Engineering Presentation to 5 and 6 year olds 5

[GDavis14]

I need some help on this one. My 6 year old son told his teacher that I am an engineer and I should come speak to his class after one of their recent science discussions. She has now requested that I come do this. I am up againist tough competition. A few weeks back a fireman came in to discuss fire safety. He gave them a goody bag with all types of neat things in it. Please give me your ideas for a good topic that will make these kids remember the engineering career choice in the future.

My son tells me I need to bring something for each kid if I really want them to remember the presentation or demonstration.

 

[btrueblood]

One last thing, on the subject of handouts for your presentation. I too had a couple of people precede me into my son's 5th grade class. One a pro football player, and he handed out Seahawks footballs after his talk. The next was a Microsoftie, and he too had some branded toys to give away. The wife set me up with a brown paper bag full of candies. My son told me my "handouts" were quite well accepted.

 

[DFLewis]

I second Twoballcane suggestion.

I mentor high schoolers in a program called First Robotics which has been very successful at getting kids geared toward science, engineering, and other tech related careers. They spend the Spring semester building robots to meet a challenge presented to them and then compete all around the U.S. and internationally.

It just so happens they have a similar program for elementary students called First Lego League.

http://www.firstlegoleague.org/

I see the First robotics programs inspire students the same ways NASA did for me when I was growing.

If you're in the states, maybe there's a local team nearby by that would lend you some lego robots? maybe some videos? I can ask around too if you're interested.

DFLewis

http://www.phoenix-engineer.com

 

[rstupplebeen]

I suggest making something that they can either create their own during class or from home. The thing that immediately came to mind was to build up a bristle bot real time for them.

http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-Make-Your-Own-Bristlebot-12675767

I made one with my 3 year old out of a scrub brush, a random motor 2 9V batteries (one was sacrificed for the connector), a random fan with a blade cut off (CPU fan?) and a rubber band.

http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-Make-Your-Own-Bristlebot-12675767

They sell these for $10 under the brand name Hexbug nanobot

http://www.hexbug.com/nano

I hope this helps.

Rob Stupplebeen

https://sites.google.com/site/robertkstupplebeen/

 

[KENAT]

Do something with a ballista or something like that.

Posting guidelines faq731-376

http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?

(probably not aimed specifically at you)
What is Engineering anyway: faq1088-1484​

 

[Bobber1]

Bring in a large galvanized tub and a bag of sackrete. Then, in your most pronounced Mafia accent, tell the kids that "We's gonna make some special shoes for someone." Have the kids pick out their least liked classmate and have that person stand in the tub while the kids pour in the sackcrete and water. This will be easy for the kids because they know how the mix water and stuff. Make sure it's a real dry mix that sets up quickly.

Presents for the kids? Maybe get some little plastic horse heads for then to give to their appropriate friends.

 

[dicksewerrat]

Make a catapult and fling water balloons?, pumpkins?

Richard A. Cornelius, P.E.

http://WWW.amlinereast.com

 

[unclesyd]

While searching for information about a GE traveling science show I searched using the words: Wonders of science and technology. I got a lot of very good hits and especially like the idea finder site for information, like the history of the toaster, I never thought about sliced bread being the catalyst for acceptance.

http://www.sciencebuddies.org/

http://www.frontiernet.net/~docbob/scifair.htm

http://www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions/toaster.htm

 

[msquared48]

Keeping it simple -

A demonstration of the power of levers and pulley systems to attain a mechanical advantage for lifting objects.

Great educational information for kids who want to be better pranksters. Worked well for me...

Mike McCann
MMC Engineering
Motto: KISS
Motivation: Don't ask

 

[moltenmetal]

msquared48: great minds think alike. I did a very popular demo on simple machines for my son's grade 2 class- granted, a little older than 5-6 yr olds, but the same short attention span. I brought in a stepladder, some pulleys and shackles and rope, a piece of plywood and some dowels, a cable winch, and a long 2x2 and a very heavy weight- 75 pounds of lead in a (sealed) coffee can with an eyebolt set into it.

First I got the kids to try moving the weight on their own, then we used the lever, the plywood and rollers, the pulleys, and the cable winch. Lots of chances for the kids to do rather than just watch, and plenty of chance to reinforce the basic ideas of mechanical advantage etc. I kept reinforcing that knowledge makes you stronger: look, even little kids can move this big, heavy weight if they know how.

I then showed a few photos from work of our millwrights using the same basic ideas to move REALLY heavy things.

I didn't even try to get into the difference between science and engineering etc. It's beyond them at this age.

 

[SWmechE]

Following Mike and Molten's suggestions you could finish wih a couple of videos of crane/building/bridge collapses. Youtube is great for that kind of thing and kids are pretty entertained watching things get distroyed... I then finish up saying that it's engineer's jobs to make sure that doesn't happen.

My first thought was to build a marshmellow catapult or balista and then set up a target and have all the kids try and hit it but I seem to recall schools no longer being big fans of projectiles in the classroom for some reason... how's a kid gonna have any fun??

As for giving out things our company always sends us with Snafooz (foam cube puzzles) but the candy is a pretty good idea too. You could do the mentos pop rocket and then pass mentos out after; I'm sure you'd hear about how much "fun" the kids had at lunch with their sodas.

 

[plasgears]

Lauran Paine, contibuting editor to Sport Aviaton Magazine [EAA], wrote the following after a presentation to five yr olds:
Hangar Visit
...The teacher said 'put your listening ears on.' The kids held their ear lobes and looked my way... 'See that tall bldg? That's a control tower.' I tuned in ATIS: 'Visibility ten.' A boy called out 'ten.' All numbers called out were repeated by the kids... I held up a cleco and said 'what's this?' No answer. I said 'this is a cleco; say cleco.' 'CLECO.' I joined two pieces of aluminum together with a cleco, and said: 'this is what cleco's do; they hold pieces together. When you go home tell your parents you learned a new word, cleco. When you get a new cat or dog name it cleco.' I gave the teacher a cleco for her desk...
From 'The Flying Life' by Lauran Paine, 2010 Cascade Publshing

Keep it simple, and it will make a memorable impression.

 

[kjoiner]

Hello,

Years ago, there was a movie called "To Engineer is Human". The movie basically covered the evolution of the human quest to create ever increasingly elaborate designs (buildings, aircraft, bridges etc.) until something goes wrong. Then we figure out what went wrong, solve the problem and start the cycle again. That may not grab their attention, but there is one scene in the movie where a nuclear containment vessel is tested by hitting it broadside with a diesel locomotive at a pretty good speed. Pieces of the locomotive fly everywhere - the containment vessel won the contest in a dramatic fasion.

Kyle

 

[bithkits]

Bill beaty used to do some cool science stuff

http://www.eskimo.com/~billb/

http://amasci.com/amateur/videos.html

Adriaan.
I am a Mechatronics Engineer from South Africa.

http://www.martin-electronics.co.za