Oct 1 - Last Week of the Six Weeks

This is the last week of the first six weeks.  The year is going by so fast that it's hard to believe.  I always like to look back to the start of school and see much we have already accomplished.  If you have any missing work, be sure to get that in to me (or have me check your journal) this week.  Wednesday will also be the second WOW day of the year, another opportunity for you to make up missing work before the grade deadline this Friday.

We have finished up the unit on basic electricity and will start focusing on digital electronics this week.  The first step will be to introduce the combinational logic components: and, or, and inverters.  These gates are the building blocks of everything else that we will do this year.  I will create the videos to introduce this topic and post Monday afternoon.  Be sure to check Moodle before class on Tuesday so that you don't start out behind.  Also, all of the previous activities need to be completed and noted in your journals.

Make sure that you are leaving your journals in the room as well as keeping them up to date.  I record the third journal grade this week.  Every journal page should have a number, date, and signature (or initials), and you should update the table of contents every day at the end of class.


If you haven't paid the $35 lab fee, please do so this week.  This money is critical to pay for the supplies and equipment that we use in the engineering classes.  If you are unable to pay at this time, please let me know.  I can tell you if you have paid or not, so just shoot me an email or ask in class if you are not sure.

If you are going on the Samsung field trip next Tuesday, make sure that you are keeping up to date on your school work in all classes.  Remember that you will miss 5th, 6th, and 7th periods and should clear with your teachers how you will make up the work before you miss on a planned absence such as this.  Samsung security does not allow for cell phones or other electronic devices on site.  Since the bus does not lock, your best advice would be to leave your phones, iPods, cameras, USB drives, or other electronic devices at home that day.

Future Aggies Design Exhibition
I submitted registration for 19 RRHS students to participate in the FADE design competition on Friday, an exciting and great group of students.  The schedule for the day is now posted on the link above (and in a previous post below).  We will not be given details of the design challenge until October 10 when all teams are simultaneously informed of the task, leaving us with exactly one month to complete the challenge.  While we don't know the exact task that will be given, we do know that it will be based on one of the 14 Grand Engineering Challenges.  For those of you registered, look over those challenges and familiarize yourself with the possible tasks that may be given to us.  More information about teams and details will be sent to you this week.

FADE Registration Deadline is THIS THURSDAY

There are a lot of you interested in FADE (Future Aggies Design Exhibition), and that is exciting.  I just got word today that the original deadline of October 5 has been moved up to this Friday, September 28.  I need to put together the teams and have definite commitment by Thursday so that I have time to fill out the forms.

I have hard copies of all that you need, but they are linked here as well.  I need 4 things from you:

• The FADE Behavioral Agreement
• Texas A&M Medical Waiver
• RRISD Permission & Waiver -   This is actually 2 forms: the medical waiver & permission form and an academic permission form.  The academic form needs to be signed by all of your teachers to indicate that you are aware of your responsibility to keep up with your school work and pass classes in order to take part in this extra-curricular activity.
• Give me information needed for the registration form by filling out this registration form.  

There is no cost to you.  All charges will be covered through the engineering activity account and grants (Let's hope!). 

The schedule for the day has been posted on the FADE web site.  Check that site for updates and more information as it becomes available.  The schedule for the day will be as follows.

7:00 am - 8:00 am	Team Check-in
8:00 am - 11:00 am	Design Competition
11:30 am - 12:30 pm	Lunch / Student Panel
1:00 pm - 3:00 pm	Campus Tour
3:00 pm - 6:00 pm	Department Tours
6:30 pm - 7:30 pm	Dinner / Awards Ceremony

In order to make it to College Station by the registration time, we will need to leave RRHS at 6:00.  Lunch and Dinner are provided by A&M, but you may want to bring money for breakfast and snacks during the day.  

Let me know if you have any questions.  

September 24

DE classes will finish up our study of analog electronics this week with the design of the 555 timer used in your Game Board Counter.  You will learn how to design a circuit to connect to the timer that controls how fast it counts and for how long. 

Then, we will start in to digital design with combinational logic.  In it, we will learn about the different types of combinational logic gates and chips that are the foundation of what we will be using throughout the rest of the year.

Also, this week will see our first WOW period.  On Work it Out Wednesday, students will  have a tutorial opportunity during the school day in order to make up missing work or get extra help.  Check with teachers for any classes which you are failing and request a WOW pass.  Thursday is again a late start day.  

Parents, be sure to check over your student's progress reports that were given to them on Friday.  If you have any questions, let me know. 

