Students analyze the design process and architecture of Ludwig van der Rohe. In this architecture and art analysis lesson, students explore the design process through photographic documentation and architectural plans. Students use...

Ramp up the engineering design process in your classroom with an activity that challenges teams to design, build, and test a small-scale portable wheelchair ramp. The class develops design requirements, and teams test their designs...

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...

Have your class use the engineering design process to program a vacuum robot. Using computer engineering concepts, teams program an automatic floor cleaner to traverse designated patterns. 

Some gorgeous images will inspire your students to create different fashion designs from a wide variety of natural sources. Students study color, pattern, texture, shape and form to create their own original piece in this vocational...

Whatever floats your boat—with some additional weight. The first activity in a five-part series challenges pupils to design a boat to hold pennies. Using the design process, learners design, build, and test their boats, making sure they...

An outline walks your scientists through the steps of the scientific process. It begins by taking a general idea and developing a hypothesis based on related factors. Each investigator then plans a method for testing the hypothesis,...

Incorporate 21st century graphic design skills into an advanced line and design activity worksheet. 4-H'ers will have a blast using a computer graphics program to re-create an image, unscrambling design terms and matching them with...

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...

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...

Using popsicle sticks and glue, groups must work together to design and build a bridge that can support weight and is aesthetically pleasing. The lesson begins by learners reading about different features of bridge architecture, followed...

Providing clean water to a town is quite a feat... is your class up for the challenge? After a short reading about water towers, groups work together to design a working water delivery system. The water flow must be adjustable (able to...

Concentrate to determine the best reflector design. Pairs use the engineering design process to build a reflector to increase the current output of a photovotaic panel. Teams arrive at a final design and present it to the class along...

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.

Small groups use the engineering design process to build and test a vehicle capable of carrying 250 grams a distance of five meters. The design must allow for the storage of potential energy and turn it into motion,...

Line, shape, color, texture, space. The first in a three-part series of lessons intended for advanced theatre arts classes introduces the elements of set design. Class members examine maquettes and analyze how designers have put together...

Take the class over the rainbow. Pairs or small groups follow directions to create a spectrograph. The pupils measure the angles formed by the different colors of the spectrum along with calculating the lengths formed by the spectrum and...

Young scholars analyze, critique, and evaluate information from various sources and learn about the design process. In this design lesson, students critique work submitted to People's Design Award and create a design of their own to...

Learners utilize their creative skills by solving engineering issues.  In this problem solving instructional activity, students examine the 6 steps to the engineering process by completing a worksheet.  Learners examine one of...

What kind of design challenges are there in building structures to support rocket engines? The unit takes design teams through the process of building the lightest possible thrust support structure that can withstand the necessary forces...

Columns have been used throughout the world because they are good load-bearing structures. Learners with visual impairments conduct an experiment to work through the design process as well as to understand this engineering phenomenon....

Students explore the use of design principles in the real world. They evaluate how problems can be solved using design principles. In groups, students design the floor plan for a building of their choice.

Middle schoolers explore the concept of design, and identify items in their lives that have been designed. They explore the concept of book design and create and arrange their own page layout.

Over 3 or 4 class periods your young designers will create a wearable garment that provides some sort of protection from a danger in everyday life. For this fashion design lesson, students investigate fear in our society and brainstorm...