Congratulations are in order for the talented young scientists, inventors and engineers selected to take part in the Student Technology Showcase at the CUE 2015 Annual Conference, which is the largest and oldest education technology conference in the state.
This year’s showcase will again feature the best curriculum-aligned student technology projects from across California. Here are the representative Orange County teams:
McPherson Magnet, Orange Unified School District
University of California, Davis C-STEM Program
Seventh- and eighth-grade students from McPherson will display their robotics project, which is part of the C-STEM program created by the University of California, Davis. Using computer-aided drafting software and a 3-D printer, they designed and manufactured their own robot parts. In addition, they learned C++ — that’s the computer language used to program each modular robot – and applied algebraic thinking to solve and plot out complex robotic interactions.
Tustin High School, Tustin Unified School District 
Locking Skateboard Rack
Students from the Tustin High team aimed to find a way to develop affordable racks to secure skateboards at school. They designed a locking skateboard rack using SolidWorks 3D CAD software and built a prototype using a 3-D printer. Pre-production units were manufactured in their engineering shop. The plan is to install the units around the high school campus.
Brea Olinda High School, Brea Olinda Unified School District
Ninja Cyber Safety Academy
Students from Brea Olinda High researched current social issues that affect today’s youth. Addressing one of those issues, online safety, they created lessons designed for younger students to warn and inform of the hazards associated with social media. The lessons, created in an informational website, also included a post-quiz on specific topics.
Imperial Middle School, La Habra City School District
What’s on Your Bathroom Shelf?
Eighth-grade students from Imperial Middle School created their own cosmetic product by expanding their knowledge of chemistry, including acids and bases. Working with industry professionals on formulations, they researched and created a natural and organic product. The young scientists then used technology to develop a commercial supporting the properties of their new cosmetic and developed a marketing and advertising campaign using social media. The project was featured in this video posted on the OCDE Newsroom in January.
Mattie Lou Maxwell Elementary School, Magnolia School District
FIRST Lego League Robotics Program
FIRST Lego League is a robotics program that introduces fourth- through eighth-grade students to engineering by having them build LEGO robots to complete tasks on a thematic play surface. Students at Mattie Lou Maxwell Elementary have taken a primary role in the creation of the robotics team at their school. They built an official playing field and Lego models, programmed a robot to perform a number of tasks and prepared a research project.
The Student Technology Showcase is open to the community at no charge. If you’re in the area, you can view projects from 10:15 a.m. to noon on Saturday, March 21 in the lobby of the Palm Springs Convention Center at 277 N. Avenida Caballeros, Palm Springs.
For more information on CUE and the annual conference, click here.