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Lesson Plan
Cornell University

Sound Off!

For Students 10th - 12th
Time to witness the effects of sound. Learners analyze different materials to determine their abilities to absorb sound waves. They use free software to monitor the amplitude of the waves to verify results.
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Activity
Royal Society of Chemistry

Some Reactions of Carbon Dioxide—Microscale Chemistry

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Precipitation reactions are always interesting. How about one that forms a precipitate using a gas? Chemists of any age will enjoy this twist on a standard solubility lab. Partners observe the lack of interaction between sodium...
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Activity
Royal Society of Chemistry

A Cartesian Diver—Classic Chemistry Experiments

For Teachers 6th - 10th Standards
Sometimes the simplest experiments leave the biggest impression! Introduce young chemists to the Cartesian Diver by having them make one of their own. Use the Diver to further their study of liquids and gases, as well as compression.
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Activity
DiscoverE

Sorting Solutions

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
It's okay to play with your food—just this once! Scholars design and create meshes and chutes to sort pasta by size and shape. They test their designs and make improvements as necessary.
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Activity
DiscoverE

Rubber Band Rovers

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Get your learners interested in space exploration. Groups design space rovers using design software and then build prototypes of their designs. The farther the rovers can travel, the better. The catch? The rovers must be powered by...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Build a Plankton Net

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Give household materials new life by turning them into a plankton net. Scholars design and build a net to collect and filter plankton from water. They test out their creations by using glitter to represent plankton. The nets need to...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Ocean Acidification

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Combat ocean acidification with bubbles. Young engineers create a system that reduces the acidity of water. Dry ice in water helps simulate ocean acidity, and blowing bubbles into the water results in a gas exchange that neutralizes the...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Build a Pinball Game

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Watch your classroom turn into an arcade. Pupils work in groups to build pinball machines from boxes and other found objects. Gamers must incorporate a variety of obstacles and launchers into the machine to see their designs in motion.
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Activity
DiscoverE

Launch It

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Launch pupil interest in rockets. Scholars build rockets out of straws and balloons to learn about Newton's Third Law of Motion. Their task is to hit a target five feet away. It's not as easy as it seems!
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Activity
DiscoverE

Designing Highway Interchanges

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
How do engineers determine the most efficient highway designs? Introduce young scientists to the world of topology, the branch of mathematics that examines how things are connected. Teams use model highways to create the most...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Design a Dome

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Do domed structures have advantages over their less-than-spherical counterparts? Junior architects explore the pros and cons of domes through a design challenge. Teams work together to plan, sketch, build, and test domes created from an...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Windy City Tower

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Your class will be blown away when they build their own city tower structure! Engineering scholars partner up to plan, build, and test their own paper towers. As they build, they gain valuable design skills, learn about wind tunnel...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Design a Folding Solar Panel

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Solar energy is an amazing alternative ... but, not always particularly portable! Challenge young scientists to a folding solar panel build-off with an easy-to-execute activity. Scholars brainstorm around specific design needs, construct...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Puff Mobiles

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
You've probably heard of solar-powered cars, but what about wind-powered cars? Scholars build cars that can travel at least six feet. They can only use their breath to move the car—so, obviously, a sail might be a good feature for the...
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Activity
DiscoverE

Touch Down

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Protect the marshmallows! Groups create contraptions that will keep marshmallows in a cup, even after dropping them from a certain height. This is a fun way to model the shock-absorbing capabilities of spacecraft.
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Activity
DiscoverE

Build a Candy Dispenser

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Everything in moderation, especially candy. Scholars design and build a dispenser for candy. But, they can't get too carried away—only three or four pieces of candy can come out of the dispenser at one time.
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Activity
DiscoverE

Make Your Own Glue

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
You won't regret being stuck with this activity. By mixing a variety of household items, pupils create their own glue. They test the tensile strength of their glue and compare it to that of other adhesives.
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Activity
DiscoverE

Build a Better Candy Bag

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Every child's dream: stuffing as much candy into a bag as possible. Doing this, though, requires a nice sturdy bag. Scholars design the sturdiest bag they can and test the limits of those bag using a sweet treat!
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Activity
DiscoverE

Zip Line Challenge

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Harness the awesome power of gravity. Scholars build a zip line to transport a ping-pong ball. The challenge is to get to the finish line in under four seconds. At that speed, individuals better be sure to strap on the harness!
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Activity
DiscoverE

Hidden Alarm

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
It's time to wake up! Young engineers build an electric circuit that will activate an alarm. The use of switches in the circuit is a must—because you don't want the alarm to keep beeping forever!
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Activity
DiscoverE

Build an Earthquake-Resistant Structure

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Future engineers design and build structures out of toothpicks and marshmallows. They then make sure the structures can withstand an earthquake simulator!
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Activity
DiscoverE

Emergency Shelter

For Students 6th - 12th
Save yourself! Groups create a sturdy emergency shelter out of bamboo. The shelter must be large enough to fit one person. Now the most important question: Which member of the group gets to use the shelter in an emergency?
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Activity
DiscoverE

Build a Better Boomerang

For Teachers 6th - 12th
This isn't the boomerang you're used to. Scholars first see how a commercial boomerang works. They then cut out a four-wing boomerang and test its flight to compare it to that of the commercial boomerang.
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Lesson Plan
DiscoverE

Pilot a Balloon

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Balloons will go where you want them to. Young pilots first add paper clips to a balloon to make it neutrally buoyant. They then use cardboard to steer the balloon in different directions, taking air pressure into account.

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