Teach Engineering
When Silicon Talks
Explore Snell's Law using thin films. In the fifth installment of a seven-part series, pupils solve a set of problems relating to Snell's Law and use this skill during an experiment requiring the collection of reflective measurements...
Teach Engineering
Viscous Fluids
Elasticity and viscosity. Help your class understand the similarities and differences with an introduction to viscous fluids. After describing four types of fluid behaviors: shear thinning, shear thickening, Bringham plastic, and...
Teach Engineering
Linking Sources and Pollutants
Class members use an air quality monitor to measure the amount of gas-phase pollutants emitted by different sources. Groups choose three different sources and make predictions about what the monitors will detect. Teams then expose the...
Teach Engineering
Tissue Mechanics
Engage your class by showing them how silly putty and human tissues are alike. Pupils learn more about tissue mechanics by reflecting upon their experiences with silly putty. The lesson covers collagen, elastin, and proteoglycans and...
Teach Engineering
Nanotechnology Grant Proposal Writing
Please, sir, can I have a few thousand dollars for my research? The last installment in a six-part lesson has the pupils develop a grant proposal. Class members apply their knowledge of skin cancer, ultraviolet radiation, human skin, and...
Curated OER
Tower Investigation and the Egg
Pupils build three types of towers, engineering them to hold an egg one foot high for 15 seconds. They discover that engineering designs are subject to constraints such as time, money and size specifications. In this activity students...
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Hot Problem Solving
Students follow the steps of the engineering design process to meet the challenge of getting their entire class from one location on the playground to the sidewalk without touching the ground between. The class develops a well...
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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...
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Harnessing Wind
Students explore the ways that engineers study and harness the wind. They study the different kinds of winds and how to measure wind direction. In addition, students learn how air pressure creates winds and how engineers build and test...
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Interactions Everywhere!
Students examine interactions within the environment and environmental engineering careers. They discuss and view photos of natural and manmade environments, explore various websites, create a web to identify interactions between living...
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Oil Spill
Young scholars explore an important role of environmental engineers by studying the Exxon Valdez oil spill. They experiment with different strategies in order to clean up their own manufactured oil spill.
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Muscles, Oh My!
Students explore the human muscular system. In this science instructional activity, students discuss how engineering is related to the field of bio-mechanics and human movement.
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Earth Rocks!
Students study the basic elements of the Earth's crust: rocks, soils and minerals. They categorize rocks, soils and minerals and how they are literally the foundation for our civilization. They also explore how engineers use rock soils...
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Construction Technologies: Construct the Strongest Bridge
Students investigate how engineers use different types of bridges for different places. In small groups they design and construct bridges for three different scenarios, and answer a series of investigating questions applied to the...
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TE Activity: Oil Spill Cleanup
Students experiment by creating an oil spill and trying a number of clean up methods. They determine which methods are the least costly and most effective. They role play as an environmental engineer and as an oil company owner who must...
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Wind Power
Fourth graders develop an understanding of how engineers use wind to generate electricity. They will build a model anemometer to better understand and measure wind speed. They discover that engineers design wind turbines that generate...
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TE Activity: Heavy Helicopters
Students study the concepts of weight and drag while making paper helicopters. They measure how adding more weight to the helicopter changes the time for the helicopter to fall to the ground. They apply what they examine to the work of...
Curated OER
Make Your Own Temperature Scale
Differentiate between temperature and thermal energy. Your class will build a thermometer using simple materials and develop their own scale for measuring temperature. Discuss with your class and consider why engineers need to understand...
Teach Engineering
Alloy the Way to Mars
Future engineers test different alloys to determine the specific strength of each one. Based on the results, they make a recommendation to NASA on which alloy to use on engines for spacecraft.
Curated OER
Many Paths
Students explore the composition and practical application of parallel circuitry, compared to series circuitry. They design and build parallel circuits and investigate their characteristics, and apply Ohm's law. They recognize that...
Teach Engineering
News Flash!
Extra, extra, read all about it! Scholars research information on endangered species and produce a news report to share their findings with the rest of the class. In groups, they then consider engineering solutions to problems on habitat...
Teach Engineering
Six Minutes of Terror
Help your class understand the design challenges when trying to land a remote spacecraft on a planet. Class members examine the provided information to understand how each component of a spacecraft is designed in order to safely land a...
Teach Engineering
Photosynthesis—Life's Primary Energy Source
Wouldn't it be great if you could produce your own food? Scholars learn about the processes of photosynthesis and cellular respiration in plants. They consider how to use photosynthesis as a model of an efficient system and how to apply...
Teach Engineering
Earthquakes Living Lab: The Theory of Plate Tectonics
Find out if your class agrees with Ice Age: Continental Drift ... or if it's just a fun family movie! Class members research the theory of continental drift, examine evidence of plate tectonics, connect this information to engineering,...