Activities

Explore UT is open to the general public with online programming that is accessible to all. Activities specifically designed for K-12 students include an indication of a suggested grade level, denoting the difficulty of the concept or activity presented. Some programs will require participants to join virtual platforms (Zoom, Brazen, etc.). Children who are participating in these programs must be monitored by an adult chaperone (parent, guardian or a teacher) in order to join the virtual platform. Some may require verification that a chaperone will be present in order to register for participation.
 
Anytime

Creating Kaleidoscopic Tinker Tray Truck Art

Discover how Pakistan’s colorful aesthetics are often expressed through decorations and the creative ways truck drivers in Pakistan decorate their trucks with colorful kaleidoscopic designs. Learn how drivers personalize their trucks with fantastic artwork and how to recreate these kaleidoscopic truck art designs using craft items you have at home in your tinker trays.

College of Liberal Arts Business, Culture and Education
Anytime

Civil Engineering 101

Join us to learn more about Civil Engineering, what we do in ASCE, and how to build a bridge out of popsicle sticks!

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
Anytime

Autorickshaw Decorations in Jaffna

Follow autorickshaws around Jaffna, Sri Lanka, and learn about how their drivers elaborately decorate them to express themselves and Tamil culture and history. Asian Studies PhD candidate daniel dillon leads us through the pop culture and political references found on autorickshaws as an expressive cultural form.

College of Liberal Arts Business, Culture and Education
Anytime

DNA Extraction Extravaganza

Ever wondered why you look similar to your parents, siblings, cousins, or grandparents? Ever wondered what makes you unique? Ever wondered what makes something living? The answer to all of those questions is deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA. Learn what makes you unique by extracting DNA from fruits.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
Anytime

Unexpected Collections

The Unexpected Collections event showcases how special collections in The University of Texas connect the state of Texas to the world. The showcase uses digital maps and images about the Spanish American War in the Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection of UT and information about the Texas Volunteers to demonstrate how historical materials come to life in our classrooms. Using freely available images and tools, the audience will see where real life volunteers came from and catch a glimpse of how they may have experienced the Spanish American War of 1898, all through an interactive digital map. Not only will the audience see the map, but they will also experience how this activity is normally done in our courses through a walk-through. Honoring the rich and unique history of Texas and UT, the event also demonstrates the diversity of ideas and languages that exist on our campus. Through this event, we hope to give our visitors an idea of the amazing possibilities for learning, experimenting, and creating that only UT makes possible.

College of Liberal Arts Arts, Design and Media
Anytime

Fun with Optics

Join the Biomedical Optics Graduate Organization (BOGO) to see fun and understandable experiments illustrating different properties of light. Examples of demonstrations will show how certain objects absorb light, how some materials glow when exposed to light, how light can be bent, and more!

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
Anytime

Clovis: An Early Prehistoric Tool Technology

Experimental Archaeologist, Sergio J Ayala, discusses and demonstrates the role of experimental archaeology and how this advances the understanding of ancient stone tool industries and the prehistoric individual. Sergio also demonstrates the strategies in Clovis dart point technologies, starting with the earliest steps of large bifacial reduction.

College of Liberal Arts Science
Anytime

Mapping Organ Systems

Learn about the human body in this fun lesson on organ systems!

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
Anytime

German and More

Hallo! If you are curious about the German language or interested in learning German at UT, this is the place to be (at least during the pandemic).  We will tell you everything about our language program(s); we will introduce you to some of the benefits of speaking a foreign language, and we share samples of all the fun you can have when learning to see the world through the lens of another language.

College of Liberal Arts Business, Culture and Education
Anytime

Design a Lava Lamp

Design Your Own Lava Lamp. Create a lava lamp using oil and water. To create the lava lamp, you will learn how a chemical reaction generates the lava lamp effect.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
Anytime

The Scandinavian Series

Hej! Hei! Hallå! Can you believe you already know some Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish? It’s true! These three Scandinavian languages have a close proximity to English, making them easy languages to learn for native English speakers - starting with instantly recognizable words such as kaffe (coffee), democrati (democracy) and natur (nature). Join us as we introduce you to all things Scandinavian, including funny language tidbits, captivating culture topics, as well as what it means to study Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish at the University of Texas at Austin.

College of Liberal Arts Business, Culture and Education
Anytime

Build a Lung Model

Building a model of the human lungs and diaphragm using balloons to understand how they work. Our lungs are vital to our body's respiratory system and our ability to acquire oxygen. The bottom balloon works like your diaphragm, which is a strong muscle that expands and contracts, causing the lungs to fill with air and then emptying it.

