Curated OER
See the light
How do light and eyesight function? Read a brief passage explaining the phenomena of light and sight. Then have learners draw arrows showing how a boy in a room with a lamp would be able to see a chair. A mini-experiment suggestion is...
Curated OER
Bicycle Wheel Gyro
Using a bicycle wheel and a rotating stool, young physicists experiment with angular momentum. This is a simple, fun, and educational activity that demonstrates a foundational concept. If you can secure the materials, it is definitely...
Acoustical Society of America
Anatomy of a Wave
Pair physical science learners up, and have one describe a transverse wave while the other blindly attempts to draw it. Then reveal an actual diagram and explain the different parts of the wave: crest, trough, wavelength. Though most of...
Curated OER
Castaway or Survivor
What a clever idea! Chemistry learners imagine themselves deserted on an island with a radio, but no batteries. They also have a few odds and ends in their pockets and storage chest. They are challenged to create a battery that will...
Curated OER
The Magic School Bus Rocks and Rolls
Students participate in a science experiment to show them the power that water erosion has to sculpt stone. They explore how running water moves earth and creates new landforms.
Institute of Physics
Activities for STEM Clubs
Need some support or ideas of how to entertain middle schoolers or what clubs to bring into your school? Let this excellent 40-page resource guide with links and step-by-step directions on STEM activities guide your decision.
Columbus City Schools
What is in that?
Invite your class to dig in to an engaging journey into the world of mining! Here you'll find the tools to equip young miners with knowledge of soil, rocks, and minerals, as well as types of mining operations. To round things out, the...
Curated OER
Outdoor Activities: Taking Science Outside
Students participate in various outdoor science activities to enhance their observation, classification, and analysis skills. In this outdoor lesson, students begin by observing a tree from a straightforward angle, then from the...
Curated OER
Air Engine - Air Races
Students conduct an experiment about air volume, density, and pressure. In this air instructional activity, students discuss air, and how it moves. They make predictions about what will happen during the balloon and string experiment....
Curated OER
Planets in a Bottle
Learners experiment with yeast. In this environmental conditions lesson students test the viability of samples of yeast. Learners investigate the effects of environmental conditions on the yeast.
Curated OER
Google Earth Landforms
In this lesson, Google Earth Landforms, students research a landform that has been studied in class. Students explore Google Earth and record everything they find about their landform. Students have the opportunity to extend their...
Curated OER
Bubbles
Young scholars examine bubbles. For this early childhood science lesson plan, students experiment with different bubble wands and then share their insights.
Curated OER
The Five Senses
Teaching little ones about their five senses is always a fun experience. Accent your classroom with a fun image that shows real pictures of real kids hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting, and touching.
Teach Engineering
Fun with Air-Powered Pneumatics
How high did the ball go? Engineering teams build a working pneumatic system that launches a ball into the air. The teams vary the amount of pressure and determine the accompanying height of the ball. An extension of building a device to...
Curated OER
Earthquakes and Volcanoes
Even though volcanoes look alike, they can be very different based on the types of lava that erupts from their surface. Learn about strata volcanoes, shield volcanoes, and the varying viscosity of lava with an engaging hands-on activity....
Exploratorium
Thread the Needle
If you are setting up a rotation lab where learners are investigating vision at different stations, this activity can be used to explore depth perception. Setting up a giant needle eye, students attempt to pass a pencil through it with...
Curated OER
Pollination of Flowers by Moths
Turn your classroom into a pollination station as your kids transform into moths or predators trying to survive and aiding in plant reproduction along the way. Using silent party blowers as proboscises, the moths will have two minutes to...
Curated OER
Little Auk Survival Challenge
A bird's life is one of danger and intrigue as it struggles for survival in sometimes harsh environments. To understand how difficult surviving in the wild can be, children play a simulation game where they act as little auks, birds from...
Cornell University
Insect IPM
Find out the characteristics that makes a bug an insect with a workbook designed to inform scholars about the crawly creatures that live around us. Scholars complete an ant-themed word search, answer questions using a solution key, and...
Cornell University
Field Day: Be an IPM Detective
Become a pest detective! Individually or in small groups, scholars scout the land to discover which pests—plant and animal—inhabit it, determine whether the pests are endangering the environment, and summarize their findings.
Columbus City Schools
Constructive and Destructive Geologic Processes
Show the class the world as they've never seen it before—from way above! Learners try to unravel the mysteries presented by rich satellite imagery, learn to interpret topographic maps, and study erosion by constructing their very own...
Royal Society of Chemistry
Aspirin—The Wonder of Medicine
What do aspirin and the willow tree have in common? Scholars of chemical synthesis engage in a fascinating reaction to make their own aspirin samples. The lab uses thin layer chromatography analysis, includes stoichiometric calculations,...
American Museum of Natural History
Buried Bones
Patience is the name of the game. Using Plaster of Paris and chicken bones, learners simulate an archeological dig site. They excavate the chicken bones over a period of several days using tools and a large amount of patience.
Curated OER
Ruler and Magnifying Fun
First graders investigate objects using rulers and magnifying glasses. They record their observations using a data-recording sheet and write a characteristic for each item they observe. They use the ruler to solve math problems.