Seventeen pages of material leave you well-prepared to carry out this instructional activity on levers and pulleys. Photos and diagrams make the instructions clear; resource links provide additional information. The missing aspects of...

The lever is an everyday simple machine. Youngsters learn the principles of levers and explore their many uses. Groups of pupils perform a simple lab where they lift objects with a fulcrum while placing the load in a variety of...

Young biologists identify parts of the body that serve as wedges (teeth and fingernails), and as levers (jaw, arms, and legs). The hands-on activities described here should be exciting for learners to perform, and should also lead to a...

Get the ball rolling with this upper-elementary science unit on forces and motion. Offering over three weeks of physical science lessons, this resource is a great way to engage the class in learning about simple machines, friction,...

Students determine the identity of the three classes of levers while explaining how each works. They wait a video clip that shows uses for different types of levers and work as a class to write a KWL chart. Finally, they make a model fo...

Fourth graders lift objects with the fulcrum and load in various positions and then experiment with how much force is exerted by the effort and load arms of the lever. They place 5 paper clips in the load and move the fulcrum to match...

Get things moving with this elementary science unit on simple machines. Through a series of nine lessons including teacher demonstrations, hands-on activities, and science experiments, young scientists learn about forces, motion,...

An excellent lesson awaits your young scientists! In it, learners are invited to explore the world of pulleys, levers, and planes; simple machines that make lifting heavy things much, much easier. They watch video, and engage in hands-on...

Here is an inventive plan that should get your young scientists excited! In it, groups of pupils test out the work done by six different simple machines. The machines are: the wedge, the lever, the inclined plane, the pulley, the screw,...

What can bulldozers and screen doors have in common? Use this lesson on fluid power to find out. It begins with some simple teacher demonstrations, includes a couple of videos, and culminates with an inquiry-based activity to investigate...

Blow the minds of young scientists with this collection of inquiry-based investigations. Based on a series of eight videos, these "hands-on, minds-on" science lessons engage young learners in exploring a wide range of topics...

Students investigate how levers help to lift heavy loads. They view and discuss examples of levers, explore various websites, experiment with the levers brought to the class, and watch the video for the book "Mike Mulligan and His Steam...

Fifth graders discover the rules by which the lever slants and balances. They determine that there are a great many tools that employ the lever principle even in their ordinary environments. They consider how to use objects easily...

Fifth graders use information from their text to read and discuss pulleys and levers. They examine a top sketch of the arrangement of a fixed pulley. Working in groups, 5th graders perform experiments to test the effect of using a pulley...

Learners discover the fundamentals and daily applications of simple machines. They practice basic engineering theory through their hands-on demonstrations of levers.

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...

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. 

Students brainstorm if they think that any lever would use the same amount of paperclips. They break into small groups and use a data sheet as well as a lever, Lego person, fulcrum, and some paperclips and prove what they think by taking...

Students brainstorm ways of using an inclined plane or lever and demonstrate using materials such as a board, fulcrum, etc. They divide into two groups and figure out to lift a crate using materials for a simple machine. Once they...

Fifth graders explore the concept of pulleys and levers. They read and discuss text from the book "It's Science! Machines We Use," and in small groups construct a simple lever and pulley using a Lego Dacta set.

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.

Students investigate levers. In this simple machine lesson, students study levers and  the mechanical advantage of using levers. They will collect data and illustrate their systems for eight different tests.

Students explore the difference between compound and simple machines in this six lessons of this unit. The purpose and importance of a variety of types of simple machines and the effects of friction are investigated.

Students investigate how to make a lever. In this construction lesson plan, students explore how to construct a lever using dog and tail templates, cardboard, and fasteners. Students construct their simple machine in order to learn about...