Students consider the development of different societies. In this environmental building lesson, students consider local resources and how societies choose to use them. Students use their findings to design a 'green' building for use in...

Sixth graders comprehend the difference between mass production and custom manufacturing. They have a basic understanding on how items go from a raw material to a manufactured finished product. Students have an understanding of the...

Rocks and minerals are great on their own, but they also turn into some pretty amazing stuff! An online lesson explains the different types of materials we get from rocks and minerals, including glass, plastic, and coins. An embedded...

After reading about the history and recycling of paper, creative crafters collaborate to think of a new process for making recycled paper. A complete teacher's guide and student worksheets are included. There is no written procedure for...

Students examine the properties, limitations, and durability of a variety of materials, then evaluate which of the materials would be best for building a model house. If used in its entirety, this instructional activity could take...

Assemble a great instructional activity on assembly lines. In the first installment of a nine-part technology/engineering series, future entrepreneurs learn about the manufacturing process, specifically about the assembly line and cycle...

Sixth graders explore the many uses of corn as a renewable source. In this biodegradable resource lesson, 6th graders investigate how corn is used in manufacturing and as a fuel. Students construct a piece of homemade plastic using...

Young scholars investigate hot melt glue using a hot melt glue gun as an an injection molding simulator and a melt index viscometer. They evaluate the effect of heating and cooling by weighing the glue extruded over a constant time period.

What are packaged food products really made of? This lesson plan will prompt your learners to consider and investigate the source of ingredients in their food. They begin by breaking into groups and analyzing food labels by identifying...

Enough with the talking, let's build something! In the fifth step in the engineering design process, young engineers build a prototype to test their ideas. The lesson walks them through the process of evaluating it step-by-step....

Learners explore materials used in manufacturing. In this science lesson, students investigate the suitability of building materials. Learners read The Three Little Pigs and discuss the building materials used in the story.

Young scholars examine the steps and safety procedures in the cheese making process. They make and taste a variety of cheeses comparing their properties.

Students study the proper temperature and technique to cook ground meat safely. They examine the critical control points when ground beef is being processed.

Students describe how shoe design, manufacturing, retailing, consumer use, and disposal impact environments and societies. They discuss ways to reduce, reuse, or recycle resources in the life-cycle for a shoe product.

Students experience a virtual quarry. In this science musical lesson plan, students understand how materials are quarried and manufactured from rocks, musically interpret a quarrying sequence with untuned musical instruments, and...

Sixth graders determine the physical properties of clay by examining ceramic works of art. They evaluate local soil samples for suitability for sculpting and compare clay taken from soil to manufactured clay.

Students illustrate the changes in the properties of a material at its glass transition point. They gather data which they use to construct graphs regarding elastic modules versus absorption modulus, tangent delta, and the effect of...

Teacher's notes, a materials list, detailed procedure, tips, and extension ideas are all included to make teaching this lesson plan on photovoltaic cells a sunny spot in your day! After some brief background reading, physical science...

Differentiate between temperature and thermal energy. Your class will build a thermometer using simple materials and develop their own scale for measuring temperature. Discuss with your class and consider why engineers need to understand...

Middle schoolers identify and interpret a variety of solid materials - cloth, wood, metal, plastic, paper, and rubber. After a period of free exploration, they then describe the properties of the objects and develop vocabulary in order...

Here is a tasty challenge, especially for middle school engineers: design a container that meets mass and volume criteria, and will safely transport a tortilla or potato chip through the mail without damaging it! Mostly, this is a crisp...

Students study the basic elements of the Earth's crust: rocks, soils and minerals. They categorize rocks, soils and minerals and how they are literally the foundation for our civilization. They also explore how engineers use rock soils...

A scenario is presented for chemistry techs to address. Using titration techniques, they must analyze hydrogen peroxide solution samples. They evaluate accuracy and precision in the process. They also gain experience consulting the MSDS...

Students are introduced to how the differences in solubility of materials are used in the manufacture of fibers and films. They are also introduced to the various processes used to make films and fibers. Pupils prepare fibers using wet...