Incorporating authentic engineering practices into educative experiences in elementary school has the potential to positively impact student consideration of STEM careers and increase student self-efficacy in later engineering study. Additionally, as students move from primary to secondary grades, their interest in STEM topics tends to decline. To…

Science education theory and reform call on elementary educators to provide authentic science learning experiences in a constructivist learning environment. The natural surroundings of the schoolyard offer an often undeveloped and/or undiscovered pedagogical tool that can help teachers meet these reform-based goals in science teaching. There is…

At a time when changes in standards and curriculum compound the pressures of fifth-grade state testing, the authors wanted to find an engaging way to involve students in authentic science and engineering. Rather than put their efforts into a traditional science fair that would inevitably lead to inequitable input by parents and students alike,…