Lesson Plans

These lesson plans utilize components of the BLIMP kit to further students understanding of fluids, structures, biology, system design, and swarming dynamics. They are aligned to Next Generation Science Standards and Common Core State Standards. 

Structural Engineering

This three-lesson sequence introduces students to modeling with free body diagrams, formulating equations of equilibrium for trusses, applying vector analysis to estimate forces, and calculating centroids and moments of inertia.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Aerodynamics & Hydrodynamics

This three-lesson sequence introduces students to diagraming and describing forces on a body moving in a fluid, describing similarities and differences in loads on a body based on fluid properties, and using wing geometry to achieve desired stability, strength, and weight characteristics.

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3

Biologically Inspired Propulsion

This two-lesson sequence has students diagramming, comparing, and contrasting the relative contributions to thrust from pushing, pulling, or flapping forces in tuna, jellyfish, and manta rays.

Part 1 | Part 2

System Design & Integration

In this lesson, students describe mission requirements, system functions and physical components, perform system functional decomposition and build a functional flow diagram, and integrate system functions and physical components to achieve mission requirements.

Part 1

Swarm Dynamics & Agent-Based Modeling

In this lesson students identify how use of a multi-agent system can assist in accomplishing a prescribed mission objective, and learn how to diagram and describe a model of a multi-agent system.

Part 1