STEM Throughout the Year!
Ideas for incorporating current science, engineering, and technology content into holidays, seasons, annual events, and special events.
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2019 - International Year of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements, 50th anniversary
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2019 - 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 Moon Landing (July 20, 1969) and Apollo missions
http://nisenet.org/moon50 -
2019 - NASA 60th anniversary
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2019 Summer Reading - A Universe of Stories 219 Summer Learning Program
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Snow and Snowflakes, January, & February
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March, April, & May
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Sun and Sand, Summer Camp, June, July, & August
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Back to School, September, October, November, & December
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Super Hero activities
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Science Fiction
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Food related activities
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2014 - year-long events -International Year of Crystallography: 2014
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2015 - year-long events - International Year of Light: 2015
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2019 - year long events
- International Year of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements (IYPTCE) 2019 will mark 150 years since the enigmatic Russian chemist Dimitri Mendeleev first published his influential periodic table.
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2019 - 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 Moon Landing (July 20, 1969) and Apollo missions - www.nisenet.org/moon50
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2019 Summer Reading - A Universe of Stories 219 Summer Learning Program http://www.starnetlibraries.org/universe-of-stories/
Celestial Events
Meteor showers, lunar eclipses, full moons, planetary events, and more:
- Calendars:
- New York Times astronomy events calendar and iCal/webcal link to add to iCloud, Google, or Outlook
- http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/sky-at-a-glance/
- https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/
- https://stardate.org/nightsky
- https://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/planner.cfm
- https://in-the-sky.org/newscal.php
- http://earthsky.org/tonight
- What's up this month
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science - Earth, Moon and Sun
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science - Astronomy
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Solar Eclipse April 8, 2024 - next total solar eclipse in North America
WINTER
Snow and Snowflakes:
- Snowflakes: Nano at its Coolest program
- Ready, Set, Self-Assemble group activity
- Exploring Fabrication - Self-Assembly program
January
Predictions for the New Year (January 1)
- Flying Cars stage presentation
- Exploring Nano & Society - Flying Cars activity
- Exploring Nano & Society - You Decide! activity
- Nano Around the World card game
National Bird Day (January 5)
- www.nationalbirdday.com website
- some bird feathers (such as peacock feathers) are iridescent due to nano-sized structures within the feathers; for more about iridescence check out:
- explore this website by searching the topic: Life Sciences - Animals
National Static Electricity Day (January 9)
- NanoDays activity: Exploring Forces - Static Electricity
- Other electricity activities:
- Frankenstein200 activity: Battery Stack
- Frankenstein200 activity: Spark of Life
- NanoDays activity: the Electric Squeeze
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NanoDays activity: Exploring Materials - Graphene
February
Black History Month / African-American History Month (February) - celebrate people in STEM
- www.africanamericanhistorymonth.gov
- NASA Modern Figures Toolkit
- African Americans in Science and Technology internet resources from the Library of Congress
- Black History Month resources from AAAS Science NetLinks
Valentine's Day (February 14)
- Sweet Self-Assembly program
- What's Nano About Chocolate video
- What's Nano About Chocolate sign in Nano Museum Labels (Graphic Signs)
- Exploring Fabrication - Gummy Capsules (NanoDays 12, 13) short activity
- Sweet Self-Assembly long activity
- Molecular Gastronomy Mr. O video
- explore this website by searching the topic: Societal Topics - Food and Cooking
National Engineers Week (February)
- www.discovere.org website
- explore this website by searching the topic: Physical Sciences - Materials Science
- explore this website by searching the topic: Engineering and Technology
Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day (February)
- www.discovere.org/our-programs/girl-day website
- explore this website by searching the topic: Engineering and Technology
- 60 Books to Inspire Science-Loving Mighty Girls from A Mighty Girl
- SciGirls Seven: How to Engage Girls in STEM
- NASA Modern Figures Toolkit
- National Girls Collaborative Project publication: State of Girls and Women in STEM
Great Backyard Bird Count (mid-February)
- www.birdsource.org website
- some bird feathers (such as peacock feathers) are iridescent due to nano-sized structures within the feathers; for more about iridescence check out:
- explore this website by searching the topic: Life Sciences - Animals
SPRING
March
Women's History Month (March) - celebrate people in STEM
- National Women's History Project: http://www.nwhp.org
- womenshistorymonth.gov website
- NASA resources
- NASA Modern Figures Toolkit
- National Girls Collaborative Project publication: State of Girls and Women in STEM
- SciGirls Seven: How to Engage Girls in STEM
- 60 Books to Inspire Science-Loving Mighty Girls from A Mighty Girl
NanoDays (last weekend in March - first weekend in April)
2017: March 25-April 2
2018: March 31-April 8
2019: March 30-April 7
2020: March 28-April 5
- NanoDays website: www.nisenet.org/nanodays
- explore this website by searching the topic: Engineering and Technology - Nanotechnology
Groundwater Awareness Week (second full week in March)
- www.ngwa.org website
- Cleaning Our Water with Nanotechnology program
- The Water Race: Hydrophopbic and Hydrophilic Surfaces
- What’s Nano About Water?
