National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Big vs. Little - Macro to Micro Lesson 2
The big world is full of tiny surprises. Classes discover all things big and small while completing the second lesson of a five-part series comparing macro- and micro-objects. Learners collect items from around the room including things...
Adrian College
The Universe
Young scientists create a simulation of Hubble's law. Introducing the Big Bang Theory using balloons and a simple lab worksheet, scholars complete a data table and perform analysis.
Center for Math and Science Education
Pocket Solar System
How in the world can something as big as the solar system possibly fit in your pocket? Complete this simple modeling activity and find out, as young scientists gain an appreciation for the incredible scale of outer space.
Curated OER
Big Enough?
Students explore the concept of density and buoyancy. In this physics lesson, students discover the different factors that affect an object's density and buoyancy in water. Students conduct several investigations to further...
Colorado State University
Why Do Raindrops Sometimes Land Gently and Sometimes with a Splat?
A mouse can fall from large heights without injury! Air resistance is a large influence on small falling objects. In an exploratory lesson, young scholars build a raindrop bottle to compare the falling rate of different-sized objects.
Maine Math & Science Alliance
Earth as a System
Ecosystem, human body system, weather system. We hear the word system a lot, but what does it really mean? In the activity, pairs or groups of learners discuss how a bicycle is a system and then analyze objects in their classroom and...
Curated OER
Nanaotechnology: Small Science, BIG DEAL!
Students read an article that introduces them to the science and applications of nanotechnology. They discuss the the everyday examples of how nanotechnology is and can be used. In small groups, they observe and make inferences about...
Curated OER
HOW SMALL AM I? THE SCIENCE OF NANOTECHNOLOGY
Students study nanotechnology and investigate the dimensions of a nanoscale. In this nanometer study lesson students will see how truly small a nanometer is by measuring things such as a piece of hair.
Center for Learning in Action
Properties of Balls
Enhance your states of matter lessons with a hands-on science investigation that compares six different balls' color, texture, size, weight, ability to bounce, and buoyancy.
media.yurisnight.net
Science Lesson Plan: Our Solar System: I Wonder?
Ever wonder why Pluto isn't considered a planet? Or how large the Earth is compared to the other inner planets? Explore the universe with a series of projects that simulate different aspects of our solar system. The activities require...
Curated OER
Chandra Explores Angular Size
In this angular size instructional activity, students read about how astronomers determine the size of objects in the sky by using their angular size. Students are given equations that allow scientists to convert the angular size into...
Journey Through the Universe
Impact Craters: A Look at the Past
The Galle crater on Mars is also known as the Happy Face crater because of its appearance. First, scholars use pebbles and flour to simulate craters and study their properties. They then apply this knowledge to help decipher the history...
Curated OER
The Big "Why"
Learners examine the Q.& A. article found each week in the Science Times, focusing on how the answers present scientific data in a clear and logical manner. They write their own questions and answer other classmates' questions in the...
American Museum of Natural History
What is Astronomy?
Go study the universe. Pupils learn seven aspects about astronomy and astronomers. They begin to learn about constellations; distance and motion between objects; gravity; the electromagnetic spectrum; dark matter and energy; and teams of...
American Museum of Natural History
Solar System Scavenger Hunt
Scholars go on a hunt to locate objects that best fit the measurements to create an eye-catching scale model of the solar system.
Teach Engineering
An Inflated Impression of Mars
Help your class understand the magnitude of the distance between Earth and Mars with an activity that asks small groups to use balloons to create scale models of the Earth, Moon, and Mars. Class members figure out the distances...
Michigan Technological University
Giant Mirrors
Did you know some retailers use curved mirrors in their fitting rooms to make customers look thinner? Pupils view themselves in convex and concave mirrors to understand the difference. The resource includes big ideas for multiple age...
Curated OER
Target Earth
Space scientists use water displacement to determine the mass of a cubic centimeter mini meteorite, and then use it as a small-scale representative of an asteroid. They figure out the orbital velocity of an asteroid. Then they use a...
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Understanding Wave Motion - Slinky vs. Snaky: Which Spring is Dominant?
Ride the wave to an understanding of refraction! The first in a series of two inquiry-based lessons challenges learners to create transverse waves with two different types of springs. As their wave hits an object, they observe the change...
Curated OER
Liquid Rainbow
Students develop their own techniques for drawing a small sample of solutions into a straw. They hypothesize ways to increase the density of water, and discuss how salt-free rainwater tends to float on top of salty seawater.
Curated OER
Kids Camp
Here is a post-experiment lab sheet that is to be used with an activity involving diet coke and regular coke. There is also a graph that learners must complete which goes along with an experiment on density and volume of a variety of...
Curated OER
Types of Things
Students explore the differences between man-made and natural objects. In this lesson designed to compare properties of objects, students differentiate between natural and man-made objects and complete an activity designed to show what...
Curated OER
Science: Einstein's Big Idea
Students explore the various aspects of Einstein's energy equation and discover how energy is transferred from one form to another. In teams, they rotate through seven stations to experience such aspects of energy change through...
Curated OER
Newton's Second Law of Motion with Simple Machines
First graders study Newton's Second Law of Motion before demonstrating the concept with a simple machine. They sing a song about speed, force, mass, and acceleration. They use simple machines to demonstrate how objects that have a higher...