Beyond Benign
Product Test
It's the moment of truth. Previous lessons in the 24-part series had scholars design and develop shampoo formulas using chemical concepts. The 18th instructional activity asks them to test the function of their shampoos. To do this, they...
Beyond Benign
Breaking the Tension
The tension builds as learners experiment in your classroom. The 17th installment in a 24-part series has scholars investigate the concept of surface tension. After discovering characteristics of surface tension, they add a compound...
Beyond Benign
SLS Toxicology Test
Ingredients in your shampoo are toxic enough to kill plants. The 16th installment of the series of 24 tests the toxicity level of various concentrations of SLS, a chemical found in nearly all shampoo. Learners prepare percent solutions...
Beyond Benign
PPM
The 15th lesson in the series of 24 helps your classes understand the ppm (part per million) unit of measure. First, scholars experiment with food coloring to determine concentrations before applying their findings to calculate...
Beyond Benign
In a Lather
Time to come clean! Scholars continue preparing the shampoo they created in the previous two lessons. The purpose of this stage is to calculate the perfect amount of additive to make the shampoo lather.
Cornell University
Sound Waves
How does sound travel through different mediums? Scholars explore this question by creating and observing sound waves as they learn the difference between transverse and longitudinal wave motion. Using their new knowledge, class members...
Cornell University
Physics of Flight
Up, up, and away! Take your classes on a physics adventure. Learners explore the concepts important for flight. They experiment with the Bernoulli Principle while learning the forces that act on airplanes in flight.
Cornell University
Magnetic Mad Libs
Examine the science behind computer communication. After defining the properties of magnets, learners simulate how a computer hard drive works by sending each other binary codes using the magnets. They use these communications to...
Concord Consortium
Target Game—Distance/Force Relationship
Explore the relationship between the distance and the force of charged particles. Scholars adjust the location of charged particles to change the path of a launched particle. By displaying the electric field, they can make a connection...
Concord Consortium
Target Game—Charge Magnitude/Force Relationship
Build an electric field to direct a charged particle to a target. Scholars determine how location and strength of charge affect the electric field that surrounds the object. They complete two challenges to strengthen their understanding.
Concord Consortium
Target Game—Free Play
Challenge your classes to use electric fields to hit a target. Scholars place positively and negatively charged particles on a game board to direct a charged particle to a target. They can choose to view the electric field and force on...
CK-12 Foundation
Mean: Arithmetic Mean
How is a mean affected by changes in data? A well-designed animation allows individuals to manipulate data and watch the effect on the mean. Challenge questions help guide users to conclusions about outliers and skew within data.
CK-12 Foundation
Introduction to Mean, Median, and Mode: The Tree Conundrum
How many trees should we plant? Using an interactive as a manipulative, individuals find the mean, median, and mode for sets of data. They determine the number of trees to plant in each plot of land to reach a statistical goal.
CK-12 Foundation
Two-Sided Stem-and-Lead Plots: Gamers
Which gender spends more time playing video games? Your classes use provided data to answer this question. They first build a two-sided stem-and-leaf plot and then use the display to look for patterns. Guiding questions help them...
CK-12 Foundation
Understand and Create Stem-and-Leaf Plots: Stem-and-Leaf Plots
Explore the advantages to using a stem-and-leaf plot using an online lesson. Learners manipulate an animation to create a stem-and-leaf plot. They then calculate statistics for the data using their display. Guiding questions help them...
CK-12 Foundation
Line Graphs to Display Data Over Time: Strawberry Competition
Take the tediousness out of graphing. Using the interactive tool, learners can efficiently create a line graph from a set of data. They then use the graph to answer questions about specific trends in the data.
CK-12 Foundation
Line Plots from Frequency Tables: Sleep Cycles
Demonstrate the ease of using a frequency table. An interactive lesson allows learners to create a frequency table efficiently. Challenge questions ask your classes to analyze the data represented in the frequency table.
CK-12 Foundation
Understand and Create Line Graphs: Line Graphs
Explore line graphs and their characteristics through an interactive lesson. Scholars follow a set of directions to plot data on a line graph. They then answer questions about the type of variables, minimum and maximum values, and...
Cornell University
Chemical Reactions
Investigate the Law of Conservation of Mass through a lab exploration. Individuals combine materials to initiate chemical reactions. They monitor for signs of reactions and measure the masses before and after the reactions for comparison.
Cornell University
Electroplating
Silver pennies and copper nickels are made possible by applying some chemistry. Learners use electrolysis to coat a penny with zinc sulfate and a nickel with copper sulfate. Their investigation builds an understanding of electroplating...
Cornell University
Discovering Enzymes
Explore the function of enzymes through a series of lab investigations. Learners use household enzymes such as hydrogen peroxide to model the role of enzymes. The enzymes break down proteins with and without a catalyst.
PBS
Why Do We Have Seasons?
Explore the reason for the seasons! An interactive lesson allows learners to explore the earth's rotation from the viewpoint of four cities at different latitudes. It provides descriptive information at eight points during the orbit...
Cornell University
Nano Interactions
Tiny particles can provide big learning opportunities! Middle school scientists explore the world of nanoparticles through reading, discussion, and experiment. Collaborative groups first apply nanotechnology to determine water hardness....
Maker Media
Makerspace Playbook
Make the most of project-based learning with Makerspace. A playbook shows instructors and other interested parties how to set up a Makerspace and Maker community to foster STEM projects. It gives ideas for startup activities and for...