- DragonflyTV - Water Clean Up video
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science - Water and Oceans
Brain Awareness Week (mid-March)
- http://www.dana.org/BAW/
- resources from the Society for Neuroscience
- explore this website by searching for topic: Life Sciences - Human Body
- explore this website by searching for topic: Life Sciences - Health and Medicine
Pi Day (March 14)
- http://www.piday.org
- Celebrate math! there are one billion nanometers in a meter
- NASA Pi Day challenges
- explore this website by searching for topic: Mathematics
National Learn about Butterflies Days (March 14)
- Zoom into a Blue Morpho Butterfly video
- Butterfly Blues video
- Exploring Structures - Butterfly (NanoDays 2012) short activity
- Colors at the Nanoscale: Butterflies, Beetles and Opals long activity
- Zoom Into a Butterfly Wing poster
- What's nano about butterflies Nano museum labels (graphic signs)
- Scientific Image - Blue Morpho Butterfly Wing (reflected light)
- Scientific Image - Blue Morpho Butterfly Wing (non-reflected light)
- Scientific Image - Blue Morpho Butterfly
- Scientific Image- Blue Morpho Butterfly Wing Ridges
- Scientific Image - Blue Morpho Butterfly Wing Microribs
- Scientific Image - Blue Morpho Butterfly Wing Scales
- Scientific Image - Photonic Crystal
- Powers of Ten with the Blue Morpho Butterfly (Middle and High School curriculum lesson)
- explore this website by searching the topic: Life Sciences - Animals
World Water Day (March 22)
- www.worldwaterday.org website
- Cleaning Our Water with Nanotechnology program
- The Water Race: Hydrophopbic and Hydrophilic Surfaces
- What’s Nano About Water?
- DragonflyTV - Water Clean Up video
- Oil Spill Clean Up Simulation hands on activity
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science - Water and Oceans
Earth Hour (mid-March) (March 30, 2019)
- www.earthhour.org
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science
- explore this website by searching the topic: Societal Topics - Sustainability
April
Global Astronomy Month (April)
Astronomy Day (Spring) (April 21, 2018; May 11, 2019; May 2, 2020; May 15, 2021)
Astronomy Week (Spring) (April 16-30; 2018 May 6-12; 2019 April 27-May 3, 2020; May 10-16, 2021)
- Global Astronomy Day Month website http://astronomerswithoutborders.org
- Astronomy Day website www.astroleague.org/al/astroday/astrodayform.html
- Exploring Nano & Society - Space Elevator (NanoDays 2013) short activity
- Aerogel short activity
- Exploring Nano & Society - Flying Cars short activity
- Flying Cars theater program
- Exploring Size - Memory Game (NanoDays 2011 and 2012) short activity
- Exploring Size - Powers of Ten Game (NanoDays 2011, 2012, and 2014) short activity
- Exploring Size - StretchAbility (NanoDays 2010) short activity
- Scale of the Universe Zoom
- Is That Robot Real? children's book and poster
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science
Mathematics and Statistics Awareness Month
- National Math Festival events
- explore this website by searching for topic: Mathematics
World Health Day (April 7)
- World Health Day and WHO World Health Day
- Intro to Nanomedicine video
- Exploring Products - Sunblock activity
- Nanotech and Consumer Products
- Should We Engineer the Mosquito forum
- Nanomedicine in Healthcare forum
- Nanomedicine Explorer exhibit and software
- Cleaning Our Water with Nanotechnology program
- Disease Detectives middle school outreach program
- Nano Latch-n-Catch Nanomedicine Activity
- explore this website by searching for topic: Life Sciences - Health and Medicine
