Curated OER
Acrobatic Clown
In this science investigation worksheet, students learn about balancing points and center of gravity by making a cardboard acrobatic clown using the directions and pattern provided.
Messenger Education
Give Me a Boost—How Gravity Assists Aid Space Exploration
The propellant needed for space explorations runs in the thousands, while paying to get the craft into orbit costs millions! In the second installment of three, two activities explore laws of conservation of energy and momentum. Using...
Curated OER
Floating Fishes: Boat Sinking Lab
Cut milk cartons in half to make boats and let investigators attempt to sink them. They add dividing walls and observe what happens if marbles are put into only one of the newly formed compartments. Vocabulary is provided: buoyant force,...
Curated OER
Tightrope Trials
Learners research the concepts of center of mass and how to make different things balance. They make symmetrical cut-outs of different "creatures" and experiment with how they balance on a tightrope of string.
University of Colorado
Modeling Sizes of Planets
The density of the huge planet of Saturn is 0.7 g/cm3, which means it could float in water! In the second part of 22, science pupils explore the size and order of the planets. They then calculate weight and/or gravity and density of...
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...
BioEd Online
Gravity and Buoyancy
Would a baggie filled with water have the same shape sitting on a table as it would in a bucket of water? Why not? Allow learners to find out first-hand the effects of gravity acting alone on the baggie, as well as when gravity is...
Curated OER
Strawkets and Control
Students investigate the effect that fins have on rocket flight. They construct two paper rockets that they can launch by blowing through a straw, one with fins and one with wings, and observe and record the results of the rocket flights.
Curated OER
A Veritable Circus: Investigating Balance
Students experiment with balance to learn about verticle balance, horizontal balance, center of gravity, and become active problem solvers and "scientists." Student engage in manipulating and changing experimental materials.
California Academy of Science
Kinesthetic Astronomy: Birthday Stars
Space explorers take a virtual trip around the sun right within your classroom! They stand in a circle facing away from the "sun" (a lamp) in the center of the room. As they move according to your instructions, they view different...
BioEd Online
Muscles and Bones in Space
Being an astronaut takes not only high mental acuity, but also a high level of physical fitness, especially for those who spend a long amount of time away from Earth, such as the astronauts serving on the International Space Station....
Curated OER
Float a Hot Air Balloon
This activity will lift spirits in your class, but there is little scientific explanation for what makes a hot air balloon rise. As you are teaching middle school scientists about density and convection, you can incorporate this...
Curated OER
Perching Parrot
Students explore the concepts of center of mass and static equilibrium by seeing how non-symmetrical objects balance. They also analyze why all forces on an object must cancel out exactly for an object to be stationary.
Curated OER
Newton's Second Law
Three memorable activities build on each other to give physics masters a firm grasp of Newton's Second Law. Pupils play with a lab cart on a flat surface and on an incline to confirm that force is equal to mass times acceleration. In the...
Curated OER
Gravity Versus the Mighty Egg
Students design, revise and construct a method for protecting an egg from cracking when it is dropped from a height. They work in small groups to develop their protection method and then collect and analyze data as a class when each...
Curated OER
Peak Performance
Students design and build a car that is capable of traveling across the floor quickly, and also up a steep ramp.
Curated OER
LEGO Balance
Young scholars design and build a balance using LEGO, string, and a set of standard metric weights.
Purdue University
The Represented World: Recreational STEM
How are forces and motion important to a swing set? Scholars explore the concepts of force and motion using swing sets. In preparation for their own STEM design project, individuals take surveys and data from peers, complete labs on...
Columbus City Schools
Planet X
How did the earth become the mass that it is now? Your young scientists explore this question through the concept of density. Their inquiries consider the impact of gravity on the formation of planets. The culminating activity of the...
New Mexico State University
Lab 6: Kepler's Laws
A 15-page package thoroughly teaches your physics or astronomy learners about Kepler's three laws of planetary motion. Each one is stated and explained. Class members answer questions, solve problems, and participate in the classic...
BioEd Online
Butterflies in Space
How does gravity affect the life cycle of a butterfly? Learn first-hand what types of investigations astronauts perform in space by following along with one of NASA's experiments. Create butterfly habitats in the classroom with specific...
DiscoverE
Build a Straw Bridge
Build teamwork skills while building a bridge. Scholars work together in groups to create a bridge out of 20 straws and tape. There is a minimum span length of 25 centimeters, but otherwise, let creativity run wild.
Curated OER
Gravity
Students perform inquiry in response to the question "Do objects fall at the same rate?", teacher candidates discuss a model experiment for secondary students to discover the answer, including recording and analyzing data.
American Museum of Natural History
Solar System Scavenger Hunt
Scholars go on a hunt to locate objects that best fit the measurements to create an eye-catching scale model of the solar system.