FADE Design Competition & Texas A&M Field Trip

Check out the information on FADE (Future Aggies Design Exhibition).  This event is option and will take place after school hours, so it is optional.  If you are interested, let me know.  I will have permission forms this week that you will need to fill out and have parents sign.  The deadline for us to sign up teams of 4-6 students is next Friday, October 5 this Friday September 28.  On October 10, we will be given an engineering challenge to solve from the Fourteen Grand Engineering Challenges, although, I don't know right now exactly what that will be.  The student teams will then have one month, until November 10, to create a solution to the challenge that we are given.  On November 10, which is a Saturday, we will travel by bus to the campus of Texas A&M to present our solution and see how other students solved the same problem.  The cost is free to students participating, and lunch and dinner is being provided for all participants.  For now, start forming teams of which you want to be a part and let me know that you are interested.  I will have sign-up and permission forms on Tuesday. 

If you are interested, I need the information on this form in order to get you registered.  Please fill this out to let me know that you want to participate and to give me the needed information. I must have registration and permission forms back by this Thursday.

September 18

I did not make a comment on today's agenda, but I have made and posted videos about breadboarding (Thursday's lesson) in Moodle.  There are actually three videos. The first one explains the basics of breadboards, and the second one explains how to connect a circuit using a breadboard.The third video is actually how to strip wire insulation to be used in circuits.

On Tuesday, we learned to use the main piece of software for our class, Multisim.  Multisim is made by National Instruments and is used to design and simulate electrical circuits.  While we are using it now for simple circuits, we will use it throughout the year to simulate all of our digital circuits as we learn how to use more and more components.  We will construct those simple circuits on Thursday on prototyping tool called a breadboard. 

Progress reports will be sent out on Friday, so look for those to come home before the weekend.  If you have questions regarding your grades, please let me know as soon as you can.  Also, next Wednesday (Sep 26) will be our first WOW.  If you have some missing work or low grades, take advantage of that  in-school tutorial times to make it up.

This Thursday will be a Late Start.  School starts at 9:25.

Circuit Theory Videos are available

There are 3 videos linked in Moodle.  I interrupted recording on the first one, so be sure to catch the 3 minute part 2 of Series Circuits.  The third video covers parallel circuits. 

I'll never win an academy award, but I like making these videos. 

September 10

There are several events that you should be aware of this week outside of our engineering classes.

First of all, parents are invited to attend the Open House on Monday, September 10.  Parents will gather in the 1100 (new) building cafeteria for a short PTSA meeting and instructions at 6:00.  Beginning at 6:30, you will follow your student's schedule with 10 minutes in each class to meet the teachers and hear a brief overview of each class, grading, objectives, etc.  Students were given an invitation letter Friday during 2nd period and should have written their schedule down on that letter to give to you.  Please come to see us Monday night, and get a copy of your child's schedule and a campus map so that you will know where to go.


For DE, we will continue learning to solder and then learn circuit theory (Ohms law, Kirchoff's voltage law, and Kirchoff's current law).  Be prepared for a quiz over safety and component identification on Wednesday.  Also, I will use the topics this week to start "flipping" the classroom.  Expect that there will be some videos for you to review at home prior to class so that we can spend more class time actually doing the work. 

Don't forget to check out the other pages that I have linked through this site displayed as tabs above the blog posts.  One is a collection of scholarships that are available to RRHS engineering students to apply for and get assistance in paying for college. I have added a link to the college visit schedule for our school.  On Thursday (Sep 13), Rochester Institute of Technology will be here and wanting to talk to our junior and seniors.  If you are interested, check with your counselor to sing up for a time to talk with them.  RIT is one of the colleges that offers college credit for participation (with an appropriate EoC and course grade) in PLTW courses.  You can start out college with 4 hours of credit already earned for successful completion of each of our PLTW courses. 

September 3

I hope that you enjoyed your long weekend.  We continued some basic skills today: finished the resistor identification lab, and extended what we know about scientific notation to engineering notation and standard SI units.  On Thursday, we will learn to solder and practice on a simple circuit board.  If you solder everything correctly, you will get a light show out of it.  Before Thursday, make sure to review the soldering video that I made.  It is linked in MOODLE along with another one, if you want some more details. 

This Friday is the deadline to bring your $35 lab fee to me.  If you are unable to get the lab fee to me this week, please let me know.

Mark your calendars for next Monday, September 10, which will be RRHS Open House.  Parents will have a short PTSA meeting and then a chance to run through your child's full schedule, meeting all of us as your student's teachers.  It is always a good time but very fast-paced.  Typically, parents will spend about 8 - 10 minutes per class period in each room.

Be sure to go to sign up through Remind 101 for quick updates via email and/or text message.  That will allow me to send out quick reminders and short updates from time to time.

Finally, we will see our first "late start" day this Thursday.  Check the RRHS page for the late start bell schedule.  Classes start later, at 9:25, in order to allow teachers to work and plan together in PLCs.  This schedule occurs on most Thursdays this year (but not all). 

This has started out as a great year.  We all are looking forward to an exciting year of Dragon Engineering!