Curated OER
ELECTROMAGNETS
Learners use video learning and construct electromagnets and use them to collect data, graph, and share with others.
Curated OER
Building Polymer Cup Speakers
High schoolers investigate sound waves and they build audio speakers. In this audio speakers and sound instructional activity, students explore how to make quality audio speakers. As a team they build their own speakers to have clarity...
Curated OER
Electromagnetism - Transformers
Students build small circuits using transformers. In this electromagnetism lesson plan, students will show that transformers increase voltage which leads to an increase in current. An ammeter and the brightness of a light bulb will be...
Curated OER
Ohm's Law I
Students work to increase the intensity of a light bulb by testing batteries in series and parallel circuits. They analyze Ohm's Law, power, parallel and series circuits, and ways to measure voltage and current.
Curated OER
Sliders - Static and Kinetic Friction
Middle schoolers work in groups to conduct experiments the demonstrate the differences between static and kinetic friction. They consider how friction affects us in our everyday lives, determine the effects of weight on friction and...
Curated OER
Incandescent Light Bulb
Students study the history of the light bulb and how an incandescent light bulb works. In this electricity lesson students complete several experiments on the light bulb.
National Woman's History Museum
Getting with the Program
A seven-step lesson introduces the emergence of computer sciences and the contributions women made to the profession after World War II. Several science experiments offer pupils a hands-on learning experience that showcases parabolas,...
Curated OER
The Greenhouse Effect
Why does it get so hot inside of our cars in the summertime? The greenhouse effect! Lab groups experiment to see what happens to an ice cube enclosed in a jar and placed in sunlight as compared to an ice cube outside of the jar. They...
Curated OER
Orienting a Photovoltaic Cell
By mounting a light bulb on a stand and a PV cell on another, physics apprentices experiment with the angle of incidence. Their goal is to determine the optimum angle for collecting solar energy. The use of a scientific calculator is...
Virginia Department of Education
Mystery Anions
Lost an electron? You should keep an ion them. Young chemists learn qualitative analysis in the second activity of an 11-part chemistry series. After observing reactions of simple salts, the teacher provides pupils with unknown samples...
Virginia Department of Education
Acids and Bases
What did one titration say to the other titration? We should meet at the end point! Young chemists perform four experiments: dilute solution, neutralization, titration, and figuring pH/pOH.
Teach Engineering
Applications of Linear Functions
It's not so straightforward — lines can model a variety of applications. Pupils experience linear relationships within the context of science, including Hooke's and Ohm's Laws. Class members got a taste of motion and speed from the...
Curated OER
Solar Kit Lesson #1 - Solar Cell Inquiry
Give youngsters the components of a solar-powered electric circuit and turn them loose to figure out how to connect them in order for a light to shine or motor to turn. They compare energy output of a solar panel to that of a battery. On...
Curated OER
Water Pressure Blaster
Third graders complete an experiment to introduce them to the concept of water pressure. In this water pressure lesson plan, 3rd graders create pressure in a water bottle and observe the force of water that is created.
Carnegie Mellon University
Renewables Workshop
Youngsters examine resource maps to find out which states are using solar and wind power and discuss as a class various other renewable energy sources. They use a provided data table to record pros and cons to each technology, build and...
Curated OER
Water 1: Water and Ice
Students experiment with states of matter with water and ice. In this states of matter lesson plan, students experiment to discover what happens to water as it freezes to become a solid, ice. They observe what happens when ice melts back...
Acoustical Society of America
Musical Instruments
Mix it up and engage learners in a lesson on music and physical science. Using cups, strings, guitars, and voice, the class will experiment with sound vibration and frequency. They'll use each instrument and fill out a worksheet that...
Cornell University
What Is Rust?
Why do metals rust differently? Scholars experiment with metal combinations in a hands-on activity. They create unique environments with different metals and compare the rate and amount of rust for each.
Curated OER
Silly Semi-Solids
Students create a polymer out of glue, water, and borax. They discuss the resulting substance and perform several experiments with it.
Curated OER
Solar Car Series: Angle/Energy Amount
Does the angle of a solar panel change the output? Emerging engineers find out! Demonstrate for your class how they can angle a straw to match the angle of light rays coming from a source. Then turn them loose to experiment with the...
Teach Engineering
Hydrogen-Oxygen Reaction Lab
High schoolers conduct an experiment using the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen. After pairs balance the chemical equation for making water, they mix different ratios of hydrogen and oxygen in a chemical reaction. Classmates...
Discovery Education
It's Getting Hot in Here
Class members engage in a STEM experiment and investigate how materials affect heating in a house by creating models of houses and using different top surface materials. They record the temperature inside the models and consider what the...
Chymist
Alum from Waste Aluminum Cans
Turn aluminum cans into pickles! An engaging experiment has learners chemically change aluminum into a substance with many purposes including the manufacture of pickles. After performing the chemical conversion, the experimenters verify...
Space Awareness
Climate Zones
The climate at the equator is hotter than the climate at the poles, but why? The lesson plan goes in depth, explaining how the angles of illumination relate to the heating rate at different latitudes and seasons. Scholars use a strong...