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Engineering

Courses

  • Recommended Placement: The course assumes no previous knowledge, however, math skills such as being able to solve equations, performing math operations with fractions and decimals, working with proportions, and some basic geometry knowledge are highly recommended. 

  • Credits: 10

  • College Prep Course

A grade of 60% or higher is required to move to the second semester. Any student who needs to repeat this course must repeat the entire year. Students may not enroll concurrently in IED and Principles of Engineering.

The curriculum is aligned to the CA CTE Model Curriculum Standards and Career Ready Standards for the Sector Engineering and Design Industry pathway.
Introduction to Engineering Design™ (IED) is one of two foundation courses in the Project Lead The Way® (PLTW) high school engineering pathway. The major focus of the IED course is to expose students to:

  1. The design process

  2. Research and analysis

  3. Teamwork and communication methods

  4. Technical documentation

  5. Engineering standards

  6. The global and human impact of various engineering disciplines

IED gives students the opportunity to develop skills and understand course concepts through problem-based learning, teamwork, and hands-on activities. Students will work with Computer Aided Design (CAD) software and state-of-the-art rapid prototyping technologies such as 3D printing and laser cutting to build their projects.

This course is articulated with Irvine Valley College. Students who complete both semesters with an A or B will receive six (6) college credits.

  • Recommended Placement: Concurrent enrollment in Math II or higher.  Students do not need to complete Introduction to Engineering to enroll in this course.

  • Credits: 10

  • College Prep Course

A grade of 60% or higher is required to move to the second semester. Any student who needs to repeat this course must repeat the entire year. Students may not enroll concurrently in Introduction to Engineering Design and Principles of Engineering.

The curriculum is aligned to the CA CTE Model Curriculum Standards and Career Ready Standards for the Sector Engineering and Design Industry pathway.
Principles of Engineering (POE) is one of two foundation courses in the Project Lead The Way® (PLTW) high school engineering pathway. Students explore a broad range of engineering topics, including mechanisms, the strength of structures and materials, and automation. Students develop skills in problem solving, research, and design while learning strategies for design process documentation, collaboration, and presentation. POE gives students the opportunity to develop skills and understand course concepts through problem-based learning and hands-on activities.

Students will be working with Computer Aided Design (CAD) software, VEX robotics kits, and state-of-the-art rapid prototyping technologies such as 3D printing and laser cutting to build their projects. In this course, students will be designing, building, and programming VEX machines and robots to demonstrate their understanding of the course curriculum.

The course of study includes:

  1. Energy and Power

  2. Six Simple Machines

  3. Basic Electricity

  4. Thermodynamics

  5. Materials and Structures

  6. Engineering Design Process

  7. CAD Solid Modeling

  8. Control Systems

  9. Robotics and Programming

  10. Statistics and Kinematics

  11. Marketing

  12. Career Exploration

  13. Engineering Ethics

For more information, visit: https://www.pltw.org/our-programs/pltw-engineering

  • Recommended Placement: Completion of Principles of Engineering with a 70% or concurrent enrollment in Math 3 or higher, and teacher recommendation. Current engineering students will have preference for enrollment.

  • Credits: 10

  • College Prep Course

A grade of 60% or higher is required to move to the second semester. Any student who needs to repeat this course must repeat the entire year.

The curriculum is aligned to the CA CTE Model Curriculum Standards and Career Ready Standards for the Sector Engineering and Design Industry pathway.
Aerospace Engineering utilizes activity-project-problem-based teaching to ignite student learning of the fundamentals of atmospheric and space flight. Aerospace Engineering is one of the specialization courses in the Project Lead The Way® (PLTW) high school engineering pathway. The course deepens the skills and knowledge of an engineering student within the context of atmospheric and space flight.

Students explore the fundamentals of flight in air and space as they bring the concepts to life by designing and testing components related to flight such as a glider and rocket. Students will be designing, building, and programming their own Mars Rover. Students will use industry software to explore and apply skills.

The course of study includes:

  1. Evolution of Flight

  2. Physics of Flight

  3. Flight Planning and Navigation

  4. Materials and Structures

  5. Propulsion

  6. Flight Physiology

  7. Space Travel

  8. Orbital Mechanics

  9. Alternative Applications

  10. Remote Systems

  11. Aerospace Careers

  12. Engineering Ethics

For more information, visit: https://www.pltw.org/our-programs/pltw-engineering

  • Recommended Placement: Completion of Aerospace Engineering (or Principles of Engineering for rising seniors) with a 70% or higher, strong independent and teamwork skills, and teacher recommendation.

  • Credits: 10

  • College Prep Course

A grade of 60% or higher is required to move to the second semester. Any student who needs to repeat this course must repeat the entire year.

The curriculum is aligned to the CA CTE Model Curriculum Standards and Career Ready Standards for the Sector Engineering and Design Industry pathway.

Engineering Design and Development (EDD) is the capstone course in the Project Lead The Way® (PLTW) high school engineering pathway. It is an open-ended engineering research course in which students work in teams to design and develop an original solution to a well-defined and justified open-ended problem by applying an engineering design process.

Students will perform research to select, define, and justify a problem. After carefully defining the design requirements and creating multiple solution approaches, teams of students select an approach, create, and test their solution prototype. Student teams will present and defend their original solution to an outside panel.

While progressing through the engineering design process, students will work with industry experts and will continually hone their organizational, communication and interpersonal skills, their creative and problem-solving abilities, and their understanding of the design process. Since the projects on which students work can vary with student interest and the curriculum focuses on problem solving, EDD is appropriate for students who are interested in any technical career path.

The course of study includes:

  1. Engineering Design Processes

  2. Project Management

  3. Documenting an Engineering Design Process

  4. Teamwork and Professional Skills

  5. Problem Identification and Justification

  6. Research

  7. Intellectual Property

  8. Design Requirements

  9. Project Proposals

  10. Design

  11. Virtual Design and Testing

  12. Design Reviews

  13. Prototyping

  14. Prototype Testing

  15. Presenting the Process and Results

For more information, visit: https://www.pltw.org/our-programs/pltw-engineering