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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sticky Books

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders investigate items that are magnetic and those that are not. They determine the properties of the magnetic items. They create a digital book that demonstrates what they have learned about magnetism.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rising Water!

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students observe water change from a liquid to a gas state when heated and then return to its liquid stage when cooled. They learn that gas molecules move faster than liquid molecules. They discover physical properties that describe how...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

You Light Up My Life: Developing a Scientific Theory for What Fuels a Candle's Flame!

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Young scholars examine how candles work and how scientific theories are developed and tested. Students propose hypotheses about what is burning in a candle then perform tests in order to develop their scientific theory. After a teacher...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Identifying Elements

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Young scholars use diffraction glasses to find similarities and differences between observed spectrum of fluorescent light and an incandescent light They work in groups of 4-6 for the experiment/activity part of this exercise.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Magnetic Discovery Bottle

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students examine how to conduct simple investigations and use simple equipment to gather data.  In this magnet activity students decide what types of objects are attracted to magnets. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Temperature and Enzymes

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students compare the times it takes the milk in each of two cups to curdle. They are told that an enzyme that is added to the milk, rennin, is involved in the natural curdling process of milk. Students are asked to consider what...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Am I Sticky

For Teachers 4th
Fourth graders become familiar with magnets and their properties. They investigate what items are magnetic and non-magnetic and make generalizations about the properties. They utilize technology to develop an interactive digital book.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

What Makes Good Long Undies?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine a variety of different types of fabrics and discuss what characteristics would make a good pair of long underwear for a journey to Antarctica. They investigate the properties of various fabrics and determine how they...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Rock Identification Lab

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders compare and contrast the three different types of rock. For this earth science lesson, 8th graders classify rock samples according to their correct rock type. They design their own data collection table.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Creating Biodiesel and Mitigating Waste

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Biotechnology pros produce their own biofuel using waste oil and fresh vegetable oil. They test the quality of their product using titration techniques and pH analysis. They write their observations and report their findings. Be aware...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Changing Planet: Rising Ocean Temperatures - Rising Sea Levels

For Teachers 5th - 9th
As an anticipatory set, young environmental technicians watch a video about how ocean temperatures seem to be changing along with the global climate. They perform a laboratory demonstration with the purpose of observing what happens to...
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Activity
Curated OER

The BEAM Project: Building Efficient Architectural Models

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Technology or engineering teams are given a task to design, construct, and test the efficiency of a structure that will foster an even temperature throughout an entire sunny day. Intended as a long-term project, pupils research, plan,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Changing Planet: Black Carbon - a Dusty Situation

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Introduce your young meteorologists to black carbon produced by the burning of fossil fuels by showing the video, "Changing Planet: Black Carbon." Viewers discover that deposition of this carbon on polar ice impacts the absorption of...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Photons in the Radiative Zone: Which Way Is Out? An A-Maz-ing Model

For Students 9th - 12th
Can you move like a photon? Young scholars use a maze to reproduce the straight line motion of a photon. The second in a six-part series of lessons on the sun has learners measure angle of incidence and refraction to determine the path...
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Lesson Plan
Discovery Education

Cushion It!

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Sugar cubes, collide! Groups design protection systems using bubble wrap to protect sugar cubes from being destroyed by falling batteries in the STEM lesson. They consider how the experiment relates to collisions in real-world...
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Lesson Plan
Cornell University

Electric Vocabulary

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Practice electric vocabulary using multiple methods. Learners begin by watching a video that explains vocabulary related to electric currents. They match vocabulary cards to practice and then create an electric circuit. Using the...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Dry Ice: Simply Sublime

For Teachers 4th - 10th
A fascinating lesson on states of matter is here for your young scientists. Dry ice is used to challenge learners preconceived notions about how solids work. They discover all sorts of interesting facts about states of matter from...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Solar Sweet Tea

For Teachers Pre-K - 2nd
Students study the sun. In this heat energy lesson, students use the sun's warmth to make tea. They place a few jars with tea bags and water in the sun and discuss what the sun is doing to the water while they wait for the tea to brew....
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Ice Cube Experiment

For Teachers Pre-K - 2nd
Students explore the rate at which ice melts. In this science lesson, students place ice cubes on colored index cards and place them in direct sunlight. Students observe which ice cubes melt fastest and slowest.
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Lesson Plan
Discovery Education

It's Too Loud!

For Teachers 6th - 8th
STEM scholars investigate sound attenuation by conducting an experiment in which they compare the farthest distance that they can hear a sound with and without ear protection.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Environmental Studies: The Power of Wind

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Investigate the prospect of wind as a renewable resource. Second and third graders make a pinwheel, answer critical thinking questions, and then attempt to use wind power to wind string. I would be more apt to use this lesson in a 1st or...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Comparing Data

For Teachers 8th
Eighth graders create a survey, gather data and describe the data using measures of central tendency (mean, median and mode) and spread (range, quartiles, and interquartile range). Students use these measures to interpret, compare and...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sports Helmets and Impact Testing of Polymers

For Teachers 5th - 9th
Students examine the importance of good quality safety gear. In this investigative instructional activity, students will tests various polymers, collect data, and analyze the data to determine which polymer is best for safety helmets....
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Activity
Curated OER

The Bio-fuel Project: Creating Bio-diesel

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students investigate bio-fuel. In this investigative lesson, students create bio-fuel from vegetable oil waste. Students will analyze, predict, collect and synthesize data from their experiments with bio-fuel.