National Robotics Week (second week in April)
- www.nationalroboticsweek.org website
- Shrinking Robots! program
- Is That Robot Real book and graphics
- Robots and People program
- explore this website by searching for topic: Engineering and Technology - Technology
Yuri's Night (April 12)
- https://yurisnight.net
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science
Citizen Science Day (mid April)
- http://citizenscience.org/events/citizen-science-day/
- NASA resources: https://science.nasa.gov/citizenscientists
- SciStarter database of projects: https://scistarter.com
Earth Day (April 22)
National Environmental Education Week (week of Earth Day) (2020 is the 50th anniversary)
- www.earthday.org website
- www.eeweek.org website for National Environmental Education week
- Chemists Celebrate Earth Week (CCEW)
- Tiny Solutions to Our Big Energy Problem stage presentation
- Energy Challenges, Nanotech Solutions forum
- Cleaning Our Water with Nanotechnology program
- Water Clean Up DragonflyTV episode
- Nanosilver DragonflyTV episode
- Nanosilver: Breakthrough or Biohazard? stage presentation
- Does Every Silver Lining Have a Cloud video
- DragonflyTV - Water Clean Up video
- Oil Spill Clean Up Simulation
- SustainABLE kit activities
- Earth & Space toolkit activities
- NASA Earth Day resources
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science
- explore this website by searching the topic: Societal Topics - Sustainability
DNA Day (April 25)
- National DNA Day website
- DNA Nanotechnology hands-on activity
- Exploring Structures - DNA (NanoDays 2012) hands-on activity
- Building with Biology Kit activities
- explore this website by searching the topic: life sciences
National Poetry Month (April)
- www.poets.org/npm website
- nano-themed haiku at the end of each NISE Network NanoBiteNewsletter (2009-2013)
May
National Physical Fitness and Sports Month (May)
May the 4th be with you - Star Wars (May 4)
- NASA and Star Wars connections
- NASA Museum Alliance list of resources (login required)
https://informal.jpl.nasa.gov/museum/content/star-wars - NASA and Star Trek list of resources (login required)
https://informal.jpl.nasa.gov/museum/content/star-trek-and-nasa - Also please see Science Fiction section below
National Children’s Book Week (early May)
- Children's Book Week website
- Shrinking Robots! book (for free download or to order)
- How Small is Nano? book (for free download or to order)
- Ailce in NanoLand book (for free download or to order)
- Selected books about nano
Caribbean Mosquito Awareness Week (May)
- National Mosquito Control Awareness Week resources from American Mosquito Control Association (AMCA)
- Caribbean Mosquito Awareness Week resources from Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) World Health Organization (WHO) resources
- "Should We Engineer the Mosquito?" Forum
SUMMER
Summer Reading
- A Universe of Stories 219 Summer Learning Program
http://www.starnetlibraries.org/universe-of-stories/
Sun and Sand
- Nano Ice Cream program
- Invisible Sunblock program
- Magic Sand/Nanosurfaces program
- Exploring Products - Sunblock program
- fun outdoor group activity: Ready, Set, Self-Assemble group program
- Why are Seashells so Strong? program
Summer Camp
- Nanotechnology Summer Camp (Ages 8 - 10) framework
- High School Nanotechnology Summer Camp framework
June
World Oceans Day (June 8)
- worldoceansday.org
- Cleaning Our Water with Nanotechnology program
- The Water Race: Hydrophopbic and Hydrophilic Surfaces
- What’s Nano About Water?
