Consumers Energy
Conductors and Insulators
Why did the orchestra director use a copper baton? She heard it makes a great conductor. Scholars select six items to test in a circuit to determine if each is a conductor or an insulator. Clear instructions for using electricity allow...
PHET
Projectile Motion
Have you ever wanted to shoot someone out of a canon? This simulation gives you that chance! In addition to a human, you can shoot a car, a piano, a cannon ball, and many other items. Scholars set the angle, initial speed, mass, air...
PHET
Ohm's Law
Why did Mr. Ohm marry Mrs. Ohm? He couldn't resistor. An electrifying simulation allows scholars to control both voltage and resistance in order to see the current change. The formula is displayed and as you increase one variable, it...
PHET
My Solar System
Orbit diagrams appear to be a work of mathematical art. The simulation helps scholars build their own systems of planets, stars, moons, etc., to observe their orbits. By altering their positions, velocities, and masses, a variety of...
PHET
Hooke's Law
Everything from pens to cars use springs — some are just on a larger scale! An interactive simulation encourages pupils to stretch and compress springs while observing the changes to force, displacement, and potential energy. Then they...
PHET
Masses and Springs
Have you ever stretched out a Slinkie so much it wouldn't go back to its original shape? Slinkies, like all springs, follow Hooke's Law. A simulation uses springs and masses to demonstrate kinetic, potential, and thermal energy. It...
PHET
John Travoltage
Did you get to play with electric currents or were you grounded? An electrifying simulation shows how building up a charge of electricity creates a static shock once grounded. Pupils rub John's foot across the carpet and view the buildup...
PHET
Gravity And Orbits
Have you ever wanted to turn off gravity? This simulation allows learners to do just that in addition to altering other variables. Scholars can move the sun, Earth, moon, and space station to see how distance affects gravitational pull....
PHET
Forces and Motion: Basics
How is tug of war related to pushing a refrigerator? Here's a simulation connects these two activities with Newton's First Law of Motion. Four different simulations allow scholars to explore net force with tug of war, motion with pushing...
PHET
Electric Field of Dreams
What is the largest electric field in the world? The world itself! This explains why you use a magnetic compass to determine direction. During the simulation, scholars add charges to their electric field to see how the field reacts. An...
PHET
Forces in 1 Dimension
A realistic simulation uses charts to show forces, position, velocity, and acceleration versus time based on how the simulation is set up. Once those concepts are mastered, scholars use free body diagrams to explain how each graph...
PHET
Fluid Pressure and Flow
This simulation begins with an exploration of water pressure and atmospheric pressure. In the flow portion, scholars reshape a pipe and see fluid dynamics at work. The water tower portion encourages pupils to determine how water...
PHET
Faraday's Law
Could a flux capacitor really work? An engaging simulation encourages scholars to investigate Faraday's law. They experiment with various speeds, magnitude, voltage, and different-sized coils. Hopefully experimenters will be able to...
PHET
Energy Skate Park: Basics
Keep calm and half pipe. An exciting simulation teaches pupils about energy transfer from potential to kinetic and thermal as a skater moves through a half pipe or other track. After a brief introduction, scholars can build their own...
PHET
Energy Skate Park
Apply the concepts of conservation of energy to a skater to introduce a fun way the concepts apply to real life. Scholars build tracks, ramps, and jumps then analyze the various types of energy and friction. For an added challenge,...
Intel
Composting: Why Bother?
The first STEM lesson in a group of 10 explores composting. After discussing how to make a better tomorrow, classes are challenged to track garbage in their communities, visit a local waste management facility, and conduct a survey about...
PHET
Forces and Motion
The average American will move 12 times, which results in a lot of moving furniture! Class members consider the forces required to move objects with a creative simulation that opens with the forces required to push a filing cabinet....
PHET
Faraday's Electromagnetic Lab
"But still try, for who knows what is possible." - Michael Faraday. Faraday's advice features in a simulation that permits pupils to play with a bar magnet in order to make a light bulb glow connecting electromagnetic induction to...
PHET
Energy Forms and Changes
Is the ice cooling down the water or is the water melting the ice? Here is a simulation that explores thermal energy transfer with iron, brick, and water. It demonstrates the flow of energy and what happens when each material is either...
National Park Service
News Bearly Fit to Print
There are an average of three human fatalities by bears in North America every year, which is low when you compare it to the 26 killed by dogs and the 90 killed by lightning annually. The lesson encourages researching human-bear...
National Park Service
It's Not Easy Being Grizz
Grizzly bears can be up to 600 pounds and require a great deal of food, especially to survive hibernation. Comprised of multiple games, the third lesson of five only uses one setup. Pupils run around a large field, sorting and collecting...
National Park Service
Nutcracker Fantasy
The Clark's nutcracker bird hides seeds in 25,000 different sites every year to save for winter. Lesson demonstrates how difficult it would be to find these seeds months later when they need them for food. In the first of five lesson,...
US Department of Energy
Thermodynamics—Teacher Guide
I'm so cool! No, you're exothermic. This thermodynamics lab unit includes an introduction, teacher demonstrations, six labs that students rotate through each class day, homework assignments, application of knowledge, and assessments....
PHET
The Greenhouse Effect
How do greenhouse gases impact temperature? Have your classes use the interactive software to explore different concentrations of greenhouse gases and their effect on climate. Learners can recreate different atmospheric concentrations...