Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
Science at 100,000 Feet
Take your class up, up, and away with an engaging weather balloon simulation! Individuals get hands-on experience in creating and launching their own airborne labs to study how temperature and pressure affect substances at 100,000...
Centers for Ocean Sciences
Ocean and Great Lakes Literacy: Principle 1
Is your current lesson plan for salt and freshwater literacy leaving you high and dry? If so, dive into part one of a seven-part series that explores the physical features of Earth's salt and freshwater sources. Junior hydrologists...
Curated OER
Transparent Shoebox Dig
Take this simulated archaeological dig one layer at a time with your young pupils to encourage observation, critical thinking, and careful attention. Using a transparent box full of layers of sand and artifacts, pupils examine the...
Intel
Forensics: Get a Clue
Although the methods are all scientific, forensic science was started by police officers rather than scientists, who relied on observation and common sense. Young detectives use many tools to solve crimes around the school in a...
Curated OER
Dirt Babies
Dirt babies are an excellent way to show young botanists the plant life cycle. They explore the functions and industry behind grasses before growing some of their own. Use the informational text here and consider implementing some...
Curated OER
Shadows & Light, Science & Puppetry
Lights, shadows, action, and inquiry await your artistic scientists. They explore the way light travels, absorbs, reflects, and transmits through shadow play. They create folktale-inspired shadow puppets, explore the science of light,...
Science 4 Inquiry
The Impact of the Sun and Moon on Tides
In 150 BC, Seleucus of Seleucia theorized that the moon causes the tides. Scholars learn about what causes tides by studying the interactions of gravity between the sun, moon, and Earth. They use technology to formalize otherwise...
Journey Through the Universe
Going through a Phase
Ignore the full moon, it's just a phase. Young scholars observe and record the moon during a full cycle before learning to predict future phases. Then the instructor leads a discussion on the other solar system objects that...
NOAA
Build Your Own Ocean Ecosystem
Hold the sea in the palm of your hand! Amateur oceanographers work together to create models of an ocean ecosystem in the sixth and final installment in a series. Raise awareness of global ocean health issues through guided research,...
Concord Consortium
Pendulum and Spring
Up, down, back, and forth. When you make a pendulum out of a spring, there's a lot to observe. Aspiring masters of motion examine the combined kinetic energies of spring and pendulum motion using a detailed interactive. Learners observe...
Concord Consortium
Exploring Electron Properties
Bring a historic chemistry experiment to life in your classroom! Introduce pupils to Thompson's ground-breaking discovery of the electron through a cathode ray simulation. The resource allows users to study the behavior of both electrons...
PBS
NASA's Eyes on the 2017 Eclipse
How did the 2017 eclipse look in Los Angeles—or Chicago? Experience both views, plus many more, using a lesson from PBS's Space series for middle schoolers. Scholars follow the movements of the sun, moon, and Earth during the most recent...
Concord Consortium
Double Pendulum
What's better than a pendulum for studying motion and periods? A double pendulum! Young physical scientists use an interactive to explore pendulum motion—times two. The resource boasts a host of parameters to change and a running graph...
Biology in Motion
Evolution Lab
Evolution occurs though change over time, but can it go any faster? Scholars speed up the process of evolution and observe a simulation of 20 blue organisms fighting for survival. A graph displays the changes in phenotype over time. By...
Science 4 Inquiry
Deforestation
Young scientists observe deforestation from satellite photos and discuss the importance of forests to the global environment. They then simulate a plot of forest when farmers move into the area over the course of seven years. Finally,...
NASA
The Importance of Food
Pupils make observations while eating food. They act out the process of food breaking down in the body and the roles of various chemical components, such as sugar and protein. It concludes with an activity illustrating the process and a...
Curated OER
Three Dimensional Geology
Here is a fine lesson plan on geology designed for high schoolers. Learners use rocks, fossils, and other geological clues to determine the geology of an area. Then, they make recommendations to a fictitious city council about the...
PBS
NOVA Sun Lab Lesson Plan
Looking for a sun-sational multi-lesson plan full of videos, simulations, and discussion? Introduce your young scientists to all things solar with a four-part hands-on adventure. Pupils learn the basics of solar anatomy, space weather,...
Curated OER
Creating Classroom Rules
Perfect for establishing classroom protocols, this activity gets even the youngest learners thinking about rules and their consequences. The lesson begins with a discussion and a reading of the poem Humpty Dumpty that gets...
Columbus City Schools
Sedimentary Rocks
Turn your class discussion of rock formation from ho-hum to holy hornfels! Junior geologists gain experience in identifying rock types and rock origins, with an emphasis in hypothesizing the environment needed to form certain...
Pingry School
The Water Lab – Spreadsheet Simulation
More than 70 percent of people and 90 percent of businesses use spreadsheets regularly. While many courses overlook the important skill, the simple water lab focuses on entering spreadsheet data, formatting it, and printing plots based...
Concord Consortium
Gas Pressure in a Syringe
Plunge into a gas pressure activity! Junior physical scientists manipulate a syringe to study the particle model of gases. The interactive invites investigations of particle movements in capped versus uncapped syringes.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Lesson 6: Biomes and Landscapes
Aside from the amazing animals in Gorongosa National Park, what else is there to discover? The sixth installment in an eight-part themed series contains an interactive map where scholars can learn more about the geographic features of...
Curated OER
Case Study - Tragedy of the Commons
Students role play being a fisherman and fulfill the goals they are given from a description sheet. Other students observe the fisherman and record their behavior and actions. The class then discusses how this activity was an example...