Rochester Institute of Technology
Biomechanical Hand
In 1993, five biomedical engineers in Edinburgh, Scotland, created the first functional bionic arm. In the activity, learners explore the world of bioengineering through discussion and hands-on exploration. In groups, participants...
Discovery Education
Artificial Intelligence
What makes human interaction different from interaction with computers? Learners consider the question as they build Turing tests to determine whether a computer thinks like a human. They begin by looking at current versions of Turing...
Discovery Education
3D Printing Robots
What is water worth to you? The answer probably depends on many different variables. Learners explore the value of water in space and what it takes to transport the resource to locations in a galaxy far far away. They then consider...
DiscoverE
Shake It Up with Seismographs
Shake up your lessons on earthquakes. A simple seismograph lets scholars record "earthquakes" in the classroom. These earthquakes occur when classmates drop balls from different heights. Young scientists measure these with seismographs...
Teach Engineering
Surface Tension Lab
What constitutes a good soap bubble? In the second installment of a nine-part series, scholars apply their understanding of surface tension to soap bubbles. They experiment to determine the best solutions to use for the...
Teach Engineering
Communicating Your Results
Groups analyze and interpret their data from previous research in order to develop individualized findings. The teams then use guidelines to help determine what aspects of their research to include on a poster. Class members...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Critical Load
Young scholars analyze critical load and how to reinforce the design of a structure to hold more weight. They examine basic structures and which materials to select. They create a prototype to hold more and more weight.
Curated OER
No Valve in Vain
Middle schoolers design and create their own heart valves out of a variety of materials. Their heart valves are one way valves designed for water flowing through a tube representing blood moving through the heart.
Curated OER
Escape! Because Accidents Happen-Fire
Learners view a video clip about fire safety. They work together to research fire safety strategies in public and private buildings. They create a prototype of a building using safety measures.
Curated OER
Snail Car
Students design and create robotic cars using Legos and the Robolab program. They hold a "snail race" where the slowest car that can be determined to be actually moving is the winner.
Curated OER
MAKE IT FLY
Students utilize the process of scientific inquiry and technological design to explain thrust, weight, lift and drag in flight. They design an "airplane" to test the "mechanics" of flight. In addition, they brainstorm and sketch a design...
Curated OER
Life In Space
Students figure out how to design their own space station. They take a tour on the International Space Station to see what living there is really like, and how lessons learned on the ISS help pave the way for future space tourists.
Curated OER
TE Activity: Don't Crack Humpty
Learners perform mathematical calculations to design safety device or enclosure to protect an egg as it is rolled down a ramp at increasing slopes.
Curated OER
TE Activity: Heavy Helicopters
Learners 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
Ramp Builder
Young scholars plan and build a ramp designed for maximum distance a car can travel. In this physics and data collection math lesson, students work in groups to design a ramp using various household materials. Young scholars test small...
Curated OER
My Wet Robot
Learners design an underwater vehicle. In this engineering lesson plan, students will design an underwater robot that includes specific systems for it to function properly. Each group will present their prototype to the class.
Curated OER
Simple Machines and Modern Day Engineering Analogies
Young scholars apply the mechanical advantages and problem-solving capabilities of six types of simple machines (wedge, wheel and axle, lever, inclined plane, screw, pulley) as they discuss modern structures in the spirit of the...
Curated OER
Not So Simple Machines
Middle schoolers design a simple machine for a simple machine contest. For this simple machine lesson, students design a simple machine that will solve a problem. They draw a diagram, label it, and test the machine before they present it...
Curated OER
Composting Conundrum
Learners research cafeteria composting. In this composting lesson, students design a vessel that would allow the cafeteria staff to collect food scraps for composting. Then learners build a prototype and present it to the class. Lastly...
Curated OER
Appliances with Minds of Their Own
Students examine how everyday appliances might soon possess the capacity "to think" as a result of recent technological advances. A display of their knowledge of this new technology by creating a poster design of a "smart" machine.
Curated OER
Scientists Create Energy-Making Artificial Leaf (29th March, 2011)
Students read an article about alternative energy and complete the associated worksheets. In this ESL/ELL alternative energy lesson, students read or listen an article about research at MIT in which scientists designed a energy-making...
Teach Engineering
Copycat Engineers
It's often said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Young engineers learn about biomimicry, which uses nature to generate engineering ideas, in the fifth instructional activity of nine in a Life Science unit. Working in...
Cornell University
Physics of Flight
Up, up, and away! Take your classes on a physics adventure. Learners explore the concepts important for flight. They experiment with the Bernoulli Principle while learning the forces that act on airplanes in flight.
Curated OER
Express Yourself Lesson Seed 12: Story Event
Focus on plot and the impact-specific events in The Cay. Class members use their double-entry journals, created in a previous lesson in this series, to record their thinking about the guiding question as they read chapters 15 through 17....