NASA
Revising an Investigation
Write, edit, and then revise! The fourth lesson in a five-part series asks peers to provide feedback on research. Individuals then use the research to edit and revise conclusions and develop their presentations.
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Investigation: Insulation
Youngsters compare the heat-holding abilities of three different cans by insulating two with different materials and measuring the temperature change of hot water over a 20-minute period.
Michigan State University
Gases Matter
Young scientists learn that seeing isn't necessarily believing when it comes to the states of matter. After performing a fun class demonstration that models the difference between solids, liquids, and gases, children complete a series of...
Curated OER
Building a Pill Bug Palace
Students make "pets" of isopods (potato bugs) to determine their preferred environment and food sources. They record their results on a bar graph and in a scientific report.
Curated OER
Barometer Investigation
Students construct a barometer to use in an experiment that they design to measure the air pressure on a daily basis. These observations of air pressure allow students to determine how weather is affected when a storm is approaching and...
Curated OER
Water-holding Capacity of Earth Materials
Students design and conduct an experiment to test their ideas about how to speed up or slow down the rate of an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. They have access to an array of physical and chemical factors that might influence enzyme...
Curated OER
Dirty Decomposers
Seventh graders design and conduct experiments to determine what environmental factors favor decomposition by soil microbes. They use chunks of carrot for the materials to be decomposed, and their experiments are carried out in plastic...
Curated OER
Ice Cold
High schoolers design and conduct an experiment to investigate what happens when salt and ice come together and to determine if one form of salt is better for melting ice on steps and sidewalks.
Curated OER
Hooke's Law
Students explore the relationship between the force applied to a spring and its stretch. They design and conduct an experiment to determine the stretch of spring with 15N of force without having an actual 15N mass.
Curated OER
Density and Buoyancy Experimental Design
Students must plan, design, and conduct an experiment that answers the scientific question: "Come up with a question that addresses the factors (variables) of the water and its effect on whether an object floats or sinks."
Curated OER
Stimulus/Response in Invertebrates
Students design and conduct and experiment to determine how invertebrates react to an outside stimulus such as light and other stimuli. Student must develop a clear plan of action, collect data in an organized manner and analyze their...
Curated OER
Exploring the MapleCopter
Study explore the motion of maple seeds and design experiments to explain their spinning flight patterns. They make observations, explain ideas of motion, use models, analyze previous reports and experiments, identify relevant factors...
Curated OER
Hydrated Salt
Learners plan, design, and carry out an experiment to determine an empirical formula for a hydrated salt X that tell students when all the water has been removed from hydrate crystals.
Curated OER
Car Wash
Learners determine the most appropriate site for a car wash, based on each site's soil characteristics (chemical, physical) and topographic features. They perform an experiment to determine the changes to three different soil types when...
Curated OER
Opposites Attract
Pupils demonstrate the attraction of small pieces of paper to a charged plastic rod and conduct experiment with other objects to determine whether they can hold a charge. They then use online applets to apply their experiments to...
Curated OER
Catalase Enzyme
Pupils design and conduct an experiment to test their ideas about how to speed up or slow down the rate of an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. They have access to an array of physical and chemical factors that might influence enzyme activity....
Curated OER
What Can We Lose? What Do We Lose as we Gain Force With A Lever?
Third graders view a demonstration of a teeter totter as a basis for assessing pre-knowledge of a lever. They create a KwL chart. Students work in small groups to conduct a variety of experiments. The first requires students to tie books...
Curated OER
Friction of a Block Weight
Fifth graders hypothesize and design an experiment to study the relationship between a block weight and the number of washers it takes to pull a block across various surfaces. Students graph results and apply their findings to a...
Curated OER
Food Forensics: A Case of Mistaken Identity
High schoolers develop an experiment to test a hypothesis. They use their knowledge of antigen-antibody specificity to develop a hypothesis. Students articulate that the antibody-antigen specificity is one part of the immune system. They...
Curated OER
Kites: Patang - The Indian Fighter Kite
Students investigate the history of fighter kites and build their own. In this aeronautics lesson, students discover how other countries utilize fighter kites and where they originated. Students create their own fighter kites in class...
Curated OER
Boyle's Law
Students experiment on Boyle's law using balloons and other common materials. In this chemistry instructional activity, students explain the relationship between pressure and volume. They solve problems relating to Boyle's Law.
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The Greenhouse Effect
Seventh graders investigate the temperature change in open and closed containers. In this earth science instructional activity, 7th graders relate this lab activity to greenhouse effect. They create a line graph from data collected in...
Curated OER
To Be Salty Sea Ice Or Not
Students explore what type of solutions freeze. They design their own experiments to compare how fresh water and salt water freezes. In addition, they write their observations in a journal and complete analysis questions.
Curated OER
Starch and Sugar Testing 2
Students design and conduct an experiment to determine which of three solutions contain starch or sugar. This task assess students' ability to make simple observations, design simple experiments, utilize indicators, and make generalized...