While there are no photographs of actual battles during the Civil War, the pictures of Matthew Brady still paint a vivid image of what life was like as a solider. Using a series of photographs, including those of camp life and the...

What is the balance between constitutional rights and security during a war? Young historians debate the question while looking at Lincoln's decision to suspect habeas corpus during the Civil War. After reviewing his order, discussion...

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.

Keep one's dream of becoming an engineer afloat. Learners apply the engineering design process to build a boat out of aluminum foil. They start with a square boat, then consider whether boats of different shapes would be able to hold...

A parachute is probably a good idea. An engaging lesson has pupils brainstorm ways to slow the descent of a falling object to minimize the impact when it lands. They decide on a design, build a prototype, test it out, and then make...

A little wind shouldn't hurt a building. Given three sheets of paper and six feet of tape, scholars create a structure that can withstand wind and hold up a weight. They conduct tests using a fan and decide on any improvements to make...

Take a swing at a fun activity. Pupils first watch a video that introduces the concept of elasticity in association with tennis rackets. They then design their own rackets and build them out of available materials.

Shake, rattle, and learn! Future engineers build structures out of toothpicks or spaghetti sticks, using marshmallows as connectors. They then use a homemade shake table to test the sturdiness of their creations.

Water, water, everywhere, but pollution is a major problem. Scholars design a filtration device or process that removes dirt and other particles from water. They use various household objects such as marbles, cotton balls, or coffee...

Manufacture a great lesson on industrial manufacturing. A fun resource has learners use the production of pens to consider how assembly lines work. They write out a set of instructions for assembling a pen, test it out, then determine if...

Dream big and build tall. Scholars build the tallest tower possible out of plastic or paper cups. They apply the engineering design process to refine their designs and see if they can make their towers even taller.

Take a load off .. and put the weight on a house of cards. Scholars learn about civil engineering and critical loads by building the sturdiest house possible out of a dozen playing cards. They conduct tests by placing pennies or other...

Match my cereal sequence. Pupils view a sequence made by colorful cereal rings and create copies of it. Learners must either remember or write down the sequence to transport the code to another location. Scholars replicate the cereal...

Compare sizes of microscopic items. Given a set of labels of microscopic objects, pupils try to place them in order from smallest to largest. Scholars then compare their lists to the actual comparisons along with the measurements of the...

Soap, suds, and cell membranes. Pupils create a model of a cell membrane by using soap films. They experiment with trying to pass different objects through the film without popping it. Using a tube, they create a passageway through the...

Travel back in time to understand the effects of FDR's New Deal on the Supreme Court. Academics analyze historical documents to understand FDR's attempts to pack the Supreme Court and the opposition he faced. The activity includes a...

Albert Einstein contributed greatly to America's history, but he wasn't always a citizen. An engaging activity analyzes Einstein's citizenship application to understand the process of immigration and how it impacts those trying to reach...

Jackie Robinson was more than a baseball legend; he was an activist, too. An interesting resource explores Robinson's time in the military using primary sources. Scholars examine the racially inspired event that led to a court martial...

Using the harrowing story of the Crafts, a couple enslaved in the South who escaped to freedom, young historians trace the story of the Fugitive Slave Act. After examining documents, including affidavits and arrest warrants for the...

While most Americans connect the celebration of Thanksgiving to a colonial celebration of pilgrims and Native Americans, the national holiday was actually the product of a war-time measure by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War....

Traditionally, a United States President's Inaugural Address establishes the tone and vision for his presidency. It has stressed the goal to unify the country and bring the political parties together after what are often divisive...

Watch red cabbage juice turn green. Pupils first watch a video that takes them through the process of creating red cabbage juice. They then add various solids and liquids to the juice and use the color change to determine whether the...

Create a protective protein shell as a package. Using the included template, pupils tape together 20 triangles to create a 20-sided shape to represent the protective shell of a virus. The model of the protein shell incases the nucleic...

Conduct a book study of the story, My Dream of Martin Luther King by Faith Ringgold. Followng a read-aloud, scholars take part in philosophical discussions covering the topics of freedom, equality, race, and heroes.