Teams of students in grades 7 to 9 follow the engineering design process to create, construct, test, and improve model solar sails made of aluminum foil to move cardboard tube satellites through “space” on a string. During the process, they learn about Newton’s laws of motion and the transfer of energy from wave energy to mechanical energy. 

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 6-8, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plans | Comments Off on Solar Sails: The Future of Space Travel

Tags: Aerospace, Class Activities, Design, energy transfer, Engineering Design Process, forces and motion, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plan, Newton, Newton's Laws, NGSS aligned activity, solar sails, space exploration, spacecraft, teachengineering

Kids love exploring the world around them, and Earth Day offers a great way to introduce them to environmental science and engineering. The following sampler includes activities, lessons, and resources that promote green engineering and science learning.

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Grades K-5, K-12 Outreach Programs, Lesson Plans, Special Features, Web Resources | Comments Off on Earth Day Resources

Tags: Class Activities, Curriculum, Earth Day, Energy, Engineering is Everywhere, Environmental Engineering, Environmental science, Green design, green roof, groundwater, Internet Resources, inventor, Lesson Plan, Lesson Plans, marine debris, NOAA, Ocean Cleanup, plastic, Pollution, Resources for Teachers, SENSE IT, Sustainability, Teacher Resources, Trash, vertical farming, Videos, waste, Web Resources, Wind Energy

High school students explore the many ways that engineers provide natural lighting to interior spaces by analyzing various methods of daylighting and then constructing model houses from foam core board based on their observations and calculations of the optimal use of available “sunlight.”
Hart Building atrium photo by the Architect of the Capitol

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plans | Comments Off on Daylighting Design

Tags: architectural engineering, Architecture, Class Activities, daylighting, energy conservation, Engineering Design Process, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plan, lighting engineering, Solar Energy, solstice, windows

With schools closed during the Covid-19 pandemic, ASEE members and other engineering and technology educators are posting daily design challenges, hosting teacher meetups, and creating ways to engage students in STEM learning at home.

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 6-8, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Grades K-5, Grades K-5, K-12 Outreach Programs, Lesson Plans, Special Features, Web Resources | Comments Off on STEM @ Home Resources

Tags: American Society for Engineering Education, Class Activities, COVID-19, Curriculum, digital libraries, distance education, home schooling, Internet Resources, Lesson Plans, remote instruction, Resources for Teachers, STEM education, Web Resources

High school students analyze an assortment of popular inventions to determine their intended beneficiaries as well as who has access to, might be harmed by, and is profiting from them. They then develop and apply class standards for ethical design to re-imagine the devices in a way that would do more good for humanity.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection photo of VeriScan facial recognition tablet at Dulles International airport by Glenn Fawcett

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plans | Comments Off on Engineering Ethics: Evaluating Popular Inventions

Tags: Class Activities, design constraints, Drones, engineering ethics, genetic engineering, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plan, National Society of Professional Engineers, Presentations

High school students practice human-centered design by imagining, designing, and prototyping a product to improve classroom accessibility for the visually impaired. The begin by wearing low-vision simulation goggles (or blindfolds) and walking with canes to navigate through a classroom in order to experience what it feels like to be visually impaired.

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plans | Comments Off on Redesigning a Classroom for the Visually Impaired

Tags: accessibility, Class Activities, Engineering Design Process, Grades 9-12, Human-centered design, sight-impaired

Just as athletes “learn from the game,” the annual NCAA March Madness basketball competition offers students a timely, engaging way to hone their STEM knowledge and skills. eGFI has compiled some bracket-busting resources to pep up your math and science classes.

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 6-8, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Grades K-5, Grades K-5, Lesson Plans, Special Features, Web Resources | Comments Off on March Madness STEM Resources

Tags: basketball, bracketOdds, Class Activities, Curriculum, Engineering, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Grades K-5, hoops, Internet Resources, Lesson Plans, March Madness, NCAA, Physics, Resources for Teachers, Sports, STEM education, Teacher Resources

Students follow the engineering design process to design and build a usable device to propel school T-shirts up into the stands during home sporting events while keeping costs under budget.

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 6-8, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plans | Comments Off on Flying T-Shirt Challenge

Tags: catapult, cheerleaders, Class Activities, Engineering Design Process, forces, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Lesson Plan, maker challenges, motion, Physics, Sports, T-shirt cannon, teachengineering, tools

Hurricanes, earthquakes, and other destructive events offer timely “teachable moments” about the role of engineers in improving weather forecasts and reducing the toll from natural disasters. eGFI Teachers’s collection of activities, feature articles, and other resources can help you integrate engineering into your classes – and inspire the next generation of “crisis” engineers.

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Filed under: Class Activities, Grades 6-8, Grades 6-8, Grades 9-12, Grades 9-12, Grades K-5, Grades K-5, Lesson Plans, Special Features | Comments Off on Disaster Engineering

Tags: Army Corps of Engineers, build, building, Class Activities, data, Disaster relief, drought, Engineering, Environmental Engineering, erosion, forces, hurricane, Hurricane Maria, measure, Mining, motion, National Guard, natural disasters, Physics, rescue, storm, Structural Engineering, Teacher Resources, Technology, tornado, Weather, Web Resources