Big Learning
The Antarctica Project: A Middle School Mathematics Unit
Antarctica is a big place, large enough to provide ample opportunities to learn about math. A two-week unit teaches middle school mathematics concepts using project-based learning. The resource covers functions, geometry (area,...
Illustrative Mathematics
Running Around a Track I
The accuracy required by the design and measurement of an Olympic running track will surprise track stars and couch potatoes alike. Given a short introduction, the class then scaffolds into a detailed analysis of the exact nature of the...
Noyce Foundation
Surrounded and Covered
What effect does changing the perimeter have on the area of a figure? The five problems in the resource explore this question at various grade levels. Elementary problems focus on the perimeter of rectangles and irregular figures with...
Curated OER
Activity 1 Up, Up, and Away: Building a Hot Air Balloon
Students investigate the question: "How does a hot air balloon work?" They build small hot air balloons ans then lauch them. Students discuss how they think a hot air balloon floats. Pupils are introduced to the use of models as a...
Curated OER
Building Bridges
Learners, in groups, design and test a scale bridge. They use the Internet to research three basic bridge designs -- beam, arch, and suspension -- and the forces that act upon them.
Curated OER
Vector Lab
Here is a math lab that helps young mathematicians understand the real-life meaning for vector addition. By building a model using spring scales and washers as weight, and then calculating the vector addition using two different methods,...
Curated OER
Clay Planets
Have your class learn about the solar system using this hands on technique. Learners review what they know about the planets, and create a clay model of the solar system. There are a list of resource links to make this lesson a complete...
Curated OER
Math - Design a Ship
Students design a ship. They calculate square footage and draw their ship to scale. They build models of their ships.
Curated OER
Building Brilliant Bar Graphs
Everything you need for a mini-unit on bar graphs is included in this lesson plan! It outlines three lessons and includes worksheets. Learners taste pretzels, shoot baskets (switching off hands), and grab candy, graphing results...
Curated OER
Clay Planets
Students create scale models of the planets out of clay and compare them to the real planets.
Curated OER
Building a Ship Lesson Plan
Students draw a ship to scale, and calculate the real life size. They show that measurements on the drawingsare annotated with the distances reported in inches (fractions and decimals), and their real-world equivalents
Curated OER
Build Your Dream Science Lab
Would your ideal science lab be filled with bubbling beakers and zapping Tesla coils? Or would it contain state-of-the-art computer technology and data analysis? Dream big with an innovative lesson that connects math and language...
Teach Engineering
Protecting Our City with Levees
Teams use the design process to design, build, and test a model levee to protect the town from a wall of water. A handout provides a price list for the materials learners can use to build their levee within a budget.
5280 Math
Step by Step
One step at a time! A seemingly linear relationship becomes an entirely new type of function. Young scholars build their understanding of step functions by completing a three-stage activity that incorporates multiple representations of...
Curated OER
Principles of Flight: Flying Paper Airplanes
Students investigate ways to enhance an object's flying ability. In this model construction instructional activity, students construct two paper airplanes, one of which is twice as big as the first. Students compare and...
Curated OER
Traditional Desert Homes
Students go to a traditional style desert home and then build their own model of a home to scale. In this desert home lesson plan, students conduct their research in New Mexico.
Curated OER
Bringing Young Architects to Surface
Students work in pairs to design a building. In this architecture instructional activity, students take on the role of head architect to design and construct a 3-D scale model a building for a client. Students' goal is...
Curated OER
Planning a Healthy City
Ninth graders create a scaled model city. They create a blueprint that provides for the economic and cultural needs of a community. They identify where essential elements of the city should be located and explain the rationale for the...
Curated OER
Voyage: A Journey through our Solar System
Students build the Voyage scale model of the Solar System on a playground and "travel" to each planet. They recognize that the Sun and planets are tiny worlds in a vast space, giving them a new perspective on the Solar System, and...
Curated OER
Solar System Search
Young scholars research topics related to space and the planets using the Internet. They explore various websites, construct scale models of the solar system, and create a travel brochure using HyperStudio computer software.
Curated OER
Introducing Topographic Maps: Guiding Students from Concrete Models to Graphic Representations
Students interpret topographic maps and infer human activity as it is influenced by the landscape.
Curated OER
Community Building
Learners build different shapes using sketches. In this geometry lesson, students explore measurements and units as they build and create models of buildings. They use SketchUp to create and manipulate shapes.
Curated OER
Concept Structures in Architecture
Learners develop a creative building design. In this technology lesson, students create a model of their building using a computer software. They present their final product in class.
Curated OER
A View Of Home From The Front Door and From Space
Students discover how distance can change how our view of an object. Students build a representative model of where their home is located from different distances. They create three drawn models of their home from various elevations as...