High schoolers investigate melting and freezing behavior in substances. In this melting and freezing points lesson plan, students perform experiments to test the impact of various salts on the freezing point of water, they test the...

Students explore how various substances change from a solid to a liquid or from a liquid to a solid and how temperature, pressure and nature play an important role in this process. In this melting and freezing lesson,...

Here is a good learning exercise for 5th grade scientists. In it, they look at a bar graph that shows the freezing point for a variety of liquids. Then, they are given a scenario of a certain liquid melting and freezing, and must...

Winter weather offers a great opportunity to teach young scientists about the states of matter. This activity-based lesson includes a range of learning experiences, from experimenting with the rate at which ice melts...

Students explore water and how it changes forms.  In this investigative lesson students participate in an activity that shows them how water changes form and what it looks and feels like. 

Third and fourth graders engage with a worksheet designed to help them differentiate between melting and dissolving. After reading an informative paragraph about the two actions, they consider four scenarios, and choose whether they...

The arctic seas contain currents that are both warm (with high salinity) and cold (relatively fresh water) that circulate throughout the year. Through discussion, a lab, and a web quest, participants explore the impacts of melting and...

Students create ice cream in a zipped bag and measure the temperature of a salt/ice mixture. They discover how salt lowers the temperature necessary to freeze ice to a solid (below 0'C).

Students understand that most substances may exist as solids, liquids, or gases depending on the temperature, pressure, and nature of that substance. This knowledge is critical to understanding that water in our world is constantly...

Who knew that learning about the states of matter could taste so sweet? This fun hands-on lesson captures the attention of learners as they use what they know about solids, liquids, and gases to create their very own batch of ice cream.

Students experiment with states of matter with water and ice. In this states of matter lesson, students experiment to discover what happens to water as it freezes to become a solid, ice. They observe what happens when ice melts back to...

Students define the term solution. They explain conservation of energy and energy transfer as it relate to how the milk solution became ice cream. Students are able to explain freezing point depression.

Crazy fact—freezing liquid actually gives off heat! Young scholars investigate the transfer of energy when liquids freeze using a chemical heat pack. The heat pack gives off heat as its liquid core freezes.

We all scream for ice cream! Individuals create home-made ice cream in the classroom. This is a delicious way to show a real-world application of the freezing point depression to your class.

Students examine the different propereties of ice, such as freezing temperature.  In this scientific lesson students complete several activities using ice, like making ice cream.

Students study the concept of ice energy. In this ice energy lesson, students observe what happens when salt is sprinkled on a piece of ice before following a recipe to make two types of ice cream. They note the difference in the two...

Young scholars complete activities to study the properties of solids and liquids. In this states of matter instructional activity, students investigate the melting and freezing of a range of materials in a virtual experiment. Young...

Young scholars explore permafrost.  In this 3 states of matter lesson, students identify characteristics of solids and liquids.  Young scholars observe water and soil melting and freezing at various temperatures.  Students...

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! Even high schoolers enjoy making ice cream. This laboratory exercise has them record the temperature changes throughout the process of liquid becoming solid, graph the results, and...

Students observe and discuss what happens when water turns to ice and when ice turns into water. In this freezing and melting lesson plan, students observe ice and water and complete hands on activities that change their properties.

Students explore the rate at which ice melts. In this science activity, students place ice cubes on colored index cards and place them in direct sunlight. Students observe which ice cubes melt fastest and slowest.

Students research about the importance of sea ice to world climate and sea organisms. In this earth science lesson, students create a model of present and future Arctic sea ice communities. They discuss how ice melting affects...

This PowerPoint is a gem! Seventy-eight slides present an entire introduction to matter in bullet-point fashion. Viewers learn about everything from mass and inertia to phase changes and gas laws! The only glitch is that the links to...

A micro-unit on the phase changes of water includes three laboratory activities. Junior scientists compare the densities of ice and water, and then they do the same for cold and warm water. They examine freezing and boiling temperatures....