STEM

Course Objective

Our course will incorporate aspects of design thinking, mathematical skills, and technological knowledge in the form of creating a website. Our goal is for students to use design thinking to create an original invention or business idea, modeled after the shows Shark Tank, Toy Box, or Project Runway for example. By the end of the course, students will be able to articulate what their invention is, present a prototype, website, and selling price, and be able to sell it to business owners (us or other “celebrity owners”) using formal presentation skills.
 

Plans for In-Person Workshops

1^st Face-to-Face Workshop

During our first meeting, we plan to present the class objective to the students. We will form groups of students and have them brainstorm ideas for their invention. We will have the students begin to start thinking about what they want to invent for their prototype. The prototypes can only be made with materials they find around their houses or recyclable materials so that some students will not have an advantage with buying more expensive materials to create their prototype. We will have them start thinking about what they want their selling price to be and how they can determine that. We will explain what their tasks will be between in-person meeting times on the online platform and what deadlines will look like.

2^nd Face-to-Face Workshop

During the second meeting, we will concentrate on creating their websites to advertise their product and use during their final presentations. We will be using either Wix or Wordpress to create these websites.

3^rd Face-to-Face Workshop

During the third meeting, students will be presenting their inventions to our business owners (Mary, John, other teachers). They should be “selling” their inventions to us. They will present their idea, why their invention should be bought, what it looks like with the prototype, their websites, and the selling price. We will have practiced professional presentation skills. These will include making eye contact and practicing their pitch before the due date. The owners will then be providing instant feedback or thoughts and asking questions of the students.