Authors:

Ediz Guzey

Date Created:

Not specified

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About Paper:

Many K-12 students from rural schools lack access to resources such as materials and equipment needed to engage in quality STEM activities. Providing these students with opportunities to learn more about STEM can enhance their understanding of STEM concepts and increase their interest in pursuing STEM careers. Purdue University's Center for Advancing the Teaching and Learning of STEM (CATALYST) offers a no-cost, online STEM program for over five hundred upper elementary students each year. The program takes place twice annually. Professors and graduate students from Purdue design and deliver STEM activities in which elementary students design, build, and test simple robots or structures, write code, or construct models. In this poster, I share a new activity I developed to help 5th grade students learn about electronics, particularly microelectronics. Students first learn about circuits and conductors using simple circuit kits. They then use different materials to see which conduct electricity. Next, they are introduced to microelectronics and complete a basic coding activity using a micro:bit. Together, we program the micro:bit to display a random emotion icon and the students perform a matching movement. This hour-long activity will be implemented in the upcoming CATALYST program. Students will also complete a brief survey to share their ideas about the activity and learning of the concepts. This activity will be posted on the CATALYST website and will be adaptable for use in classrooms, after-school programs or summer school settings. Keywords: Microelectronics; Elementary Education

Source:

Purdue University / 2025

Topics:

No topics listed

Co-authors:

Ediz Guzey