Building Science with LEGO® at Robertsville Middle School

Our first outreach event took place at Robertsville Middle School (RMS) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee — and it was a huge success!

Partnering with 8th-grade science teachers Dr. Amy Lyttle and Ms. Mazzie Zawisza, we brought science, engineering, and creativity together through a week-long, hands-on LEGO® project inspired by real-world research at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL).

We provided everything needed to make the experience seamless — lesson plans, LEGO® bricks and instructions, spare parts, and staff support — helping students dive into a world of discovery and design.

A Week of Discovery

Tuesday: Students began with an introduction to ORNL, the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS), and how accelerators and magnetics are used in cutting-edge science.

Wednesday: The building began! Working in teams of 2–3, students sorted LEGO® bricks, followed detailed instructions, and started assembling their models.

Thursday: Teams continued their builds, focusing on complex subassemblies that would later connect into larger systems.

Friday: Robert returned to share how the LEGO® models represent real components of the SNS and the wide range of careers involved — from scientists and engineers to machinists, electricians, administrators, and communications professionals.

Seeing It All Come Together

The following Monday, students brought their finished subassemblies to the gymnasium, where they were placed on a scaled floor layout of the SNS accumulator ring. This hands-on exercise helped students see how their builds fit into the bigger picture — just like the real components inside the SNS facility.

STEM Career Day at SNS

The learning didn’t stop there. On Tuesday, the students traveled to the Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) for STEM Career Day.

They got to:

• See the actual accelerator equipment that inspired their LEGO® models.

• Watch live STEM demonstrations highlighting the engineering and physics behind the SNS.

• Meet ORNL professionals who design, build, and operate the technology they’d studied in class.

““It’s crazy,” said eighth-grader Faith Harper. “It’s like 100 times bigger than the one we built.”

Lasting Lessons

By the end of the project, students had gained real insight into:

• Engineering design and development
  
  

• Teamwork and problem-solving

• Inventory control and manufacturing methods

• STEM careers and collaboration

Most importantly, they discovered how imagination, persistence, and teamwork can turn curiosity into innovation — one LEGO® brick at a time.

Jerry Stockton, Group Leader for Neutron Choppers, presents to a group of students at one of the seven stations set up for STEM Day. (Photo Credit: Carol Morgan/ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy)