Webinar - Coding to Career: How to Launch a Successful
K-12 Drone Program

At NextWaveSTEM®, each course includes 15+, 1-hour lessons with equipment kits aligned or supported by standards from CSTA, Common Core, ISTE, P21, and relevant state standards from Illinois, Florida, Texas, New York, California and more all available in English and Spanish!

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The demand for drone pilots is exploding. The Federal Aviation Administration projects a need for 500,000 remote pilots by 2029. This session explores how schools can bridge the skills gap through a scalable, standards-aligned STEM curriculum that works for every grade level.

Hope Thompson, Senior Manager of Curriculum and Instruction at NextWaveSTEM, breaks down the pathway from basic flight concepts in preschool to professional certification in high school. You will learn how to integrate drones into your district to build critical computer science skills and prepare students for the future workforce.

What You Will Learn in This Recording

The Case for Early STEM Exposure Discover why starting drone education in Pre-K matters. We discuss how early exposure builds confidence and foundational skills that students carry throughout their academic careers.

A 4-Step Pathway to Drone Mastery

  • K-2: Introduction to lift, drag, and manual control using sensor-based drones.

  • Grades 3-5: Merging flight mechanics with computer science using block-based coding and simulations.

  • Grades 6-8: Advanced problem solving with text-based coding (Python) and real-world mission scenarios.

  • High School: Career and Technical Education (CTE) focus, culminating in FAA Part 107 Commercial Drone Pilot Certification.

Cross-Curricular Connections Drones are not just for the computer lab. See examples of how to use flight technology to enhance learning in:

  • Math: Geometry, coordinate planes, and data measurement.

  • Science: Physics of flight, climate monitoring, and ecology.

  • ELA: Technical writing, research, and journalism.

Empowering Every Educator You do not need to be a drone expert to teach this course. NextWaveSTEM provides "short of scripted" lesson plans and professional development that allow any teacher to facilitate world-class STEM experiences with confidence.