5 Ways Engineering Helps Middle Schoolers Relate Better to Science
- Mar y Sol Esparza
- Nov 11, 2024
- 4 min read
Middle school is a pivotal time: it’s when students’ natural curiosity about the world around them either flourishes or fades. As educators, we have the power to ignite that spark and set them on a path of lifelong learning.
Integrating engineering into your science curriculum is one of the most effective ways to do this. But it’s not just about building bridges and robots: it’s a problem-solving process that encourages creativity, critical thinking, and collaboration. By incorporating engineering design challenges into our lessons, we can provide students with hands-on experiences that make science more relatable, engaging, and meaningful. It’s about fostering a mindset, a way of approaching problems that can profoundly impact how students relate to science and the world around them.
Table of Contents:
Why Engineering Matters
Engineering offers an experiential approach to learning that can make science more relatable and engaging for middle schoolers.
Here are 5 Key Benefits of Engineering for Students:
Provides a hands-on learning experience: Engineering activities allow students to learn by doing. This active approach to learning can help students better understand and retain scientific concepts.
Helps make real-world connections: Engineering challenges students to apply scientific principles and solve real-world problems, helping them see the relevance of science in their own lives.
Fosters critical thinking and problem-solving: Engineering encourages students to think critically, analyze problems, and develop creative solutions. These are essential skills for success in any field.
Encourages collaboration and communication: Engineering projects often involve teamwork, requiring students to communicate effectively, share ideas, and work together towards a common goal.
Builds confidence and resilience: The engineering design process involves trial and error. Students learn to embrace failure as a learning opportunity, which can boost their confidence and resilience.
Key Principles for Engineering in Middle School Science
Maximize the benefits of engineering in your classroom with these essential principles:
Begin with a Relatable Problem
Choose engineering challenges relevant to students’ lives and interests. This will help them see the purpose of their work and make the learning more meaningful.
For example, if you want students to apply their knowledge of potential energy and projectile motion to design and build a model launcher, present a more engaging design problem and task, like: “Your kickball is stuck in the gym’s ceiling again. Design a launching tool to knock it free.” (Fun fact: this is an example from BrainPOP Science’s own Engineering Project library!)
Students Generate All Ideas
Empower students to take ownership of the learning process by encouraging them to develop their own ideas and solutions, which will foster creativity and a sense of agency.
Once students have the design problem and task, allow them to engage in a three-step brainstorming process that starts generally and gradually guides them to refine their ideas.
Step 1
Students review the design problem and use sticky notes to brainstorm at least three possible solutions. You want students to begin with all of their ideas before eventually narrowing them down.
Source: BrainPOP Science's Kickball Rescue Engineering Project
Step 2
Provide students with a list of project materials and constraints to review. Based on this information, students select one of their ideas to pursue.
Source: BrainPOP Science's Kickball Rescue Engineering Project
Step 3
Given the information they now have, students select one of their ideas to pursue. Yes, students can also add additional sticky notes before moving on. They are learning it’s about the process, not the correct answer.
Source: BrainPOP Science's Kickball Rescue Engineering Project
Value the Process, Not Just the Product
The engineering design process is iterative and involves multiple stages of brainstorming, research, prototyping, testing, and refining. Celebrate the learning throughout the process, not just the final product.
You can find tips for scaffolding each step of the process to make it more engaging and genuinely about the learning experience.
Download your own Engineering Design Process poster and/or handout for your classroom.
Put Principles Into Practice
Incorporating engineering into middle school science isn’t just a trend – it’s a transformative approach to education. Through hands-on experiences, real-world connections, critical thinking challenges, collaborative projects, and the development of confidence and resilience, engineering provides a dynamic bridge between scientific principles and their practical applications.
As science teachers, we’re not just teaching science; we’re fostering a love for discovery, resilience in the face of challenges, and a passion for lifelong learning that will extend far beyond the classroom walls. Let’s harness the power of engineering to ignite the spark in our middle schoolers and guide them on a path of endless possibilities.
Mar y Sol Esparza is on the Marketing team at BrainPOP, and a former teacher and curriculum writer. She holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Education and Social Policy from Northwestern University. Mar y Sol's favorite BrainPOP character is Annie.