Baylor College
Magnifying and Observing Cells
Though it isn't a novel activity to prepare onion cell and Elodea plant cell slides as examples of cells in a microbiology unit, this resource will leave you thoroughly prepared. As pupils examine the slides that they prepare, they draw...
Northwest High School Science
Metric Conversion: Stair-Step Method
Elevate young scientists' skills with unit conversion using the stair-step method. Detailed instructions and a neat stair-step diagram are on the first page. Four pages of practice problems follow, mostly with real-world applications....
Baylor College
Drugs, Risks and the Nervous System
In cooperative groups, middle schoolers contemplate the probability of 18 different situations occurring. After they make predictions, they compare them to the actual risk factors. This eye-opening exercise demonstrates that the odds of...
Baylor College
Neural Network Signals
Using a simple circuit with the battery representing the brain, future physiologists test to see which solutions conduct electrical "nerve impulses." Enlighten learners with plentiful information on electric signals in the nervous system...
Perkins School for the Blind
Building an Organic Molecule
Glucose is a simple sugar and a molecule that can be illustrated through modeling. Scientific investigators with visual impairments use hands-on models to reconstruct the process of bonding molecules. The tools used in this activity are...
Baylor College
Pre-Assessment: The Brain
Break your class in to the general structure and function of the brain. Brainiacs discuss what they know about it and create personalized brain development timelines. They also take a true-false, pre-assessment quiz to get them thinking...
Baylor College
What Is a Neuron?
Your class won't get on your nerves while doing this modeling activity! After teaching the structure and function of a neuron using the included diagrams, give individuals some clay and chenille stems so that they can make their own...
Baylor College
Neurotransmitters Contain Chemicals
Human body systems students play a card game, "Locks & Keys" in order to learn that neurotransmitters carry a message from one neuron to another by fitting into a receptor site on the receiving nerve cell. While this activity can...
Baylor College
Crossing the Synaptic Gap
As part of a unit on the chemistry of the brain, thinkers learn how chemicals work to transmit messages between individual neurons and how controlled substances impact the synaptic cleft. They do so by playing a dice-and-card game in...
Scholastic
Study Jams! The Nervous System
Get your class thinking with animations of neurons in action and explanations of how stimuli is transported and processed. This film makes an ideal introduction or review of the nervous system. The parts of the brain and what they...
Scholastic
Study Jams! The Senses: Hearing
How does this sound? It's a rockin' video starring two teenage girls talking about music, hearing, and the ear. Listeners hear that the ear does not only gather sound waves, but also helps us maintain balance. They also will get an...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Population Growth
Along came a spider, who sat down beside her. She screamed, but RJ wouldn't smash it because spiders are a limiting factor for other insects in an ecosystem. In this video, other common limiting factors for populations are listed....
Scholastic
Study Jams! Ecosystems
With the forest as an example, Sam and Zoe talk about the components biotic and abiotic of an ecosystem. They also discuss the role of producers, consumers, and decomposers. This concise clip covers all of the basics. As an introduction...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Skeletal System
A dazzling display colorful computer-generated images, x-rays, and photographs create a comprehensive introduction to the skeletal system. With 12 slides in all, aspiring anatomists learn that there are 206 bones in the human body and...
Scholastic
Study Jams! The Digestive System
Mostly made up of colorful diagrams, this presentation winds through the digestive system. Beginning with the mouth, passing by the liver, and then leaving the body, viewers examine the length of the digestive system on captioned slides....
Scholastic
Study Jams! Mosses and Ferns
Mosses and ferns are some of the world's oldest types of plants. Here is a quality 10-slide presentation set to gentle background music for beginning botanists to view and enjoy. Accompanying captions explain that these are both...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Aquatic Ecosystems
Mia's friends are fish-sitting while she is away on vacation. Zoe divulges to Sam that different animals need different habitats, and that there are both freshwater and saltwater ecosystems. Examples of the kinds of organisms found in...
Scholastic
Study Jams! The Circulatory System
The topic of this video is sure to get hearts pumping! Mia and Zoe just finish racing and discuss what is going on in the circulatory system. They expound on the capillaries, veins, arteries, the structure of the heart, and the...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Heredity
Mia wishes her blue hair was inherited so that she wouldn't have to dye it, but Sam explains that eye color is. The video does not expound upon the concept of alleles. It does, however, describe inherited traits vs. learned behavior, and...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Plants with Seeds
Are your blooms doomed? Not if you plant your seeds in the proper condition! Cartoon character teenagers explore seed-bearing plants, germination, and seed dispersal. They compare gymnosperms with cones, angiosperms with flowers. They...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Angiosperms: Seeds in Fruit
Flowers are lovely, but they are also very practical if you are a plant! In this video, kids learn that without a flower, there would be no seeds. They also find out about the two types of seeds: monocots and dicots. Pollination and...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Photosynthesis
One friend explains to another that plants combine water and carbon dioxide with the energy of the sun to produce sugar and oxygen. She mentions the roles of the roots, chloroplasts, and stomata in an engaging video that reviews how...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Flowers
RJ hangs out in Zoe's garden as she explains pollination, flower anatomy, and fertilization. This cartoon-styled feature is sure to stay in your botanists' minds! Follow it with the dissection of large flowers, such as the lily.
Scholastic
Study Jams! Gymnosperms: Seeds in Cones
Two very hip teenagers walk through the forest collecting evergreen cones. One teaches the other about gymnosperms: cycads, ginkoes, gnetophytes, and conifers. He tries to convince his friend how amazing cones are, while she defends...