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Unit Plan
Colorado Unit Writing Project

Simple Machines

For Teachers 2nd - 5th Standards
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...
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Unit Plan
Norwich Institute for Language Education

Simple Machines

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
Planning a unit on simple machines? Save some time and energy with this collection of lessons and activities that explores how these devices are used in the real world to make life a little easier. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Modern Day Pyramids

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students investigate the ways in which ancient technologies - six types of simple machines and combinations - are used to construct modern buildings. As they work together to solve a design problem (designing and building a modern...
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Activity
PBS

Reading Adventure Pack: Robots

For Parents 2nd - 3rd
Two activities work with a fiction and nonfiction book about robots‚—Robot Dreams by Sara Varon and Robot by Roger Bridgman. Scholars read each story, then build a robot out of found objects, examine robot sensors, and search for...
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Interactive
DocsTeach

Patent Analysis: Wright Brothers' Flying Machine

For Teachers 3rd - 6th
Ideas take flight in an exciting activity exploring the Wright Brothers. Scholars view the Wright Brothers' patent for their flying machine and makes educated guesses as to the purpose of the document. Scholars discuss the purpose of...
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Interactive
DocsTeach

New Technology in World War I

For Teachers 7th - 12th
A fast-paced activity focuses on the development of technology during World War I. Young historians match images of new technologies and complete a worksheet. Scholars also read an account of the war from the perspective of an American...
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Interactive
DocsTeach

Analyzing the Cotton Gin Patent

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Decode primary sources in a fast-paced activity. A quick guessing game helps pupils use visual clues to understand primary sources. Academics look at a picture of the cotton gin and must guess what it is without other knowledge or clues....
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Activity
Constitutional Rights Foundation

Automation and the American Worker

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
A thought-provoking resource examines the future of automation and the effects on employment. Academics read informational text, complete written prompts, and participate in activities to understand automation and the possibilities for...
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Lesson Plan
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Purdue University

Simple Machines

For Teachers 3rd Standards
What'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...
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Activity
Evergreen Exhibitions

Leonardo da Vinci: Machines in Motion

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Motion 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,...
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Lesson Plan
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Benjamin Franklin Tercentenary

Simple Machines, Ben Franklin and the Technology of the 1700s

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Benjamin Franklin was an inventor, and he was fascinated by the mechanics of machinery. Using a fun exploration, pupils examine simple machines from the pre-Industrial era. Then, they must identify and build their own using common objects.
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eBook
Open Oregon Educational Resources

Manufacturing Processes 4-5

For Students 10th - Higher Ed
No need to manufacture an excuse for learning about manufacturing. Scholar use an eBook to study manufacturing processes. The textbook covers milling machines, lathe machines, drill presses, bandsaws, surface grinders, heat treating,...
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Unit Plan
Discover Da Vinci

Da Vinci: Machines Exhibition

For Teachers 8th - 12th
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...
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Activity
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PBS

Four Corners

For Students 5th - 8th
It's imperative to be as precise as possible. Future engineers learn about precision by building a cardboard machine. The base, corners, handles, and paddles must all be assembled with precision or the machine won't work.
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Lesson Plan
DiscoverE

Kicking Machine

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Don't kick the resource to the curb; you'll definitely regret it. Future engineers devise a kicking machine that launches a ping-pong ball toward a target. They can use a pendulum, a rubber band, or both, depending on whether they want...
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Activity
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Teach Engineering

Design and Build a Rube Goldberg

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Let's see how complicated we can make this simple task. The last activity associated with a 10-part series has groups design and build a Rube Goldberg machine. Teams determine a simple task to accomplish and use the engineering design...
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Lesson Plan
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Teach Engineering

Just Plane Simple

For Teachers 7th - 9th Standards
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...
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Lesson Plan
2
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NASA

Heavy Lifting

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Astronauts need a way to lift heavy objects. Pupils design and build a crane out of cardboard and determine ways to improve their cranes based upon the outcomes of testing. 
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Worksheet
K5 Learning

Robert Fulton – Steamboat Inventor

For Students 2nd Standards
Examine the life of steamboat inventor, Robert Fulton, through reading comprehension worksheet that includes both multiple choice and short answer questions. Then, take part in a word search and write definitions, words, and sentences...
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Lesson Plan
Agriculture in the Classroom

Six Kinds Do It All

For Teachers 2nd - 6th Standards
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 activity. Using the included templates, students first create paper models of...
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Activity
Cherokee County Schools

Simple Machines Project

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
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...
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PPT
Curated OER

Force and Motion

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Each of the slides here gives a definition, equation, or calculation example for a component of force and motion. This large collection covers topics from momentum and Newton's laws to centripetal forces and simple machines. Animations...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Where Does Food Come From?

For Teachers Pre-K
Distinguish between food and non-food items. Recognize that food is obtained from both plant and animal sources. Identify sources for some common animal foods then construct a simple food path from the farm to the consumer.
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PPT
Curated OER

ChalkBoard Challenge

For Teachers 5th - 7th
This is a nicely designed jeopardy game with the categories animals, space, rocks, simple machines, and weather available for 5 values. There are some non-essential sound effects included.  The links work and you can return to the main...