- DragonflyTV - Water Clean Up video
- Why are Seashells so Strong? program
- Oil Spill Clean Up Simulation hands on activity
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science - Water and Oceans
National Mosquito Control Awareness Week - Fight the Bite (week of June 26)
- National Mosquito Control Awareness Week resources from American Mosquito Control Association (AMCA)
- Caribbean Mosquito Awareness Week resources from Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) World Health Organization (WHO) resources
- "Should We Engineer the Mosquito?" Forum
Asteroid Day (June 30)
- https://asteroidday.org/
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science
July
Pride in STEM Day (July)
World Brain Day (mid-July)
- World Federation of Neurology Brain day
- resources from the Society for Neuroscience
- explore this website by searching for topic: Life Sciences - Human Body
- explore this website by searching for topic: Life Sciences - Health and Medicine
Moon Landing - anniversary of Apollo 11 first step on the Moon July 20, 1969
- NISE Network list of resources: http://www.nisenet.org/moon50
- NASA Apollo 11 Moonwalk Montage
- NASA logos for 50th anniversary in 2019
- NASA Apollo 11 resources
- NASA Moon resources
- NASA moon
- NASA Museum Alliance list of many more resources - login required
August
National Aviation Day (August 19)
FALL
Back to School
- K-12 lesson plans
- collaboration with K-12 class on Nanoparticle Stained Glass project
- Theater High School Program videos
- pencils and writing with graphite - Forms of Carbon
- Exploring Materials - Graphene program (related to pencils, graphite, and tape)
- Nobel Winning Experiment Mr. O video (related to pencils, graphite, and tape)
- Material Marvels with Ainissa Ramirez video - Graphene (related to pencils and graphite)
- After School Framework
September
National Aerospace Week (second week in September)
National Pollution Prevention Week (P2 Week) (third week in September)
- www.p2.org/p2-week/
- explore the website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science - Water and Oceans
Worldwide Day of Play (WWDoP) (September 29, 2018)
October
Astronomy Day (Fall) (September 30, 2017; October 13, 2018; October 5, 2019; September 26, 2020; October 9, 2021)
Astronomy Week (Fall) (September 25-October 1, 2017; October 8-14, 2018; September 30-October 6, 2019; September 21-27, 2020; October 4-10, 2021)
- Astronomy Day website www.astroleague.org/al/astroday/astrodayform.html
World Space Week (October 4-10)
National Nano Day (October 9th)
National Nanotechnology Day (#NationalNanoDay) is an annual celebration and pays homage to the nanometer scale, 10–9 meters.
- https://www.nano.gov/nationalnanoday
- NanoDays website for hands-on activities and resources: www.nisenet.org/nanodays
Metric Day (October 10th)
- How Small is Nano? book and poster
- How Small is Nano? video
- Scale Ladder Diagrams
- Sizing Things Down
- Exploring Size - Measure Yourself
- Exploring Size - Powers of Ten card game
- explore this website by searching for topic: Mathematics - Measurement
Campus Sustainability Month (October)
- http://www.aashe.org/campus-sustainability-month/ website
- explore this website by searching the topic: Societal Topics - Sustainability
Earth Science Week (second full week in October)
(October 14-20, 2018); October 13-19, 2019; October 11-17, 2020; October 10-16, 20210
- www.earthsciweek.org website
- Energy Challenges, Nanotech Solutions forum
- Cleaning Our Water with Nanotechnology program
- Water Clean Up DragonflyTV episode
- Nanosilver DragonflyTV episode
- Nanosilver: Breakthrough or Biohazard? stage presentation
- Does Every Silver Lining Have a Cloud video
- Tiny Solutions to Our Big Energy Problem stage presentation
- Oil Spill Clean Up Simulation hands on activity
- educational products on nisenet.org topics related to water
- explore this website by searching the topic: Societal Topics - Sustainability
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and space Science
International Observe the Moon Night (October 20, 2018; October 5, 2019, September 25, 2020)
- http://observethemoonnight.org/
- https://moon.nasa.gov/observe
- explore this website by searching the topic: Earth and Space Science - Earth, Moon and Sun
National Chemistry Week (third full week in October)
Mole Day (October 23) commemorates Avogadro's Number (6.02 x 1023), which is a measuring unit in chemistry.
