Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Renewable Energy Living Lab

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students become familiar with the online Renewable Energy Living Lab interface and access its real-world solar energy data to evaluate the potential for solar generation in various U.S. locations. They become familiar with where the most...
Interactive
Concord Consortium

Concord Consortium: Dissolving

For Students 9th - 10th
Impact on potential energy when a substance dissolves in water. Add water to a substance and observe the impact on potential energy as the substance dissolves. Observe the interactions between molecules as the substance dissolves over...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Surface Tension Lab

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students extend their understanding of surface tension by exploring the real-world engineering problem of deciding what makes a "good" soap bubble. Student teams first measure this property, and then use this measurement to determine the...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Surface Tension Basics

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Young scholars are presented with the question: "Why does a liquid jet break up into droplets?" and introduced to its importance in inkjet printers. A discussion of cohesive forces and surface tension is included, as well as surface...
Handout
Encyclopedia of Earth

Encyclopedia of Earth: Thorium

For Students 9th - 10th
Information about the element, Thorium, atomic number 90. Covers physical properties, atomic properties, how abundant it is on the Earth, where it is found, and details about health-related regulations. Discusses thorium's potential use...
Activity
PBS

Pbs Kids: Design Squad Challenge: Paddle Power [Pdf]

For Students 3rd - 8th
Hands-on challenge to design and build a paddle boat that moves across water using a rubber band as its power source. Provides full list of materials with ideas on how to design, build, test, and redesign it if necessary. Activity...
Activity
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: Leaky Clues to Dam Design: How Reservoir Height Affects Hydroel

For Students 6th - 8th
It's hard to believe that the same water that you use every day to quench your thirst, cook with, bathe in, swim in, and wash your clothes and dishes, is capable of another trick-it can make electricity. Electricity can be generated...
Activity
Science Buddies

Science Buddies: Just Keep Cool How Evaporation Affects Heating and Cooling

For Students 9th - 10th
When we get hot, we sweat. The physiological role of sweat is to cool us down. When the water evaporates, it removes energy from our bodies. This sort of evaporative cooling can also be used to cool homes, using what are referred to as...
Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Engineering for the Earth

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Young students are introduced to the complex systems of the Earth through numerous lessons on its natural resources, processes, weather, climate and landforms. Key earth science topics include rocks, soils and minerals, water and natural...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Why Do We Build Dams?

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars are introduced to the concept of a dam and its potential benefits, which include water supply, electricity generation, flood control, recreation and irrigation. This lesson begins an ongoing classroom scenario in which...
Interactive
Concord Consortium

Concord Consortium: Polar and Nonpolar Interface

For Students 9th - 10th
Observe how molecules with hydrophilic and hydrophobic regions move in a mixture of oil and water, and pay attention to changes in potential energy over time. Move and rotate the molecules to see how they interact with their surrounding...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: A River Ran Through It

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students learn how water is used to generate electricity. They investigate water's potential-to-kinetic energy transformation in hands-on activities about falling water and waterwheels. During the activities, they take measurements,...