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Toasty Wind
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In this quick activity, learners use a toaster to investigate the source for the Earth's wind. Learners hold a pinwheel above a toaster to discover that rising heat causes wind.
Changing Colors
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Learners experiment with a commercially available liquid-crystal coaster. They warm the material with their hands for varying lengths of time and observe the changing colors that result.
Hanging Around
Learners investigate weight by building a spring scale. They observe and record how it responds to objects with different masses.
Stretch Your Potential
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In this activity, learners create a toy that demonstrates the First Law of Thermodynamics or the Law of Conservation of Energy.
Evolution in Plane Sight
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In this activity, learners model directed evolution by making paper fly. Learners construct and fly paper airplanes.
Make Your Own Magnus Glider
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Build a glider that uses the same physics as a curve ball, for less than a dime.
Trip Wire
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In this activity, learners build simple alarms that they can attach to anything, such as a drawer or doorway. This activity introduces learners to electricity, circuits, and currents.
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.
Paddle Boat
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In this activity, learners build an old-fashioned paddle boat out of simple materials.
Kites
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In this engineering/design activity, learners make a kite, fly it, and then work to improve the design. Learners explore how their kite design variations affect flight.
Glider
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In this activity, learners construct a paper glider to experiment with aerodynamic forces.
Speedboat
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In this activity, learners build a speedboat using paint paddles, a propeller, and film canister. Learners attach a simple circuit and motor to the boat to power the propellers.
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.
Marble Drop Game
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Build your own version of a favorite carnival game, in which a marble races down a maze consisting of rows of nails.
Paper Drop Design Competition
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Using paper, paper clips, an index card, and tape, teams of learners design flying devices to (1) stay in the air as long as possible and (2) land as close as possible to a given target.
Paddle Power
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In this design challenge, learners build a boat that paddles itself using a rubber band as its power source.
Doughy Physics
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Learners drop two different masses of play dough and observe how long it takes them to hit the ground.
Push Pull Painter
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In this activity, learners create painting machines that can paint moving forwards and backwards.
Full of Hot Air: Hot Air Balloon Building
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In this activity, learners create a model of a hot air balloon using tissue paper and a hairdryer. Educators can use this activity to introduce learners to density and its role in why things float.
Paper Airplane Contest
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In this fun physics activity (page 9 of the pdf), learners take part in a paper airplane design challenge.