STEM in Motion

The Utah STEM Action Center is excited to announce the evolution of its STEM Bus Program to include many new and exciting opportunities for students, all under the new name -- Utah STEM in Motion!

Registration is now open for the 2023/2024 school year!

For more information on STEM In Motion Kits, contact:

Julienne Bailey
STEM Project Specialist
juliennebailey@utah.gov

STEM in Motion Curriculum Kits

Our curriculum kits come supplied with our state-of-the-art equipment, lesson videos, virtual activities with our SIM team, career connection resources, and more. Each kit can be checked out for free by any school or group for a two-week period. Sign up for our newsletter to be notified when registration opens each year. Registration for the 2023/2024 school year is currently open.

How does it work?

Step 1: Explore

We have fun curriculum choices based on grade level and subject – select the kit that’s right for your students. Each kit includes state-of-the-art equipment, video lessons, extension activities, career connections, and more! Each of our kits is aligned with Utah Core Standards, and can be used for classes of up to 30, with students working in pairs or small groups. Since check-out periods are two weeks, kits can be used in as many classrooms as you would like. You can explore our kits below. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

Step 2: Register

Fill out our Kit Scheduling Form to apply to receive a kit. We have 12 available kits, and each kit is available for two weeks at a time. Only one kit can be checked out by a school at a time. You will provide details on your school, grade level, and which months would be best for you to receive your kit. We will work with schools to accommodate scheduling preferences, but cannot guarantee availability for any specific month.

Step 3: Receive Your Kit

We will contact you if you have been selected to receive a kit. A member of the STEM in Motion team will bring the kit directly to you - there is no need to make any arrangements or worry about shipping!

Step 4: Have Fun!

Enjoy watching your students having fun learning about STEM. Share the excitement with #STEMinMotion - follow us on Twitter and Youtube.

Step 5: Pack it Up!

At the end of your kit checkout period, pack everything back into the kit and leave it with your front office. A member of the STEM in Motion team will come and collect it.

Explore Our SIM Curriculum Kit Offerings

We offer 12 unique curriculum exploring various topics, from physics to coding to robotics and more! Explore our curriculum kit offerings below.

Mission to Mars

4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th

2-Week Checkout

Mission to Mars is designed for grades 4th-8th, and engages students in solving some of the major challenges that face a possible Mars colony, including radiation, water, oxygen, temperature, energy, food, and debris. They’ll choose a landing site and design a colony to meet all of the challenges, while still staying within cost and weight restrictions.

This kit includes:

6 Sets of Mars Colony Location Mats
6 Sets of Mars Colony Building Materials
3 Scales
Colony Design Worksheets
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

The kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lesson for this kit includes an introduction, and walks students through designing their own Mars Colony in groups of 3-5. Additional activity suggestions are included. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Sphero Robotics

2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th

2-Week Checkout

Robotics with Sphero is a flexible kit for students 2nd-8th grade. Throughout the program students will learn the principles of robotics while solving challenges that require the use of sensors, motors, lights and more.

This kit includes:

15 Sphero Bolts
1 Sphero Charging Case
15 iPads
6 Target Posters
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

The kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lessons for this kit include an introductory video, a video of challenges for students 2nd-6th grade, a video of challenges 6th-8th grade, and a conclusion video. Additional activity suggestions are included. Want to know more about how it works? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Renewable Energy

4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th

2-Week Checkout

This engaging program focuses on the differences between renewable and non-renewable energy, and a discussion of political, environmental and economical pros and cons of wind energy, solar energy and coal energy. It is designed for 4th to 8th grade students. Student groups are challenged to design, make, and test their own wind turbine blades to generate as high a voltage as they can.

This kit includes:

1 Vernier KidWind Turbine Kit
1 Box Fan
2 Voltmeters
3 Hot Glue Guns
Hot Glue Sticks
Scissors
Rulers
Alligator Clips
Heavy Cardboard (for turbine blades)
Dowels
Letter Template
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

The kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lessons for this kit include an introductory video and a challenge for students to design turbine blades that generate 3+ volts of electricity. Additional activity suggestions are included. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Utah's Water Ecosystems

3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th

2-Week Checkout

Utah's Water Ecosystems includes one of three curricula: Colorado River, Great Salt Lake, or Utah Lake. Each curriculum is designed to teach students about water conservation, invasive species, and Utah ecosystems. Students will build ecosystems based on Utah organisms, and run experiments on a mock local “creek” to determine the cause of a failing river ecosystem.

