Engineers team up to design and construct an 18-inch-long robotic arm that can successfully pick up a paper cup. Each group is given the exact same set of materials, but it is up to them to decide what to use and how to use it. It is a...

How can you tell what someone is feeling when they aren't saying a word? Explore non-verbal communication with an activity based on Cynthia Breazeal's work with expressive robots. One learner puts a bag over his or her face and uses body...

Don't be so emotional! Scholars take part in an activity where they consider how future robots will be able to show emotions. They place paper bags over their heads, act out emotions through body movements, and have others guess the...

Tap into the desire to learn about computer codes. Pupils apply the Tap Code and the Polybius Square to send secret codes using sound. They design a code that tells a robot what movements to make and then test out their code using one of...

Can you do better than a robot? Teams write instructions for a hypothetical robot to build a structure. They test their instructions by acting them out to see if they produce the desired structure.

Get young programmers thinking about programming languages with an activity that asks class members to craft directions for one person (teacher, another adult, or a class mate) acting as a robot. Participants direct the robot to...

Explore what it takes to service the Hubble telescope. In the set of three activities, groups investigate several aspects of the Hubble telescope, including robotic arms used during repairs, spacesuits, and extravehicular activity (EVA)...

Learners explore design, construction, and teamwork as they design and develop robot arm at least 18 inches in length using common materials.

Students utilize computer programs to operate a simple robot.  In this technology lesson, students create robots using Lego pieces and simple motors to move them.  Students measure the speed of the robots by running Robolab...

Hold a free-throw shooting challenge in your engineering class! Each team must design a contraption that will fire off a "robot arm" or, more specifically, a catapult, to send a Ping-Pong ball into a basket. Use this as an opportunity to...

Operating a vehicle remotely can be difficult, especially when the vehicle is on another planet. Young engineers get a feel for some of the real-world challenges as they work to program their rovers (blindfolded group members)...

In this robots lesson, young scholars explore the LEGO website and complete a web quest. In groups students work in groups and read excerpts from Robots & Robot, chart jobs robots can perform and report their findings to the...

Future engineers create robotic arms like those on rovers built by NASA in the second lesson of the series. They test their devices by attempting to pick up and move cups to a specified location.

Art and science sometimes go hand in hand. A set of four activities for learners in grades 3-5 teaches engineering concepts as part of art projects. Class members build homemade robots, elastic puppets, musical instruments, and...

Will the real computer please stand up? The premise of this activity is for the class to ask questions to a human and to a computer and to determine which is which. The class asks a given set of questions, and the person playing the role...

Learning how to write computer code has never been so much fun! Given control of their very own robots, children create simple programs in order to solve a series of challenges and develop their problem solving skills.

Get your learners interested in space exploration. Groups design space rovers using design software and then build prototypes of their designs. The farther the rovers can travel, the better. The catch? The rovers must be powered by...

Students differentiate the characteristics of living and nonliving things. In this life science lesson, students compare and contrast robots and living things. Given an object, they decide whether it's is living or not and defend...

It's time to go to Mars. Using the provided cards and mat, groups design a mission to Mars. The cards contain information about the different components of the launch and warn about a few mishaps that might occur along the way.

Students participate in the Collection S.O.C.K.S program to protect their local watersheds. Using the socks, they plant new plants and trees around the watershed in order to protect it for future use. They also perform in a skit that...

Students research about cartography and how to be a cartographer. In this math lesson, students draw a map of their classroom. They use a robot to explore navigation using a compass rose.

What would you think of an app that provides a creative introduction to an important 21st century skill, challenges learners at many levels, and is an addictively, fun game? Did we also mention it was free? We think you will find all...

Students navigate Doodle Splash to create a painting.  In this doodle splash activity, students explain their splash painting relationship to a piece of literature.

Students explore child psychology by participating in an interactive children's game. In this child relationship lesson plan, students identify playtime as the key ingredient to have a child become intellectually and creatively motivated...