Middle School STEAM Outline
Intended for 30-hour per year program
Grade 6 Theme: Music+ Physics of Sound + Shop Tools +Video + Coding
Grade 7 Theme: Art and Architecture+ Structures + CAD + Vector Drawing + Scratch Art
Grade 8 Theme: Electronics, Interactive Games, Robotics, and AI
- Research traditional instruments online
- Use tools in wood shop to design and build musical instruments - see http://designbuildcode.weebly.com/ + "More" tab (MIT Edgerton Center)
- See also http://billundbuildsmusic.boerneneshovedstad.dk/ (Tufts CEEO)
- Do isometric pencil sketches and SketchUp CAD drawings of instruments
- Study physics of musical instruments- resonance, frequency, volume, harmonics [ see Vi Hart https://youtu.be/i_0DXxNeaQ0 ] using spectral analysis apps
- Create music using Scratch [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrzotaIBaBg ]; Make physical interfaces using Makey-Makeys
- Make and record Music with Audacity and other online tools such as Apple Garage Band
- Make a short video about the design and artistic journey, with A-Roll, B-roll, Titles, and music
Grade 7 Theme: Art and Architecture+ Structures + CAD + Vector Drawing + Scratch Art
- Create and test structures such as bridges and buildings, and understand the forces that act on structures
- Design and test virtual bridges using West Point Bridge Designer
- Create architectural models- see for example Sketches of Frank Gehry https://youtu.be/Vu9orvtStdY
- Design houses using SketchUp; create video tours of houses in SketchUp
- Field Trip: Bridges and Buildings in Boston- Zakim Bridge, Mystic River Bridge, MIT Stata Center, etc.
- Design and build stabiles, mobiles, and kinetic sculptures- Alexander Calder, etc., and the physics behind them-see for example Design Squad https://youtu.be/2lQNiBsWU_k
- Design and build, using vector drawing program, Cardboard Furniture at different scales- see for example https://youtu.be/Birsd1Jo7Mc
- Create geometric art using Scratch
Grade 8 Theme: Electronics, Interactive Games, Robotics, and AI
- Build simple circuits- series, parallel
- Draw Simple schematics
- Squishy circuits
- Use Makey-Makeys to control Scratch Games
- Create LED tile art- see http://designbuildcode.weebly.com/led-light-me-up-tiles.html
- Using electronics tools, build and decorate custom Bumpbots see http://designbuildcode.weebly.com/bumpbots.html or at TeacherGeek; draw schematics
- Microbits Introductory projects- See Edgerton Center guides from Diane
- Use MicroBits to control Scratch game programs- see https://scratch.mit.edu/microbit
- Build Vex Robots and program with Scratch Blocks- see https://www.vexrobotics.com/vexiq/resources/programming or build Microbit robots https://www.instructables.com/id/Simple-Microbit-Robot/
- AI Explorations- see http://steamcurriculum.weebly.com/experiments-with-google.html, or https://aidemos.microsoft.com/