How to Organize a Classroom Visit

How to start How to Contact Schools Aims and Goals How to Develop a Classroom Program Learning Characteristics How to Lead a Discussion Presentation Overview Your Day in Class

How to Start

• Set up a committee to plan your program. Depending on the scope and time available, you may want to seek the involvement and support of partners, such as local businesses, engineering associations and educators.

• Make a list of the schools and specific teachers to be contacted. Don't overlook guidance counsellors and career centre directors.

• Contact the schools yourself or work through your local PEO or OACETT chapter.

• Ensure you have enough volunteers to meet the demand before you begin the student contact program. You may need two volunteers per classroom visit.

• To recruit volunteers, approach your engineering colleagues, local universities or colleges or PEO or OACETT chapters.

• Keep in mind that engineering students can team up with practising engineers.

How to Contact Schools

If you have children, try their school first or write to the schools identified on your contact list and follow up by phone. If you know which teacher you want to work with, contact them directly, copying the principal or department head. Explain that you are offering to make a classroom visit as part of National Engineering Week. (Remember that the interest and cooperation of the classroom teacher is vital to your success.)

Once the teacher is interested in having you make a presentation, try to meet at the school. This personal contact is an important element in ensuring that your presentation is on target. Ask about the teacher’s needs and determine what curriculum topics you should try to cover. Outline any equipment needs, discuss how the teacher can prepare students for your visit.

Aims and Goals

Your visit can provide opportunities for children to discover that engineering:

can be fun; can welcome anyone's participation; involves problem-solving; involves the application of physical principles and experimental techniques.

Social Goals
To increase children's abilities to make reasoned, thoughtful choices, accept the consequences of decisions and be socially responsible and cooperative group participants.

Personal Goals
To increase children's competence as problem solvers, appreciation for personal creative abilities and sense of self-worth.

Intellectual Goals
To increase children's creative and critical thinking, skills in designing structures and knowledge of engineering as an application of science.

Attitudinal Goals
To encourage children to be aware of and appreciate engineering as

• a process of exploring, experimenting and discovering rather than as a body of facts and

• a science that sees problems as opportunities for further learning.

How to Develop a Classroom Program

Learning Characteristics

It's important to know your audience so that you can tailor your presentation to the group's characteristics. Talk to the teacher before your visit to see if your presentation would be age-appropriate and also suitable for any special characteristics of the class. Hands-on activities are effective at all ages, but are especially useful for younger students. The following will give you an idea of what you can expect from students at different grades.

Grades 3 to 4

• Thinking tends to be concrete; need to have an example of something in order to understand it

• Beginning to conceptualize previously experienced objects

• Understand rules and can follow them

Ask questions that encourage students to discover answers for themselves. Provide an activity before introducing scientific concept.

Grades 5 to 6

• Respond well to hands-on activities

• Still need concrete examples since they have not developed complex abstract thinking

• Can participate in finding their own answers to questions

• Can understand principles and conceptualize previously experienced objects

• Beginning to use systematic problem-solving strategies

Presentations can be longer (20-30 minutes) but should still be varied.

Grades 7 to 8

• Are easily bored and often appear critical

• Influenced by peer group and may challenge adult authority

• Have longer attention spans

• Have need for non-judgmental adult interaction

• Can grasp more complex concepts, although still need explanations

This is a critical period in determining students' continuing participation in science and engineering. Get the students involved in the presentation as soon as possible.

Grades 9 to 12

• Exhibit more complex thinking skills

• Can formulate hypotheses

• Able to apply previous knowledge

• Can adapt well to new ideas and technologies

Lecture presentations can be effective if varied media is used: slides, pictures, models, overheads, etc. Use language that the students can understand. Allow enough time for discussion.

How to Lead a Discussion

Good teachers invest a lot of energy in creating a safe environment where children can express and explore their ideas. Lecturing has its merits, but chances are that children will lose interest after a few minutes. If you want children to be excited about learning, let them get their hands on something and experiment with it. After some hands-on messing about, bring them together to talk about what they have been doing and learning. Encourage them to think by asking appropriate questions.

