Teach Engineering
Show Me the Money
Class members learn how to estimate the total costs involved to design and build a bridge by including design, material, equipment, and labor costs. The activity includes a discussion about the trade-off between cost and aesthetics.
Teach Engineering
Mechanics of Elastic Solids
Make the connection between Hooke's law and elasticity with an activity that introduces the class to the behavior of elastic materials. The resource defines stress and strain to calculate the modules of elasticity of...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Water Rocket Launch
How do rockets fly? Teams design, build, and launch a rocket made from a two-liter bottle to explore forces on a rocket such as Newton's Laws of Motion. During the design phase, young engineers draw a diagram of their rocket and...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Water Fountain
Thorough instructions are given to guide you through making a demonstration hydraulic pump from two plastic soda bottles. After using the resource to teach your class about Pascal's and Bernoulli's principles, turn them loose in groups...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Making Sense of Sensors
Have small groups in your class construct working hygrometers as an example of the benefits of using sensors in engineering. This activity can be used during a weather unit when covering humidity or in a STEM activity as a preparation...
Curated OER
Up for the Challenge?
A general engineering quiz can be given at the beginning of your engineering or technology unit to stimulate interest. A wide variety of topics are touched by engineers, including the medical industry, energy production, building design,...
NASA
Space Transportation: Reshooting the Moon
What does it take to get stuff to the Moon? Design teams create subsystems for a space transportation system to go to the Moon. The teams study Earth transportation components along with historical space transportation systems to...
NASA
Lunar Plant Growth Chamber
Would astronauts be able to grow their food on the Moon? Teams research plant growth in order to design and build a growth chamber that will function on the lunar surface. They narrow down plant choices based upon their...
Teach Engineering
Tell Me Doc—Will I Get Cancer?
Can you beat the odds of cancer? In the first installment of a seven-part series, future biomedical engineers consider how to detect and diagnose cancer. An article on biosensors provides useful information toward this goal.
NASA
Creating a Space Exploration Infrastructure
What will it take to explore space? Teams of pupils determine the needs of a lunar outpost and research the required systems. The pupils then learn about the past space exploration vehicles. The third and final lesson challenges project...
Skyscraper Museum
What is a Skyscraper?
Skyscrapers are amazing feats of architectural design that create the iconic skylines of the world's biggest cities. Young architects explore the defining characteristics of these monstrous towers with the first activity in this...
NPR
Test and Evaluate the Prototype
Time to test the prototype. Groups test their prototypes to the plastics problem under consideration. The results of the tests and peer feedback offer a means to refine the prototype.
NPR
Iterate to Improve the Prototype
Strive for perfection. Based on peer feedback, groups identify ways to improve their prototypes of the solution to the plastics problem. Members must come up with at least two ideas for improvements. This is the eighth instructional...
NPR
Investigate the Plastic Problem
Plastics are forever. The second lesson plan in a 10-part unit has pupils research the effects of plastics on the environment. They present their findings by creating an infographic.
NPR
Prototype the Solution
It's always nice to see what the solution looks like. Groups build a prototype of their solution to the plastics problem in the sixth installment of a 10-part unit. The prototypes can be either a visual prototype or a working prototype.
NPR
Brainstorm and Evaluate Solutions
May the best idea win. In groups, scholars brainstorm solutions to the problem statement developed in the previous lesson. The best idea moves forward to the prototype stage.
Curated OER
Activity: Leaning Tower of Pasta
A well-laid-out lesson plan, this can be used in an engineering, STEM, or physical science course. Laboratory groups design a structure using pasta and marshmallows, measure its height and weight, and then discover the load that it can...
American Chemical Society
Using the Properties of Materials to Improve a Model Boat
Work together to stay afloat. Using a paper boat, pupils connect properties of materials to their usefulness. They test different paper to determine how many pennies each boat will hold and learn that combining materials with different...
Curated OER
Engineering: Which Roof Is Tops?
Students determine regional climates by examining photos of house roofs. They observe teacher-constructed examples of roofs and make predictions as to which style is best for snowy climates. After evaluating the examples, they record...
Curated OER
Design Your Own Rube Goldberg Machine
Middle schoolers design and construct a Rube Goldberg machine that accomplishes a simple task in at least ten steps. They view and discuss various Rube Goldberg designs, identify types of simple machines, and in small groups produce a...
Curated OER
Design a Recycling Game!
Students discover that recycling is using a product more than once so that natural resources can be saved and so that we won't need so many garbage dumps and landfills. They see that there are different ways to recycle. Students design a...
Curated OER
Design a Parachute
Students engage in a discussion about what a parachute is and how it works. They create a parachute using different materials that they think will work best. The students test their designs, which will be followed by a class discussion...
Curated OER
Machines: Designing Form and Function
High schoolers design a boat model with simplified steam engine. In this ecology lesson, students compare renewable and nonrenewable energy sources. They determine the efficiency of their boat model.
Curated OER
Water Resources Engineering
Students illustrate the chemical differences between surface and tap-water. They investigate the common chemical and physical parameters relevant for water quality and gain hands on experience with water quality testing.
They enhance...
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