Students design and begin building a car out of K'NEX parts after a class discussion on the components of the car, the constraints and goals of the design, the type of testing that will be performed, and a demonstration of a basic...

Students examine art of butterflies and discuss what they know about the insect. They create their own butterfly puppets and write a story to represent its life cycle.

If a ski lift had rockets, imagine how fast it would be! Scholars let their imaginations take flight as they build models for such a ski lift. Rather than using a rocket, though, they'll use a much safer balloon as the power source.

Balloons will go where you want them to. Young pilots first add paper clips to a balloon to make it neutrally buoyant. They then use cardboard to steer the balloon in different directions, taking air pressure into account.

Students discuss Newton's laws of motion. The conduct motion experiments by building "Newton Rocket Cars" from assorted materials. They propel the cars with rubber bands and wooden blocks and record the distance traveled on data sheets.

Students explore how scientists build robotic arms that move similar to humans. In this robot lesson, students examine how scientists make robots. Students design and construct a mechanical arm that moves like a human arm. Students...

Students explore Bernoulli's principle, how it is related to flight, and the effect of lift, thrust, and drag on flight. They design and develop an experiment that tests for distance traveled by their paper airplane, and record and...

Students examine how motion capture technology allows computer based animators to design realistic effects in animation. They study how the center of gravity contributes to animation and how to use the center of gravity to write an...

Learners investigate variables which may seem to affect the movement of a pendulum, or "swing."They interpret their observations and apply the scientific principles to develop explanations and solve a new problem.

Students gain first-hand experience on how friction affects motion. They build a hovercraft using air from a balloon to levitate a craft made from a compact disk (CD), learning that a bed of air under an object significantly reduces the...

Students determine the forces necessary to move a truck on an inclined plane with weight and slope as variables. They identify the cheapest way to transport trash to local garbage disposal sites.

Students create a barge. In this technological design lesson, students use modeling clay to create a barge to hold marbles. Students make their barge then test it to see how many marbles it will hold. Students discuss why their design...

Young scholars study hummingbirds and how they use Newton's law.  In this motion lesson students complete several activities and view videos of hummingbirds. 

Eighth graders build a structure that is able to withstand a simulated earthquake. They research earthquakes, earthquake measurement, and society's preparation for and reaction to them. Pupils build models and present them to the...

Students engage in three short, hands-on, in-class demos which expand students' understand of energy. First, using peanuts and heat, students see how the human body burns food to make energy. Then, they create paper snake mobiles to...

Students design an appropriate and usable storyboard and then create a claymation video. They take digital photographs frame by frame, then assemble the stop-motion movie using video software.

Students investigate design and the correct use of technology. In this chemistry instructional activity, students investigate the Bernoulli Principle using hands on bubble making. They link the principle that keeps the bubble aloft to...

Students construct a helmet to protect their heads from falling objects. In this constructing lesson plan, students design this helmet with the lowest cost possible.

Students conduct science experiments to understand that particle movement changes as a substance changes from one phase to another phase. Students record observations of experiments that involve the three states of matter: solid,...

Students enclose water in an airtight bag and leave it in a warm area to view the water cycle. For this water cycle lesson plan, students observe evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. They then discuss what they learned about the...

Students study the physical force of linear momentum by investigating collisions. They analyze the difference between elastic and inelastic collisions. They calculate linear momentum.

Learners use chart data to determine the location of the epicenter of an earthquake. This task assesses students' abilities to generalize and infer, organize data, interpret data, and apply mathematical concepts.

Students study kinetic and potential energy. In this energy lesson, students in grades K-2 understand the differences between kinetic and potential energy. Students in grades 3-5 demonstrate that kinetic and potential energy. Students in...

Young scholars harness the power of the sun to design, construct and evaluate a solar-powered model car of their creation. They race their cars in a "Solar Sprint" race modeled after the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's Junior...