Students explore ways to promote community pride by creating t-shirts.  In this community instructional activity, students utilize a digital camera to take photographs of their hometown and transfer them to a t-shirt.  Students...

Students investigate the importance of community service by creating their own project ideas.  In this volunteering lesson plan, students research stories of Peace Corps Volunteers and how they were able to have a positive effect in...

Young engineers are instructed to design and build their own solar water heaters. Then, they calculate the efficiency and cost and compare them to commercially available models. This is a full unit for pupils to apply their knowledge.

Use STEM activities within the class to provide connections to concepts. The resource includes activities that range from working with buoyancy to building rockets and launching them. Other activities involve the engineering design...

Students build a friendly environment for future students by creating a PowerPoint presentation.  In this middle school introduction lesson, students utilize a camera to record important moments throughout the school year....

Learners use computer software to make a postcard. In this community resource lesson, students make a postcard for a place in their community using multimedia software on the computer. Learners write a few sentences describing the place...

First graders explore different types of Native American shelters. For this Native American homes lesson, 1st graders compare the shapes of shelters used by Native Americans. They build a home using the program "Community Construction...

Make the most of project-based learning with Makerspace. A playbook shows instructors and other interested parties how to set up a Makerspace and Maker community to foster STEM projects. It gives ideas for startup activities and for...

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...

Applying engineering concepts to the field of medicine, pupils design a device to help test peripheral sight. The class learns and follows a specific design process for engineers before separating into groups; each group builds...

Students investigate the use of hydroponic gardening on the world food supply. In this hydroponic gardening lesson plan, students make a garden out of a soda bottle, grow a cilantro plant, and compare hydroponics with regular gardening...

Second graders utilize Microsoft Word to create stationery and letters to send to other children in their school building, expressing experiences in their daily lives. As the unit progresses, they create documents to send to other second...

Young scholars design and build their own balsa wood model bridges. The technological development of bridges, the science principles that apply to bridge building, and the construction techniques and skills necessary for creating a...

Discover how innovations can help your school and community. In the three-part STEM lesson, scholars learn the meaning of innovation and brainstorm innovations in their schools. They identify issues in their communities and think of...

Build a bridge to learning in a STEM-aligned unit about urban infrastructure. Young engineers explore the many aspects of civil planning and design in a five-day unit. Content includes the challenging aspects of balancing building with...

Ninth graders explore environmental concerns of the community and identify the basic needs of people, wildlife and domestic animals. Working both individually and in groups, they also define natural resources and compare and contrast...

Secondary carpenters apply their skills to improve display spaces in classrooms at their campus. Includes a contract between workers and teachers who sign on for improvements in the their rooms. Concurrent exploration of building and...

Emerging environmentalists work in groups and pretend that each is a power company generating electricity for a community. They consider the costs of building a renewable electricity generator that will increasingly replace generating...

Students brainstorm ideas to solve a problem. In this technology lesson, students share their ideas to class. They research innovations that could benefit the community.

Students describe how buildings effect them emotionally. They recognize and describe at least five components of a particular building as metaphors for parts of the human body [Footing), heart(h), eye (window), door(mouth), face(facade),...

Third graders visit their local historic buildings. In this local history lesson, 3rd graders take a trip to their local Heritage Museum and visit a historic building. While on the trip students take pictures. Students then create a...

Second graders study building placements in a neighborhood. They discuss businesses, roads, houses, rivers, police/fire stations, and use Neighborhood Map Machine to create a new map. They complete an exploratory map and community of...

Green roofs aren't just eco-friendly — they are literally green with trees. Groups learn about the concept of green roofs in order to be able to design one. The groups design a 5,000-square-foot green roof for a fictional apartment row...