Curated OER
Scientific Method Experiment: Factors Affecting How Ice Melts
Students demonstrate the scientific method by conducting an ice cube melting experiment. They make predictions and observations, and conclude what factors make ice melt more slowly or quickly than normal.
DiscoverE
Keep-a-Cube
Waxed paper, newspaper, or aluminum foil? Keeping an ice cube from melting may require one or more of these materials. Learners design a box that will provide insulation so an ice cube stays intact for at least 90 minutes.
DiscoverE
At Home: Keep a Cube Activity
Let cooler heads prevail. Future engineers first learn about heat transfer and insulation. They then design and build a contraption that will prevent an ice cube from melting for as long as possible.
Teach Engineering
Insulation Materials Investigation
Don't melt away! Pairs investigate different insulation materials to determine which one is better than the others. Using a low-temp heat plate, the teams insulate an ice cube from the heat source with a variety of substances. They...
PBS
Insulation Station
It's all about the material. Learners experiment with different substances as they try to keep an ice cube from melting. They draw conclusions by answering a set of questions about the types and amount of material that had the best result.
Captain Planet Foundation
Solar Cooking Race
Study heat transfer with activities that focus on how heat energy works. Using a solar cooker, ice cubes, and heat transfer bracelets, kids experiment and record what they find by keeping ice cubes cold and vegetables hot.
Curated OER
Sea and Ice Salinity
Students conduct an experiment. In this salinity activity, students learn about sea ice, why it is important and how changing amounts can affect the sea. Students conduct an experiment to find out the effects of salinity on the...
Curated OER
Cool and Not-So-Cool Materials
Why do some materials feel cool to the touch, but not others? Learn about thermal conductors and thermal insulators with a fun science experiment. First, kids read the results of an experiment with spoons and hot water. They then try...
Virginia Middle School Engineering Education Initiative
Save the Penguins: An Introduction to Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer
Heat things up in your physical science class with this interactive lesson series on thermodynamics. Through a series of class demonstrations and experiments, young scientists learn how heat is transferred through conduction, convention,...
Discovery Education
It's Melting!
It's a race to the finish! Which ice cube will melt the fastest? Scholars discover the effect thermal energy has on melting ice. They experiment with melting ice cubes on different materials and learn that even at a consistent...
Discovery Education
Cool It!
Adjust the melting time of ice without varying the temperature! Learners experiment with different materials to decide how the materials affect the rate an ice cube melts. They then connect their findings to the conductivity of each...
Curated OER
The Big Melt
Learners experiment with a variety of materials used for insulation by melting ice cubes.
Curated OER
Refrigeration Part 2 - How they work
Fourth graders investigate insulators and how refrigerators actually work to keep things cold through evaporation and pressure changes in the coolant. They create a box to keep an ice cube from melting, and observe a variety of...
Curated OER
Keeping Warm: Science Review Game
Test the class on what they know about thermal conduction, insulation, and heat. This interactive game provides 15 questions related to the science of temperature, heat, and cold. Keep your class warm with a fun review game!
Curated OER
Energy Conservation
Third graders discuss four points related to conservation. They work in groups to design a package to keep an ice cube from melting to demonstrate the concept of insulation. They then make a chart that shows which materials used did the...
Curated OER
Insulation and Buoyancy
Students predict whether their hands be warmer in ice water with or without a blubber mitten. They construct a blubber mitten using plastic, Crisco and compare their results with a control group. They observe how this affects buoyancy too.
Curated OER
Funky Food Farm
Students research about ways to keep food from spoiling. In this health science instructional activity, students design an experiment to keep the ice cubes from melting. They present their designs and results in class.
Curated OER
The Big Meltdown
Learners work together to develop a container to keep an ice cube in a solid state. They identify the three stages of matter and test different materials for this experiment. They share their results with the class.
Texas Instruments
How Do Pinnipeds Stay Warm?
Learners experiment to determine ways different types of insulation materials work. For this animal adaptation lesson, they make hand coverings from plastic bags, shortening, feathers, and wool. They observe effects of these insulating...
Curated OER
The Magic School Bus In the Arctic
Students learn along with Ms. Frizzle's class. For this Magic School Bus lesson plan, students explore how insulation works to keep in body heat.
Curated OER
Interactive Notes-"Electricity"
Students explore electricity. In this interactive electricity lesson plan, students create static electricity with balloons, observe the rate at which ice melts to identify conductors and insulators, and create a static charge. ...
Curated OER
Chills And Thrills
Young scholars learn what happens when ice melts. They explore melting, and devise ways of speeding up and slowing down the melting process.
Curated OER
Energy/Light/Heat/Sound
Fourth graders study the properties of heat in this series of lessons. They discuss sources of heat and experiment to determine its properties. They identify insulators and conductors by measuring temperatures, and graphing their data....
Curated OER
State of Matter - Atoms
Students examine and discuss how atoms change from solid to liquid to gas. They inflate a balloon by melting ice that converts to steam, and discuss the results.