• Use attention-focusing questions such as "What do you notice?", "What can you see?" to help students take note of details.

• Use paraphrasing and questions that ask for more information to help children articulate and clarify their ideas. "You say you think your bridge needs two arches. Why do you think so?"

• Use comparison questions to help children organize their data. "Which is stronger, heavier?" "In what ways are they alike?"

• Use action questions to encourage experimentation and the investigation of relationships. "What might happen if...?"

• Use problem-posing questions to help children develop and test hypotheses. "Can you find ways to...?"

• Ask open-ended questions and allow students adequate time to think and respond.

• Listen carefully to the students' responses in order to frame further questions to encourage continued, thoughtful examination of ideas. Remember that it takes practice to become a good questioner and discussion leader. Don't be discouraged if you don't get it right immediately.

Presentation Overview

Following are some of the key points you'll want to cover during your presentation.

Describe an Engineering Practitioner

• Engineering is everywhere – beyond this world buckled in a space shuttle and on this world (building bridges, designing cars, exploring the ocean). Engineering crosses into law, medicine and a variety of careers.

• While engineering practitioners do a wide variety of work, all share a love of problem-solving and knowing that their work will not only make a difference but will have lasting value.

• Engineering practitioners use the math and science that you are learning to solve real problems and turn ideas into reality: how to make energy from the sun; how to keep our water clean; how to move us from city to city. They also design many products we use every day.

• You don't have to be a genius to become an engineering practitioner, but people in this field usually enjoy math, science and problem-solving.

• Generally engineering work involves these steps:
  Identify and define a problem;
  Analyze the problem;
  Design and propose solutions;
  Refine proposals; and
  Solve the problem.

• Engineering requires teamwork. Engineers work in teams with technicians, technologists, architects and other professionals to solve problems.

Tell Your Own Story

Share personal anecdotes with students:

• who or what inspired you to choose an engineering career and

• how you became an engineer, technologist or technician.

Give an Overview of What You Do

• Typical day (whether you are in contact with other people, spend time in the office or at a site or lab, work with customers, or oversee other technical personnel).

• What you like best about your job.

• Most exciting projects (discuss in terms that students can understand, e.g. how it helped people or was the first of its kind). Show slides or other visuals.

Draw to a Conclusion

• Engineering is all around us every day.

• Engineering practitioners are a diverse group but they share a love of math, science and problem-solving.

• They identify, analyze, design, refine and solve problems.

• They are team players.

For older students, you will need to add a section to review the education needed to become an engineering practitioner. Consult the Professional Engineers Ontario website or the Ontario Association of Certified Engineering Technicians and Technologists website.

Your Day In Class

Here are some tips on how to make your presentation interesting and fun for students and yourself:

• Arrive early enough to prepare before your presentation.

• Dress as you would for a day on the job. Students want the total image.

• Know what your objectives are, have an attention-grabbing opener, a clear plan, interesting activities for students to do and a strong closing.

• Create a distraction-free environment. Rearrange furniture so that the students can give you their full attention.

• Describe your expectations for appropriate behaviour, e.g. raise hands to ask questions.

• Stress the positive. Let students know you appreciate appropriate behaviour by giving encouraging feedback. Enlist the aid of the teacher if there are students requiring special attention.

• Get students involved. Have volunteers help hand out materials, hold models, etc.

• When you ask for participation, try to encourage everyone. Nametags can be helpful in personalizing your contact with the students.

• Don't use jargon and be sure that the information you present is at an appropriate level for the group. If in doubt, consult the teacher.

• Be enthusiastic and make the presentation fun.

• Follow appropriate safety precautions.

• Get feedback on your presentation from the teacher and students.

• Continue your contact with the class. Encourage students to send you their questions. If appropriate, offer to arrange field trips to your place of work (but check all of this with the teacher before committing!).

• Promote your activities. Send us an activity description to be included in the Event Calendar on this website. Click here for the form. Be sure to send a report of your school visit to NEWOSC via this website. Just click here for the form.
  

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