This kit includes:

Colorado River EcoCards
Utah Lake EcoCards
Troublesome Creek Model (measurements)
Sample Jars
pH Test Strips
Thermometers
Nitrogen Strips
White Vinegar
Student Info & Data Collection Sheets
Model of Endangered Fish
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

This kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lesson for this kit includes an introduction, and walks students through building ecosystems, identifying river organisms, and testing river water to determine the cause of a failing river ecosystem. Additional activity suggestions are included. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Additive Manufacturing

6th, 7th, 8th, High School

2-Week Checkout

This program is for middle and high school classrooms, and gives students a chance to learn and practice the engineering design process by drafting, printing, and improving designs. This kit will include all the tools and materials necessary to design and print 3D models, as well as video lessons, career resources, and more.

The kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lesson for this activity includes an introduction, and a series of design challenges for students. Additional activity suggestions are included.

Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Power Tiles

1st, 2nd, 3rd

2-Week Checkout

Power Tiles is for grades 1-3 and teaches students about electronics, light, sound, and motion with a snap together circuit kit called Power Tiles. Build cars, flashlights, alarms and more.

This kit includes:

15 Power Tiles Circuit Kits
Extra Rechargeable Batteries
Battery Charger
Google Drive Folder (with lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

This kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lesson for this kit includes an introduction, and a series of challenges for students to complete using their circuit kits. Additional activity suggestions are included. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Physics and Forces

1st, 2nd, 3rd

2-Week Checkout

Physics & Forces is designed for students grades K – 3rd. In this program, students will explore physics concepts like weight, motion, gravity, speed, and friction while conducting tests with cars and ramps.

This kit includes:

3 Ramps with Stands
6 Toy Cars
Friction Tiles
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

This kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lesson for this kit includes an introduction and a set of experiments for students to conduct regarding friction and gravity. Additional activity suggestions are included.

Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Beebots

K, 1st, 2nd, 3rd

2-Week Checkout

Beebots is for grades K-3 and is a robotics program that teaches students the fundamentals of programming a robot. BeeBot will help young children learn directions, estimation, and sequencing.

This kit includes:

15 BeeBots
15 Charging Cables
Power Strip
BeeBot Mazes
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

This kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week check-out period. The video lesson for this kit includes an introduction and a series of challenges for students to complete using their BeeBots. Additional activity suggestions are included.

Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Hands on Coding

1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th

2-Week Checkout

This program is for grades 1-6 and is a screen-free coding class designed to teach kids basic programming skills. Students will take turns being the ‘programmer’ and the ‘robot’ and acting their code out to test its effectiveness.

This kit includes:

15 Sets Hands-On Coding Tiles
Dry Erase Markers
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive Resources)

The kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lesson for this activity includes an introduction, and a series of coding challenges for students to complete in pairs or teams using the Hands-On Coding Blocks. Additional activity suggestions are included. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Probability & Game Design

4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th

2-Week Checkout

Probability and Game Design is for grades 4th-8th and explores probability, variance, conditional probability and more. Students learn how probability effects games, and how it can make games more challenging and engaging. Then, they’ll use what they’ve learned to create their own board games.

This kit includes:

6 Dry Erase Game Mats
6 Sets Wet Erase Markers
6 Sets Game Tokens
Tub of Polyhedral Dice
Dry Erase Cards
Cleaning Wipes
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

The kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lesson for this kit includes an introduction, and a challenge for students to use probability to design their own games! Additional activity suggestions are included. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Senses and the Brain

3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th

2-Week Checkout

Understanding how our brain controls what we see, hear and feel can help us to better understand our bodies as a whole. This program is an exploration through the visual and sensory controls of the brain. We spend time going through various illusions to demonstrate how our brain can affect what we see, then delve into two activities that test memory and the ability of our eyes to adjust to altered reality goggles.

This kit includes:

15 Reality Distortion Goggles
15 Bean Bags
1 Inversion Goggles
Small Whiteboard & Marker
Google Drive Folder (with video lesson plans and additional activities)
USB Drive (with Google Drive resources)

This kit can be used for as many classrooms as you would like during the 2-week checkout period. The video lesson for this plan includes an introduction, and several experiments that students can conduct during the video lesson regarding their senses and the way their brain interprets input. Additional activity suggestions are included. Want to know more about how they work? Check out our guide on How to Use Your Kit.

You can request this kit here.

All our programs are aligned with Core Standards and our own curriculum standards.

Where have we been?

STEM in Motion Impact

students impacted

schools visited in rural Utah

students with an increased interest in STEM

Utah STEM Action Center
3848 S. West Temple
Suite 105
South Salt Lake, UT 84115

PHONE
801-535-3970

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