This booklet is part of the ‘Innovations in Practical Work’ series published by the Gatsby Science Enhancement Programme (SEP). Building materials and construction methods provide an interesting context in which students can develop their understanding of basic ideas...

Produced by LSIS, this case study describes a project by FE Sussex. FE Sussex already has a well-established ethos of networks and collaboration as the limited company encompasses 12 colleges: five sixth form colleges, one land-based and six general FE colleges. However, by working with the LSIS STEM Programme, FE...

This rich task from Cre8ate offers pupils the opportunity to develop their personal learning and thinking skills. It involves using recycled materials to construct a scale model of a silo and is well suited to group work. The task can be extended for more able students by investigating the resizing of their model...

In this activity, pupils will build a bionic hand made out of cardboard, strings, straws and rubber bands. They will relate the bionic hand to their own hand to understand the function of the fingers and the importance of the thumb, to grab or hold objects with different shapes and forms. Pupils will also learn...

Produced by the Learning Skills Improvement Service (LSIS), this case study tackles the themes of new industry, new jobs and STEM skills for the future. It describes how Able Skills Ltd, built a renewables training facility to meet the need for installation and maintainance skills in the emerging renewable...

This resource from the National Assessment Agency (NAA) came into being as a result of the changes in the statutory assessment of children at the end of Key Stage One in 2005. A key aim of the changes to the assessment arrangements was to emphasise the importance of...

This Problem Solving with Industry module was devised by the Centre for Science Education in collaboration with Hadfield, Cawkwell, Davidson and Partners. In this module students, working in teams, are asked to come up with plans for a new DIY superstore.

In Building a town, from Cre8ate maths, students are encouraged to consider the mathematical shapes which form the net of a building. Some simple models are shown and students could use these to construct their nets, before building the models themselves.

This Catalyst article explores the processes undertaken during the construction of a white water canoe course for the Olympic Games which requires a huge range of practical skills, but also great science skills too. The scientist must calculate how much noise from both the course's construction and its use during...

A classroom activity where students make a simple telescope (using lenses and cardboard tubes)  that uses two different types of lens to magnify distant objects, and then find out how it works.

This resource develops the concept of solving equations where the unknown appears once or more than once.

Students are given the equation

x = 6

and then told that the value of x could have been derived from the equation

3x =  2x + 6

Students are then construct their own equation...

The initial activity in this resource asks students to start with x = 6 and write further equations where x = 6 is the solution. For example, subtracting two from both sides of the equation gives

x ­- 2 = 4

The next step is to use the equation given to build a more complicated one. An example is

This resource forms part of the Clean Growth resources from the Grand Challenges resource collection.  The introductory video can be found here.

In this activity students will look at how buildings use energy and where they waste energy.  A survey is completed...