New ReviewSimple doesn't mean useless. Individuals learn how simple machines benefit the user by changing the amount of effort. A seven-lesson unit begins with an overview of simple machines and then incorporates activities that allow the user to...

New ReviewWhat's the best way to use a simple machine to solve a real-world problem? Scholars construct their own simple and complex machines to explore the concepts of work and force. They discuss examples of simple machines they have found in...

New ReviewHow can people use simple machines to solve real-world STEM problems? Learn about simple machines using a hands-on, project-based learning activity. First, pupils investigate and evaluate simple machines. Then, they receive a task that...

New ReviewMotion is the focus of ten hands-on activities that challenge scholars to build machines invented by Leonardo da Vinci. Following several steps, small groups work collaboratively to recreate machines including levers, pulleys, wheels,...

Precise measurements make the job easier! One of the challenges when using an inclined plane for testing comes from pupils not using exact measurements. They often rely on books that slide or different ramp lengths when experimenting. By...

Transportation devices, military devices, mechanical devices, entertainment devices. The inventions of Leonardo da Vinci are legendary. After viewing images of da Vinci's inventions, class members are encouraged to draft their own...

What determines which ball rolls the fastest — the weight, the radius, the material, or something else? Scholars select two balls to race down the inclined plane, determining their material and radius. As they race, the simulation graphs...

Can you lift a piano into a truck? Simulation allows scholars to explore the relationship between force, ramp length, and weight. Pupils control the variables of truck bed height, ramp length, weight of piano, and the number of friends...

Is it easier to move a large sleepy dog up a ramp or a piano down the same ramp? Scholars experiment with pushing objects up and down an inclined plane. They alter a few variables in order to understand the forces, energy, and work...

Design an aerodynamic bobsled. Groups create a bobsled that meets certain constraints from everyday materials. After learning about friction, aerodynamics, acceleration, and terminal velocity, pupils get a chance to improve on their...

Sometimes simple machines don't seem so...simple. The video lesson explains the principles of simple machines. Viewers also discover the concept of mechanical advantage and how it affects the forces related to simple machines. 

The tension of the 236 strings in a grand piano exert a combined force of 20 tons on the cast iron frame. The presentation includes topics such as work, forms of energy, conservation of energy, gravitational and elastic potential energy,...

I don't always make vector jokes, but when I do, IJK. Vector addition using multiple methods, scalar multiplication, vector subtraction, vector components, relative velocities, free body diagrams, and so much more Are covered in this...

Compound machines, nothing more than a combination of simple machines working together, are the focus of an activity that asks class members to use the provided information to take a look at the way innovators combine simple machines to...

Looking for the best inclined plane for the job? Groups calculate the theoretical mechanical advantage for four different inclined planes. They determine the actual mechanical advantage by measuring the amount of force needed for the...

It is plane to see that simple machines help reduce the force needed to perform a task.  This resource introduces three of the simple machines--the inclined plane, the wedge, and the screw, and  the formulas in order to be able to...

Class members are challenged to design a device that will move a circus elephant into a train car. Groups brainstorm ideas that use simple machines to load the elephant. They then choose one of their ideas, sketch a plan, and present it...

Show your students how to make their work easier. The first lesson in a series of 10 introduces the class to work and the way simple machines can be make work easier. The simple machines scholars can find in everyday items are inclined...

What would you be if you were attached to another object by an inclined plane wrapped helically around an axis? In this fourth presentation that covers work and simple machines, young physicists look at Newtons and Joules as well as...

Teaching about inclined planes may seem like an uphill battle, but there's a straightforward way to do it. An Honors Physics presentation covers static and kinetic friction, the forces of friction, and inclines. Additionally, it includes...

Teach young engineers that all machines, no matter how complicated or complex, are made up of just six simple devices with this hands-on physical science lesson. Using the included templates, students first create paper models of...

The choice is simple: create a PowerPoint presentation, write a book, or invent a compound machine. Whichever project your young scientists choose, they will be engaged in creatively demonstrating their knowledge of simple machines and...

Planning an elementary science unit has never been simpler! These twelve lessons guide young scientists through an exploration of simple machines and their many uses in the real world before asking them to apply their learning in the...

Make your work as a teacher a little easier with a physical science project on simple machines. After introducing young scientists to these devices and identifying their different uses around the school, this project engages children in...