Curated OER
Frozen Water Before? I'm Sure You Have; But I Bed You've Never Frozen Salt Water! Water!!
Students examine what happens to salt water when it freezes. In groups, they measure density and salt concentrations in different samples of water and record its freezing time. They discuss the relationship between water density and...
Curated OER
Ecology: Symbiosis
Eighth graders identify various types of symbiotic relationships. In this ecology lesson, 8th graders predict whether certain organisms can form symbiosis with other organisms. They discuss and defend their reasoning.
NOAA
Ocean Layers II
Now that you know the ocean has layers, let's name them. The seventh installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program covers terminology associated with ocean layers, such as thermocline and...
Curated OER
Food & Science - How Healthy is Your Diet?
Learners experiment with various foods to determine fat and starch content. They rub jam, peanut butter, bananas, and other foods in a small circle on a piece of paper, and observe the results. If there is a high fat content in the...
Curated OER
The Dose makes the Poison
Young scholars investigate the effect of a chemical (they choose) on the germination of seeds. They calculate % chemical concentrations in water, form a hypothesis, and discuss the ethics of using animals in biomedical research.
Curated OER
Acids and Bases: Together again!
Students identify principles behind acid-base reactions. They predict factors that may affect an acid-base reaction. Students identify questions and concepts that guide scientific investigations.
Curated OER
What's Matter?
Young scholars explore many of the basic properties of matter including atoms, ions, elements, molecules, and density. The class explores an interactive flash-animated Web site to answer questions and clarify misconceptions they might...
Curated OER
Is Organic Food Worth the Extra Cost?
Young scholars calculate the amount of pesticide residue in selected foods for two
pesticides and determine if these levels are safe. They read an article about a
research study looking for metabolites of these pesticides in children....
Curated OER
Molar Mass
Students apply the ideal gas law and Dalton's Law of Partial Pressure to develop an experiment which determine the molar mass of butane from disposable lighters. In small groups, they develop a procedure and have it approved before...
Curated OER
Our Universe: Designed or Evolved?
Students brainstorm and write arguments for Evolution and Intelligent Design. They research the history of each of these ideas. They also examine the controversy of teaching one or both ideas in schools.
Curated OER
Cyclic Universe: Worlds Without End
Students compare and contrast the Big Bang Theory and the Cyclic Universe Model. They explain basic properties of the univers which make life possible. They evaluate ideas about the origin of the universe as to their scientific value.
Curated OER
Crime Scene Investigation: Hair Analysis Lab
Students participate in a hair analysis lab. Using a digital microscope, students compare and contrast hair samples. They determine if the hair samples are human or animal. After completing lab results sheets, students share their...
Curated OER
Chemical Engineers and the Things They Do
Students explore the field of chemical engineering and identify the contributions of chemical engineers to society. They explore how chemical engineering is like and different from the other engineering professions. They study the...
Curated OER
ACID RAIN
Eighth graders, in groups, take on the role of either Biologist, Chemist, Health Scientist, or Economist. They complete a webquest in which they must decide what to do about a problem concerning the effects of acid rain. They make a...
Curated OER
In Touch with Apples
Students read "How To Make an Apple Pie and See the World", the story of a girl who traveled the world to find the ingredients to make her apple pie. They conduct a series of interdisciplinary activities including testing their senses,...
Curated OER
We're Off To the Races!
Second graders use a magnet to "race" objects from one side of a racing track to another. They predict what the results are, then run the race. Pupils sort and graph which items were successfully moved, they attempt to race again. This...
Curated OER
Sink or Float
Second graders explore floating and sinking and make predictions about whether certain objects are likely to sink or float. They read the story Who Sank the Boat? by Pamela Allen. Pupils loacate rhyming words and discuss the events of...
Curated OER
Balancing The Day Away In Grade 2
Second graders sped the day exploring about balance by playing with and making balancing toys. They discover how varying the amount and position of mass affects the toys' balance. Pupils explore gravity and balance while playing with the...
Curated OER
What Goes Down Must Come Up
Third graders explore the capillary action of plants. They discover what makes paper "grow" when water is dropped on it. Pupils observe how paper reacts as it absorbs water. Students use a variety of saturate solutions to grow crystals,...
Curated OER
Color Burst
Fourth graders explore how colors react in water (chromatography) and other solvents. They observe, investigate, measure, record data and communicate their results in the form of graphs/charts and narration presented to the class....
Curated OER
Science: Testing Water for Toxicity
Students investigate the potential toxicity of water samples using California blackworms to test water quality. They observe the worms' behaviors in different water samples and determine which sample has the highest toxicity. At the...
Curated OER
Physical Habitat of a Stream
Students measure in metric units and use a stopwatch, calculator. They collect data with minimal instructions after the initial pre-activity briefing, then record data in the data sheets provided.
Curated OER
Super Glue Fuming of Latent Fingerprints
Students explore latent fingerprinting. They observe a supervised demonstration of the process that real-life crime scene investigators sometimes use to identify latent fingerprints. In addition, they brainstorm ways to improve the...
Curated OER
Teaching about Aquatic Respiration
Learners explore respiration in a lake ecosystem by experiment and research.