Engineering gains ground in the classroom.

In 2001, when Massachusetts became the first state to develop K-12 curricular standards and assessments for engineering, educators wondered, "How are we going to teach this?" Luckily, the Museum of Science in Boston was on the case. "We collected more than 400 pieces of curriculum from around the world that focus on teaching engineering technology and design," says Christine Cunningham, vice president of research at the museum. "After teachers reviewed the materials, we put them online in our Educator Resource Center."

While collecting the data, Cunningham's team noticed lapses at the elementary and high school level. The museum's goal is for every U.S. child to have a basic understanding of engineering, so it created curricula.

Engineering is Elementary, for grades one through five, introduces each unit with an illustrated children's book written by the museum. The lead character has a relative in an engineering field and the books come with teaching resources. "It builds upon what children learn in science," says Cunningham.

The high school course, Engineering the Future, prepares Massachusetts students for their sophomore-year exam. It comes with a textbook filled with magazine-like articles that teach about engineering careers. "Our research showed that most kids think engineers are auto mechanics, construction workers or computer technicians," says Cunningham.

Currently, the units are being field-tested by teachers in the state and all over the country. The museum has begun a middle-school initiative called Engineering Today that it hopes will replace the textbook- and worksheet-driven materials with inquiry-learning projects. www.mos.org/erc, www.mos.org/etf, www.mos.org/eie, www.doe.mass.edu/ frameworks/current.html