- American Chemical Society's National Chemistry Week website
- NISE Network National Chemistry Week page www.nisenet.org/national-chemistry-week for a complete list of activities
- Explore Science: Let's Do Chemistry kit
- Sweet Self-Assembly
- Exploring Size - Scented Balloons
- Exploring Materials - Liquid Crystals
- explore this website by searching the topic: Physical Science - Chemistry
Nuclear Science Week (NSW) (third week in October)
- www.nuclearscienceweek.org
- activities on size and scale, atoms and molecules
- explore this website by searching the topic: Physical Science
- explore this website by searching for topic: Mathematics - Measurement
Halloween (October 31)
- Frankenstein 200 kit activities - celebrating the anniversary of the publication of Mary Shelley's novel
- Chemistry activiites - see National Chemistry Week resources
- Chemistry activities see Explore Science: Let's Do Chemistry kit activities including dry ice sublimation activity
- Nano Dreams and Nano Nightmares puppetry play
- Attack of the nanoscientist stage presentation
- Intro to Nano video for costume ideas
- What’s Nano About Chocolate? video
- Exploring Fabrication - Gummy Capsules (NanoDays 12, 13) short activity
- Sweet Self-Assembly long activity
- Ideas for activities, costumes, and pumpkins from the American Chemical Society (ACS) for Halloween chemistry
November
International Science Center and Science Museum Day (November 10)
America Recycles Day (November 15)
- https://americarecyclesday.org/
- explore this website by searching the topic: Societal Topics - Sustainability
Thanksgiving (November)
- Turkey breast feathers are iridescent due to nano-sized structures within the feathers: for more about iridescence check out:
- Would You Buy That stage presentation (related to shopping and Black Friday)
December
Computer Science Education Week (CSEdWeek) and Hour of Code (2nd week in December)
- CS Ed Week: www.csedweek.org
- Hour of Code: http://hourofcode.com/us
- Accessible Hour of Code: https://quorumlanguage.com/selection.html
- Computer Science Collaboration Project: www.cscproject.org
- Code.org's intro to computer science: https://code.org/educate/curriculum/accelerated-course
- Code.org's educational resources: https://code.org/educate
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Computer Science Is for Everyone toolkit to increase diversity from the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT)
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Computer Science Online: Resources, Degrees, and Careers: www.computerscienceonline.org
- Zoom into a computer chip poster
- Zoom into a microchip video
- The Future of Computing stage presentation
- Exploring Products - Computer Hard Drives (NanoDays 13, 14)
- explore this website by searching the topic: Engineering and Technology - Computing
OTHER SPECIAL EVENTS
Super Hero activities
Science Fiction
- Frankenstein 200 kit activities - explores themes of human creativity, societal responsibility, and scientific ethics
- Building with Biology kit activities - future of synthetic biology
- Exploring Properties - Invisibility activity
- Exploring Nano & Society - Invisibility Cloak activity
- Invisibility Cloak video
- NASA and Star Wars connections
- NASA Museum Alliance list of resources (login required)
https://informal.jpl.nasa.gov/museum/content/star-wars - NASA and Star Trek list of resources (login required)
https://informal.jpl.nasa.gov/museum/content/star-trek-and-nasa
Food related activities
- Nano Ice Cream long activity
- Exploring Fabrication - Gummy Capsules (NanoDays 12, 13) short activity
- Sweet Self-Assembly long activity
- Kitchen Chemistry stage program
- What’s Nano About Chocolate? video
- What's Nano About Chocolate sign and What's Nano about Food Packaging sign in Nano Museum Labels (Graphic Signs)
- Nano in Food - this recorded NISE Net online brown-bag conversation focuses on the intersection of nanoscale science and food.
- Exploring Size - Scented Balloons
- Molecular Gastronomy Mr. O video
- explore this website by searching the topic: Societal Topics - Food and Cooking
Past Events
2014 - year-long events
International Year of Crystallography: 2014
- www.iycr2014.org website for background, activities, and how to participate
- Self-Assembly in Crystals program demo
- the Electric Squeeze program demo
- Exploring Products – Liquid Crystal Displays (NanoDays 2013) activity
- Exploring Materials – Liquid Crystals (NanoDays 08, 09, 10) activity
- Nano Ice Cream activity program
- Online Brown-Bag: Nano in Food (Recorded) for background information on ice cream crystals
2015 - year-long events
- International Year of Light logos and background
- Organic Light-Emitting Diodes (OLEDs): Cart Version
- Exploring Materials - Liquid Crystals (NanoDays 08, 09, 10)
- Exploring Properties - Invisibility (NanoDays 13, 14)
- Exploring Products - Sunblock (NanoDays 2011 and 2012)
- Exploring Properties - UV Bracelets (NanoDays 2013)
- Exploring Materials - Thin Films (NanoDays 2011 and 2012)
- Exploring Structures - Butterfly (NanoDays 2012)
- Colors at the Nanoscale: Butterflies, Beetles and Opals classroom program
- Butterfly Blues video
- Zoom into a Blue Morpho Butterfly video
- Biomimicry: From Nature to Nanotech program
- recorded online workshop March 2013 that included a discussion of light at the nanoscale
- explore this website by searching the topic: Physical Sciences - Light and Optics
If you have a suggestion for an addition to this page, please contact us at webmaster@nisenet.org - thanks!