Teams use the design process to design, build, and test a model levee to protect the town from a wall of water. A handout provides a price list for the materials learners can use to build their levee within a budget.

We can learn from the past to protect the future. Pairs look at two historical earthquakes: San Francisco, Calif., and Kobe, Japan. Pupils compare the two earthquakes and their impacts, then determine how engineers may use the...

Teams must determine the size of cavern needed to house the citizens of Alabraska to protect them from the asteroid impact. Using scaling properties, teams first determining the number of people that could sleep in a classroom and then...

Oh, no! An asteroid is on a collision course with Earth!. Class members must rise to the challenge of designing a shelter that will protect people from the impact and permit them to live in this shelter for one year. In this first lesson...

The challenge: determine whether a tank will float. A design activity has groups work as engineering teams in order to determine the stability of given tanks and liquid contents. The teams need to determine the equations to...

The Election of 1912: an election with four competitive opponents. Pupils get to know the candidates with informative reading passages that provide context to the election. Then, the class engages in a debate and answers questions as one...

Designing the right package — it's more than a pretty picture. Challenge small groups to design a food package. They must consider the type of food they are packaging and the package's ability to control the physical and...

There are patterns in nearly everything — even earthquakes. Pairs research current earthquakes to see if there are any patterns. They determine the mean, median, and mode of the earthquake data, along with the maximum and...

Dressing for success is not always about looking sharp. Sometimes it is about staying warm and dry. Present your class with an activity that challenges groups of pupils to design a layered material for blizzard conditions. The teams test...

Magnetic fields might not be a field of dreams but they are useful. Class members observe the reactions of magnetic fields using a compass, iron filings in a paper container, and iron filings suspended in mineral oil. 

Encourage your class to solve local environmental issues. Groups brainstorm environmental issues that are affecting the community, choose one they want to solve, and design a product or service to solve their chosen issue. They then...

Discover the properties of water-loving and water-hating surfaces. In the seventh installment of a nine-part series, scholars explore hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces by conducting an experiment. They observe surface coatings,...

Small groups investigate the interaction between a coil of wire and a magnet to create an electromagnetic field and observe the voltage they create. Through further interactions, they realize a conductor can be charged from the...

Make breaking a leg a less troublesome experience. Groups brainstorm designs for crutches that have devices that help carry items. They build prototypes of their devices to test out their designs.

Develop a model of a wastewater treatment center. The last activity of the unit has pupils mix a lake water sample into a tank of water containing fertilizers. Over time, the algae from the lake water grows and removes the nutrient-rich...

There is nothing in the world quite like a bee. Here is a video that explains the importance of bees to pollination. Scholars consider possible solutions to the declining population of bees in the ninth and final installment in the series.

Investigate sound waves with acoustic mirrors. Using audio software, groups make recordings of musical instruments, both with and without acoustic mirrors. They compare the recordings to see the effect of acoustic mirrors on sound...

Sometimes it's okay to eat your science experiment. A hands-on activity has pupils create models for algae to learn about its cellular structure. The best part of the experiment? The resulting juice-filled gels are edible—yum!

Going green? Scholars investigate the creation of the US National Park program. Through diary entries as well as expert testimony, they synthesize information and analyze the need for conservation and preservation. Finally, they display...

Space, the Final Frontier. The nine NASA-created challenges in this unit are designed to teach class members the engineering design process. Each challenge comes with teacher and student pages that can be used individually or as a...

Nanoparticles have toxic effects on plant and animal life—even though you can't see them. The second lesson plan of a two-part series has young scientists conduct an experiment that exposes plant and animals to nanoparticle pollutants....

Students make a dirt box. In this art lesson, students play in the dirt using their imaginations.

Students decorate a three ring biner. In this art lesson, students select their best art work to put into their decorated portfolio.

This site from the Library of Congress provides the homepage of the United States Copyright Office. The information provided on this page is very helpful on the subject with many links to frequently asked questions, as well as laws and...