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Activity
NASA

Design a Crew Exploration Vehicle

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Make a splash from space. Participants use the engineering design process to create a waterproof space exploration vehicle capable of an upright landing. Young engineers test and modify designs as needed and participate in a group...
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Lesson Plan
2
2
American Chemical Society

Engineering a Floatation Device

For Teachers 5th Standards
Classes will definitely not be sinking after a buoyant lesson! A project-based assessment helps highlight the importance of prior knowledge as individuals design a floatation device for a cell phone. They use their knowledge of chemical...
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Lesson Plan
Teach Engineering

Design Step 5: Construct a Prototype

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Enough with the talking, let's build something! In the fifth step in the engineering design process, young engineers build a prototype to test their ideas. The instructional activity walks them through the process of evaluating it...
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Activity
Teach Engineering

Super Slinger Engineering Challenge

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
How well can you launch a ping-pong ball? Small groups design launchers that can launch a ping-pong ball 20 feet into a target. The teams follow the engineering design process as they develop a solution that meets the design...
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Lesson Plan
Rochester Institue of Technology

Ergonomic Design

For Teachers 6th - 12th
To an engineer, the glass is never half full; it's just double the necessary size. The fifth installment of a nine-part technology and engineering series teaches pupils about the idea of ergonomic design. Measurements of popliteal height...
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Activity
1
1
Teach Engineering

Cell Membrane Experimental Design

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Grandma said to gargle with salt water for a sore throat. Was she right? In the last part of the seven-part unit, lab groups design an experiment to test a cells reaction to salt solutions. The pupils conduct their experiment to answer...
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Unit Plan
NASA

Engineering Design for Human Exploration

For Teachers 10th - 12th Standards
What would it take to live on the lunar surface? Small groups build model rockets in order to simulate launching a habitat into space and rebuilding it. Divide the class into groups to design and build a model of a lunar habitat. The...
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Lesson Plan
Kenan Fellows

Assembly Required and the Design Process Too!

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
An engineering design lesson plan contains connected activities as a capstone engineering project. The activities revolve around the principle of improving an existing object and designing the manufacturing process in order to do so. The...
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Activity
Science Companion

Simple Machines Design Project

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Make your work as a teacher a little easier with a physical science project on simple machines. After introducing young scientists to these devices and identifying their different uses around the school, this project engages children in...
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Lesson Plan
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Interactive Gumball Machine

For Teachers 3rd - 12th Standards
Sure, you may be able to build a better mousetrap, but what about a gum dispenser? In a fun engineering challenge, teams must design and build a working interactive gumball machine with specific constraints and criteria.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Designing a Crew Exploration Vehicle

For Teachers 3rd - 6th Standards
Take your class on an out-of-this-world adventure with this fun engineering design instructional activity. Working in small groups, young scientists design, build, and test crew exploration vehicles using some creativity, teamwork, and...
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Lesson Plan
1
1
Purdue University

Bio Inspired Design Paper Flowers

For Teachers 3rd Standards
Can paper flowers have some of the same properties as real flowers? First, learners investigate how water is absorbed into a flower through capillary action by using real flowers, yarn, and paper. Then, they have an opportunity to create...
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Activity
James Dyson Foundation

Challenge Cards

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Can you build it? Yes you can! This interactive game includes four design challenges presented on separate cards. The cards outline the challenges with limited restrictions but with an end goal in mind. The competitions include building...
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Lesson Plan
1
1
University of Wisconsin

Designing a Rain Garden

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Now it's time for all of the data collected in previous lessons to be applied to the design of a rain garden. This resource can only be used as part of the greater whole, since learners will need to rely on gathered knowledge in order to...
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Lesson Planet Article
Curated OER

Engineering Lessons Adapted for Special Education

For Teachers 7th - 10th
Modifying engineering lessons from NASA makes them accessible to a wider variety of learners.
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Lesson Plan
Discovery Education

Clutter Cutter

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Challenge young learners to cut the clutter with this fun engineering project. As employees of a home and office supply company, young engineers are asked to develop devices that organize everyday items. After participating in a...
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Lesson Plan
Teach Engineering

Designing Bridges

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Introduces your class to the types of loads experienced by a bridge. Groups calculate the ultimate load combinations to determine the maximum load requirement. Using this information, builders then determine the amount of material they...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Wind Effects on Model Building: Pre-Lab for Truss Design and Testing

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Emerging engineers perform pre-lab calculations in this first of a three-part lesson on model building. They determine the forces of tension and compression in a truss. After completion of the worksheet, pupils will draw a draft of their...
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Lesson Plan
NPR

Introduction to the Engineering Design Process

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Step by step is always best. In groups, future engineers create the tallest possible tower with marshmallows and spaghetti sticks. Along the way, they learn about the engineering design process. 
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Activity
National Science Teachers Association

Paper Car Crash Design

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High school physical scientists collide with motion. They work in pairs to design a paper car that will protect a raw egg during a head-on collision. Measurements of distance traveled, time of run, vehicle specs, and photo gate flags are...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Design a Folding Solar Panel

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
Intel

Understanding the Design Process

For Teachers 6th - 10th Standards
Can you build a better mousetrap? Broken into two sessions, this plan introduces learners to the design process. The first session has pupils look at the world through a design perspective by redesigning everyday objects. In the second...
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Lesson Plan
Science NetLinks

Green Roof Design

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Green roofs aren't just eco-friendly — they are literally green with trees. Groups learn about the concept of green roofs in order to be able to design one. The groups design a 5,000-square-foot green roof for a fictional apartment row...
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Activity
Beauty and Joy of Computing

Search Engines

For Students 9th - 12th
Which search engine is best? The last lab in a unit of five leads the class to investigate search engines. Working in groups, individuals read and discuss articles related to searching the Internet. Pupils develop suggestions that would...

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