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Pinball Wizard
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In this hands-on engineering project, kids use two simple machines, levers and inclined planes, to construct their own pinball machines.

Designing a Wall
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In this engineering activity (page 5 of PDF), young learners investigate how materials and design contribute to the strength of a structure, particularly walls.

Levers at Play
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In this activity, learners consider how a simple machine, a lever, turns a small push or pull (a small force) into a larger--or stronger--push or pull (a larger force).

Puff Mobile
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In this engineering activity, challenge learners to design a car using only 3 straws, 4 Lifesavers™, 1 piece of paper, 2 paper clips, tape, and scissors.

Zoomers
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In this activity, learners build their own rockets from paper, coffee stirrers, and tape. Learners discover that when anything flies, air pressure is always involved.

Balls and Ramps
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In this activity, learners use simple, everyday materials to experiment with balls and ramps.

Lego Mania
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In this activity, learners will put together towers using building bricks, then take the tower apart and challenge themselves to use the same bricks used to build a bridge.

Make and Fly a Helicopter
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Learners follow the template to build and fly a paper helicopter.

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.

Hoop Glider
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In this activity, learners engineer a flying glider using paper hoops and a drinking straw.

Stomp Rockets
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In this activity, learners will build a stomp-powered launcher to blast off paper rockets they design. Materials can be found at a local hardware store or you may already have them at home.

Design a Microexpression Zoetrope
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In this engineering design challenge, learners animate a facial expression and make a machine (zoetrope) that plays the animation back.

Micro Automata
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In this activity, learners build small animated toys that move.

Action Figure
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In this project, students explore how levers work, by making a puppet with moving limbs.

Marble Ride
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In this activity, challenge learners to design a roller coaster ride for a marble using cardboard and other simple materials.

Cranking Bird
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In this activity, learners build a mini crank machine to make a bird "fly." This engineering activity introduces learners to automata, rotational motion, cranks and cams.

Minibot
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In this activity, learners build a mini dancing robot. This engineering activity introduces learners to electricity, circuits, switches, conductivity, and motors.

Roller Coasters
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In this design challenge, learners will create their own roller coaster using household objects for the track and a marble or small ball as their cart.

Lever Cowboy
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In this activity, learners build a figure that moves and "comes to life" when they pull its string.

Motor Bird
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In this activity, learners build a bird that flies in place with help from a motor, wire, and some straws.