Engineers Week is celebrating its 60th anniversary!

Author: Heather Stanford; Published: Jan 12, 2011; Category: Education outreach, Engineering Careers, Science, Technology, Uncategorized, Volunteering; Tags: Careers, Children, Classroom Instruction, Earth Science Week, Education, Energy, Engineering, Engineering Careers, Environment, eWeek, Teacher, Technology, Volunteer; Comments: Be the first

Engineers Week was founded in 1951 to raise global awareness of the positive contributions engineers make to society and raise awareness of engineering careers.  This professional society is made up of engineers, educators, cultural societies, corporations and government agencies that emphasizes the importance of learning science, math and technology to future generations through global activities during Engineers Week, which is the culmination of awareness programs that occur throughout the year.

This year Engineers Week will be held 20-26 February 2011. The National Engineers Week Foundation is celebrating the 60th anniversary of Engineers Week and recognizing engineers that volunteer in their community. Engineers Week has grown to become a global event that includes an engineering challenge event for students called Future City and special activities designed to make girls more aware of engineering and technology careers.

The Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE) is a proud sponsor of Engineers Week and encourages members and teachers worldwide to emphasize the importance of a career in engineering. SPE sections plan local activities and outreach to schools. Energy4me will provide reports on SPE section activities and ideas for teachers. Check back for ideas and activities! SPE can provide engineers to serve as classroom speakers in areas where we have members, and educational materials that can be downloaded. 

Click here to learn more about Engineers Week or a career in engineering.

Energy4me is joining in the celebration of Earth Science Week!

Author: Heather Stanford; Published: Oct 15, 2010; Category: Education outreach, Energy, Energy Conservation, Energy Education, Energy sources, Environment, Geology, Renewable energy, Science, Technology; Tags: Children, Earth, Earth science, Earth Science Week, Education, Energy, energy challenges, Energy Conservation, Environment, eWeek, Geology, Geothermal, Renewable, School, science, Student, Technology; Comments: Be the first

The theme of Earth Science week this year is “Exploring Energy” and is happening October 10-16. This event focuses on learning about energy sources and the impact they have on our lives.

Energy4me, an energy education program sponsored by the Society of Petroleum Engineers is joining in the fun! Energy4me provided an exciting learning activity called “Products from Petroleum” for the month of December in AIG’s “Energizing Education” calendar.

Energ4me’s activity “Products from Petroleum” is a great interactive lesson on products we use every day made from petroleum. The lesson demonstrates what some products are made from and the processes it goes through to create different products. After the demonstration, each student creates a list of their 10 most important products made from petroleum separating them by necessities and luxuries.

The lists are discussed with the rest of the class and the reasoning behind each choice. The lesson is followed up by discussion on what the 10 most important products should be and how life would change without those products made from petroleum. 

Energy4me provides many more interactive and fun classroom activities for all grade levels. The Energy4me kit and lesson plans are also free to download. The Energy4me kit includes hands-on experiments, ready-to-go classroom presentations, teaching aids, and speaker resources. All of these exciting classroom resources correspond with our “Oil and Natural Gas” book.

Energy4me’s educational materials all work together to make learning about energy memorable! Learn more about Energy4me!

Earth Science Week was started in 1998 and is hosted by the American Geological Institute (AGI) to create a public awareness program for the Earth Sciences. AIG encourages people everywhere to explore their natural environment and learn about the geosciences. Earth Science Week educates the public through information, activities, and resources. This event reaches more than 40 million people each year. Learn more about Earth Science Week!

A Picture Says a Thousand Words: Send Us Your Photos and Videos!

Author: Darci Ramirez; Published: Feb 21, 2010; Category: Education outreach; Tags: Children, Classroom Instruction, Earth Science Week, Energy4me, eWeek, School, SPE, Speaker, Student, Teacher; Comments: One Comment

Energy4me wants to see how students are learning about energy in classrooms and at student events all over the world. Teachers, classroom speakers and student groups are invited to send us their podcasts, music videos, photos—anything that shows us how you’re making energy education a reality! Are you a teacher with an exciting experiment coming up? Grab your video camera and show off your students’ energy enthusiasm! Are you a petroleum engineer who’s making a guest presentation at a school? Record your speech and your question-and-answer session with the students and turn it into an educational podcast! We’ll put the best video and audio clips on our website for the world to see.

A quick tip: If you’re going to feature students on film (either video or still photos), make sure you print out copies of our Minor Photo Release form (make enough copies for all the students who might be featured!) so you can get permission from the students’ parents. If possible, send the forms home with the students several days before the cameras roll!

Email your photos and videos to energyed@energy4me.org or mail us a disc at 222 Palisades Creek Drive, Richardson, TX 75080, USA. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

What Teachers (and Students) Want From a Classroom Speaker

Author: Darci Ramirez; Published: Feb 15, 2010; Category: Classroom presentations; Tags: Children, Earth Science Week, Education, Energy4me, eWeek, School, SPE, Speaker, Student, Teacher; Comments: Be the first

Speaking to a classroom of kids is fun, beneficial— and maybe a bit intimidating! But petroleum engineers who are giving a guest presentation to students can make their experience a lot easier by learning in advance what teachers—and students— are looking for.

Start by researching your audience. If you’re talking to younger kids (ages 5-12), make sure you keep your topics at a level they can understand. Next, plan the details of your presentation: You’ll want to be interactive, offer personal information about your career and other careers in the oil and gas field, and explain how petroleum engineers make an impact on the world. Add a “wow” factor by incorporating fun, hands-on activities or doing a show and tell with a “Magic Suitcase” (stocked with oil and gas items like set well cement or hydrocarbon sample kits)!  Don’t forget to work out the logistics of your visit: where you should park, whether you have to check in at the front office, how much time you’ll have to speak and what subjects the students are currently focused on.

Most importantly, have fun with your presentation! Teachers know that guest speakers who are excited and engaging are much more likely to make an impression on students—and that’s what they’re looking for!

And, of course, visit Energy4me’s SPE Volunteer section for even more handy tips, downloadable kits and information about how you can have a free educational book sent to the school you’re visiting!