Sail Away

Lesson Focus

Lesson focuses on watercraft engineering and sailing. Students work in teams to design a sailboat out of everyday objects that can catch a breeze from a fan, stay afloat with a set load, and sail four feet.

Download:

Full Lesson Plan
Student Worksheets

Translated Lessons:

• Arabic
• Chinese
• French
• German
• Japanese
• Russian
• Spanish

Age Levels:

8 – 18

Objectives

• Learn about marine engineering and sailing principals.
• Learn about engineering product planning and design.
• Learn about meeting the needs of society.
• Learn about teamwork and working in groups.

Anticipated Learner Outcomes

As a result of this activity, students should develop an understanding of:

• watercraft engineering
• problem solving
• teamwork

Lesson Activities

Students explore what marine engineers and naval architects do, and work in teams to design a sailboat out of everyday objects that can catch a breeze from a fan, stay afloat with a set load, and sail four feet. Students work in teams of “engineers” to design a boat with a sail structure, test their boat, evaluate the work of other “engineering” teams, and present reflections to the class.

Resources/Materials

• Teacher Resource Documents (attached)
• Student Worksheets (attached)
• Student Resource Sheets (attached)

Alignment to Curriculum Frameworks

Curriculum alignment sheet is included in PDF.