Curated OER
Railroads
Students make travel plans. In this transportation lesson, students determine whether trains, planes, or buses are best to get them a city 500 miles from their hometown.
Curated OER
Effects of Bread Sanitary Conditions on Mold Growth
Students examine fungi and where it comes from. In this mold lesson students determine the percentage of fruit juice in a fruit then identify the different types of mold.
Curated OER
Examining Endangered Species
Middle school environmental science classes research the threatened, endangered, and extinct organisms listed for their state. They design and construct a poster of the information gleaned and write an essay about how they might be able...
Science 4 Inquiry
Musical Vibes with Palm Pipes
Ancient people used musical pipes as early as the third millennium BCE. Young scientists explore the workings of musical pipes to better understand the relationship with frequency, length of pipe, and sound waves. They determine the...
Curated OER
History Fair
Students create a History Fair. They examine the National History Day Competition and are encouraged to participate.
Oregon State
Using Paper Chromatography
Through the analysis of paper chromatography to separate ink from the pen found at the crime scene, learners analyze the different stains and through calculations determine the thief.
Cornell University
Center for Teaching Excellence (Syllabus Template)
Need a model for a college level course syllabus? Here's a good one. The editable template provided by this resource not only indicates key information that should be supplied, but also includes models for how various policies can be...
NASA
Tools of the Trade
Did you know every state in the U.S. has at least one observatory? During the lesson, scholars research the cost of building and maintaining an observatory. They must present their information in a proposal to build a new observatory,...
Mathematics Vision Project
Module 5: Modeling with Geometry
Solids come in many shapes and sizes. Using geometry, scholars create two-dimensional cross-sections of various three-dimensional objects. They develop the lesson further by finding the volume of solids. The module then shifts to finding...
Curated OER
Weather Lesson Five
Students define a weather forecast, make a forecast using a weather map, identify three prediction guidelines, and explain how computers help to make forecasts. Students make a 24-hour forecast for each of the thirteen states targeted.
Kenan Fellows
Impacting the Risk of Falling: How Do Accelerometers Work?
Young engineers consider how to apply accelerometers and sensors to help prevent falls in elderly people. They consider forces of motion and gravity as part of the engineering design process.
Kenan Fellows
Analyzing Speed from Different Modalities
Show us your moves. Using sensor equipment, scholars track the motion of different movements, such as jogging, skipping, or jump roping. They analyze velocity and acceleration and create graphs representing each movement.
Teach Engineering
About Accuracy and Approximation
How accurate are robots? Groups draw lines by moving robots backwards and forwards by one rotation of the wheels. Using the appropriate formula, they determine the percent error in the length of the lines in relation to the calculated...
Curated OER
Space Flight Simulation
High schoolers engage in the study of flight with the help of a computer flight simulation. They take part in a variety of activities that imitate the Space Shuttle Endeavor. Students work as teams like the astronauts would to complete...
Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian In Your Classroom: The Music in Poetry
Take poetry off the page and put it into terms of movement, physical space and, finally, music with this series of three lessons from the Smithsonian Institution. This resource introduces students to two poetic forms that originated as...
Curated OER
Interpreting Graphs
Sixth graders interpret linear and nonlinear graphs. They create graphs based on a problem set. Next, they represent quantitive relationships on a graph and write a story related to graphing.
Mathematics Assessment Project
Generalizing Patterns: The Difference of Two Squares
After completing an assessment task where they express numbers as the difference of squares (i.e., 9 = 5^2 – 4^2), class members note any patterns that they see in the problems.
Teach Engineering
Energy and the Pogo Stick
Let your class bounce to examine the concept elastic potential energy. Individuals bounce on a pogo stick in order to calculate its elastic potential energy. Groups then compare the elastic potential energy to the gravitational potential...
Science NetLinks
Green Roof Design
Green roofs aren't just eco-friendly — they are literally green with trees. Groups learn about the concept of green roofs in order to be able to design one. The groups design a 5,000-square-foot green roof for a fictional apartment row...
Teach Engineering
Efficiency of an Electromechanical System
How efficient is a motor in a LEGO set? Future engineers conduct an activity where a LEGO motor-generator system raises an object to a specified height. They then show what they learned and use their measurements to calculate the energy...
Teach Engineering
News Flash!
Extra, extra, read all about it! Scholars research information on endangered species and produce a news report to share their findings with the rest of the class. In groups, they then consider engineering solutions to problems on habitat...
Teach Engineering
Maximum Mentos Fountain
A messy fountain is potentially an energy experiment in disguise. Groups investigate the variables in creating a fountain from soda and Mentos. The last activity in a six-part series on energy has the class observe the fountain in terms...
Curated OER
An Arm and A Leg
Students examine how the movements of bones are dependent on the interaction of pairs of muscles. They design and construct a prototype of an artificial limb using a syringe system, and determine whether water or air makes the appendage...
Curated OER
Where is Sophie?
Learners use GPS to scrutinize the movements of a grizzly bear named Sophie. They answer a series of questions like; where she forages, her zone of influence, and human interaction. They read the story of Sophie, the collared bear in...