STEM Lesson Plans

Students will use knowledge of forces and motions to create a pinball machine using simple machines.

Students will brainstorm, and make predictions of why an airplane can fly. The teacher will present the knowledge of aerodynamics to the students using video , and giving them opportunity to process

For this lesson, students will learn about simple machines (wheel and axle). They will learn what they are and how they work. The students will then use criteria and constraints in order to

Students use the engineering design process to create paper rocket protoypes and complete a cost-benefit analysis to help choose the best one.

Context: This lesson takes place in a classroom for two or more class periods Students may work in small groups of 2-4. An emphasis on the experiment of making an indestructible Edison robot Creative

Students will create an inclined plane using Pythagorean Theorem and will experiment with rolling objects and try to find a solution to reduce the speed through friction, or air resistance or weight.

An introduction to Newton's Laws of Motion. Students will utilize two or three options to move a balloon across a tethered line. Students will compare and contrast two different size balloons moving

Students are challenged with making a simple hoop glider and then altering it to achieve the greatest possible distance before being given the opportunity to change hoop materials and achieve the

Student groups will collaborate to design, build, and test solutions to move a container of "toxic popcorn" into a decontamination vessel before the city is destroyed!

The students design and test a catapult using simple materials like popsicle sticks and rubber bands. They learn about the history of catapults and also about the physical science concepts related to

Rad Roller Coasters Part 2 comes at the end of our paper roller coaster project. Students will collect data on their coaster and use that to calculate velocity, potential energy and kinetic energy

This lesson is for a multi-day project where student groups will plan, design, and build roller coasters out of paper and tape. It tests their knowledge of Physics and Engineering Design.

Students are provided with recycled materials and given the challenge to built a boat that will carry weight and sail across a container without sinking. Students will learn about buoyancy and what

Students will learn about the history of the Ferris wheel while engineering their own out of Popsicle sticks. Students may work individually to create their own spinning ferris wheel An emphasis on

This lesson will implement chain reactions and simple machines into a Rube Goldberg invention. Students will learn about the Rube Goldberg and his crazy inventions. They will then create their own

This Lesson demonstrates and helps students understand the concept of non-contact forces with a hands-on-activity. In the experiment, the students will be making a magnetic car in groups of 2-4. After

Students determine the period of rotation for the flying pig toy using formulas derived throughout the circular motion unit.

By 2028, NASA plans to send a mission to Mars to retrieve samples collected by rovers and return to Earth. Student teams are challenged to build a rover and design a way to retrieve as much cargo as

Students will design paper gliders to develop an understanding of the principles of flight. This is a low-tech lesson that does not require extensive/expensive supplies. It can be scaled up or down

Students use their knowledge from the 2 previous lessons to design, draw blueprints, and build a load bearing bridge.

Students explore different types of bridges and then practice building them with K'Nex sets.

Students explore designing bridge prototypes with spaghetti to find weak points and redesign a new prototype.

Students are introduced to wave characteristics, types, and the transfer of energy by waves. They explore the relationship between amplitude, wavelength, frequency and energy by using slinkys to

This lesson provides students with examples of balanced and unbalanced forces and helps them understand the resulting motion of an object. Students view a PowerPoint, take notes, complete a couple