Exploratorium
Thread the Needle
If you are setting up a rotation lab where learners are investigating vision at different stations, this activity can be used to explore depth perception. Setting up a giant needle eye, students attempt to pass a pencil through it with...
Consumers Energy
Circuits and the Flow of Electricity Lesson Plan
I think I lost an electron. Are you sure? Yes, I'm positive! Starting with a hands-on demonstration and problem solving activity, young scientists define vocabulary related to circuitry and currents. Then they build their own circuits...
Space Awareness
Let's Break the Particles
Build learning by breaking atoms! Young scientists study the way energy changes with a hands-on activity. As they roll steel marbles down a ramp, learners test the hypothesis that kinetic energy does not go away with friction...
Curated OER
Disguise for the Eyes
Young scientists discover how many, many animals use color as a way of helping them to survive in the wild. They understand how animals use color in their everyday lives. Pupils engage in hands-on activities, watch videos, access...
Curated OER
You Really "Affect" Me
Middle schoolers examine the effects of variables. They view a video which introduces the concepts, take part in an internet-based activity, then engage in a hands-on activity which allows them to practice what they have been studying.
National Security Agency
Equations and Expressions
Learners demonstrate their knowledge pictorially, concretely, and abstractly in this unit meant to last three hours over three days. Using hands-on activities, manipulatives, real-world applications, and problem...
Teach Engineering
Come On Over Rover
Introduce your class to the steps that occur in the manufacturing of parts, the assembly, and the testing of a Mars rover. Pupils learn about fabrication techniques and tolerances in the manufacturing process.
American Chemical Society
Developing Tests to Distinguish Between Similar-Looking Liquids
Each group talks about how to test unknown liquids based on their findings in the previous experiment. In this second of four activities, they test unknowns on wax paper, newspaper, and construction paper. As a stand-alone, this lesson...
Tennessee Valley Authority
Renewable Energy Sources
Not all energy sources are renewable, as learners investigate in this unit. Made up of six lessons that span a few weeks of instruction, the unit has learners examining US energy reserves and consumption, using data to draw conclusions...
National Security Agency
Are You Game? A Lesson Connecting Fractions and Probability
Exactly how fair are the board games children grow up playing? Young mathematicians investigate this questions as they work their way through this five-lesson series on basic probability.
EngageNY
Thales’ Theorem
Isn't paper pushing supposed to be boring? Learners attempt a paper-pushing puzzle to develop ideas about angles inscribed on a diameter of a circle. Learners then formalize Thales' theorem and use geometric properties to develop a proof...
Teach Engineering
Processes on Complex Networks
Introduces your class to random processes in networks with an activity that uses information about disease spread using the susceptible, infectious, resistant (SIR) model. Participants determine whether a susceptible person becomes...
EngageNY
Sequencing Reflections and Translations
Don't get out of order! Examine the effect of order on a sequence of transformations. Learners perform reflections and translation transformations in sequence. They see that changing the order of the transformations does not always have...
Annenberg Foundation
Balancing Sources
Pupils turn into investigative reporters throughout history to learn what it takes to balance different primary sources on the same topic. They use what they learn to create a narrative based on their own interpretation of a historic...
Smithsonian Institution
Be a Food Detective
What are packaged food products really made of? This lesson will prompt your learners to consider and investigate the source of ingredients in their food. They begin by breaking into groups and analyzing food labels by identifying...
Curated OER
Plate Tectonics: First Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
A set of first grade geology lessons focuses on plate tectonics and movement of plate boundaries. During the pre-lab, learners experience three types of plate movement through a kinesthetic demonstration. The lab...
University of Southern California
What Lives In The Ocean?
One of the most diverse environments on Earth is the ocean. Young scientists explore the living things found in the ocean during an exciting seven-lesson unit. Their study includes organisms from plankton to invertebrates...
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...
Mathematics TEKS Toolkit
Grade 6: Exploring c/d = pi
Introduce your math class to the perimeter of a circle. Teach them that pi describes the relationship between the circumference and the diameter. As a hands-on investigation, pairs or small groups use string to compare these two values...
Curated OER
Convert among decimals, fractions, and percents
Seventh graders convert among decimals, percents, and fraction with and without a calculator. In this seventh grade mathematics lesson, 7th graders explore strategies that help them to remember how to perform the needed operation...
Curated OER
"NSN, Fractions, Percents, Ratios, Rates" Investigations
Sixth graders engage in an investigation about the concepts related to fractions. They read, represent, compare, and order proper and improper fractions, and mixed numbers. They demonstrate an understanding of relationships involving...
Virginia Department of Education
Permeability and Porosity
Covering both permeability and porosity, scholars perform a hands-on experiment testing various soil types. The material includes a pre-lesson worksheet to help focus pupils on the task at hand.
American Chemical Society
Exploring Energy
When asked to list everyday objects that require energy, most people list technology that use batteries or electricity. Through hands-on exploration, young scientists discover energy is much more than just circuitry. They play with...
Curated OER
Bones Provide Great Support!
How do bones help people move around? A science investigation prompts kids to draw arrows to certain bones that protect their organs. After they finish, they trace their hands on a piece of paper and trace the way their bones go. Great...