The State of Kentucky only recently put programs in place to close the “achievement gap” for minority, low-income, and English Language Learner students. Which means, this goal didn’t exist when the educators at Tully Elementary, a Jefferson County school in suburban Louisville, first started to implement the Engineering is Elementary curriculum five years ago.

In the meantime Kentucky has also adopted a new assessment system. And Tully educators have been delighted to see how adding elementary engineering to the curriculum is already making a difference for what they call their “gap kids.”

The Skyline Room at the Museum of Science, Boston has (as its name suggests) a stunning view up the Charles River to the iconic Longfellow Bridge. Usually, it’s a place for formal events: luncheons or cocktail parties. But if you peeked inside last week, you might have seen a crowd of excited educators engaged in an offbeat game of darts, lobbing Velcro-studded plastic cups at an equally Velcro-studded bullseye.

The “game” was actually one of several educational components at an important event for Engineering is Elementary professional development (PD) providers: the Raytheon – EiE Invited Symposium. This two-day meeting brings EiE PD collaborators from across the nation to our Boston headquarters to learn about new elementary engineering resources and initiatives and—more importantly—to share their own innovations and strategies for providing effective EiE PD.

Oregon’s adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards in 2014 means more elementary teachers in the state will be integrating engineering with classroom instruction in science. Engineering is Elementary’s network of professional development (PD) providers has expanded to meet that need. We’re pleased to welcome the Portland, OR team of David Heil and Mia Jackson as our newest collaborators.

Heil and Jackson will facilitate EiE workshops for teachers through their affiliation with the Foundation for Family Science & Engineering (FFSE). The independent nonprofit has a flagship program called Family Engineering (FE) that engages young children and their families in exploring science and engineering together.

Every Thursday on the blog we bring you teaching tips or news about resources you can use in your classroom

Every Engineering is Elementary (EiE) unit starts with a storybook that sets the context for the hands-on engineering design challenge. And every storybook has 15 or more illustrations. During a read-aloud, you can show pictures to your students the conventional way, by holding up the book for everyone to see, or by having students follow along in their own copies. Did you know that storybook illustrations are ALSO available to download on our website? You can use a computer/projector or Smart Board to show illustrations on the big screen as you read the story.

Beyond the convenience and excitement of this approach, storybook illustrations are a terrific teaching tool for English Language Arts, and especially for the English Language Learners in your class. Stories appeal to all kids, regardless of cultural background, interests, or learning style. Instead of reading a storybook word for word, project the illustrations while you retell the story at a language level that’s appropriate for your students. Or, print them out to use in classroom activities.

The stated ambition of the STEM Task Force of the California Department of Education is the opposite of modest. Leaders want to see a future where the state “leads the word in STEM education.” No wonder California was a lead state partner in the development of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and an early adopter of the standards once they were released in 2013.

Statewide implementation of the new standards is a multi-year effort; right now, the state is moving from the “Awareness” phase, involving public education and planning, to the “Transition” Phase, which includes (among other steps) making teacher professional development on NGSS implementation more widely available. With this need in mind, the 2015 California Science Teachers Association conference (slated for October 4 – 5^th in Sacramento) includes a “conference within a conference” on this theme: “Primary Pathway to Next Generation Science Standards through Language and Literacy Development.” EiE director Christine Cunningham will be one of the featured presenters.