Curated OER
Keep it Active
Learners explore the active layer above permafrost and investigate various factors on the insulation value of the active layer. In this energy transfer instructional activity, students conduct and experiment to determine the effects of...
Curated OER
Thermodynamics
For this thermodynamics worksheet, students read about conduction, convection and radiation. They answer 47 questions about heat transfer, thermal equilibrium, insulators, conductors and the states of matter.
Curated OER
Stop Heat from Escaping
Students explore the uses of insulation and describe how insulation helps to conserve energy. They work in groups and use plastic, wool, paper and aluminum to experiment with the heat-retaining properties of various materials.
Curated OER
Electricity: Static and Current
Students investigate static and current electricity. In this electricity lesson plan, students observe 4 demonstrations and conduct 3 activities to explore the repulsion of electrons and the attraction of protons and electrons. They...
Curated OER
Heat Discrepancies
Students answer the question, "Why do Eskimos build houses out of ice to keep warm. Since heat goes from hot to cold, don¿¿¿t the ice walls take away the warmth inside the house?" They explain how snow or ice can actually be insulators.
DiscoverE
Squishy Circuits
Make electricity flow through Play-Doh. Individuals create animals or other creatures using Play-Doh. The engineering aspect? Eyes that light up and Play-Doh that conducts electricity.
Curated OER
Insulators, Conductors, and Energy Transfer
Third graders conduct experiments to determine what types of material make good insulators. They prepare a graph of time vs. temperature for their sample. They choose a graph using each kind of material to display for class analysis and...
Curated OER
Let it Shine
Fifth graders investigate concepts of electricity by watching a video about Ben Franklin, participating in a web activity about simple circuits and experimenting with creating simple circuits. They examine conductors and insulators.
Discovery Education
Cool It!
Adjust the melting time of ice without varying the temperature! Learners experiment with different materials to decide how the materials affect the rate an ice cube melts. They then connect their findings to the conductivity of each...
Curated OER
What is Electric Current?
In this electric current worksheet, students will complete a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting the characteristics of conductors and insulators.
Curated OER
IPC Physics
In this physics review learning exercise, learners compare inertia and momentum, insulators and conductors, and series and parallel circuits. Students review Newton's laws. This learning exercise has 20 fill in the blank, 12 matching,...
Curated OER
Charge and Electricity
In this electricity activity, students read about electric charge, ionic notation, and conductors and insulators. Then students complete 19 matching, 6 fill in the blank, and 2 short answer questions.
Curated OER
Conductors and Insulators
Students describe safe practices that are appropriate to a range of situations and environments. They discuss how electricity runs through wires that are insulated so that it cannot escape and determine that you can get electrocuted if...
Curated OER
Testing for Conductivity
Students test the conductivity of selected liquids and solids. They test the circuit by touching the two free ends of the wires together and add salt little by little recording the data after each addition. Finally, students predict...
Curated OER
Get Charged!
Students explore the concept of electricity in this activity based unit. In this physical science lesson plan, students focus on electricity and electrical engineering. The teaching unit includes 5 activities to develop students...
Curated OER
Scientific Method Experiment: Factors Affecting How Ice Melts
Students demonstrate the scientific method by conducting an ice cube melting experiment. They make predictions and observations, and conclude what factors make ice melt more slowly or quickly than normal.
Virginia Middle School Engineering Education Initiative
Save the Penguins: An Introduction to Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer
Heat things up in your physical science class with this interactive lesson series on thermodynamics. Through a series of class demonstrations and experiments, young scientists learn how heat is transferred through conduction, convention,...
Urbana School District
Electrostatics
Why did lightning shock the man? Because it didn't know how to conduct itself. Presentation covers electric charges, insulators, conductors, electroscopes, lightning, generators, grounding, static electricity, and more. Presentation is...
Purdue University
Light – Just Right!
What does it mean to be resistant to electricity? Scholars answer the question in a six-part STEM instructional activity on electricity. They begin by assessing the conductivity of several different materials and progress to designing...
Mr. E. Science
Thermal Energy and Heat
The presentation covers Fahrenheit, Celsius, and Kelvin scales for temperature as well as conduction, convection, and radiation.
Curated OER
Introduction to Electricity
In this introduction to electricity worksheet, students define several key terms related to electricity. Students list examples of conductors and insulators in a chart. Students create insulators using given materials and describe the...
Curated OER
Simple Circuit
In this circuits worksheet, students follow directions on how to make a light bulb light and answer questions about it. Students answer 1 question about an insulator and 1 about a conductor.
Curated OER
Heat And Heat Transfer
Students role play molecules in a container as the container is heated to develop a definition of heat and temperature. They also observe demonstrations of conduction, convection, radiation, and phase transfer. Using these observations...
Curated OER
Was Goldilocks Telling the Truth?
Sixth graders explore the movement of heat between objects. In this heat lesson, 6th graders use the scientific method to conduct guided experiments regarding conduction, convection, and radiation.