This activity, from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, follows the format of a ‘Dragon’s Den’ competition. It aims develop student’s understanding of responsible product development and how the principles of the circular economy can be applied to current business practice. Case studies of existing products are...

This resource, produced by ARKive, is designed to teach Key Stage Two children about the strategies animals adopt to survive winter in temperate zones and about the adaptations exhibited by animals in the polar regions. Children compare these strategies and identify similarities and differences in the ways animals...

This cross-curricular computing / ICT activity helps children to understand decomposition. They choose a poem and create an animation using Scratch; this encourages them to think deeply about the poem, and to explore the tools available. Children break the poem into pieces (decomposition), then plan the animation...

In this resource learners will use Scratch, to debug and then improve a program to move Autosub6000 around the ocean floor, photographing samples found.   The remote movement will be controlled through a keyboard’s arrow keys initially and then the children will be challenged to create a program which will move...

This resource looks at how biomimicry enables engineers to take ideas from the natural world to develop new products and designs. The specific example of gecko tape is used to illustrate this. Students play a game of pairs where they need to match technology with the animal or plant which inspired its development....

In this activity, students create colour images from satellite data. This allows them to study how different surfaces reflect different wavelengths of light, how coloured images are created using an RGB model, and how band combinations can be chosen to examine a particular landscape effectively.

In this activity, students learn about heat transfer from jet engine turbine blades. The blades reach temperatures as high as 1000 ºC. How do the blades cool, and how do scientists measure the rate of cooling at such high temperatures?

In this activity, students synthesise prior learning about structure and bonding, and about enzymes, and apply it to a new context: X-ray crystallography. The main part of the activity involves students pitching for funding for new equipment – how will they use the...

This book and accompanying teacher guide focus on the story of a young girl and her passion for saving water. The story follows the journey of an ordinary schoolgirl in the UK, who transforms into a water superhero when a DRY summer is followed by a DRY winter. The teacher guide provides eight linked activities...

This project concentrates on the design and manufacture of a mobile phone accessory using a range of sketching and software, alongside laser cutting and 3D printing processes. Students apply the tools in 123D Design to model the accessory, before manufacturing the product. Students consider the designing and...

This scheme of work is intended as an introduction to Autodesk Inventor. It is aimed at students aged 11-14, but is also suitable for students working up to and including post 16 dependent on experience.

The “Scooter” project teaches a range of fundamental Autodesk Inventor skills through a range of project...

The project concentrates on the design and manufacture of a USB flash pen drive using a range of sketching and software, alongside laser cutting and 3D printing processes. Students will apply the tools in AutoCad and Autodesk Inventor to the challenging task of creating a small focused and detailed casing parts,...

This project concentrates on the design and manufacture of lighting using simple electronics but with complex and functional part modelling. Students apply the tools in Autodesk Inventor to the challenging task of creating a virtual lamp design in parts, before manufacturing the product. Students will spend time...