Omaha Elementary Teachers Bring Biomechanics Into the Classroom With BODYMODELS Project

UNO's Roskens Hall has been host to STEM activity over the month of July.

Omaha-area elementary teachers from the first BODYMODELS cohort joined faculty from UNO’s Department of Biomechanics and Teacher Education Department to develop a biomechanics curriculum to implement in their classrooms this fall. Children attended this week’s session to help the teachers work through their new lesson plans.

Lynn Donahue, Science Curriculum Chair for Elkhorn Elementary Schools said the excitement of bringing all of the new things she's learned through BODYMODELS back to her classroom gives her goosebumps.

"There hasn't been a day where I haven't learned new things all day long," Lynn said. "It's just very, very exciting to bring something new that will support what we have to do in the classroom."

Participants had to opportunity to experience innovative STEM technologies like virtual reality and robotics. They even studied the angles and action of "dabbing" by using Kinovea movement-analysis software.

UNO’s BODYMODELS is a three-year project, funded through the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Innovative Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) program, that will bring biomechanics education to an estimated 1,500 Omaha youth.

The primary investigator (PI) and co-investigator (Co-PI) of the project are: Dr. Neal Grandgenett (PI), Dr. Michelle Friend (Co-PI), and Dr. Anne Karabon (Co-PI) from the Teacher Education Department; Dr. Kota Takahashi (Co-PI) and Dr. Amelia Lanier (Co-PI) from the Department of Biomechanics.