Engineering Thinking and Design in STEM Toys and Books

This week we talk STEM gifts with Monica Cardella and Elizabeth Gajdzik from Purdue’s INSPIRE Research Institute. Each year, the INSPIRE lab evaluates toys, games, and books that engage girls and boys in engineering thinking and design. Monica and Elizabeth join us to talk about some gifts on the list, how they are evaluated and share some advice for educators who would […]

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Making in Cory Doctorow’s Walkaway

With the growing implementation of engineering principles and Makerspaces in our schools, we decided to reach out to science fiction writer Cory Doctorow to chat about his most recent novel Walkaway. Set in a near future ruined by ecological and technological catastrophe, Walkaway is a story about scarcity and surviving outside the default limits of societal norms. But Walkaway also […]

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Carving into STEM with Inventables

Our guest this week is Zach Kaplan.  As founder and CEO of Inventables, Kaplan hopes to inspire and enlist a new wave of makers with tools like Carvey (a desktop 3D carving machine) and Easel (a simple and free cloud-based app for 3D design to carving).  In schools, with an increased focus on engineering and a push to include more STEAM classes and Makerspaces, these tools […]

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On the Lookout: Desktop Fabrication

In this installment of On the Lookout, we explore another device in the world of desktop fabrication.  Recently, we were able to test out Carvey – a tabletop 3D carving machine from Inventables. Right out of the box, we discovered Carvey to be a remarkably easy to use tool appropriate for younger learners. Solidly built, Carvey’s small footprint can easily sit […]

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Safer Science and the Duty of Care

Making his third appearance on Lab Out Loud, we welcome Dr. Ken Roy back to discuss safety in science classrooms and other potentially harmful areas (such as makerspaces).  This fall, Ken launched the NSTA Safety Blog to share commentaries on the latest safety issues, legal standards and better professional practices.  Ken reminds us about important science safety practices such as yearly safety training, […]

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