Technology or engineering teams are given a task to design, construct, and test the efficiency of a structure that will foster an even temperature throughout an entire sunny day. Intended as a long-term project, pupils research, plan,...

You don't have to travel far to learn about rocks, just step outside, pick up a stone, and begin investigating. After taking a class walk around the school grounds collecting rocks, young scientists practice their skills of observation...

Study the different materials needed to build a house. Kindergartners and first graders read five sentence frames, and match the phrases that describe wood planks, glass, and clay. An experiment prompts kids to test different types of...

Working in small groups students develop three alternative boat designs. They discuss the rationale for the type of hull, propeller, location of ballast, and type of building material used in their design. They build their boat.

Bridges rely on tension and compression to keep them standing. Pairs test this principle by constructing simple bridges and applying a force to the center. Teams use the provided worksheet to record their observations of the...

Host a design challenge of Olympic proportion! Junior engineers build their own bobsleds using simple materials. The activity focuses on kinetic and potential energy and how the center of mass affects motion on a downhill track....

How can you tell if something is made out of wood, metal, or plastic? Kids use noise and visual cues to determine what various household items are made from. They then examine their toys at home and record the materials used to make...

Introduce materials science with a class demonstration. After showing a PowerPoint presentation on materials and their properties, instructors provide a ceramic tile, a Popsicle stick, a paper clip, and a plastic bag as examples of...

Students investigate different types of building structures and how they are able to stand up to earthquakes. Through comparison they determine which buildings are better able to handle earthquakes than others. They create a building,...

Why do rocks break down over time? Learners explore this concept by simulating physical and chemical weathering of different types of rocks. They use an abrasive to demonstrate physical weathering and acid to demonstrate chemical...

Do domed structures have advantages over their less-than-spherical counterparts? Junior architects explore the pros and cons of domes through a design challenge. Teams work together to plan, sketch, build, and test domes created from an...

Bridge the gaps in your knowledge of bridges. Individuals learn about bridge types by building models. The activity introduces beam bridges, arch bridges, truss bridges, and suspension bridges.

The road to a better understanding of engineering lies with bridges and tunnels. A set of four engaging activities teaches learners about engineering concepts related to construction projects. They perform an experiment to find the...

Are the earth's oceans really just giant batteries, waiting for their energy to be harnessed? Middle school mechanical engineers will be shocked by the amazing amount of energy that forms around them after diving into part four of a...

An engaging PowerPoint presentation helps scholars learn the definition of a noun and provides examples of different types of nouns, such as person, place, abstract, and concrete nouns. Formative assessments within the resource check...

Scholars learn about a series of three challenges when they design a bus system for a small town. They determine the bus routes and then figure out the best type of fuel to use before considering the cost of going electric. Learners...

Who knew that paper is an amazing building material? Scholars learn about the properties of planar materials, such as paper, as well as their structural capabilities in the sixth lesson a series of 11 on architecture. Working in groups,...

What do college admissions teams look at when deciding who get's in and who doesn't? The class considers the types of classroom and extra curricular activities they participate in and how those might improve their chances at getting into...

Pronouns are the most helpful parts of speech! Model the ways that interrogative, indefinite, personal, and demonstrative pronouns can specify meaning and enhance writing with a hands-on activity.

What does an exponential pattern look like in real life? After viewing a video of the population growth of bacteria, learners use the real-life scenario to collect data and graph the result. Their conclusion should be a new type of...

Lead your young scientists into an exciting world as they participate in a role play and experiment focused on proteins and DNA. After researching the Central Dogma of Biology, individuals or groups participate in a classroom...

The goal of this fine geology lesson plan is to have learners create a map that shows how the rock layers are arranged far underground where they can't be seen. The ambitious lesson plan requires high schoolers to learn the law of...

Get your classroom rocking with this four-lesson earth science unit. Through a series of shared reading activities and hands-on investigations, young geologists learn about the three types of rocks and the unique properties of each.