Cockrell School of Engineering Science
Anytime

Intro to European Studies

The Center for European Studies offers an interdisciplinary major and minor in the study of Western and Central Europe. This video will offer a brief overview of the EUS major and minor, highlight our variety of course offerings across UT departments and colleges, as well as the education abroad opportunities the EUS major offers. 

College of Liberal Arts Business, Culture and Education
Anytime

Dramatic Reading from Pride and Prejudice

Discover the wicked wit of Jane Austen in this dramatic, and fun, reading of the opening chapter of her 1813 novel Pride and Prejudice.   The reading will use the original text with UT freshmen, Raishma Kazi and Tucker Rinne, portraying Mrs. Bennet and Mr. Bennet while English Professor Janine Barchas serves as narrator. This is the stuff of great literature, served straight up – albeit with funny hats.

College of Liberal Arts Business, Culture and Education
Anytime

Design a Puffmobile

The Challenge: Create a racecar entirely powered by your breath. Setup a racetrack and race with your family and friends. The winner is the Puffmobile that gets across or reaches the finish line first. Huff and Puff and blow to get your racecar to move. Good luck and have fun!

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
Anytime

FLAS Fellowships

Do you have a passion for world languages and want to get paid to study Europe and European cultures? The Center for European Studies can help you. Every year, the CES invites undergraduate (and graduate) students from all majors and disciplines across the 40 Acres to apply for Foreign Language and Area Studies fellowships. FLAS fellowships allow you to study European topics and over 18 foreign languages while providing $10,000 toward UT Austin tuition AND a cash stipend. You can even use these funds toward an education abroad program and explore Europe. This brief video will show you how to apply for the FLAS fellowship, explain its benefits, and features information from recent UT Austin alumni on how the FLAS fellowship has helped them advance their professional careers.

College of Liberal Arts Business, Culture and Education
Anytime

A Festive Welcome: The Colorful Art of Rangoli

Explore the creative world of Rangoli, a popular form of Indian folk art in which colorful patterns are created to welcome guests into homes on festive occasions and to bring good luck to the host family.  Learn how to recreate India’s geometric Rangoli designs using sequins, beads, mirror tiles, stick-on foam shapes and other craft items, and create a decorative, Rangoli welcome for your home.

College of Liberal Arts Business, Culture and Education
Anytime

Designing Super Paper Planes

Learn the basic science of air travel and test your engineering skills by creating a super paper plane.  The guide will provide design tips that may help your plane fly farther.  Once you've tested it in flight, you may want to choose to change the design to make it better.  The sky is the limit. 

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
Anytime

Thirst for Power: A Virtual Field Trip

Water and energy are the two fundamental components of a society, and they are interconnected. View the film, Thirst for Power, shot on location across France, California, and Texas, to explore our dependence on water for energy as well as vulnerabilities in our current systems.

This on demand film screening with a digital study guide, Q&A session, and virtual field trip are vailable March 6 through May 31.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 5, 2021, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Design and Create a Lightbulb Circuit on TinkerCad

Join members of Texas Engineering World Health (TEWH), a project-based solutions organization, to learn how to design and create a lightbulb circuit using the online 3D modeling program, Tinkercad. It is easy to use, and you can discover what it takes to create a fun Light Up Squishy Circuit.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 5, 2021, 11 to 11:30 a.m.

Computational Modeling of the Heart and its Valves

Join Professor Michael Sacks and members of his research team to learn how heart valves work.  A world authority on cardiovascular biomechanics, Dr. Sacks will demonstrate how engineers study heart valves to design improved repair methods and replacements, as well as the advanced tools that are a part of their research.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 5, 2021, noon to 12:45 p.m.

Women in Engineering Program: FabFems Friday Webinar

Join the Women in Engineering Program FabFems Friday Webinar. We welcome recent STEM alums and role models to share their professional experiences and educational journeys with participants. Hear their career stories, ask questions, and get inspired. The webinar is part of a FabFems Friday webinar series featuring fabulous women in STEM role models throughout March for Women's HIstory Month.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 5, 2021, 12:30 to 1:30 p.m.

Tinfoil Boats with Longhorn Racing

Create a boat using only foil. Gently place your boat in the water and then add your weights (pennies, small rocks, etc.) one at a time until your boat sinks. Count how many pennies it took to sink your boat. Redesign your boat and try again to see if you can create a boat to hold even more weight.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 5, 2021, 2 to 2:45 p.m.

