Requirement
1. Investigate a manufactured item in your home
Required Often forgotten
Such as a toy or an appliance: how and why it works, and the engineering activities needed to create it. Under adult supervision and with your counselor's approval. Discuss what you learned and how you got the information.
Notes and warnings
Warning. The investigation is done "under adult supervision and with the approval of your counselor". Get the approval for the item before taking it apart.
Tip. Three things to raise at the first meeting: which item in your home you will investigate for requirement 1, which needs your counselor's approval; which engineer you can visit for requirement 4 (your counselor, parent or guardian may be one); and, if you are thinking of 6(g), when the next science or engineering fair or competition is.
Where this step comes from
- Engineering Merit Badge Requirements (Merit Badge Hub, last modified 2026-01-07), Requirement 1 · Requires adult supervision and your counselor's approval for the investigation.