This sequence of instruction was developed to help elementary teachers who are working remotely.  We developed a short storyline that ties together a few sessions to help explore a specific concept.  We tried to include some activities that honored and included the student’s family and experience, and some that included the potential for ELA learning goals.
"Good Vibrations" is designed around students making observations of sounds and the way sounds are transmitted to answer the questions: How can improve the design of a string telephone?(How does sound behave in and between different materials?)
It is part of Clime Time - a collaboration among all nine Educational Service Districts (ESDs) in Washington and many Community Partners to provide programs for science teacher training around Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and climate science, thanks to grant money made available to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) by Governor Inslee. 

In this video segment adapted from NOVA, watch residents of the Peruvian Andes build a suspension bridge made entirely of grass. The ancient Inca were a textile society and thus skilled in working with natural fibers including alpaca and cotton. Still, it might surprise people today that their solution to crossing the canyons and gorges of their mountainous empire featured another fibrous material: grass. When you consider how they built a simple suspension bridge, you'll realize that not only was this a practical solution, it was also a safe one. In this video segment adapted from NOVA, watch residents of the Peruvian Andes as they build a traditional and functioning grass bridge the likes of which enabled the ancient Inca people to flourish for several hundred years. Grades 3-12.

Students gain a basic understanding of the engineering components behind telecommunications, in particular, the way telephone communication works to link one phone to another for conventional landline and cellular telephones. During this entire-class activity, students simulate how phone calls are connected by acting out a variety of searches for both local and long-distance calls. Students end up with a good understanding of how phone calls are transmitted from callers to recipients.

Student teams follow the steps of the engineering design process to meet the challenge of getting their entire class from one location on the playground to the sidewalk without touching the ground between. The class develops a well thought-out plan while following the steps of the engineering design process. Then, they test their solution by going outside and trying it out. Through the post-activity assessment, they compare their problem-solving experience to real life engineering challenges, such as creating new forms of transportation or new product invention.

In this video segment from PEEP and the Big Wide World, children experiment with cardboard and build a house for their stuffed animals.

This video segment adapted from FETCH! shows contestants experimenting with different materials to see which is the best insulator and thus best able to keep the lemonade at their stand cool for customers.

In this fast-paced NASA Brain BitesŒ_íěÖ video, an astronaut demonstrates the impact of microgravity on the use of tools in space.

How can we use solar energy to improve the lives of people living “off-the-grid” in Kenya? This unit explores the NGSS Middle School bundle for Engineering Design (MS-ETS1-1, MS-ETS1-2, MS-ETS1-3, MS-ETS1-4) by engaging students in a Project-Based engineering task where students develop and apply their understanding of solar energy to create a solar device which can generate electricity for people who have lost power due to a natural disaster.

This video segment adapted from A Science Odyssey looks at the invention of the automobile and the development of mass production.

This video segment adapted from A Science Odyssey looks at the invention of nylon.

This video segment adapted from A Science Odyssey considers modern technology's impact on society.

In this video segment adapted from ZOOM, the cast builds a suspension bridge from a couple of chairs, some cardboard, and rope.

A system for the capture and distribution of rainwater and graywater for the Living Canopy school garden project.

Student groups use the Java programming language to implement the algorithms for optical character recognition (OCR) that they developed in the associated lesson. They use different Java classes (provided) to test and refine their algorithms. The ultimate goal is to produce computer code that recognizes a digit on a scoreboard. Through this activity, students experience a very small part of what software engineers go through to create robust OCR methods. This software design lesson/activity set is designed to be part of a Java programming class.

In this video from Science City, Kerri-Ann Richard, an environmental engineer, describes how she became interested in the field and why it is important to clean up the environment by removing contaminants from soil and ground water.

Follow along in this video segment from ZOOM as 13-year-old Nick explains how he came up with a design, tested materials, and constructed his own cardboard chair.

In this video segment from ZOOM, Andrew demonstrates how his invention helps him get ready for his paper route.

Tired of bending down to pick up those runaway tennis balls? Leang can help you out with his handy invention in this video segment from ZOOM.

In this video segment from ZOOM, Lauren explains how she invented a way to make her lacrosse stick fit in her backpack.

In this video segment adapted from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, researchers in the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory working to engineer smarter robots are now building a machine that interacts socially with people.