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Shrinking Polymers
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In this activity, learners discover that some plastics will shrink when you get them hot. Learners bake polystyrene in a regular oven and discover what happens.

Matraca
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In this activity, learners create a traditional Mexican noisemaker (a matraca) using cardboard, craft sticks, and a wooden dowel.

Exploring Materials: Thin Films
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In this activity, learners create a colorful bookmark using a super thin layer of nail polish on water. Learners discover that a thin film creates iridescent, rainbow colors.

Rainbow Film
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In this activity, learners use clear nail polish to create a beautiful iridescent pattern on black paper. Learners discover that a thin film creates iridescent, rainbow colors.

Milk Plastic
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In this activity, learners transform everyday milk into small plastic figurines and jewelry. Use this activity to introduce learners to monomers and polymers.

Make Pan Pipes
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This is a simple activity for learners to create a traditional musical instrument. Pan Pipes have developed all over the world in different cultures, from South America to Greece and China.

Balloon Nanotubes Tabletop
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This activity introduces learners to the structure and properties of carbon nanotubes.

Torsion Drum
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In this activity, learners build a musical drum using a cardboard tube, plastic wrap, and beads.

Exploring Materials: Nano Gold
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In this activity, learners discover that nanoparticles of gold can appear red, orange or even blue. They learn that a material can act differently when it’s nanometer-sized.

Nanoparticle Stained Glass
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In this activity/demo, learners are introduced to the connection between medieval stained glass artisans and nanotechnology.

Nature Journals
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In this activity, learners construct a home-made journal with simple, everyday materials.

Mini Zoetrope
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In this activity (posted on March 27, 2011), learners follow the steps to construct a mini zoetrope, a device that produces an illusion of action from a rapid succession of static pictures.
Magnus Glider
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A design challenge that takes paper airplanes into an entirely different direction: a magnus glider uses cups and and rubber bands to create a glider that uses the same forces that a curveball (from b

Balancing Sculptures
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In this activity, learners will use a variety of household and/or natural objects to design a sculpture that balances from a single point.

Cardboard Sculptures
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Learners explore the endless possibilities of cardboard engineering in this open-ended STEAM activity. Practice being creative by building structures with no glue, only cardboard and scissors.

Butter Up
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In this activity, learners will discover how to make butter from scratch. One optional tips includes adding marbles to speed up the process.

Papermaking at Home
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Learners will follow a specific process to make their own paper using scrap paper, newspaper, or junk mail.

Cupcake Delivery
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In this design challenge, learners will create wind-powered contraptions to transport a load, such as a cupcake or another small object, and test to see if they work.

Plastic Bag Creations
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In this activity, learners will reuse plastic bags in an interesting way.

Hot Air Balloon
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In this activity, learners build a hot air balloon using just a few sheets of tissue paper and a hair dryer.