As the Thanksgiving leftovers slowly dwindle in our fridge, it is time to look forward to the Christmas season and help Santa get ready for his epic journey around the world. What better way to model the engineering design process than with activities that help Santa navigate the challenges of the Christmas holidays? From transporting toys with pneumatics or coding an elf, here are our favorite 5 Christmas STEM activities.

What is the focus in your STEM classroom? Do you love teambuilding activities? Or perhaps you spend most of the year on engineering design? Take our quiz to find out what stage of STEM your lessons are! Then read below for more on the 3 Stages of STEM, example activities, and a free STEM lesson checklist to help plan your lesson!

Looking for an engaging STEM activity that builds empathy? Read below for a Stage 2 STEM engineering activity that challenges students to learn about and design an interchangeable prosthetic leg. Students then apply concepts for a prosthetic for their favorite animals!

In the Eco-House Extravaganza STEM project, students work in teams to complete the ultimate project-based learning STEM experience: planning and designing an energy-efficient, eco-friendly house! Read below for how to implement a project that incorporates environmental and earth science, STEM careers, sustainability, and teamwork. This lesson was developed by a middle school science teacher and Harvard graduate student, Kristina Ohl, who shares her experience developing and testing out this lesson so you can bring it to your classroom!

Are you looking to add more science to your engineering design challenges? Watch the video below for some cool demos to share with your students followed by an engineering design challenge on how to construct a pinhole camera that demonstrates "camera obscure.” We also have a complete lesson plan connecting the challenge to the innovation of the light bulb in England!

Did you know that most state science standards now include engineering? But does engineering actually support science learning? Are teachers prepared to teach engineering effectively? This isn’t our typical STEM activity blog post, but I am excited to share some of what I am learning in graduate school!

Are you struggling to define a scope and sequence for your STEM or engineering classroom? Read on to learn about the current landscape of engineering education and take a closer look at the recently released Framework for P-12 Engineering Learning to help plan your engineering curriculum!

STEM Space At Home is a video series led by an engineer and using materials you can find at home. The videos are intended to support elementary and middle school students through fun engineering design challenges with a real-world connection. This week’s challenge: design a solar-powered tower!

Trick or treat! Get in the Halloween spirit with our favorite spooky STEM activities! Read on for free Halloween paper circuit templates, a robot hand candy grabber, a Haunted House STEM challenge, and more!

STEM Space At Home is a video series led by an engineer and using materials you can find at home. The videos are intended to support elementary and middle school students through fun engineering design challenges with a real-world connection. This week’s challenge: design a rover!

STEM Space At Home is a video series led by an engineer and using materials you can find at home. The videos are intended to support elementary and middle school students through fun engineering design challenges with a real-world connection. This week’s challenge: design a spacesuit!

STEM Space At Home is a video series led by an engineer and using materials you can find at home. The videos are intended to support elementary and middle school students through fun engineering design challenges with a real-world connection. This week’s challenge: build a personal mission patch!