Science 4 Inquiry
Investigating How Heat Flows
It is impossible to cool down a glass of water by adding ice. Young scientists explore heat transfer through videos, experiments, and interactive games. They quickly catch on that the water melts the ice and things aren't always as they...
Curated OER
Energy Choices
Students add and multiply decimals to complete gas choice worksheets. They discover which gas supplier has the best gas prices. Students collect and interpret data about local natural gas suppliers and use this information...
Curated OER
Get to Know Glass
Students learn about the properties of glass. For this making and molding glass lesson, students participate in an experiment where they will learn how glass is created and how it is shaped to create bottles and jars. Students also...
Teach Engineering
Life Cycles
Breathe some life into product design. Pupils learn about the stages of product creation, use, and disposal—sometimes called a cradle-to-grave assessment. They see how this cycle relates to the life cycle of organisms.
Curated OER
How to Make a Wind Vane
Students measure the direction of the wind. In this Science instructional activity, students make their own wind vane. Students discuss the importance of wind direction and speed.
NOAA
Ocean Exploration
Sea explorers and scientists have found that because of temperatures being two to three degrees Celsius at the bottom of the ocean, most animals are lethargic in order to conserve energy. In this web quest, pairs of learners read about...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Investigation: Automotive Emissions and the Greenhouse Effect
It is recommended that you conduct this fabulous experiment as a whole-class demonstration. Collect air samples from the environment, human exhalation, and car exhaust, then compare them for carbon dioxide content using bromthymol blue...
Virginia Department of Education
Determining Absolute Age
How can radioactive decay help date old objects? Learners explore half-life and radioactive decay by conducting an experiment using pennies to represent atoms. Young scientists graph data from the experiment to identify radioactive decay...
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Auroras
Learn the science behind one of the most beautiful acts of nature. A comprehensive lesson explores the causes and characteristics of auroras. The instruction also explains the differences among auroras and what the differences indicate...
American Museum of Natural History
Horse Gaits Flipbooks Walk, Trot, and Gallop!
Scholars follow seven steps to create horse-themed flipbooks. Three printable options allow them to choose from walking, trotting, or galloping scene.
Curated OER
Corn Harvest
Learners read Corn Belt Harvest and write sentences about corn's uses. They visit a cornfield and a grain elevator or have guest speakers come to class. They design posters about harvesting or processing corn into grain.
California Academy of Science
Greening Your Middle School
Middle schoolers redesign their school to make it more energy efficient, and create a model of their design. Learners get together in groups of 5, and they take on the task of making their school more energy efficient. To do this, they...
Curated OER
Cell Wall Recipe: A Lesson on Biofuels
Biotech engineers discover that changes in the DNA code for cell wall formation can help create crops better suited for biofuel production. They extract DNA from wheat germ. They decode paper strips with codes and relate the activity to...
Curated OER
Breaking it Down
High schoolers will identify the factors that contribute to erosion and weathering. They will start by differentiating between chemical and mechanical weathering. They then apply what they learned by playing the online jeopardy game. Key...
Curated OER
Recycling
Students relate recycling to waste reduction. In this science lesson, students talk about the environment and how recycling certain natural resources actually saves on energy. They also discuss what type of recycling causes...
Curated OER
Forest Products
Students study forests and understand their reliance on forest products and examine their choices between renewable and non renewable resources. In this forest products lesson students read several articles, complete a short...
Curated OER
Formation of Fossil Fuels
Students research the origin of oil and natural gas to gather an understanding of the stages of fossil fuel formation. Then the class creates murals depicting the life cycle of a fossil fuel.
Curated OER
Radiation: To Worry or Not to Worry
Young scholars distinguish safe forms of radiation from those that are dangerous. Students watch a video about sources of radiation encountered every day. Young scholars estimate their own annual radiation exposure.
Curated OER
Radiation: To Worry or Not to Worry
Students distinguish safe forms of radiation from those that are dangerous. Students watch a video about sources of radiation encountered every day. Students estimate their own annual radiation exposure.
Curated OER
The Many, Varied, and Unusual Places and Things on Earth
Students discover how energy flows through communities because of the relationship between producers, consumers and decomposers. Examining various ecosystems, they identify the materials that cycle continuously through them. They label...
Curated OER
Plugged in to CO2
Students use a meter to measure the energy used and carbon produced by electronics and appliances. In this environmental science and technology lesson, students use a Kill-A-Watt meter to determine the electricity used by everyday...
Curated OER
Harvest the Wind
Wind is a natural resource available around the world. Help your pupils appreciate the power and importance of wind by researching wind farms, making pinwheels, and designing windmills.
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Conservation: Water
Here is a fantastic experiment-based lesson on water conservation, waste, and filtration. The lesson plan is well-developed and provides background information, discussion leads, and six scripted lab activities anyone can do. The class...
Curated OER
Everyday vs. Extreme Relationships with Nature
Students examine the interactions with nature and the environment. They discover where water comes from and ways to conserve water. They also examine energy sources and consumption.