Curated OER
Compare Human-made Objects with Natural Objects
Learners examine and observe how many human-made objects get their basic design from things in nature. They listen to the book "Nature Got There First," compare/contrast hollow bones with drinking straws, bird beaks and tool pliers, and...
Curated OER
Do As the Romans: Construct an Aqueduct!
Students explore how the Romans engineered and built aqueducts. They read a manual, explore the Construct a Roman Aqueduct online activity, and construct an aqueduct that will transport two liters of water across a short distance in the...
Curated OER
Design Your Own Rube Goldberg Machine
Students 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 schematic...
Curated OER
TE Activity: The Beat Goes On
Students determine what the pulse is before examining how to measure the heart rate in different situations. They build a simple device that measures the heart rate, take heart rates, and record them on a worksheet. They discuss how...
Curated OER
Water Power
Students observe a model of a waterwheel to investigate the transformations of energy involved in turning the blades of a hydro-turbine into work. They work as engineers to create a model for a new waterwheel while considering resources,...
Curated OER
What's Down the Well?
Students examine how environmental engineers determine possible sites for drinking water wells. They listen to a teacher led-lecture, and create their own groundwater well model using a coffee can and wire screening, observing how...
Curated OER
TE Lesson: Using Heat from the Sun
Students examine fossil fuels, nuclear and renewable fuels. They study investigate types of heat transfer such as convection, conduction, and radiation. They complete crossword puzzles based on the vocabulary. They design, construct and...
Curated OER
A Peaceful Place Is Powerful for the Mind
Fourth graders explore, analyze and interpret how schools can become peaceful places to learn and interact with others. They study a wide variety of avenues to achieve this task through classroom, community and career activities...
Alabama Learning Exchange
Plants, Soil and Nutrients
Young scholars conduct an experiment. They review how to use the scientific method to conduct an experiment with white carnations and food coloring. They create a hypothesis and test it to better understand how plants get nutrients,...
Curated OER
Volcanic Panic!
Students begin with an overview of the Earth's interior and how volcanoes form. They learn how engineers predict eruptions. In a class demonstration, students watch and measure a mock volcanic eruption and observe the phases of an...
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TE Activity: Pollution Politics
Students examine how a bill becomes a law in the US Congress. They investigate legislation about global warming. They determine the role of engineers as they educate Congress, the public and other government institutions about global...
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Architecture: Homes All Around
Young scholars listen to a book, "This is My House" and sing a song to the tune of Home on the Range. They use the internet to view examples of Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture. Students take pictures of architectural details of their...
Curated OER
Seasoning the School Year
Students observe the changes a class tree goes through as the seasons change and record observations in journals. They investigate changes in the weather, changes in the length of the day, and how that affects people. They create...
Curated OER
Immigration Unit
Third graders develop an appreciate for the various cultures that are present in their local community. Through reading and research, they explain how various culture came to live in their area. At the conclusion of the unit, 3rd...
Alabama Learning Exchange
Food Guide Pyramid - TV and Peers
Students identify foods that belong in each group on the food guide pyramid. They discuss how TV and peers may negatively influence eating habits.
Curated OER
Do You Haiku? We Do!
Third graders try their hands at writing Haiku, a form of Japanese poetry. Haiku is usually 17 syllables in three-line form. This engaging instructional activity has many excellent worksheets and website imbedded in the plan. They share...
Curated OER
Legends of Airpower: Aviation-Then, Now and Here
High schoolers examine the advancements made in aviation during and since WWII. They read an interview with Charles McGee, research a plane, build a model of a plane, and develop a Powerpoint presentation about aircraft.
Curated OER
Global Greenup
Students utilize satellite images to track the life cycle of vegetational growth over a large area. Animal migratory patterns are compared to this cycle.
Curated OER
An Underground River
Seventh graders describe how water flows through the ground, what an aquifer is and what soil properties are used to predict groundwater flow. They consider the affects of pollution on groundwater supplies and write a letter drawing...
Curated OER
Science: Motion Commotion
Young scholars examine Newton's three laws of motion to discover what causes it and how it changes. They conduct motion experiments by building catapults and constructing balloon rockets. Finally, they conduct peer studies correlating...
Curated OER
Riding the Radio Waves
Students examine the basic concepts of radio waves and magnetic fields. They study how the AM radios are built and demonstrate the concepts of amplitude and frequency.
Curated OER
Tornado!
Students examine the characteristics and types of tornadoes. They discuss how they are formed, conduct an experiment with two liter bottles, analyze data and determine mean and median, and design a house to withstand tornado-force winds
Curated OER
Good News - We're on the Rise!
Students build and observe a simple aneroid barometer to discover changes in barometric pressure and weather forecasting. They graph changes in barometric pressure for two weeks and make weather predictions.
Curated OER
Making Decisions: Packaging and the Environment
Students work in small groups to redesign the packaging of several common items. They attempt to reach the goal of 25% reduction in packaging materials currently used and explore the impact of various materials and designs in landfills...