Hold a competition in your science or engineering class to find out which group can design the most effective new style of paper cup from a single sheet of paper. Each group will be challenged by this activity and will have fun at the...

Kinematic equations are used to calculate the velocity and momentum of different types of balls bounced on different surfaces. The lesson plan is detailed and provides a materials list, background information, and procedures....

Diamonds are a girl's best friend! Crystal labs can be a science teacher's best friend because watching crystals develop is fascinating, and it results in such a pretty product! This activity is unique because the crystals are grown...

Written to introduce pupils to buoyancy, this activity has collaborative groups work to design a floatable clay boat. They first observe that a stick of clay sinks in water and then are given their own stick to reshape into a floating...

A well-laid-out lesson plan, this can be used in an engineering, STEM, or physical science course. Laboratory groups design a structure using pasta and marshmallows, measure its height and weight, and then discover the load that it can...

Your advanced physics class will appreciate this activity in which they use magnetic field sensors to determine the relationship between the number of turns per meter of a solenoid and the magnetic field produced. The materials for this...

Sixth graders observe and record data about humpback whales in Hawaii. In this humpback whale watching lesson, 6th graders watch the activity of whales from a Hawaiian beach. They record data about their behavior and complete a research...

What elements are needed to have a revolution? How do historical revolutions from across the globe and generations compare with one another? This is an excellent activity that incorporates group work, source analysis, and an engaging...

Become a bean counter. Pupils use a fun activity to design and execute an experiment to determine whether they can grab more beans with their dominant hand or non-dominant hand. They use the class data to create scatter plots and then...

This activity will lift spirits in your class, but there is little scientific explanation for what makes a hot air balloon rise. As you are teaching middle school scientists about density and convection, you can incorporate this...

Attractive and logical instructions are provided for constructing a balloon-powered car. Young physical scientists measure the distance their car travels and record it on a pre-printed data sheet. The make alterations to improve the...

Young scholars complete a scavenger hunt which highlights events on the journey by Lewis and Clark. Using the internet and journals, they identify events on the journey and places them on a timeline. They complete a worksheet as well to...

Experiment with chocolate coating on cookies! What a delightful way to learn about food processing and chemical engineering. Throughout this activity, groups collect measurements and make calculations. They conclude by writing...

A simple cardboard or plastic boat is propelled across the surface of water when the surface tension is disrupted by adding detergent. Once youngsters see this in action, explain about the properties of water that make it possilbe:...

Youngsters love to write on their hands, and in this fabulous activity they are actually asked to. Using numbers written on the tips of their fingers, they will learn how the binary number system works. This hands-on activity is a...

Actual stream water is analyzed in this environmental science activity. Participants measure water temperature and pH, and then survey the macroinvertebrates living in their samples. The data worksheet, troubleshooting tips, and...

Groups of young oceanographers get to use action figures to experiment with the property of buoyancy! This memorable lesson plan provides detailed background information, a link to the laboratory worksheet, and thorough instruction...

As the saying goes, a penny saved is a penny earned. Young scholars use a penny activity to earn their way to an understanding of volume. Given three different-sized cylindrical containers, individuals make calculations to determine the...

Manufacturers' claims may or may not be accurate, so proceed with caution. Here pupils use statistics to investigate the M&M's company's claim about the percentage of each color of candy in their packaging. Through the activity,...

Finding good primary source materials to support any study of history can be a challenge and time-consuming. A set of 11 primary source letters, images, and text excerpts provide young historians with an opportunity to sharpen their...

High schoolers research the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments, as well as other primary source documents, to determine Reconstruction's impact on the North and South. The 34-page inquiry-based lesson includes a staging question and...

Middle school electrical engineers design a maze out of wire and connect it in a circuit to a noise-making or lighting device. The idea is to string a paperclip along the wire without touching it along the way. The noise-maker or light...

Students estimate the altitude of a rocket during several flights. They create their own altitude tracking devise. They examine and discuss their results at the end of the activity.

Students explore ionic bonding. They draw examples of ionic bonding and explain the activities of the electrons of the elements. Students use paper plates and candy to draw electron configurations of given atoms.