Curated OER
Temperature and Thermal Energy
Examine how heat can be transferred between systems by reconstructing a diagram on energy flow and solving problems on heat flow and work done.
Curated OER
Melting the Ice: Energy Transfer
Students study thermal energy and energy transfer to sea ice processes. In this energy transfer instructional activity, students make their own ice cream and discuss energy transfer and thermal energy. Students view a radiation overhead...
Curated OER
Make Your Own Temperature Scale
Differentiate between temperature and thermal energy. Your class will build a thermometer using simple materials and develop their own scale for measuring temperature. Discuss with your class and consider why engineers need to understand...
Government of South Australia
Don't Waste Your Energy
Don't lift another finger, this physical and environmental science unit has everything you need to begin teaching your class about energy. Starting with a look at the greenhouse effect, these lessons and activities take young scientists...
American Chemical Society
M&M's in Different Temperatures
Help your class come up with a procedure for comparing the dissolving rates of colored candy coating in different temperatures of water. If you are placing importance on controlled variables with your class, make sure that they use equal...
Curated OER
Transfer of Thermal Energy
Students define temperature and heat, distinguish between temperature and heat flow, calculate amount of heat energy released or absorbed in chemical process, and design procedure, through experimentation, to gather and evaluate data to...
Curated OER
Urban Heat Islands: An Introduction to Energy Transfer and Transformation
Elementary school physical scientists explore kinetic mechanical energy by dropping a golf ball on different surfaces. They discuss how human made materials might react to light differently from nature made materials. This lesson plan...
US Department of Energy
Solar Cooking
Who needs a barbecue grill to cook hot dogs when you have the amazing power of the sun at your disposal? Engage young scientists in learning about solar energy with this fun activity that turns a used Pringles can into a solar powered...
NASA
Earth’s Energy Budget - Seasonal Cycles
Earth's energy budget should be in the red. Young researchers review satellite data in a presentation to study Earth's solar radiation. They make both qualitative and quantitative observations about variations in available seasonal...
Curated OER
Solar Kit Lesson #7 - Positioning Solar Panels I: Explorations with Tracking
In this first part of a two-part lesson, learners track and record the sun's azimuth using a solar panel. They graph and analyze the data to identify relationships among the time of day, the altitude and azimuth of the sun, and the...
Curated OER
Project Energy
Students explore multiple types of energy. In this energy lesson, students prepare a science fair project through completing a WebQuest. Students investigate radiant, thermal, and biochemical energy.
Curated OER
The Mathematics of Convection: Nature's Model for Energy Production
High schoolers conduct a series of experiments to investigate density, buoyancy and climate. In this math lesson, pupils design and build a hot air balloon to demonstrate convection. They research and write a paper about solar chimneys.
American Chemical Society
Changing the Density of a Liquid - Heating and Cooling
During a unit on density, pupils ponder whether or not temperature affects this property. By carefully inserting blue cold water and yellow hot water into a room-temperature sample, they will see the answer. Make sure to have done the...
NASA
Hurricanes as Heat Engines
Hurricanes are a destructive yet fascinating phenomenon. Individuals examine evidence that hurricanes use thermal energy from the ocean as they approach land. Learners use images, charts, and graphs to collect data and then draw...
NOAA
Oceans of Energy
Are the earth's oceans really just giant batteries, waiting for their energy to be harnessed? Middle school mechanical engineers will be shocked by the amazing amount of energy that forms around them after diving into part four of a...
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Energy in Motion
Fifth graders explore energy transfer. In this thermal energy lesson, 5th graders stretch rubber bands several times and estimate the band's temperature change. Students identify this action as an example of thermal energy. Students...
Curated OER
What Is Energy? Short Demos
Students engage in three short, hands-on, in-class demos which expand students' understand of energy. First, using peanuts and heat, students see how the human body burns food to make energy. Then, they create paper snake mobiles to...
Curated OER
Ice Cube Experiment
Learners explore the rate at which ice melts. For this science lesson, students place ice cubes on colored index cards and place them in direct sunlight. Learners observe which ice cubes melt fastest and slowest.
Curated OER
Bounce Back - The Long and Short of It
Upper elementary scientists test basketballs with differing amounts of air to find if inflation affects bounce height. The lesson introduction poses the question of whether or not the composition of a ball determines bounce height, but...
Curated OER
Energy Transfer in Musical Instruments
Young scholars create unique sounds using different instruments. In this energy lesson, students read and define several vocabulary terms such as heat, energy transfer and thermal equilibrium. Young scholars utilize several household...
Curated OER
Measuring Solar Energy
Students study solar energy and how to measure it. In this energy sources instructional activity students complete a lab, obtain data and use that to convert surface temperature to energy.
Next Generation Science Storylines
Why Do Some Things Get Colder (or Hotter) When They React?
Some reactions absorb heat while others release it. Young scholars investigate both types of reactions in a 12-lesson unit. Each lesson presents a lab investigation that monitors temperature and considers the types of reactions taking...
Curated OER
Taking the Heat
Students measure the heat absorbed by different materials and learn why engineers need to know how different materials story thermal energy when designing buildings. In this heat capacity lesson plan, students use a thermometer to...
American Physiological Society
Why is Kettle Corn Cooked in Copper Pots?
The kitchen — it's not just for eating anymore! Specific heat is often a difficult concept to grasp, so give it context by relating it to cooking. Learners gain experience in the principles of thermal energy transfer by designing an...