What does an Engineer really do?

What does an Engineer really do? 

Congratulations! We have made it through our first full week of the 2016 - 2017 school year! This past week in all classes students have been learning what engineers do for a living.

8th Grade: 

Students started off the week with an engineering scavenger hunt to see how many types of engineers they could find. They then narrowed this list down to three types of engineers that they had an interest in and made a very simple poster with some more detailed information regarding the specific engineer. The next part of this small mini unit on engineering is my favorite. After looking at so many types of engineers I had the students pick one type that they really liked. They then had to find a college or university they could attend in the future to obtain a degree in their chosen field of study. I always enjoy bring project into the real world which is why I am having students write a letter to their chosen university requesting more general information about the school. I will mail these letters out later next week and we will see if anything gets sent back to the school. In the past I have students have received information back from many different schools. They have not printed their letters out yet. If you would like to read the letter they wrote ask your student about the assignment. The letter should be saved to their google docs which they can access from home.

8th grade students also had their interview with an engineer homework assessment due this Friday 8/19. There were a lot of really neat responses to the interview and I hope all of my students learned a thing or two about what an engineer really does by interviewing an real engineer.

7th Grade: 

Though not in as much detail the 7th grade course mirrored  8th grade quite a bit. Students researched types of engineers and created a brochure that explained in detail one particular engineering career field. We mainly used www.bls.gov to do the career research. We also started on a review of Autodesk Inventor. This was the program they used last year in my course.

6th Grade: 

Only having 6 weeks with 6th grade students is always a struggle for me personally. I always want to go into more detail in lessons but am not able to because of time. This week we briefly covered what is engineering and how engineers use a design process. We also started into our measurement unit. My objective for students is that they should be able to measure in both customary(English) and metric by the time our course is over.

The first week

The First Week

We had a great first few days of class this week. During our first two days this week we talked about classroom expectations and how our core values (Kindness, Integrity, Perseverance, Acceptance, and Accountability) can make this school an amazing place. I always talk to students about the GOLDEN RULE “Treat others the way you would like to be treated”. I really believe that if all students try to follow that golden rule Parkway Central Middle will be a place students want to go not because of the teachers or the subjects in school but because their peers are accepting and kind.

Students also were introduced to google classroom this week. I put many of my assignments on google classroom. One of the benefits of google classroom is that students can access these assignments anywhere in the world as long as they have an internet connection. If you are curious as to what google classroom looks like ask you son or daughter to show you.

In a few of my classes we were even able to start talking about STEM and how all the STEM subjects are related.

New Beginning New School Year

Summer Fun

I hope everyone had an amazing summer break! Personally I had a blast this summer I was able to see family, camp, and travel some. I was also able to attend a week long Project Lead the Way training at Missouri University of Science and Technology (MS&T) Rolla. I trained in a unit that specifically focuses on electronics and another unit of instruction which focuses on architecture. Both of these units will be implemented in the 8th grade Gateway to Technology course. 

You can also follow my classroom on Instagram and Twitter @b_mrfranck

                                                 

                   

8th Grade Information 

It is going to be a fun year for my 8th grade Gateway to Technology students. We will be able to dive deeper into topics and learn how to think like an engineer this whole year. We will focus on five units through out the course: Design and Modeling, Magic of Electrons, Automation and Robotics, Green Architecture, and Flight and Space. 

Students in my 8th grade course will also have a design project they will work on throughout the school year. This project will focus on a problem that the students will need to solve. 

In addition to the classroom curriculum students will have the opportunity to work on some after school projects. One such activity that students may participate in is the robotics team. I will have more information regarding the Robotics Team and Technology Student Association soon. 

7th Grade Information

If your student likes to design and build things this is the class for them. We will focus on both design and turning a design into reality using real world woodworking tools. Students will learn how to utilize tools safely and will have a chance to 3D print part of their project. I can't wait to start working with the students. 

6th Grade Information

During 6th grade your student will be rotating every 6 weeks to a different elective course. My class will focus on engineering and the other STEM subjects. Our main project that students work on is a mini dragster. They will get to race these at the end of our 6 weeks together.  If your student enjoys this class they can sign up in 7th grade to take Tech Exploration.