Achieve
Fences
Pupils design a fence for a backyard pool. Scholars develop a fence design based on given constraints, determine the amount of material they need, and calculate the cost of the project.
EngageNY
Chance Experiments, Sample Spaces, and Events
Want a leg up on the competition? Show classes how to use mathematics to their advantage when playing games. Learners calculate probabilities to determine a reasonable scoring strategy for a game.
EngageNY
Using a Curve to Model a Data Distribution
Show scholars the importance of recognizing a normal curve within a set of data. Learners analyze normal curves and calculate mean and standard deviation.
Teach Engineering
Breaking the Mold
A little too much strain could cause a lot of stress. Groups conduct a strength test on clay. Using books as weights, pupils measure the compression of clay columns and calculate the associated strain and stress. Teams record their...
Teach Engineering
Measuring Surface Tension
How do you measure surface tension? The fifth installment of a nine-part series is an experiment where young scientists use tubes of different sizes to measure surface tension. They calculate the average and standard deviation of the...
EngageNY
Chance Experiments with Outcomes That Are Not Equally Likely
The fifth portion of the 25-part series introduces probabilities calculated from outcomes that are not equally likely. Class members use tables to calculate probabilities of events, add outcome's probabilities, and find...
Teach Engineering
Density Column Lab - Part 2
Groups suspend objects within layers of liquids to determine the densities of different liquids and compare them to the densities of objects calculated in Part 1. The groups then carefully test their calculations by layering the...
Curated OER
Visualizing Vectors
Investigate vectors in standard positions and use the CellSheet application on the TI calculator to find the sum of two vectors. Convert from polar to rectangular coordinates and vice versa, and show graphs of the vectors.
Curated OER
Grid Frame Mapping
Students map and describe small area of the schoolyard and discuss habitats.
Curated OER
Babylonian Mathematics I
Learners examine a Babylonian clay tablet and the mathematics found on it as a catalyst to investigate a variety of mathematical ideas. They work with prime numbers, classify numbers as whole, integer, rational, or irrational and use...
Teach Engineering
Can You Resist This?
Some things are hard to resist. Small collaborative groups build circuits and calculate the voltage using Ohm's Law. Budding engineers explore the connection between the voltage across different resistors and linear...
Teach Engineering
Using Hooke's Law to Understand Materials
Provide a Hooke for a lesson on elasticity with an activity that has groups investigate a set of springs. They use a set procedure to collect data to calculate the spring constant for each spring using Hooke's Law. The groups...
Teach Engineering
Ice, Ice, PV!
Knowing the temperature coefficient allows for the calculation of voltage output at any temperature. Groups conduct an experiment to determine the effects of temperature on the power output of a solar panel. The teams alter the...
Inside Mathematics
Population
Population density, it is not all that it is plotted to be. Pupils analyze a scatter plot of population versus area for some of the states in the US. The class members respond to eight questions about the graph, specific points and...
Teach Engineering
Catching the Perfect SAR Waves!
Zero in on an interesting resource involving radar technology. Groups construct a radar sensing unit and learn to calibrate the system. Using the radar system and the Pythagorean Theorem, they calculate distances between objects.
American Chemical Society
The Energy Efficiency of Heating Water
Can a small change in laboratory procedures save energy? Scholars test three different methods for heating water in a science lab. Then, they calculate the energy efficiency for each and compare them to determine which uses the least...
Teach Engineering
Efficiency of an Electromechanical System
How efficient is a motor in a LEGO set? Future engineers conduct an activity where a LEGO motor-generator system raises an object to a specified height. They then show what they learned and use their measurements to calculate the energy...
Illustrative Mathematics
Placing a Square Root on the Number Line
There are many ways to approach finding the rational approximation of an unknown square root. Here is a problem that will help math learners make a connection between square roots and their order on a number line. As usual, determine two...
Curated OER
A Contouring We Go
Students examine the built environment and infrastructures of their community by constructing contour equipment, using the equipment, and comparing their results to current topographical maps of the same area
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
The Great Elephant Census Modeling Activity
They say elephants never forget—and your class won't forget an insightful modeling activity either! Junior zoologists take part in a mock elephant census using the sample count and total count methods. The included materials provide...
Curated OER
Measure Mania
Groups of students rotate through five classroom stations to estimate, measure, and record volume, length, weight, mass, and area using both customary and metric measure. They evaluate their data to determine how close their estimates...
Florida International University
Counting FishStix
How do we count the fish in the ocean? An engaging instructional activity models how to estimate fish populations with observational surveys. Class members begin by studying the behavior of fish on the coral reef in the oceans....
Illustrative Mathematics
Sand Under the Swing Set
Help the local elementary school fix their playground by calculating the amount of sand needed near the swing set. The problem practices setting up proportions and ratios with three different options for solving. You can chose the option...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Tracking Genetically Modified Mosquitoes
What's that buzzing in your ear? An insightful lesson about genetically modified mosquitoes! Partnered pupils explore the creation, release, and monitoring of mosquitoes designed to reduce the mosquito population. After watching a video,...