I have discovered that picture books are a great way to introduce students (and adults) to Engineering Design in the Next Generation Science Standards. I picked a few of my favorite picture books, assigned each a grade level and created a lesson guide for teachers.
Each of the teacher guides below provides a Common Core ELA close reading lesson using a specific picture book. The picture books and teacher guides also provide opportunities to introduce students to the Engineering Design Process in the Next Generation Science Standards. Each book has a focus- and may only target a part of the engineering design process in NGSS. For example, If I Built a Car tends to focus on Optimizing Solutions.
Click the teacher guide link to download a MS Word document of the guide and if you need a copy of the book (these are all excellent books by the way) I’ve embedded a link to Amazon for each.
These literacy guides are a great way to introduce engineering to students (and teachers).
| Grade | Picture Book (Amazon Link) | Teacher Guide Link |
| Pre- K | Stuck by Oliver Jeffers | Stuck TG |
| K | Monkey with a Tool Belt and the Noisy Problem by Chris Monroe | Monkey TG |
| 1 | If I Built a Car by Chris Van Dusen | If I Built a Car TG |
| 2 | If I Built a House by Chris Van Dusen | If I Built a House TG |
| 3 | Those Darn Squirrels by Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri | Those Darn Squirrels TG |
| 4 | Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty | Rosie Revere Eng TG |
| 5 | Papa’s Mechanical Fish by Candace Fleming | Papa’s Mechanical Fish TG |
| ALL | Girls Think of Everything by Catherine Thimmesh and Melissa Sweet | Many of the above guides refer to readings from this informational text. An excellent book. |
Science for All 