+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Marshmallow Design Challenge

For Teachers 5th - Higher Ed
How tall is your marshmallow structure? Using only limited supplies (including uncooked spaghetti noodles, masking tape, and one marshmallow), teams endeavor to support the marshmallow atop the tallest spaghetti structure they can build....
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Purdue University

Field Trip Snack Holder

For Teachers 3rd Standards
Is light related to insulation? An informative hands-on STEM activity demonstrates how light affects temperature. First, the class investigates how light passes through different mediums and how that relates to temperature. Then,...
+
Activity
Teach Engineering

Engineers Love Pizza, Too!

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Help overcome challenges in eating pizza. Scholars work in groups to design a device that assists a physically handicapped person eat pizza. They build a prototype of such a device to test their designs before building. To finish, groups...
+
Activity
DiscoverE

Arts and Engineering Activity Packet: Grades 3-5

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
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...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Purdue University

Design of an Earthen Dam for a Lafayette Neighborhood

For Teachers 3rd Standards
How do dams support bodies of water? Scholars engage in a hands-on STEM activity where they design, build, and test dams to learn about bodies of water and how humans use natural resources. They learn how criteria and constraints affect...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Purdue University

Sound Absorption Wall

For Teachers 3rd Standards
What types of materials absorb sound? Learners explore sound waves, the decibel scale, and how different materials affect sound. Then, they use their knowledge of sound meters to complete a STEM engineering design task to build...
+
Lesson Plan
Berkeley Engineering and Mentors

Marshmallow Challenge

For Teachers K - 12th
Here is a lesson plan in collaboration cleverly disguised as an engineering design activity. There is no background material for you to teach here,  just instructions about materials and rules for participating groups. Use this as an...
+
Lesson Plan
Trash For Teaching

The Light-House Project

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
Groups work together to design a lighthouse, from designing and drawing the wiring diagram, to creating prototypes of the switch and circuit, to envisioning and building a scale model along with a blueprint. By including different...
+
Activity
DiscoverE

Designing Highway Interchanges

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
How do engineers determine the most efficient highway designs? Introduce young scientists to the world of topology, the branch of mathematics that examines how things are connected. Teams use model highways to create the most...
+
Lesson Plan
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Biomimicry in Engineering

For Teachers 3rd - 12th Standards
Take a look with your class at how nature supplies inspiration to engineers. In cooperative groups, youngsters research biomimicry and then develop a system that would help support people living on the moon. Each team also considers...
+
Unit Plan
Purdue University

The Represented World: Recreational STEM

For Teachers 3rd Standards
How are forces and motion important to a swing set? Scholars explore the concepts of force and motion using swing sets. In preparation for their own STEM design project, individuals take surveys and data from peers, complete labs on...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Bonneville

Design and Engineer Solutions

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
What's the best way to collect all that trash? A culminating activity has scholars use the knowledge and skills from the unit to design a solution to the plastic trash island problem. They use 3-D pens or a 3-D printer to build models of...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Purdue University

Design of Music Instruments for a Rock Band

For Teachers 3rd Standards
Can you create a rock band? Scholars learn about the creation and transmission of sound in a hands-on STEM activity. First, they explore the transmission of sound using a tuning fork. Then, they must solve the problem of missing...
+
Lesson Plan
Texas Education Agency (TEA)

Design and Draw a Mixed-Media Structure

For Students 9th - 12th
Mix up your lessons with a resource on mixed-media structures. Scholars design a structure out of paper, balloons, and string that will lift a pencil to the greatest height; they construct the structure at a later time. 
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Purdue University

Simple Machines – Dog Gone It!

For Teachers 3rd Standards
How 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...
+
Activity
Discovery Education

Market Research and Design: The Headphone Challenge

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Watch augmented reality bring classrooms to life. Scholars work in groups to design, build, and market a new pair of headphones meant for children under three. They use an augmented reality app to show their headphones in action as they...
+
Activity
DiscoverE

Art and Engineering Activity Packet: Grades 6-8

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Build an appreciation of engineering. Pupils in grades 6-8 learn about science and engineering in a set of three engaging activities. They build spinning tops, construct wind structures, and create recycled paper as part of an engaging...
+
Activity
NASA

Roving on the Moon

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Build a rover for pennies in a fun-filled activity! Young engineers design, build, test, and evaluate a lunar rover model. Using rubber bands, plastic straws, and cardboard, teams collaborate to make a rover model with spinning wheels....
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Engineering Design Process

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students utilize their creative skills by solving engineering issues.  In this problem solving lesson, students examine the 6 steps to the engineering process by completing a worksheet.  Students examine one of three scenarios and follow...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
California Academy of Science

Fresh Solutions: Design Thinking Challenge

For Teachers 6th - 10th Standards
How do people transport fresh water long distances to ensure everyone has access to it? The final instructional activity in the 10-part Fresh Solutions unit encourages individuals to design their own solution, or solutions, to that very...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Bonneville

Unique Solar Cell Engineering Report

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Highlight a unique solar cell with a report and a poster. Scholars complete the ongoing solar cells project by writing an engineering report in the last of 14 lessons in the Cost Effective Solar Cells unit. They also create research...
+
Lesson Plan
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Can You Canoe?

For Teachers 3rd - 7th Standards
A neat handout immerses learners in the history of canoe making. After reading, small groups of mini engineers work to craft a canoe that will not be immersed! This is an ideal exercise in engineering design for your STEM curriculum or...
+
Lesson Plan
American Physiological Society

Sit On It

For Teachers 7th Standards
How do product designers come up with the variety of things we see in stores and on TV every day? They identify a need, then create something that meets that need. Sounds simple, right? A two-week lesson puts seventh graders in that role...
+
Unit Plan
Virginia Middle School Engineering Education Initiative

Save the Penguins: An Introduction to Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
Heat things up in your physical science class with this interactive lesson series on thermodynamics. Through a series of class demonstrations and experiments, young scientists learn how heat is transferred through conduction, convention,...

Other popular searches