Communication is key. Scholars produce videos to highlight their engineering solutions to the plastic problem in the ninth installment of the series of 10. Feedback from other groups lets them improve the videos.

Learn how the professionals at NASA send information across space. Engineers use a microdevice, laser pointer, and mirrors as relays to model data transmission in space. Scholars program a microdevice to detect light received and test...

It's time to soak up the sun! Youngsters read about active and passive solar heating systems, then they collaborate to create a miniature solar-heated building. Provide a variety of materials for them to incorporate and watch their...

This lesson certainly will not be a drag! Little engineers design parachutes that make use of air resistance and, as a result, slow the descent of the payload as much as possible. It is an opportunity to teach about many motion concepts:...

Students analyze prior labs by keeping a lab notebook. They share their lab notebook by electronically sending it to their classmates. Students demonstrate evaluation of other lab notebooks within the same classroom and those from other...

Young engineers work in teams to design and build their own trebuchets according to certain criteria; they must be able to launch a mini marshmallow accurately into a pie tin. Background reading material, a planning sheet for trebuchet...

After reading about biomedical engineering and properties of materials, collaborative groups design a cast for setting a broken bone. They test for stability and mass, and then communicate their invention by creating a poster. This...

In this searching the Internet worksheet, young scholars solve and complete 20 various short answer questions related to the Internet. First, they find information on the Internet and communicate that information to others via email....

Show your class how engineers use graphs to understand large and complex systems. The resource provides the beginnings of graph theory by introducing the class to set theory, graphs, and degree distributions of a graph. 

Students examine the discipline of biomedical engineering or bioengineering. They complete worksheets by participating in reading background information and completing a hands on activity. They design a prototype of a cast to set a...

This Discovery Education activity provides the information needed to understand the basics of flight. Before taking off, young pilots learn the eight stages of the engineering design process. Small groups then design and build...

Get to know the human body from the inside out. The first lesson plan in a series of 10 introduces the class to the abdominopelvic cavity. Biomedical engineers need to understand the region of the body as they develop and improve...

Fourth graders explore communications by reading assigned space science text. In this satellite lesson plan, 4th graders identify the concept of orbiting and examine gravitational pull by viewing diagrams. Students are assessed based on...

Students study weather and define the appropriate dress for various weather patterns. In this weather and clothing lesson, students discuss wearing appropriate clothes for specific weather. Students use the weather board to determine the...

"If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough" - Albert Einstein. The sixth installment of a seven-part series teaches young scientists about the importance of being able to communicate scientific research and...

How fun it must be to play Frisbee in space! That is just what a NASA engineer gets to do, and you can learn how, too. Follow the instructions provided in this informational article to create your own satellite launcher. Afterward,...

Environmentally friendly engineering teams construct a water wheel and experiment with its speed and the resulting amount of weight it can lift. Consider following this activity with two more of the same title by the same publisher when...

Students investigate how satellites help people communicate with others far away and in remote areas. They discuss a scenario of someone travelling to an area with no mode of communication, observe a teacher demonstration, and create a...

Students explain the components of the engineering design process. In groups, they identify the materials that make concrete and practice curing cement using the various methods available. They develop a graph showing the amount of...

Elasticity and viscosity. Help your class understand the similarities and differences with an introduction to viscous fluids. After describing four types of fluid behaviors: shear thinning, shear thickening, Bringham plastic,...

Meet me in the tunnels. Scholars choose a tunnel entrance and mark it on their side of the cardboard. They describe the location to their partners and see if they can guess each other's locations. Punching a hole through the cardboard...

Groups analyze and interpret their data from previous research in order to develop individualized findings. The teams then use guidelines to help determine what aspects of their research to include on a poster. Class members...

Students explore how rescue devices are made and used.  In this rescue instructional activity students design and build their own rescue device then test it.

Go fly a kite, then fly a plane! The 19th part of a 22-part unit on aviation looks at the way kites and gliders help aid in the understanding of flight. Pupils discuss how engineers used kites to influence airplane designs.