to Attend Schools Where
Most of Their Peers Are Poor.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company,29 Feb. 2016,
www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/02/concentration-poverty-american-schools/471414/.
5. Berger, Rod.“STEM Education:New Research Sheds LightOn Filling The STEM Gap For Girls.” Forbes,
Forbes Magazine, 31 Mar. 2018, www.forbes.com/sites/rodberger/2018/03/31/stem-education-new-
research-sheds-light-on-filling-the-stem-gap-for-girls/#2213414f1cf9.
6. Mortillaro, Nicole.“Women Encouraged to Pursue STEM Careers,but Many Not Staying | CBC News.”
CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada,22 Mar. 2018, www.cbc.ca/news/technology/women-in-stem-1.4564384.
7. Venessa.“Women in Science,Technology, Engineering,and Mathematics (STEM).” Catalyst, 4 Jan. 2019,
www.catalyst.org/knowledge/women-science-technology-engineering-and-mathematics-stem.
8. ES #1 School statistics: source withheld to protect privacy of students
9. ES #2 School statistics: sourcewithheld to protect privacy of students
10. Middle School statistics: source withheld to protect privacyof students
17. The SWENext DesignLab Community Engagement Challenge (https://goo.gl/7eKZnh) is an outreach
challenge for high school students. Teams compete for a chance to win $1,000 to implement
their self-created community service project and an all-expense paid trip to SWE’s annual
conference, WE19, in Anaheim, California (https://goo.gl/AEmk2t).
Teams are tasked with solving community problems using engineering and design solutions with
women engineers in their community. Teams who enter the challenge get experience in grant
proposal writing, project implementation, presentation skills and leadership.
The high school members of the STEM Impressionists (https://goo.gl/irgTxx), Abia (Annandale HS), Aya
(Justice HS), Yabesra and Mera, were awarded the 2019 SWENext Community Service Award
for their efforts in STEM. An example of Yabesra and Mera’s work includes their partnership to
support the 5th grade class at a local elementary school in celebrating the 2018 Hour of Code
(https://www.slideshare.net/AngelaDeHart/2018-hour-of-code-126246497). Mera taught students how to use the Dash robot while
Yabesra, using the skills she learned as a member of her 2017 VEX robotics team, taught
students how to use VEX robots. The event was fun for everyone!
Congratulations ladies!
STEM Impressionists Win
$1,000 to implement SWENext
Community Project!