Resources by National STEM Learning Centre and Network
Displaying 111 - 120 of 356
Fire piston
This video demonstrates how compressing a gas increases its temperature. A small piece of cotton wool is placed into the bottom of a narrow plastic tube. When the air is rapidly compressed by a piston, the air temperature increases and the cotton ignites. The 'fire piston' can be used to illustrates the transfer of...
Flying Tinsel
Simon Quinnell, from the National STEM Learning Centre and Network, demonstrates static electricity and charge using a balloon and a piece of plastic tinsel. Rubbing the balloon on a jumper builds up a negative charge on its surface.
When the positively charged tinsel is dropped onto the surface of the...
Food for Thought – The Eat Well Plate
The everyday context of food serves as a vehicle for engaging learners in exploring the mathematical ideas of ratios, percentages, fractions, and pie charts which are useful in their vocational areas. Students are asked to agree the main food groups that might be suitable for a healthy diet and then represent the...
The Grand Challenges – Our Futures programme (2018 to 2023) aimed to help young people develop the skills needed to bridge the gap between today’s learners and tomorrow’s career choices. The Government’s Industrial Strategy set out key Grand Challenge themes, aimed at putting the UK at the forefront of future...
Future of mobility: level 1
This Grand Challenge set of resources focuses on atmospheric pollution and the production of zero emission vehicles. The Level 1 materials are ideal for 11-14 year old students and includes ways to study lichens as a pollution indicator and measure particulate pollution. It then moves on to allow students to...
Future of mobility: level 2 - lesson 1
This lesson focuses on the properties of hydrogen and how it can be used as a fuel. It is appropriate to students aged 11 to 14 years.
Note: This is the first lesson of two. The second lesson builds on the knowledge gained by focusing on hydrogen fuel cells. It provides a way of contextualising classroom...
Future of mobility: level 2 - lesson 2
This lesson focuses on hydrogen fuel cells and how they work. It is appropriate to students aged 11 to 14 years.
Note: This is the second lesson of two.
The first lesson investigates the properties of hydrogen. This lesson builds on this knowledge by focusing on hydrogen fuel cells and hydrogen...
Future of mobility: level 3 - lesson 1
Lesson 1 – The greenhouse effect and global warming
The aim of the lesson is to show the importance of the greenhouse effect via a number of activities. This is the first lesson in a sequence of three and is aimed at 14-16 year old students- it links well to upper secondary level exam...
Future of mobility: level 3 - lesson 2
Lesson 2 - Climate change
This second lesson of a sequence of three, focuses on climate change and global warming and the consequences of such, aimed at 14-16 year olds.
Activities include analysing the combustion of hydrocarbons and researching the effects of global warming and...
Future of mobility: level 3 - lesson 3
Lesson 3 - Hydrogen fuel cell
This lesson looks at how hydrogen fuel cells could potentially replace how transportation is powered.
Note: this is the third lesson of three. The first two lessons investigate the greenhouse effect and climate change. Here electrolysis and the use of a hydrogen-oxygen (...