Where is a geneticist's favorite place to swim? A gene pool. Young geneticists complete hands-on activities, experiments, and real-world problem solving throughout the unit. With extra focus on dominant and recessive genes, Punnett...

Roll up your sleeves and get a little dirty with this elementary and middle school compost lesson. All you need is a large plastic container, a couple old newspapers, some organic waste, and a few hundred worms and you're ready...

Is there a correlation between a country's wealth and the extent of its ecological footprint? What exactly constitutes an ecological footprint, and how does one country stack up against the rest? This is a unique lesson to incorporate...

How does chemistry help deep-sea explorers? Part four of a five-part series of lessons from aboard the Okeanos Explorer introduces middle school scientists to technologies used in ocean exploration. Groups work together to analyze data...

Whoa! What just happened? That's right, change is everywhere. But what exactly is changing? Middle school science sleuths get to the bottom of the changes matter can experience. Through simple demonstrations, engaging videos, and an...

Alone, or as part of the intended unit on chemical reactions, this activity allows learners to experience an exothermic reaction. Here, learners add calcium chloride to a baking soda solution and watch the temperature rise! They will...

There's a lot content packed into the four lessons of this physical science unit on density. From salad dressing to the water cycle and hot air balloons, these lessons engage students in hands-on activities that explore real-world...

Conclude this chemical change unit by having your class combine two liquids that result in formation of a precipitate. The learners discover that chemical reactions result in new materials. Make sure to consider all of the preceding...

What do we do when a dive is too dangerous for humans to accomplish? Send in the robots! Middle school scientists get acquainted with several different models of submersible robots in the second instructional activity of six from NOAA....

Here's proof that small-scale labs lead to big-time learning. Introduce acid-base interactions to middle school scientists through a microscale chemistry lab. Pupils combine a variety of solutions and use indicators to obtain approximate...

In a nutshell, your class will culture bacteria from their choice of surfaces. You will need to prepare or purchase agar plates. If you are new to this classic biology activity, this resource carefully walks you through the process of...

Engage young scientists in the upper-elementary and middle school grades with this collection of simple experiments. Whether you're teaching about heat transfer, density, or potential energy this resource has a lab for you.

Everyone enjoys combining baking soda and water. Here is a instructional activity that challenges scholars to analyze the reaction three different ways — the real substances, the chemical equation, and the molecular...

After challenging themselves to correctly choose the form of erosion and length of time required for a given landform to develop, earth science class members model mechanical and chemical weathering with various lab demonstrations over...

Blow the minds of young scientists with this collection of inquiry-based investigations. Based on a series of eight videos, these "hands-on, minds-on" science lessons engage young learners in exploring a wide range of topics...

Give young geologists an up close and personal look at volcanoes with a series of hands-on earth science lessons. Whether they are investigating the properties of igneous rocks, building their own volcanoes, or making...

Want to add a wow factor to your current chemical changes lesson plan? Try a microscale experiment with colorful precipitates! Partnered learners conduct 10 single displacement reactions and record their observations.

Here is a tasty challenge, especially for middle school engineers: design a container that meets mass and volume criteria, and will safely transport a tortilla or potato chip through the mail without damaging it! Mostly, this is a crisp...

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...

It's the moment of truth. Previous lessons in the 24-part series had scholars design and develop shampoo formulas using chemical concepts. The 18th lesson plan asks them to test the function of their shampoos. To do this, they calculate...

Get things moving with this extensive collection of physical science resources. Covering the fundamentals of measurement, graphing, lab safety, and experimental design as well as the specific scientific concepts...

Energy comes in many forms, but how do living things get the energy they need to survive and thrive? In a simple, controlled experiment with yeast, water, and sugar, groups make observations about how yeast reacts with water alone, then...

Calories are not tiny creatures that sew your clothes tighter every night, but what are they? A science lesson, presented at multiple levels, has learners experiment with heat, heat transfer, and graph the function over time....

This cool lesson plan is ideal for elementary engineers or physical scientists, especially when learning about heat transfer and insulation. After reading a page of background information, engineering teams collaborate to design and...