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Hi Adah,
Yes, there seems to be more resources available for STEM using physical science as the vehicle. I came across this archived webinar that would be one example of how to mesh STEM and Life Science: NASA Engineering Design Challenge: Lunar Plant Growth
It was set up for students in grades 4 - 8. I plan to watch it later. Looks and sounds good!
Carolyn

I'm not sure how much is available for younger grade levels, but bioengineering has been around for a while. When I think of bioengineering I generally think of scientists who manipulate genes in bacteria to create synthetic drugs, etc. Another strand would be biomimicry, where scientists use living systems to engineer man-made ones. There's a great web site called the Biomimicry Institute at http://biomimicry.net/ There's a wonderful list of organisms and how they have inspired engineering available at http://www.asknature.org/aof/browse.

try this Adah without the period http://www.asknature.org/aof/browse

On the Teach Engineer website you can find a number of units connecting biology and STEM http://www.teachengineering.org/browse_curricularunits.php

Hi Adah, Did you see the article in NSTA reports about the cell game that a professor invented? It is called Meta!Blast. The "plot" is that plants are dying in 2052 and the player must shrink to microscopic size, enter a plant cell, discover what is killing plants, and save the world. It sounds like a great way to teach about cellular biology. There is a download available at http://www.metablast.org/downloads. I haven't played it yet but plan to. I would be curious to know if anyone has played it and what they think of it.

This article published in January 2010 in The American Biology Teacher discussed incorporation of STEM in a high school level biology class http://www.nabt.org/websites/institution/File/pdfs/american_biology_teacher/2010/January%202010/Jan2010ABTOn.pdf I also strongly recommend the first book referenced in this article: Benyus, J.M. (1997). Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature. NY: William Morrow.

Has anyone looked at the Biology in a Box program developed at the University of Tennessee? http://eeb.bio.utk.edu/biologyinbox/overview.htm This is a hand on inquiry based program that incorporates STEM in biology units

Janine Benyus, author of Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature has given two TED talks on innovation inspired by nature http://www.ted.com/talks/janine_benyus_shares_nature_s_designs.html http://www.ted.com/talks/janine_benyus_biomimicry_in_action.html Also have a look at her website Ask Nature http://www.asknature.org/

Maybe I need to start a new thread on biomimicry http://www.ted.com/talks/robert_full_on_engineering_and_evolution.html Here is Robert Full talking about engineering based on nature's designs

I found an article that relates engineering to global warming. The curriculum is Save the Penguins... http://learningcenter.nsta.org/product_detail.aspx?id=10.2505/4/ss10_034_03_82

Here is a great webinar on an engineering design challenge using water filtration... seems like it could be easily tied to a unit on ecosystems, water cycle, etc. http://learningcenter.nsta.org/product_detail.aspx?id=10.2505/9/WSNES11_Nov03

There are some amazing projects on Makezine.com and instructables.com, most of them would take little work to bundle around a theme in the classroom but the 'how-to' movement can provide lots of project inspiration.