10 STEM activities designed to engage 9th graders:

1. Arduino Projects: Introduce students to electronics and coding by creating projects with Arduino kits. They can build anything from simple LED circuits to more complex gadgets like weather stations or smart devices, learning about microcontrollers and programming.
2. Biomechanical Hand: Have students design and build a biomechanical hand using straws, yarn, and cardboard. This project teaches about human anatomy, engineering, and the integration of biology with mechanical design.
3. Chemical Reactions and Stoichiometry: Conduct experiments to explore chemical reactions, balancing equations, and stoichiometry. Activities can include creating elephant toothpaste, exploring the reaction between vinegar and baking soda, or more complex reactions that demonstrate the conservation of mass.
4. Ecosystem in a Bottle: Create a closed ecosystem in a bottle to understand environmental science, ecosystems, the carbon cycle, and sustainability. Students can observe how plants, soil, and water interact over time in a self-sustaining system.
5. Solar Energy Experiments: Explore solar energy through experiments that use solar panels to power small devices or experiments that measure the efficiency of solar cells under different conditions. This can lead to discussions about renewable energy and its role in our future.
6. Physics of Sports: Analyze the physics behind various sports by measuring angles, velocity, and force. Students can explore concepts such as projectile motion, friction, and energy transfer through practical experiments related to sports they enjoy.
7. App Development: Teach basic app development using platforms like MIT App Inventor or Swift Playgrounds. Students can design simple apps that solve a problem, entertain, or educate, introducing them to user interface design and basic programming.
8. Mathematical Modeling: Use mathematical modeling to solve real-world problems. This could involve statistical analysis of data, creating models to predict outcomes, or exploring mathematical patterns in nature and technology.
9. Build a Wind Turbine: Challenge students to design and build a model wind turbine. This project teaches about renewable energy, physics, and engineering as students experiment with blade design and placement to maximize energy output.
10. Forensic Science Investigation: Create a mock crime scene and have students use forensic science techniques to solve a mystery. They can analyze fingerprints, fibers, DNA, and chemical substances, introducing them to the applications of science in criminal investigations.