At NTMS, students engage in seven of the WozEd Career Pathways along with many awesome units created by STEM(a) teachers Mrs. LeVea, Mr. Deck, and Mr. Walker. All units align to the NYS Next Gen Learning Standards for Technology.

7th Grade:

Students in 7th grade begin learning about forces, design, materials processing, and problem solving through a four-week unit that culminates with the production and racing of a gravity car.

From there, students continue to learn about the design process, continued problem solving, drawing, modeling, and advanced materials processing. This four-week unit is highlighted with the creation of either a puzzle cube or a mousetrap car. 

One area of study in drawing for 7th grade is Isometric Drawing. In this one and a half week unit, students learn about 3-dimensional drawing, angles of lines, hand drawing, and technical drawing.

Students then learn about coding robots through the WozEd Level 3 coding unit. This STEM(a) unit teaches students to code Mini Sphero through drawing, block, and text coding. Students will explore various types of communication and relate them to the ways they can communicate with Mini Sphero. As students start to learn coding, they will discover how to relate block coding to text code. In addition to coding and communication, students will expand their knowledge of geometry and physics concepts. During this two-week unit, students also learn to create different geometric shapes, to troubleshoot issues with code, and to translate simple behaviors into code.

Students in 7th grade also learn about the seven resources of technology. The one week unit of study teaches students to understand needed resources to solve problems and produce innovative technologies.

Finally, 7th graders wrap up with a two-week unit in computer-assisted drawing by learning to use AutoDesk Inventor. This unit culminates with the creation of their own designed parts.

8th Grade

Students in 8th grade STEM(a)/Technology begin the year with a one-week unit studying the history of technology.

They then move on to the WozEd Robotics career pathway with the Robotics Level 3 Unit. Throughout the modules of the Level III Robotics unit, students will gain an understanding of robots as programmable machines with interconnected parts and systems. Each module begins with a hands-on investigation into a different type of robotic concept. Throughout the modules, students explore the attributes of robots and discover how roboticists design, engineer, and program robots with the features and functionality to behave a certain way, accomplish a specific task, and/or solve a problem. In the first module, students will work together to build a robot. Students will transition into discovering how a robot senses and is programmed in module two. It’s all about exploration in module three, as the students experiment with programming a robot to take pictures around the classroom. Module four has the students working together to program all the robots to complete a task. The fifth and final module gives students time to experiment and show what they have learned about programming. As students use the engineering design process to experiment and build, they will gain an understanding of the necessary inputs to achieve a desired output. Through participation in the Level III Robotics Unit modules, students will have opportunities to learn how to code using their choice of Bloxter or Python. The students learn to program a GoPiGo by investigating sensors, necessary inputs for desired outputs, problem solving, and translating simple behaviors into code.

From there, students continue to learn about structure, design, material processing, problem solving, drawing, and construction in the four-week unit studying Spanning Structures.

Through another four-week unit, students learn about forces, design, material processing, the science of calculating speed, and aerodynamics while building their CO2 Car.

Returning to the WozEd career pathways, students engage in the Level 3 Mobile App Development unit. The Mobile App Development unit engages students in important aspects of the app design process. Students will be encouraged to plan for the creation of an app by exploring purpose, functionality, and design. They will build paper and digital prototypes, gain feedback from peers, and make changes to improve their designs before using App Lab by Code.org to create final versions of their apps. Students will also experience augmented reality (AR) and be given an opportunity to create an AR experience of their own. Throughout the modules, students are encouraged to use both traditional and digital materials and resources as they design, test, and create their apps. Each module in the kit may be taught as consecutive lessons or may stand-alone. Students also use code.org to create a version of "Flappy Bird" for their personal use.

From there, students move onto the Cybersecurity Career Pathway with the Cybersecurity Level 3 Unit. The digital environment is a place where people can share any type of information they wish – pictures, personal anecdotes, credit card information, names of family members, favorite places to visit, etc. The more information is shared, the more important it becomes to protect this information from unauthorized access. This unit will help students explore why codes are important, how they function, and ways to make them as effective as possible. Students will practice writing their own codes using multiple strategies, from handwritten notes, to mazes designed to keep robots out, to a two-step authentication scavenger hunt.

Completing the WozEd Career Pathways for 8th grade, students move into the Level 3 Engineering Design Process Unit. The lessons in this unit will support instructors as they introduce students to the process, potential, and products of 3D printing. Beginning with a conceptual understanding and moving towards 3D printing with purpose, these lessons will support both instructor and student as they make their way into this exciting realm. The lessons have a rich mix of manipulative activities, building 3D items in modeling software, and engineering challenges. Students will track their learning through an engineering journal. Students learn the skills of rapid prototyping. They use Autodesk Inventor for 3D modeling, and learn the physics of an effective spinning top toy. Students finish this unit by modeling and printing their own 3D top.

There are common topics that are covered in both the 7th and 8th grade.

The first common topic is the WozEd Drone Pathway. In the two-week level 3 Drone Unit, students learn the basics of non-gps drone flight (analog flight). They also learn about relevant emerging careers in the field of drones. Rooted in this unit is drone safety and vocabulary as well as hands-on obstacle avoidance flight.

Both grades also learn about measurement in a week and a half unit. Topics covered include the U.S. Customary System, reading a ruler, fractions and simplifying fractions, and measuring objects with a ruler.

In another week and a half unit, students learn multiview drawing. This includes spatial visualization, line types, and 2D views of a 3D object.

The final unit found in both levels focuses on safety. This one and a half week unit covers general lab safety and individual machine safety.

Continuing with our Animation Career Pathway, seventh graders participate in the WozEd Level 3 Animation Unit. The Animation Level 3 Unit introduces students to animation creation using the Stop Motion Studio Pro app. Students will deepen their understanding of animation by creating flipbook, stop motion, claymation, and pixilation animation projects. Students will practice their communication and presentation skills by sharing these animation projects in a student showcase.

Students selected in middle school to participate in the FAA Part 107 Drone training and test prep program follow the SkyOp curriculum. Cohorts created in middle school will advance together to high school for the next part of their FAA Part 107 UAV Remote pilots license training.