Cómo construir una máquina de Rube Goldberg

Rube Goldberg machines—machines that complete a simple task in a convoluted way—are intriguing, artistic, and fun! In this lesson, students will design and build such a machine themselves and use the concept of kinetic energy in the process. Before students start designing, they will do an experiment that explores how kinetic energy depends on the mass and the speed of the moving object. With a clear understanding of this concept, students then tackle the engineering design… Read more

Inspire students of all ages to enjoy STEM when you let them loose in a creative makerspace! These hands-on engineering activities use simple materials and encourage students to brainstorm, problem solve, and innovate. Enabling Exploration Community makerspaces are collaborative spaces where people of all ages can… Read more

Try these clever STEM activities to connect hands-on science and engineering to the ever-popular world of Mario! Let's-a go! Your kids and students probably know Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Bowser, and the Mario World gang, and chances are you do, too! March 10 is Mario Day, so known because in the right typeface, M A R 1 0 looks like M A R I O. (Once you see it, you see it!) This is the kind of clever… Read more

Use these free STEM lessons and activities to help students get hands-on building, testing, and exploring the science of energy and the different types of potential and kinetic energy. From the classic snake-in-a-can prank to stretching and shooting rubber bands across the room, bouncing a basketball, or rolling a marble down a ramp, kids know energy in motion when they see it. The world is full of energy, and energy is constantly being used,… Read more

Inspire students to think like engineers with hands-on building and design challenges! Spark interest and build engineering design skills with one of these free engineering projects for middle school students. 16+ Engineering Design Projects to Inspire Middle School Students! Engineering design projects and challenges are a great way to ignite student interest in STEM. When students tackle an engineering design challenge, they are encouraged to… Read more

Challenge high school students to think like engineers and design, build, and test their own solutions to one of these free engineering projects. 11+ Engineering Projects for High School Students! Engineering design projects and challenges are a great way to ignite student interest in STEM. When students tackle an engineering design challenge, they are encouraged to brainstorm, design, build, test, problem solve, troubleshoot, tinker, innovate, and… Read more

Gingerbread houses and characters are a great way to capture students' attention in the days leading up to winter break! Shake things up this December with a gingerbread house building STEM challenge in your classroom or try one of these other fun gingerbread-themed science and engineering explorations. Gingerbread STEM! Activities involving gingerbread houses and gingerbread people pop up in many classrooms in December and through the winter months.… Read more

Science Buddies' STEM videos are now available in Spanish! Subscribe to the Science Buddies en Español YouTube channel. Science Buddies' Science and Engineering Videos Now Accessible to More Students Science Buddies' main YouTube channel contains hundreds of original STEM videos for independent viewing, edutainment, or to supplement projects, activities, and lessons available on the Science Buddies website. To support the needs of even more educators,… Read more

Use these free STEM lessons, projects, and activities to teach about simple machines with hands-on science experiments to investigate how levers, pulleys, ramps, screws, and wheel and axle systems offer mechanical advantages that make it easier to perform tasks. What Are Simple Machines? A simple machine is a machine with few or no moving parts that makes it easier to perform a certain type of work. Simple machines do not create energy, which must be… Read more