Cornell University
Catapults
Ready, aim, fire! Launch to a new level of understanding as scholars build and test their own catapults. Learners explore lever design and how adjusting the fulcrum changes the outcome.
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The Need for Programming Languages
LEGO see if you can recreate my design. Individuals build an arrangement from LEGO blocks and write directions for someone else to follow in order to recreate the arrangement. Pairs then swap directions and try to...
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Three Classes of Levers
Eighth graders research the three classes of levers and create a Power Point presentation showcasing the fulcrum, effort arm, and resistance arm in each class. They then write a paper explaining real life applications of the levers.
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Build a Space Shuttle
Students explore the concept of space. In this space lesson, students pretend to be aerospace engineers. Students build space ships out of cardboard tubes. Students discuss what aerospace engineers do. Students model their space ships...
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Naturral Born Robots: Robots Have Feelings Too
Students explore robotics. They design a simple device that simulates a human arm lifting a mass. Students test the strength of their arm. Students discuss artificial intelligence.
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Pulleys and Levers
Fifth graders explore the concept of pulleys and levers. They read and discuss text from the book "It's Science! Machines We Use," and in small groups construct a simple lever and pulley using a Lego Dacta set.
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Air Movers
Students learn about Rube Goldberg machines (complicated devices designed to accomplish simple tasks and then design and build a machine that uses more than six separate steps to move an empty aluminum can. They can either work...
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Wheeling It In!
Young scholars use everyday materials (milk cartons, water bottles, pencils, straws, candy) to build a small-scale transportation device that incorporates the wheel and axle and the lever. They race their carts/trucks, measure distance,...
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Community Building
Seventh graders discover the similarities and differences between cities, towns, and rural communities. Using a Neighborhood map Machine, they create a Venn diagram and map of their own community. Students build a 3-D representation of...
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Medieval Catapults
Students design and build a working catapult or trebuchet to explore the concepts of force, motion, and distance.
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Measuring Work
Students explore what work is, measure work done in moving an object, and tell how energy is related to work in both machines and the human body. In this measuring work lesson plan, students walk up a flight of stairs, measure the height...
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A Map Mystery
First graders solve a mystery by following map clues. In this map clues lesson plan, 1st graders follow a computer program called Neighborhood Map Machine. In this program, it gives students directional and spatial clues in order to...
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Building the Pyramids: No Light Task
Eighth graders perform experiments with simple machines and write up the results. They research the construction of the step pyramid and the three pyramids at Giza. Students research how the ancient Egyptians used simple machines in...
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A Tour of the Solar System
Young scholars construct a spacecraft out of Lego blocks and other materials. They work on their models in small groups while building. They become familar with the planets while working cooperatively.
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Sparky's Engineer: A Story Book Introduction to Engineering
Students investigate what an engineer does. In this engineering lesson, students read the book "Sparky's Engineer" and analyze the different types of engineers that are referenced in the book. The students identify tools and machines...
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Catch a Dream
Pupils apply the concepts of air pressure, the Bernoulli Effect, and angle of attack to build their own model planes out of paper, plastic, wooden rods, and drinking straws.
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Exploring Basic Physical Science Concepts
Students use the concepts of simple machines to construct a mobile. The inquiry is made in groups and presentations are made by constructing reports. The assessment is based upon the final product of the mobile and how students use...
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Wright Again: 100 Years of Flight
Aspiring aeronautical engineers demonstrate different forces as they construct and test paper airplanes. This lesson plan links you to a website that models the most effective paper airplane design, an animation describing the forces...
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Designing a Safe City Like a Civil Engineer
Students study civil engineering, safety apparatuses in their city, and design their own city. In this civil engineering lesson, students discuss their towns safety apparatuses and define civil engineers. Students then design their own...
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Roll with the Punches: Depression Era Machinery
Learners construct models of simple and complicated machines with Legos. Then they design an experiment using the scientific method. ESE modifications included.
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Flight Dreams: Birds Flew First
Students observe how bird flight and machine flight are similar. In this aerodynamics instructional activity, students observe how birds fly and the shapes of their wings, and investigate how observing birds helped develop the concept of...
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Pet Rescue
Young scholars, in teams, follow the process of design, including the stages of investigation, creation, and reflection, as they devise a way to help "save" a (simulated) pet who is trapped in a pipe.
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Rube Goldberg
Students study Rube Goldberg machines. In this architecture instructional activity, students build a Rube Goldberg machine.
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Help, I can't reach it!
Young scholars learn the major organ systems in the human body and research simple machines on the Internet; They design an informational brochure about a medical profession and present that career topic to the class.