Unleash the lion! (and octopus, cat, robot, …)

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I’ve been a bit slow with the updates here, partly because we were busy finishing up our pilot workshop courses. We learned a lot from them, and families made some joyous robot puppets. Big thanks to everyone who came along and helped us out by testing all the bits which make Connect work.

We now have some adjustments to make, of course, and if everything goes to plan we’ll be back over half term with our friends at the Life Science Centre.

 

Exploring STEM Engagement with Engineering Students

Over the last few NUSTEM colleagues from NUSTEM have been working across the Faculty of Engineering and Environmental teaching on Foundation and Undergraduate courses. We’ve been helping students understand science communication and explored how to embed it into their educational practice. We’ve also been working closely with phd students on two of Northumbria’s Doctoral Training Partnerships: One Planet and RENU.

This year we’ve been supporting students on Northumbria’s Mechanical and Civil Engineering Foundation Year. We’ve worked with them to develop their skills in science communication and engagement with young people. Throughout their autumn module, the students have been thinking deeply about approaches to engagement, and how they might share the knowledge and understanding of sometimes complicated topics with different audiences.

Working in groups, the students designed posters which explained topics in the National Curriculum in a way that a primary school pupil audience could understand. They’ve thought carefully about their chosen topics and the two examples below are the best of an excellent set. Teachers can download them below and either print or display them on your computer to use with pupils.

Click here to download and view the posters.