How to oceanographers measure the sea's depth? Your scientists will step into their shoes in this application activity, first reading about how the speed of sound and a simple formula give scientists a depth estimation. Students...

Students explore nautical charts and their symbols, with a bit of fun thrown in.

Communication involves the visual, auditory, olfactory, and tactile senses. Scholars observe groups of animals communicating through multiple senses. They note and learn why different species use different senses depending on their...

A well-designed, comprehensive, and attractive slide show supports direct instruction on how sonar and echolocation work. Contained within the slides are links to interactive websites and instructions for using apps on a mobile device to...

How can a pan flute sound one note while we hear a chord? The simulation explores sound waves, vibrations, and harmonics at the molecular level. Scholars control the pipe into which air is being blown, the length of the pipe, and which...

Students examine how the mass of water can affect sound vibrations.

You matter, unless you multiply yourself by the speed of light ... then you energy. Presentation covers the behavior of light as both a wave and a particle, light versus sound, space travel, why objects have colors, depth perception,...

Students build ocean floor structures, then map and model an unfamiliar ocean floor. They are introduced to bathymetry and sea floor features, and discover one of the most widely usd methods for studying the ocean.

An interactive that teaches about sonar sure sounds like fun! Junior oceanographers study the uses of sonar, past and present, in an engaging interactive. The content demonstrates how sonar works, why sound waves are a great tool...

Human computers? Although it may sound like science fiction, the term was used to describe the women who made the NASA calculations before the advent of electronic computers. A 21-slide presentation introduces viewers to the women who...

Students investigate with radio waves that are used to remotely sense the topography beneath the ice sheet. They experiment with travel time of waves and convert data to distance and depth. As a result, they develop a profile of the...

With Earth Day quickly approaching, as well as many science fairs, why not challenge your class to investigate geothermal energy or other renewable energy resources? There are five driving questions explored in depth here, as well as...

Students participate in an activity that replicates the creation of sea floor bathymetry by taking a simplified form of soundings in the classroom. They discuss sea floor mapping technologies, sonar, soundings, and remote sensing,...

One acre of land can contain more than a million earthworms. Scholars collect earthworms to observe their movements. Once placed on paper, the sound of movement often fascinates pupils. When placed on glass, the earthworm is unable to...

Through inquiry and exploration, 4th graders will learn and understand the functions of open and closed circuits. They will break into 2 groups, define vocabulary, hypothesize how to light a bulb, then test their hypothesis 4 different...

What is a physicist's favorite part of sports? Doing the wave. The presentation covers longitudinal, transverse, surface, and standing waves. It includes in-depth information on frequency, wavelength, period, amplitude, reflection,...

Students explain how early maps of the ocean bottom were made. They describe and execute a method for producing a low-resolution map of a surface that cannot be seen or touched. Students analyze the data from a mapping activity and...

Through a series of experiments and demonstrations, fifth graders will learn about gravity. They will make predictions, drop various objects, write down their observations, and try to understand gravity through balance. This...

Students study sonar and will explain the concept of it and its major components.  In this design instructional activity students build a low-cost sonar system. 

Six simple images pull your class into magnets. Most of the pictures show magnetic fields as revealed by iron filings. Concepts are explained in print along the bottom of each slide and include magnetic force, force fields, poles,...

Set to upbeat instrumental background music, eight slides present pictures of electrical wires, batteries, and appliances, Each slide is accompanied by a few sentences that introduce viewers to concepts related to current electricity....

Students draw contour lines based on NOAA soundings on a nautical chart. They color the contours and glue label tags for topographic features. They determine that the floor of the ocean is composed of hills, plains, ridges, trenches,...

Students explore the ocean depths. In this scenario based lesson, students pretend they are on a submarine in an unknown part of the ocean. By using clues the class discusses and determines where they are in the ocean. They follow up...

Carbon dioxide is not only causing global temperatures to increase, it causes the oceans to become more acidic. Lesson focuses on the blue king crab and the fragility of the habitat due to climate change. Scholars create a concept map...