DiscoverE
Bridges, Buildings and Beyond Activity Packet: Grades 3-5
The road to a better understanding of engineering lies with bridges and tunnels. A set of four engaging activities teaches learners about engineering concepts related to construction projects. They perform an experiment to find the...
Curated OER
Suspension Bridge Drawing Lesson
Students study the basic artistic styles of suspension bridges. They follow step-by-step instructions to draw a suspension bridge. Students discover volcabulary related to the architecture of bridges. They examine websites of bridges.
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Strong as the Weakest Link
Students apply knowledge of stresses and forces by building model structures. In this force lesson, students consider skyscrapers and bridges in the world around them and the stresses that these structures endure. They use their...
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Balsa Towers
Students build their own tower using concepts from previous lessons. They are given a set of materials to use and general guidelines. They share what they have created with their classmates.
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Built To Last
Students face the challenges of building big, functional structures, like bridges, domes and skyscrapers. They turn their talents to satisfying clients who have hired them to design their new home.
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Engineering: Simple Machines
Fourth graders participate in activities to examine how simple machines help build things. They identify the six types of simple machines. They discover how simple machines where use historically to build pyramids and how they are still...
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Strong as the Weakest Link
Students discover the types of stress that materials undergo. They examine how bridges and skyscrapers are built to withhold the tension. They create their own structure out of marshmallows and spaghetti.
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Strong as the Weakest Link
Young scholars recognize that compression and tension forces are important considerations in building structures. They construct their own building structure using marshmellows and spaghetti to see which structure can hold the most weight.
Teach Engineering
A Simple Solution for the Circus
Class members are challenged to design a device that will move a circus elephant into a train car. Groups brainstorm ideas that use simple machines to load the elephant. They then choose one of their ideas, sketch a plan, and present it...
Teach Engineering
Projectile Magic
What do the movies October Key and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone have in common? The fourth installment of a five-part module presents equations regarding projectile motion and how to rearrange them. Scholars view video clips...
Curated OER
Hunt the Fact Monster Hunt #21
In this internet research worksheet, learners answer ten unrelated questions by using the Fact Monster search engine. A sample question asks: "Achilles, one of the strongest heroes in Greek mythology, met his death when he was wounded in...
Curated OER
Simple Machines
Students create a pyramid design based on the 6 simple machines that they are introduced to. In this simple machines lesson plan, students are introduced to the wedge, wheel and axle, inclined plane, screw, and pulley.
Curated OER
Internet Fact Hunt at the "Fact Monster" Web Site- May #1
In this Internet fact hunt worksheet, students access the "Fact Monster" web site to answer 5 multiple choice questions. They answer US history, science, and geography questions.
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Mineral Mania
In this mineral worksheet, students use an on line source to answer questions about minerals, about resources and their uses, about fireworks and about birthstones.
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The Properties of Metals
In this properties of metals worksheet, students read about the history of metal use and their properties. Students read about metallic bonding and answer three questions about bonding in metals.
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The Chaos Game
Students measure and predict the behavior of a fractal. In this investigative lesson students divide into groups, and participate in an activity that includes drawing triangles and coloring vertices.
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Mineral Mania
For this mineral worksheet, students visit http://sciencespot.net and answer 90 questions about mineral uses, mineral groups, fireworks, and minerals found around the home.
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Tower Power
Students explore basic building and engineering concepts by constructing a structure that supports weight. They demonstrate an understanding of basic business concepts by estimating the cost and value of a building.
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Song Mapping
Students explore locations on the United States map. In this map skills lesson, students recite the song This Land Is Your Land and locate various places listed in the song on the map.
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Discovering and Converting the Battle of Homestead
Students study and explore the Homestead strike and locate where the events took place. In this investigative lesson students use several perspectives to write an objective newspaper article on the event.
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Rocking the Boat
Students work together to discover the concepts of stability and equilibrium. They examine how equilibrium is related to an item's center of mass. They create their own action scene in a literacy activity.
Curated OER
TE Activity: Build Your Own Mobile
Young scholars inquire into how the center of mass is the key factor in designing cars. They construct an oddly shaped object and determine its center of mass. They find that engineers are able to predict how objects will behave while...
PBS
Pbs Building Big: The Skyscraper Challenge
A site for all users interested in the engineering behind the building. Site engages users in a job that requires them to investigate troubled buildings and then figure out how to fix them.
PBS
Pbs: The Bridge Challenge
This site from PBS is for any user wanting test their engineering skills. Take a trip to Craggy Rock and help their growing community decide on four new bridges.