A Day in the life of an ECE Student

Come hear from a student panel about what it's like to be an Electrical and Computer Engineering student at UT Austin!

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 5, 2021, 3 to 4 p.m.

Medical Jeopardy

Join students from UT Austin's Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) in a medical "jeopardy" game to see how much you know about the human body and learn more about medicine.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 5, 2021, 3 to 4 p.m.

Biomedical Engineering Prospective Student Session

Learn all about the Biomedical Engineering (BME) program – its curriculum, career, research and student organization opportunities, as well as the study abroad options available to BME students.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, 10 to 10:30 a.m.

Aerospace & Computational Engineering Prospective Student Session for 9th, 10th and 11th Graders

Discover the opportunities available to students majoring in aerospace engineering or computational engineering including numerous career paths in the fields. An academic advisor and current students will be available to help you discover more about our programs.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, 10 to 11 a.m.

Engineering Student Services - Prospective Student Information Session for 11th Graders

Prospective engineering students in 11th grade and their parents are invited to learn about opportunities within the Cockrell School. This introductory session will introduce 11th graders to the school and its various departments, offices and programs.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, 10 a.m. to noon

Design your own Google Logo!

Use your creativity and imagination to bring the Google logo to life using code. Make the letters dance, tell a story, or create a game. You can learn the basics of coding with this activity and learn all about how the professionals do it! If you finish this activity, head over to the Hour of Code website and choose whichever coding activity you’d like! With Scratch and CS First, anyone can become a designer and programmer for the day!
Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, 11 to 11:30 a.m.

Rocketry 101

Join researchers from the Texas Rocket Engineering Lab to see what goes into building a rocket. We'll share information on our current project which is a part of the Base 11 Space Challenge. Explore the various components of a rocket and learn about how students like you can launch a rocket into space.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, 11 a.m. to noon

Explore Aerospace

Join aerospace engineering graduate students as they walk through some of their research topics relating to orbital mechanics, small satellite engineering, robotics, and satellite remote sensing. Short video presentations will be shown from each area, followed by an interactive Q&A session.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, noon to 4 p.m.

Girl Day at UT Austin: Interactive Booths, Live Broadcasts, Interactions with STEM Role Models

Explore 50 booths with hands-on STEM activities, demonstrations, videos, and role models available for one-on-one video chats with participating families. Students with an adult can choose which activities they'd like to explore and come and go during the "live" virtual booth experience from noon to 4 p.m. CT. Girl Day at UT Austin, including Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day and the Girl Day STEM Festival, is a free STEM event hosted virtually through Sunday, March 7, 2021.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, noon to 3 p.m.

Repurposing Plastic Film into Plastic Yarn

Learn how to reuse and repurpose one of the peskiest household items: Plastic Shopping Bags. We will be turning these shopping bags into rope, coasters, bowls, and more! If you have questions or want to chat, you can join the zoom meeting and speak to a student from Engineers for a Sustainable World!
Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, noon to 2 p.m.

Draw a Robot Design Challenge

Join us to see Dance Bot, hands down UT's cutest robot, show off a few moves. You'll learn how Dance Bot and other robots work and discover how Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS) can be used. Then, take the Robot Design challenge to draw a robot that will accomplish a specified task. 

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, noon to 4 p.m.

Twinkie Coring

Learn how Petroleum Engineers find oil through our fun, simple, and edible activity: Twinkie Coring!

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, 1 to 3 p.m.

Coding Challenges with IEEE

Activities for Beginners - Intermediate Coders! We are UT Austin’s official chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the largest ECE organization at UT! IEEE UT encapsulates all the extracurricular activities needed for an ECE student by providing social, professional, and technical outreach opportunities. It serves as the all-in-one org for ECE majors! Design Challenges: Clapping Heart, Electronic Pets, MakeCode Microbit Coding Challenges.
Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, 1 to 3 p.m.

Scratch That, Let’s Code

Join us to learn how to make an animation using Scratch. Scratch is a free programming language that uses command blocks and characters, known as sprites, to allow users to design games and animations. Start by learning the basics of Scratch, such as the different kinds of sprites you can use and how command blocks interact with each other.  Use your imagination and have fun.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering
March 6, 2021, 1 to 1:30 p.m.

Rocketry 101

Join researchers from the Texas Rocket Engineering Lab to see what goes into building a rocket. We'll share information on our current project which is a part of the Base 11 Space Challenge. Explore the various components of a rocket and learn about how students like you can launch a rocket into space.

Cockrell School of Engineering Engineering