Virginia Department of Education
Charles’ Law
Searching for a relatively interesting way to demonstrate Charles' Law? Here is a instructional activity in which pupils heat air inside a flask and then cool the flask to quickly cool the air. They make observations about what occurs...
Curated OER
Our Solar System and Seasons
Sixth graders investigate the relative diameters of planets and distances between them and the cause for seasons on Earth using the 5-E Learning Model. They appreciate the size and distances involved with objects in the real universe....
Curated OER
Lab Experiments in Nutrition
Looking for authentic hands-on nutritional experiments? High schoolers will perform experiments to test for the presence of vitamin C in several solutions as well as the effect of caffeine on Daphnia. They will also consider the...
Curated OER
Water in the Geosphere
Through a PowerPoint presentation and the embedded animation and video, earth science enthusiasts find out about the moisture in the soil beneath our feet. In the animation, follow a water molecule on its path through the water cycle. As...
Virginia Department of Education
Physical and Chemical Properties of Water
How can you effectively provide detailed concepts of water properties to your high school class in a way they find exciting and challenging at the same time? By letting them play, of course! Through a variety of experiments, pupils...
Curated OER
Exploration of 'pill bugs'
Fifth graders define words. They create a dichotomous key. After carefully examining pill bugs, 5th graders record observations. They compare and contrast habitats of pillbugs.
Curated OER
Backyard Critters
Young scholars explore the characteristics of invertebrates in their backyards. They observe, describe, and classify specimens. They conclude with a "snail race."
Virginia Department of Education
Laboratory Safety and Skills
Avoiding lab safety rules will not give you super powers. The lesson opens with a demonstration of not following safety rules. Then, young chemists practice their lab safety while finding the mass of each item in a mixture and trying to...
Virginia Department of Education
DNA Structure, Nucleic Acids, and Proteins
What is in that double helix? Explain intricate concepts with a variety of creative activities in a lesson that incorporates multiple steps to cover DNA structure, nucleic acids, and proteins. Pupils explore the history of DNA structure,...
Virginia Department of Education
Acid-Base Theory
Litmus paper, why so blue? A chemistry lesson includes a pre-lab activity, practice calculating pH, an experiment measuring the pH in acids and bases, a titration demonstration, and a titration experiment.
Texas State University
Earth: Deposition and Lithification
Geology geniuses analyze sediment samples with a hand lens and sort according to physical characteristics. They also learn about the processes of cementation, compaction, and lithification within the rock cycle. The lesson plan is...
NASA
Analyzing Tiny Samples Using a Search for the Beginning Mass Spectrometry
Teach the basics of mass spectrometry with a hands-on lesson. The fourth in a series of six lessons explores how mass spectrometry measures the ionic composition of an element. Learners then compare and contrast relative abundance and...
Virginia Department of Education
Vapor Pressure and Colligative Properties
Hate to vacuum, but enjoy using a vacuum pump? Explore a lesson plan that starts with a demonstration of boiling water at various temperatures by using a vacuum pump. Then scholars design their own experiments to measure vapor pressure...
Virginia Department of Education
States of Matter
Scientists have been studying exothermic reactions before they were cool. The lesson begins with a discussion and a demonstration of heat curves. Scholars then determine the heat of fusion of ice and the heat needed to boil water through...
Virginia Department of Education
Thermochemistry: Heat and Chemical Changes
What makes particles attract? Here, learners engage in multiple activities that fully describe colligative properties and allow the ability to critically assess the importance of these properties in daily life. Young chemists conduct...
NASA
What's the Frequency, Roy G. Biv?
While all light travels at the same speed, each color in the visible light spectrum contains a different wavelength and frequency. Scholars determine the relationship between frequency and wavelength as they complete the activity. They...
Virginia Department of Education
Solution Concentrations
What happens when you combine 6.022 times 10 to the 23 piles of dirt into one? You make a mountain out of a mole hill. Scholars use dehydration to obtain percent composition and then calculate the molarity of the original solution.
Virginia Department of Education
Partial Pressure
At some point, everyone has been under pressure—even Dalton! Explore Dalton's law of partial pressures with young chemists as they measure the volume of air extracted from a sample compared to its original volume. Class members perform...
Curated OER
Exposure!
Students investigate that chemicals may affect different people in different ways. They also realize that their perceptions of dangerous materials may not be realistic and that the news media may not provide all the information needed to...
Curated OER
Digital Video Lesson Plan: Brine Shrimp
Learners participate in classroom experiment to gain better understanding of type of environment brine shrimp can best survive. Students then explore effects of common saltwater pollutants on survival of animals in sea.
NTTI
Vectors: Traveling, But in What Direction
High schoolers watch a video of real-world situations regarding speed, direction, velocity, force, etc. and answer questions while viewing. They then practice drawing and using vectors to solve more real-world problems.
Virginia Department of Education
Predator-Prey Simulation
Do your pupils have the misconception that environmental predators are "bad" and harm smaller creatures? The simulation explains, in detail, the important role predators play in maintaining a stable ecosystem. Through web-based research,...
Virginia Department of Education
Molar Volume of a Gas
What is a chemist's favorite plant? Stoichiome Tree! Scholars produce hydrogen gas by reacting magnesium with hydrochloric acid. Then they calculate the molar volume of the gas produced before answering assessment questions.
Curated OER
Ah Choo!
Students compare bacteria to viruses to find the differences. In this biology lesson, students research viruses they have been inoculated against, using the Internet. Students complete a graphic organizer of their research on common...