After reading up on the history of sports racquets, engineering teams design and construct a racquet for batting a Velcro-striped ball at a target. Teams evaluate their design by aiming for the target three times each and answering...

Students evaluate the friction of tennis sneakers and redesign them to increase friction. In this physics lesson, students calculate starting, sideways and forward stopping friction. Using quantitative data, they prove that redesigning...

Students are introduced to the concept of circular motion. In groups, they participate in experiments to discover the law of inertia. They describe how forces act on objects during a circular motion. To end the activity, they use...

This particular lesson was written by the National Earth Science Teachers Association, but density is a concept that you can teach at the beginning of the school year in your life, physical, or earth science classes. It would be fun to...

Make fitness fun at your school! A list of outdoor activities for a "Fun Through Fitness Day" could be helpful in planning your own version of this activity. The resource describes what one school district has done in general, but does...

Students participate in an experiment to understand how robotic systems can estimate distances.  In this robotic ranger lesson, students measure the the time it takes for and object to move back and forth.  Students will use a...

Students share hypotheses about the variables needed to produce a collision between two moving objects. They simulate the impact of a moving object on an object that creates a spray of debris, and simulate a NASA Deep Impact study.

Young scholars study concepts of energy and energy transfer. They look at how these concepts apply to musical instruments. They study the law of conservation of energy. They use the concepts studied in the lesson to design a musical...

Eighth graders, after creating a Venn Diagram comparing/contrasting animal and plant cells, writing ten similes describing cell types, or drawing a colored diagram of a cell, list cell types as well as describe and label cell parts. They...

Fifth graders work in teams of four to measure the rebound heights of a tennis ball dropped from four different heights. They investigate with the bouncing balls to measure changes in the type of energy they possess.

High schoolers generate and choose specific skills and tasks to guide the work-based learning experience. They use the five steps to setting goals to help their goal planning to be more efficient. In addition, they view a Goals power...

Students study earthquakes and how sediment accumulations are used for past information on earthquakes.  In this earthquake lesson students interpret sediment cores and describe turbidites. 

Students investigate circular motion in two different activities. In the first, students observe the path of a rolling marble on a paper plate. In the second, students play a game of catch using a tennis ball inside a plastic bag. ...

Eighth graders listen to a teacher lecture and observe a demonstration of both potential energy and stored energy. After discussing the characteristics and examples of different types of energy, 8th graders make predictions and then...

Young scholars explore current events by analyzing a news article in class. In this school ban lesson, students read a story about a high school in London that has banned physical contact between all young scholars. Students answer study...

Young scholars study cosmic rays and the energy behind them.  In this atmospheric lesson plan students complete a cosmic ray telescope project. 

Students explore physical education by completing a quiz in class. In this engineering instructional activity, students identify different ways engineering has made sports safer such as stronger padding and helmets, stronger equipment...

Students study how to calculate momentum, kinetic, and potential energy. They apply each form of energy to real world situations including demonstrations, watching videos, and designing a Power Point presentation. They investigate in...

Students investigate nutrition by creating ice cream in class. In this cooking lesson, students define the ingredients in ice cream and discuss how they form together to create a delicious treat. Students utilize salt, ice, milk and...

Young scholars investigate the concepts and relationships of speed, displacement and time. They capture the serve motion of a tennis player via video or digital camera and analyze the speed of the ball and racquet head.

Students use this introductory lab using a tennis racquet, however it is very difficult to study because of the strings and the racquet stretch so little and so quickly during a match that students were unable to make simple...

Students examine the method Galileo used to prove sunspots were actually on the sun instead of objects between the Earth and Sun.. They study the term foreshortening and assess its relevance to observation.

Learners discover the science behind a tennis racket by looking at a simple toy that works in a similar way. After looking at the related mathematical equations, students experiment with the simple toy to find the spring constant k by...

Students make observations of a bouncing ball and study how it travels.  In this height lesson students complete a lab activity and describe and explain the motion of the ball.