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Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Cooking With the Sun Creating a Solar Oven

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
For this activity, students will be given a set of materials: cardboard, a set of insulating materials (i.e. foam, newspaper, etc.), aluminum foil, and Plexiglas. Students will then become engineers in building a solar oven from the...
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Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: What Is Heat?

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Students learn about the definition of heat as a form of energy and how it exists in everyday life. They also learn about the three types of heat transfer as well as the connection between heat and insulation.
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Handout
Science4Fun

Science4 Fun: Conductors and Insulators

For Students 1st - 6th
Discover what materials make good conductors and insulators.
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Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: How Much Energy Do You Save by Doubling Insulation?

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students use the governing equation for steady state heat transfer across a surface to explore the effect of changing the insulation value on the amount of energy used.
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Activity
Museum of Science

The Atom's Family: Building a Better Pyramid

For Students 3rd - 8th
Help the Mummy conserve energy inside the pyramid by adding layers of insulation. By using this site you will find out what happens when you add more layers of insulation.
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Activity
Other

The Atom's Family: Cooling the Mummy's Tomb

For Students 3rd - 8th
Help the Pharaoh design a better tomb by investigating insulation materials.
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Lesson Plan
Other

Alliance to Save Energy: Educator Lesson Plans

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A series of teacher lesson plans for various grade levels. Topics pertain to insulation (among other things) and other energy conservation and energy efficiency topics. Can be easily adapted for a student project or lab investigation.
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Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers:nasa's Return to Flight: Testing Insulating Materials

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Examine online articles about the Columbia mission accident and liquid fuel propulsion. Conduct an experiment to determine the best material for insulation.
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Handout
PBS

Pbs: Who Made America?: Innovators: Samuel Insull

For Students 9th - 10th
This British-born businessman made cheap public utilities a reality for Americans, bringing them electricity and an improved quality of life.
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Unit Plan
Other

The Blobz Guide to Electric Circuits

For Students 3rd - 8th
An exciting interactive site of games, activities, information, and quizzes about electric circuits. You'll learn what makes circuits work, all about conductors and insulators, switches, changing circuits, and circuit diagrams. Learning...
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Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Conductivity

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students make a simple conductivity tester using a battery and light bulb. They learn the difference between conductors and insulators of electrical energy as they test a variety of materials for their ability to conduct electricity.
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Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Zero Energy Housing

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students investigate passive solar building design with a focus solely on heating. They learn how insulation, window placement, thermal mass, surface colors, and site orientation play important roles in passive solar heating. They use...
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Lesson Plan
Utah Education Network

Uen: Trb 3:5 Investigation 4 Heat Misconceptions

For Teachers 3rd
Gloves do not give heat, but will insulate or hold in any heat that is in your hand.
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Unknown Type
Physics Classroom

The Physics Classroom: Static Electricity Review

For Students 9th - 10th
This review from the Glenbrook South High School provides a series of questions on various topics associated with static electricity (such as electrical insulation). Answers and explanations are hidden, yet easily accessed from within a...
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Activity
Museum of Science

Miami Museum of Science: The Mummy's Tomb: Building a Better Pyramid

For Students 9th - 10th
Explore the effect of insulation as you add it to a pyramid. This simulation shows you how much energy is required to cool the pyramid as you add more layers.
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Interactive
BBC

Bbc Schools: Ks2 Bitesize: Science: Materials: Keeping Warm

For Students 3rd - 8th
Easy-to-understand overviews, with illustrations, a game, and quiz questions, about thermal conductors and insulators.
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Interactive
BBC

Bbc Schools: Ks2 Bitesize: Science: Physical Processes: Electrical Conductors

For Students 3rd - 8th
A review of electrical conductors and insulators, with diagrams, activities, and quiz questions.
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Website
NASA

Nasa: Engineering Design Challenges: Thermal Protection Systems Educator Guide

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This classroom activity teaches students to work in groups to design and build a thermal protection system simulating one on a space vehicle. Provides background information, lesson plans, and assessment questions.
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Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers: The Great Whales: Make a "Blubber Glove"

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Examine the whale's layer of insulating fat, known as blubber, and test the effectiveness of fat as an insulator. Discuss how humans use insulating materials to protect themselves from exposure to cold temperatures.
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Lesson Plan
ArtsNow

Arts Now Learning: Using Dance to Explore Electricity [Pdf]

For Teachers 5th
After analyzing examples of conductors and insulators, 5th graders will work in small groups to craft a dance that depicts an electrical current and how it is affected by a conductor or insulator. Students will present their dances to...
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Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Go With the Flow

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students gain an understanding of the difference between electrical conductors and insulators, and experience recognizing a conductor by its material properties. In a hands-on activity, students build a conductivity tester to determine...
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Activity
Maryland Science Center

Maryland Science Center: Build a Conductivity Tester [Pdf]

For Students 4th - 6th
Instructions on how to build an instrument that can be used to test which materials are conductors and which are insulators, in order to bridge a gap in an electrical circuit.
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Unit Plan
CK-12 Foundation

Ck 12: Fourth Grade Science: Physical Science: Electric Current

For Students 4th - 5th
[Free Registration/Login may be required to access all resource tools.] Defines electric current and relates electric current to different materials (insulators and conductors).
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Interactive
Concord Consortium

Concord Consortium: Semiconductors

For Students 9th - 10th
Semiconductors are the materials that make modern electronics work. Learn about the basic properties of intrinsic and extrinsic- or doped- semiconductors with several visualizations. Turn a silicon crystal into an insulator or a...

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