Workshop Descriptions
The objective of the Arizona Science Lab is to encourage students to become interested in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) through experiential learning. Each workshop lesson plan supports the current Arizona Science Standards.
Ten workshops are currently being offered.
Rockets
- Newton's Laws, Rocket Aerodynamics.
- Students Design, Build, and Launch a Compressed Air/Water Rockets.
Electric Motors
- Electricity, Magnetism, Electromagnetism, Electric Motors.
- Students Build an Electric Motor.
Waterwheels
- Renewable Energy, Kinetic/Potential Energy, Simple Machines, Mechanical Advantage.
- Students Design and Build a Waterwheel.
Sail Away (Sailboats)
- Archimedes' Principle, Buoyancy, Forces and Moments.
- Students Design and Build a Sailboat.
Here Comes the Sun (Solar Energy)
Not available Oct. 1-Mar. 31 due to the low angle and energy of the sun.
- Renewable Energy, Electricity and Energy Conversion, Solar Cells.
- Students Build and Race a Solar-Powered Race Car.
Oscillators and Waves
- The Scientific Method, Pendulums, Kinetic/Potential Energy, Oscillators/Waves.
- Students do measurements and graphing of pendulum principles and other experiments.
Building Structures
- Forces, load paths, beams, trusses, the importance of well-designed structures.
- Students design and build a tower that must survive an “earthquake”.
Exploring Probability and Statistics
- Event Occurrences and Learning from Data. (Recommended Grades 5-8)
Ciphers and Codes
- Information Representation, Data Encryption/Decryption, Secure Codes.
- Students Do Many Exercises in Secure Coding and Decoding.
How Computers Solve Problems
- Computational Thinking, Algorithm Design. How Computers Work and What Do They Do. (Recommended Grades 6-8)