Design your own video game, engineer accident-proof highways, or even develop a new phone app! The Engineering Design Model can be used with all ages and in all subject areas to create a product, system or service. The resource explains...

Design and construct buildings with rooftop gardens. Junior engineers work in groups to build two buildings and then perform experiments to determine whether or not a garden affects the building temperatures. They graph and interpret...

Students are introduced to the concept of thermodynamics. In groups, they participate in experiments in which they discover how potential energy converts into kinetic energy. They use the internet to research the components of a...

Groups are each given a pack of engineering cards and a worksheet to complete together. The cards depict different roles an engineer might play and can be purchased from the eGFI website. Because the lesson plan revolves around these...

Whose home is it anyway? Design teams plan a housing development in which they must also protect a native species. The teams consist of a project manager, civil engineer, environmental engineer, and graphic designer. Teams present their...

Students disassemble a toy. In this science instructional activity, students compare and contrast the inner mechanisms of a toy car. Students predict and illustrate what the inner mechanism look like. Then, they disassemble the toy, and...

Young scholars study engineering design.  In this engineering music lesson students plan and construct a design while working in groups. 

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.

Students experiment with making a water filtration system. For this engineering lesson, students get into groups and are challenged to use only eight items to create a water filter. When finished, students compare and contrast their...

Young scholars construct a plsmid model with the materials provided and be able to use it to define certain terms and explain other practical applications of genetic engineering. This simulation allows the students to work through the...

Although preparation-intensive, this would be an unforgettable experience in materials engineering. Stimulate learners' curiosity with a slide show and then introduce them to the components of concrete. Small groups mix and pour concrete...

A well-laid-out lesson plan, this can be used in an engineering, STEM, or physical science course. Laboratory groups design a structure using pasta and marshmallows, measure its height and weight, and then discover the load that it can...

Turn your classroom into a music studio as groups work together to determine why music sounds different when performed live versus a recording. After listening to some different music, each group picks a poem, creates a recording, and...

How tall is your marshmallow structure? Using only limited supplies (including uncooked spaghetti noodles, masking tape, and one marshmallow), teams endeavor to support the marshmallow atop the tallest spaghetti structure they can build....

An online animation demonstrates how the lock system between Lake Superior and Lake Michigan works. Pupils then construct their own models of the lock system out of shoe boxes that they bring from home. This is an educational activity...

Investigate life along the Old Spanish Trail! They visit websites and identify the history and environment. They create journals, dramatic enactments, and maps to discover the role individuals played in society. They also explore the...

Students combine their knowledge of genetics, farming and nutrition to design a genetically engineered food. Students focus on how the food will be improved, how it differs from the original product, what types of modifications will be...

Secondary artists create a metal box made from copper tooling foil and solid oil paint sticks (Shiva Paintstiks). The exacting design develops organizational principles and the painted finish allows for individual expression of...

Blend art, adolescent snacking habits, and math to create new cereal boxes. Secondary learners review scale drawings. They use this information to construct cereal boxes to scale and will compare their creation to the original product to...

Students analyze cantilever stress using COSMOSXpress. In this engineering lesson, students calculate the beam's maximum deflection. They investigate the effect changing beam dimensions.

Youngsters develop an understanding of how smog is produced, and how exhaust from automobiles is one of the major sources of smog. They explore the roles that engineers play in developing technologies that reduce smog, then work in teams...

Elementary schoolers discover how engineers use solar energy to heat buildings. They take a close look at some of the materials used: sand, salt, water, and shredded paper and evaluate the efficiency of each material. An incredible...

Here's an exciting and innovative lesson that's sure to get your charges fired up! In it, they use engineering design principles to construct and test a fully solar powered car. One caveat: the kits that each group needs to make their...

Students explore invention and unveiling of world's first Ferris wheel, analyze photographs and poster of first Ferris wheel, and discuss engineering achievements of Ferris wheel, including how it worked, how it was built, and its...