National Engineering Month in Ontario 2009

Classroom Exercises

Following are descriptions of seven exercises you might consider for your classroom visit. All exercises are provided courtesy of YES Mag, Canada’s Science Magazine for Kids. They use inexpensive and easily obtained materials and can be completed in a classroom period.

The exercises are designed with safety in mind, but you should still remind students about school safety procedures regarding the use of tools and materials.

See Helpful Websites for a list of websites where you can find more exercises to adapt for classroom use.

Curriculum Connections

When you contact teachers and offer to give classroom presentations or workshops, they will want to know what topics you will cover and how these fit with the Ontario Science and Technology Curriculum. Here is a list of possible curriculum strands and grade level topics you could cover by using each of the exercises listed.

You and the teacher should meet to discuss your classroom visit. You can decide together what variations can be added to the exercises to take the connections further. You can find the complete text of the Ontario Elementary Science and Technology Curriculum 1998 at the Ontario Ministry of Education website.

	Exercise 1: Bridge Over Cardboard Water
Strand - Structures and Mechanisms Topics you can cover within this strand: Grade 3 - Stability Grade 5 – Forces Acting On Structures And Mechanisms Grade 7 – Structural Strength And Stability Strand – Energy and Control Grade 3 – Forces and Movement (Also check the Mathematics Curriculum for connections with triangles.)
	Exercise 2: YES Mag Flyer
Strand: Matter and Materials Grade 6 – Properties of Air and Characteristics of Flight Strand: Energy and Control Grade 3 – Forces and movement Strand: Structures and Mechanisms Grade 5 – Forces Acting on Structures and Mechanisms Grade 6 – Motion Grade 8 – Mechanical Efficiency
	Exercise 3: Lightning in a Pan
Strand: Matter and Materials Grade 3 – Magnetic and Charged Materials Grade 5 – Properties of and Changes in Matter Strand: Energy and Control Grade 4 – Light and Sound Energy Grade 6 – Electricity Strand: Earth and Space Systems Grade 5 – Weather
	Exercise 4: Dracula’s Dinner
Strand: Life Systems Grade 5 – Human Organ Systems Grade 8 – Cells, Tissues, Organs and Systems Strand: Matter and Materials Grade 5 – Properties of and Changes in Matter
	Exercise 5: Volcano in a Bottle
Strand: Matter and Materials Grade 5 – Properties of and Changes in Matter Grade 7 – Pure Substances and Mixtures Strand: Earth and Space Systems Grade 7 – The Earth’s Crust
	Exercise 6: Give Yourself a Hand
Strand: Structures and Mechanisms Grade 5 – Forces Acting on Structures and Mechanisms Grade 8 – Mechanical Efficiency Strand – Energy and Control Grade 3 – Forces and Movement
	Exercise 7: Water Filtration Activity
Strand – Life Systems Grade 7 – Interactions within Ecosystems Strand – Matter and Materials Grade 7 – Pure Substances and Mixtures Grade 8 – Fluids Strand – Energy and Control Grade 5 – Conservation of Energy Strand – Earth and Space Systems Grade 2 – Air and Water in the Environment Grade 3 – Soils in the Environment Grade 4 – Rocks, Minerals and Erosion Grade 8 – Water Systems

To view the documents above, you need Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you don't already have it, click on the icon at right to download it.

< back to Planning Advice