Looking for ways to engage students through hands-on STEM education? In a recent webinar, Todd Hunter, Realityworks STEM and Career Exploration Product Manager, shared innovative tools designed to make STEM concepts more interactive and meaningful. This blog recaps key takeaways from the webinar, highlighting must-have tools that bring STEM education to life.
The STEM 7
In “Beyond the basics: a detailed conceptual framework of integrated STEM” by Gillian Roehrig, Emily Dare, Joshua Ellis, and Elizabeth Ring-Whalen, the authors present a complete framework to lead K–12 integrated STEM education. They identify seven central characteristics that are essential for effective instruction:
- Focused on real-world problems
- Engagement in engineering design
- Context integration
- Content integration
- Engagement in authentic STEM practices
- 21st century skills
- Promote STEM careers
You can see how each hands-on STEM education tool mentioned in this blog post aligns to the STEM 7 here.
RC Tractor Pull Challenge
Not only are tractor pulls fun and engaging for students, but they also provide a great context for learning physics, engineering, and more. That’s why we created the RC Tractor Pull Challenge. This teaching tool was made for students to take it apart and dive into engineering design, testing different gears, weight distribution, tire sizes, and hitch heights. Learners gather data on how well their tractor does and adjust their variables accordingly.
To save educators time, the RC Tractor Pull Challenge comes with an extensive curriculum with five lessons full of student activities and assessments. From introducing tractors to running a tractor pull challenge, you can pick and choose what lessons or activities you want to incorporate into your classroom.
Watch the video below to see this hands-on STEM education learning aid in action!
Electrical Wiring Kit
We designed the Electrical Wiring Kit to solve a variety of problems educators face when trying to teach hands-on lessons about electricity. This kit allows you to teach this topic in a classroom setting with minimal space and provides immediate feedback for students, ensuring you don’t have to intervene every time the students wire something. Additionally, there is no way for students to shock themselves while working with this tool, alleviating their anxiety about injuring themselves.
Whether your students plan to pursue an electrician career or not, the Electrical Wiring Kit lays the foundation for success. Not only does it teach real skills with the same materials, tools, and tactics that electricians use, but it also builds an understanding of electrical wiring that translates in a variety of careers, such as manufacturing technician, HVAC, and robotics.
Check out the video below to see this hands-on STEM education tool in action!
Measurement Math Training Kit
The Measurement Math Training Kit addresses a fundamental piece of learning that many students struggle with, and many teachers have a hard time engaging students in. Many other measurement teaching tools require students to measure objects printed on paper, but measuring a physical object, as students would in the real world, is very different. That’s why this kit includes a variety of physical manipulatives with complex angles for students to measure.
To support educators, the Measurement Math Training Kit comes with a seven-lesson curriculum that covers topics like metric and standard readings, how to read a ruler and tape measure, and how to read and use a caliper. The entire curriculum takes five to ten hours to teach. However, you can pick and choose specific lessons and activities that fit best with your class.
Watch the video below to explore how this hands-on STEM education tool enhances learning!
Trailer Circuits STEM Kit
One of the challenging aspects of teaching electricity is that it’s an invisible force, and many students need to see their learning affect the real world. The Trailer Circuits STEM Kit addresses this by combining electrical learning with real-world context in a safe STEM education environment.
The three Trailer Circuits Trucks in the kit match exactly what you would find when wiring a real trailer. This kit comes with a universal four-way connector and a seven-way connector that students will use to wire up their trucks. It also includes a nine-lesson curriculum with slide presentations that can easily be uploaded to your LMS. Students can go through the slides in small groups as they build the circuits on their simulator.
Watch the video below to discover this teaching tool brings learning to life!
Additional Resources
Learn more about our hands-on STEM education tools in with these resources:
