US Department of Energy
Go Far Cars Ramp: A Basic Ramp with Four Height Settings
Precise measurements make the job easier! One of the challenges when using an inclined plane for testing comes from pupils not using exact measurements. They often rely on books that slide or different ramp lengths when experimenting. By...
Technovation
Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Make a Wave Machine
Take the design challenge to make a wave machine with simple materials on this site. Site contains a design challenge and an interactive journal to document the challenge. Find a video with an example of one way to make the wave machine.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Bubble Switch
Curiosity Machine provides a free, high-interest STEM lessons for students. This challenge asks students to create a bubble maze where bubbles move through several on and off switches. This site includes a place for students to document...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Engineer a Wind Powered Water Pump
With this design challenge, students can build a wind-powered turbine that can pump water up from the ground. This site contains tips to complete the design challenge as well as a place for students to document their engineering design...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Cam Mechanism
Create a simple machine that transfers a rotational motion into linear vertical motion with this challenge. The site gives more details on the challenge as well as tips and place to document your design process. Teachers can find a...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Dinosaur Shadow Box
Create a series of shadow boxes to form a complete silhouette of a dinosaur with this challenge. To complete this challenge, students will use everyday materials and this site to document their process.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Design a Mechanical Pegboard
Are you ready to challenge yourself to make a peg board that lets you test multiple linkage systems and movements? This site contains not only the challenge but a platform to document your process as you solve the problem.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Map the Ocean Floor
In this challenge, students are asked to map out the ocean floor with a device that they design. The challenge site includes a lesson plan, tips, and a place for students to document their engineering process.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Create a Circuit to Light an Led
This website contains a challenge for students to build a simple circuit that enables you to turn on a small LED. The website includes a lesson plan, tips, and a place for students to document their design challenge.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Submarine
Students are challenged to create a submarine that will dive down through the water and come back to the surface. This site includes the challenge, tips, a lesson plan, and a place for students to document their engineering design process.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Talking Truck
On this site, you will find a challenge, a lesson plan, tips, and a place for you to document your engineering design process. Here you are challenged to build a truck that "talks" to alert when there is a problem.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Water Filter
A challenge for students to build a water filter that can clean dirty water. Site includes challenge, a lesson plan, tips, and a place for students to document their engineering design process.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Plane Painting Machine
A challenge where student create a plane painting machine which draws a design on your airplane. The site includes the challenge, tips, a lesson plan, and a place for students to document their engineering design process.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Engineer an Automated Wrapping Machine
On this site, find a challenge to design and build a machine that can make plane fuselage by wrapping a mold just like Boeing's carbon fiber placement machines. While working on the challenge, students will find a lesson plan, tips, and...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Engineer an Electronic Water Level Detector
Make a device that will notify people when the water level drops in this challenge. Students will do this by building an open circuit that completes when the water level drops below a certain level and/or goes above a certain level. The...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Engineer a Communication Network
Using some everyday household materials, students are challenged to design and build a network to send communication signals in multiple directions to multiple people. To help students accomplish this challenge there are tips, a lesson...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Engineer an Airfoil
Do you know how an airplane flys? Use this challenge to learn about flight by building a wing that can generate lift from a fan while carrying weight. Find details about the challenge, tips, and a lesson plan on this site. Also, students...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Make a Water Transport Satellite
Challenge your students to create a satellite that can hold a cup of water and does not leak during a bumpy rocket launch. This site comes complete with a challenge, tips, a lesson plan, and a place for students to document their...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Deploy a Satellite
Ready for a challenge? This site contains a challenge for students to build a satellite with a 6-inch square body that can deploy its own solar wings and antennae, and can fit inside a 9-inch diameter tube. Also, found on the site is a...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Lightweight Airplane Wing
A challenge for students to build a lightweight wing structure that is 12 inches long and can hold up a heavy load without deflecting. This site contains the challenge, a lesson plan, tips, and a place for students to document their...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Engineer a Skyscraper for the Wind
A challenge for students to build a skyscraper that stands strong in the wind and is at least 18 inches tall. This challenge includes tips, a lesson plan, and a place for students to document their engineering design process.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Build a Magnetic Nanoparticle Coating
Interested in nanoparticles? Use this challenge to design a coating for a magnet that will pick up different surfaces. Challenge includes tips, a lesson plan, and a place for students to document their engineering design process.
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Engineer a Bird Beak
In this challenge, students will construct a beak that will allow them to pick up as much food as possible in one try without using their hands. This website includes the challenge, tips, a lesson plan, and a place for students to...
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Curiosity Machine: Challenges: Invent a Biobot
Make a robot that moves like a living creature using a microcontroller, motors, and mechanisms with this challenge. Also, on this challenge find a lesson plan, tips, and a place for students to document their engineering design process.