DiscoverE
Everyday Engineering: Windy City Tower
A little wind shouldn't hurt a building. Given three sheets of paper and six feet of tape, scholars create a structure that can withstand wind and hold up a weight. They conduct tests using a fan and decide on any improvements to make...
DiscoverE
Everyday Engineering: Build an Earthquake Resistant Structure
Shake, rattle, and learn! Future engineers build structures out of toothpicks or spaghetti sticks, using marshmallows as connectors. They then use a homemade shake table to test the sturdiness of their creations.
DiscoverE
DiscoverE Challenge: Pen Factory
Manufacture a great lesson on industrial manufacturing. A fun resource has learners use the production of pens to consider how assembly lines work. They write out a set of instructions for assembling a pen, test it out, then determine if...
DiscoverE
DiscoverE Challenge: Tallest Cup Tower
Dream big and build tall. Scholars build the tallest tower possible out of plastic or paper cups. They apply the engineering design process to refine their designs and see if they can make their towers even taller.
DiscoverE
DiscoverE Challenge: Critical Load
Take a load off .. and put the weight on a house of cards. Scholars learn about civil engineering and critical loads by building the sturdiest house possible out of a dozen playing cards. They conduct tests by placing pennies or other...
National Academy of Sciences
Lights at Night Webquest
Help learners find ways to become more efficient energy consumers. To start, individuals research how different countries address energy efficiency and then analyze their own carbon footprint. They use their research to identify ways to...
CK-12 Foundation
CK-12 Earth Science Concepts for Middle School
Explore a variety of science concepts in an interactive textbook created for middle school scholars. A lengthy table of contents takes readers to pages comprised of a subject overview, outline, and summary. Follow links further to find...
Science Friday
Pinhole Viewer
Take a peep into optics. Pupils watch a video about a large Polaroid camera before building pinhole viewers. The scholars then create different types of viewers and compare them to determine which provides the best image.
Rube Goldberg
Rube Goldberg's Simple Normal Humdrum School Day
If you're going to build a machine, you might as well make it interesting and amusing. A set of eight lessons and activities introduces simple machines using Rube Goldberg machines. A culminating project challenges techies to create and...
California Academy of Science
The Heat is On: Cause and Effect and Climate
The higher the number of letters in the final word for the National Spelling Bee, the higher the number of people killed by venomous spiders. Obviously, those two facts correlate, but no causation exists. Scholars view data based on...
Kenan Fellows
The Newton Challenge
Make Newton proud. Scholars apply their understanding of forces and energy to an engineering design challenge. They learn about simple machines, create a presentation on Newton's laws, and develop a balloon-powered car.
Kenan Fellows
Evaluating Sensors and the Impacts of Physiological Stress: Designing a Wearable Device for Rescue Workers
A long-term project has scholars consider ways in which sensors help monitor physiological stress levels of rescue workers. They design and create a portable device for this purpose. Techies to the rescue!
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Wet Etching in Nanofabrication
Chemistry and physics combine forces to benefit nanofabrications. Learners examine the process of wet etching in nanofabrication. Using corrosive substances such as lemon juice and Coca-Cola, they model the etching process. They then...
Teach Engineering
Clay Boats
Clay itself sinks, but clay boats float. Why? Young engineers build clay boats to learn about buoyancy. They test the weight the boats can hold using washers and then tweak their designs to make improvements, following the engineering...
Teach Engineering
Bend That Bar
Bend it, but don't break it. Groups investigate the strength of different materials. Using a procedure in the seventh segment of a 22-part series on aviation, pupils determine how far a rod will bend. They determine the strength-to-mass...
PBS
Helping Hand
Reach out and grab something. Given the task of picking up objects at least two feet away, pupils design and build a grabber. The last activity in a series of five challenges requires learners to use information about fulcrums and levers.
PBS
Paddle Power
Potentially get all the way across the water. The fourth of five design challenges asks pupils to develop a plan for a paddle-powered boat that will store its energy. Given a limited number of supplies, the class members design, build,...
PBS
Zip Line
Slide all the way to the bottom. Using the design process, pupils create a carrier for a ping pong ball that will travel down a zip line. Learners test their carriers and determine solutions to issues they encounter to complete the third...
PBS
Paper Table
What is black and white and re(a)d all over? Class members build a table out of rolled newspapers. Pupils follow the design process to design, build, and test their paper tables in the second challenge in a series of five.
PBS
Watercraft
Whatever floats your boat—with some additional weight. The first activity in a five-part series challenges pupils to design a boat to hold pennies. Using the design process, learners design, build, and test their boats, making sure they...
DiscoverE
Air-Powered Mini Rocket
Does the position of the clips make a difference? The activity provides directions to build and test a paper rocket. Pupils attach paper clips to the rocket in different configurations and measure the distance the rocket flies each time....
DiscoverE
Design a Folding Solar Panel
Solar energy is an amazing alternative ... but, not always particularly portable! Challenge young scientists to a folding solar panel build-off with an easy-to-execute activity. Scholars brainstorm around specific design needs, construct...
DiscoverE
Pipe Maze
Here's a lesson that is simply a-MAZE-ing! Introduce science scholars to pipeline systems through a hands-on project. Partnered pupils participate in the design, construct, and test a PVC pipeline maze. Reusable materials and clear...
DiscoverE
Windy City Tower
Your class will be blown away when they build their own city tower structure! Engineering scholars partner up to plan, build, and test their own paper towers. As they build, they gain valuable design skills, learn about wind tunnel...