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National Institute of Open Schooling
Atomic Structure
Learners explain historical findings such as Rutherford and Bohr's contributions, explain wave particle duality, and formulate Heinsenberg's uncertainty principle. They also draw s, p, and d orbitals, explain more historical findings,...
National Institute of Open Schooling
Mole Concept
Learners explore atomic measurement in the first activity in a series of 36. Through readings, activities, and questions, classes review standard SI units, learn about Avogadro's constant, and use it to help them calculate moles. They...
National Wildlife Federation
Branching Out – Exploring Dendrochronology
Tree rings from North America give a continuous history of El Nino intensity over the last 1,100 years. Scholars learn how scientists use tree rings to create timelines demonstrating variations in weather patterns. The cumulative...
PHET
Conductivity
Human bodies can conduct electricity—that doesn't sound like it would feel good! Learners explore conductivity through the use of this simulation. They see why metals conduct electricity and plastics don't and why some materials will...
PHET
Bending Light
Different colors of the spectrum travel at different speeds through media, causing them to refract at different angles—which allows humans to see their colors. Through a simulation, pupils see how air, water, and other media bend light....
Normal Community High School
Chemical Equations
Viewers learn how to identify the substances in a chemical reaction, how to balance it, and the different types of chemical reactions by watching a presentation that also includes a review of monomers and polymers. The presentation...
University of Colorado
Are All Asteroids' Surfaces the Same Age?
Did you know scientists can tell the age of an asteroid by looking closely at its craters? This final activity of a six-part series focuses on two asteroids, Gaspra and Ida, in order to demonstrate the concept of dating asteroids....
Messenger Education
Cooling with Sunshades
Messenger's sun shade measures 8 ft x 6 ft and will have temperatures reaching 700 degree Fahrenheit on the outside while maintaining a cool 70 degrees underneath. In the third activity of four, groups discuss the basic properties of...
PHET
Capacitor Lab
The first capacitor was a Leyden jar, invented in 1745. Physics scholars explore capacitors in an engaging simulation. They may view one or set up circuits which contain two to three either in series or parallel. Other views include...
PHET
Battery Voltage
Pupils explore modern batteries and how they work by viewing a simple simulation. It shows electrons moving around the insides and if the voltage is changed, little people move the particles from one end to the other — an entertaining...
PHET
Battery-Resistor Circuit
Don't be resistant to physics! A simulation shows classes how a resistor works. Change the battery voltage and resistance to show how this affects the flow of electrons. Temperature and amps measurements are shown for the system as...
Messenger Education
Can You Hear Me Now?—Communicating with Spacecraft
Radio signals transmitted to Pluto take five hours to reach their destination! In these two activities, young scientists explore data communication in space. In activity one, pupils learn how data is gathered and sent back to Earth....
Messenger Education
Exploring Solar Systems Across the Universe
Scientists have theorized that our solar system formed 4.6 billion years ago. For this pair of activities, learners first hypothesize how our solar system was formed. Using this information, groups then determine how scientists search...
Consortium for Ocean Science Exploration and Engagement (COSEE)
Life in an Ocean World
How does the shell color of crabs and the habitat they live in impact the predator-prey relationship? The fourth lesson in a series of five is a game where participants try not to get eaten if they are a prey and try to eat if they are...
University of Colorado
Looking Inside Planets
Researchers use scientific data to understand what is inside each of the planets. The first in a series of six, this lesson builds off of that concept by having pupils use a data table to create their own scale models of the interiors of...
Messenger Education
Give Me a Boost—How Gravity Assists Aid Space Exploration
The propellant needed for space explorations runs in the thousands, while paying to get the craft into orbit costs millions! In the second installment of three, two activities explore laws of conservation of energy and momentum. Using...
Normal Community High School
Density
Change the density of water by adding minerals. The presentation discusses density—from the definition to calculations—and applies it to the real world. It briefly mentions specific gravity, and finishes by showing Archimedes'...
Normal Community High School
Scientific Measurement
Pupils learn everything from how to take scientific measurements, to accuracy/precision, to density and a plethora of topics from a presentation on the metric system.
Normal Community High School
Mole Calculations
You didn't know you'd find moles in chemistry class! Through the introduction of moles and molar volume at STP, classes see how to calculate moles using a given chemical equation. The presentation includes a short review of ions in...
NOAA
Deep-Sea Ecosystems – Chemosynthesis for the Classroom
Photosynthesis was discovered in the 1770s, but chemosynthesis wasn't discovered until 1977. While many have performed an experiment to show how photosynthesis works, the activity allows pupils to observe chemosynthesis. Scholars set up...
PhET
Neuron
Neurons send electrical signals throughout a body based on chemical communication. Individuals stimulate a neuron to see the effects. They notice the sodium-potassium channels along with ions, concentrations, and a membrane potential...
PhET
Rutherford Scattering
Rutherford performed his famous experiment in 1907 with Marsden, showing the true atomic structure. This interactive simulation compares Rutherford's historical experiment to the Plum pudding model of the atom. In both models, alpha...
PhET
Molarity
All chemists know that moles are made of molecules. Individuals see how changes in the amount of solute affect the concentration of the solutions. By manipulating solute amounts (moles), solution volume (liters), and solute types, the...
NOAA
Community Ecology and Sampling
Seamounts in the Coral and Tasman Seas are home to more than 850 different species. Groups explore hydrothermal vents, researching the organisms found there and their energy source. They also learn about seamounts, exploring their unique...