Save the soup! Scholars devise a flotation device using straws, balloons, foam, corks, and other objects. A can of soup must stay afloat for at least a minute with this device—your dinner might depend on it!

Your plants will survive without you. Scholars create a device that can water plants using a coiled string. Along the way, they learn about adhesion and cohesion of water. The challenge is to keep the plants alive for at least a week.

Put your heart into it. Scholars design and build replacements for mitral heart valves. Obviously, they can't test their creations on a real heart, so a box with marbles (to represent blood cells) will suffice.

Here's a lesson that's not for the birds! Scholars design and build packaging for soda cans that is environmentally friendly. These packages must be durable, easy to carry, and have no environmental impact.

When is it okay to be suspended in school? When you're part of a human suspension bridge! Learners first model tension and compression in pairs. Once complete, they get together as a class to model a suspension bridge.

Homes come in many different shapes and sizes. Building a model of a geodesic dome is the ultimate goal for the activity. Cutting and folding is the way to go here.

A wind turbine is essentially just a giant pinwheel, right? Individuals first create pinwheels from paper, pins, and pencils. In groups, they model a wind farm along a coast and then test out their designs using an electric fan.

Feel like a rocket scientist for the day. Using only paper and tape, scholars create a framework for a spaceship to Mars. Each sheet of paper costs $10 million and each piece of tape costs $100,000. Make sure you stay within budget!

What do a cheetah, Audi commercial, and air have in common? They're all topics of an engaging inquiry-based, hands-on workshop for educators about background knowledge, reading strategies, the CER model, and argumentative writing. The...

Students participate in a debate regarding the Three Gorges Dam in China. In this research skills lesson, students prepare for a debate regarding the construction of the Three Gorges Dam in China. Students participate in the dam taking...

Students examine state quarters to identify symbols that represent national and regional identity. They discuss the process used to determine what is put on the quarter. They review colonial money, and euros to look for cultural images.

Learners read these news reports: Science is hard and dull says kids, and PM behind Science Week campaign. They then discuss that the news stories show two sides of the public image of science in the UK. The teacher explains that...

Students study weather and define the appropriate dress for various weather patterns. In this weather and clothing lesson, students discuss wearing appropriate clothes for specific weather. Students use the weather board to determine the...

Strive for perfection. Based on peer feedback, groups identify ways to improve their prototypes of the solution to the plastics problem. Members must come up with at least two ideas for improvements. This is the eighth instructional...

It's always nice to see what the solution looks like. Groups build a prototype of their solution to the plastics problem in the sixth installment of a 10-part unit. The prototypes can be either a visual prototype or a working prototype.

Tap into the desire to learn about computer codes. Pupils apply the Tap Code and the Polybius Square to send secret codes using sound. They design a code that tells a robot what movements to make and then test out their code using one of...

Youngsters examine resource maps to find out which states are using solar and wind power and discuss as a class various other renewable energy sources. They use a provided data table to record pros and cons to each technology, build and...

Join together to investigate truss joints. Scholars learn how to analyze forces at truss joints to determine the strength of truss bridges. They apply the "method of joints" in calculating the tension and compression forces at each joint...

Let cooler heads prevail. Future engineers first learn about heat transfer and insulation. They then design and build a contraption that will prevent an ice cube from melting for as long as possible.

Participate in three activities that look at the earth's limited water supply and the changes water goes through as it enters each phase of the water cycle. The resource is complete with three activities that demonstrate the changing...

Set your environmental studies class up to debate a current topic regarding your choice of six suggested statements about energy use in the United States. Teams read material that you have gathered and then form their arguments. The...

The design challenge: develop a method to separate steel from aluminum. The first lesson plan in an eight-part series introduces the class to the grand challenge of ciming up with a method to streamline a sorting process at a...

"If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough" - Albert Einstein. The sixth installment of a seven-part series teaches young scientists about the importance of being able to communicate scientific research and...

Students discuss career possibilities. In this career education lesson plan, students view presentations from various career areas and discuss workplace requirements. Students list the top few career choices that interest them.