Space Awareness
Sun, Earth and Moon Model
The moon orbits Earth while the Earth is rotating, and the Earth revolves around the sun. This can be a tricky concept for young astronomers. Implement an activity that helps distinguish between the movements of Earth's systems around...
Space Awareness
Make a Star Lantern
Go star-gazing with young learners! They study the history, origins, and patterns of constellations in an activity that explores the starry night sky.
NOAA
Why is Hawaii's Ocean Important?
Studying the oceans? Focus on Hawaii's ocean with a resource packed with activity-based worksheets. Everything from products that come from the ocean to the abundance of plants and animals that call the ocean their home, Hawaii's ocean...
Curated OER
Math in the Wetlands Field Trip
Get your class out in the environment for hands on math activities. For this wetlands lesson, learners transplant native plants, calculate how much soil is needed, and perform math activities based on this experience. They then make...
Department for Children, Schools and Families
Explaining Change Processes Using a Simple Particle Model of Matter
The more things change, the more they stay the same. This unit includes seven lessons starting with physical change and moving through to chemical change. Conservation of matter is explained clearly with multiple hands-on activities and...
Curated OER
Erosion in Different Soils
Fourth graders observe and identify the effects of weathering and geological activities. They take part in an excellent hands-on group activity called "Erosion Race," in which each group tries to simulate erosion of soil in the quickest...
California Academy of Science
Sorting the Solar System
Scientists are always sorting and classifying objects based on their characteristics. In a hands-on learning activity, young space explorers work together to categorize solar system cards based on their properties. It is up to the...
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
Build Your Own Aquifer
Ever wondered how an aquifer works? Introduce your class to the amazing way many people get water by exploring how underground aquifers work. Two fun hands-on activities are used to help kids understand what an aquifer is, how it works,...
Foundation for Water & Energy Education
What is the Water Cycle? Activity B
Curious physical scientists follow a lesson plan on the properties of water with this lesson plan on distillation. They observe a miniature water cycle model that filters dirty water into clean water. These two lessons combined are an...
Virginia Department of Education
Heat and Thermal Energy Transfer
How does radiation affect our daily lives? Answer that question and others with a lesson that discusses radiation and its use in thermal energy transfer through electromagnetic waves. Pupils investigate vaporization and...
Community Resources for Science
Food Webs/Clipfish
Human impact on habitats can be alarming. A hands-on activity has learners explore the impact of human interactions with different environments using a gamified approach. They simulate the impact of a species' abundance under different...
National Wildlife Federation
Danger from Afar: Non-Point Source Pollution and the Lake Superior Basin
How prevalent is pollution in the water system? A hands-on activity focuses on one area that is prone to pollution. Learners use game chips to represent clean water and polluted water and complete an activity that demonstrates how...
University of Minnesota
C. elegans and Alcohol
Investigate experimental design through a hands-on exploration. A creative lesson allows learners to design an experiment to monitor the effects of alcohol on the C. elegans worm. After conducting the experiment, individuals analyze...
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Nanotechnology Invention and Design: Phase Changes, Energy, and Crystals
What does it take to be considered a smart material? Learners investigate the properties of Nitinol, a smart material, through a hands-on lab activity. They examine the crystal lattice structure and the conditions required for Nitinol to...
University of Waikato
Solid to Liquid to Gas
Help classes understand heat as a form of energy. A hands-on activity has learners investigate how heat, or the lack of heat, affects the physical state of water. They then connect their discoveries to the water cycle.
Purdue University
Rolling with Roller Coasters
Sometimes science is all fun and games! A hands-on STEM activity asks learners to design and create models of roller coasters. They analyze the motion using a marble and describe the areas of maximum kinetic and potential energy.
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Learning About Surface Area and Volume
Plan a dinner party. Using a book by Marilyn Burns as a context, pupils learn about the relationships between area and perimeter and surface area and volume. The hands-on activities have learners rearrange tables and cut up meatballs to...
Pace University
Pollution
Over the course of 10 days, scholars take a pre-assessment to place them in one of three leveled groups. Whole-class and in small groups, pupils take part in read-alouds, field trips, hands-on activities, and complete learning contracts...
Science Matters
Digestive System Simulation
What do a sandwich bag and a mouth have in common? Your classes are about to find out in a hands-on lesson that has groups build models of the digestive system. Using a little imagination, learners use everyday materials to create a...
Bonneville
How Much Energy Do YOU Use?
Determine the power hog in the house. Pupils learn the difference between power and energy before participating in a hands-on activity. Using a power meter, pairs measure the actual power used for several household devices, estimate the...
Rural Science Education Program
Cells, Genetics, and Biotechnology
For scholars tired of reading the textbook, this unit includes nine hands-on lessons. Through group work, lab activities, experiments, and even one inquiry-based lesson, scholars apply knowledge about cells, genetics, and...
Curated OER
Hand Lotion Analysis
Students prepare a sample of a commercial hand lotion for analysis by HPLC to determine the percent composition of two common cosmetic preservatives, methylparaben and propylparaben. They perform the analysis and the data is evaluated to...
Curated OER
Take Your Class to the Moon
Get your kids talking about our lunar neighbor with these hands-on lessons.
University of Texas
Free-Body Diagram
Preparing for an AP test is about more than bubble sheets and memorization. The two activities in this resource require a direct application of skills learned throughout an AP Physics course.