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How Much Water Will The Desert Hold?
Students examine the characteristics of the desert environment. They experiment with a container which they fill with sand and measure the amount of water that can be absorbed in the container. They compare this with the conditions in...
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Stellar Spectral Fingerprints
Students listen as the teacher introduces Newton's early discovery of the diffraction of light. They use multiple sources of light (fluorescent, incandescent, sunlight, etc) to bend the light. They first use a prism then a diffraction...
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Using the Microscope
Students demonstrate their ability to properly make observations using a compound microscope. They prepare an onion skin slide and focus on it in both low and high power. Then they measure the diameter of one of the cells.
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The Miracle Fish: Learning to Design an Experiment
Students develop procedures to explore the behavior of fish. In this scientific experiment lesson students from a hypothesis, write a question, identify different variables and controls in their experiment.
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Observations and Inferences
Students observe how to distinguish observations form inferences. In this examining inferences instructional activity students list observations relating to the activity and discuss the importance of them.
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House Dimensions
Fourth graders measure the perimeters of several different rooms. They convert the measurements using ratios that allow them to draw the rooms to scale on paper. They draw the dimensions of a house to scale. They measure length to the...
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Dating Practices
Students interpolate, extrapolate, and make predictions from given information. They present results and conclusions from given data using basic statistics. Pupils create a survey from a critical question and decide which sampling...
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Mystery Card 2
Students make a circuit on a mystery card. They then use an electrical tester to determine where electricity flows between circles on the card. They will connect wires, bulbs, and a battery to form an electrical tester.
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Efficiency Means Getting More for Less
Students measure water and make predictions about efficiency.
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The Body Meter
Students are introduced to the measurement of a meter. They measure and compare the height of different people in the class. Students classify the measurements into categories of tall, short, and average while conducting class discussion...
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Fahrenheit vs Celsius
Students make a thermometer and write a paragraph about how they did it.
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Testing the Waters
Students study the quality of water by running chemical tests on the water. First, they measure pH, temperature, phospates, and nitrates in tap (drinking) water and an outdoor water sample. Then they post and evaluate the results of...
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Math: Checking Scale Drawings for Accuracy
Students critique their own drawings for accuracy and make constructive suggestions prior to reworking them. They discover how scale in maps and drawing relate to relative size and distance. In addition, students comprehend the...
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Insects and Spiders
Students make either and insect or a spider using materials their teacher provides. They then draw of picture of their organism and defend why it is either a spider or an insect.
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Building a Body: Scale, Proportion, and Ratio
Students measure, analyze, and compare the ancient Egyptian canon of proportions using a mummy, painted images, and photographs of people today.
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Common Good
Students identify assumptions they may have about government and research to determine whether they are accurate. They support or refute their assumptions in a presentation to the class.
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Redwood Trees: How Tall?
Learners practice measuring the height of redwood trees. On a group walk, they observe the height of various trees and identify the species. In groups, they use their geometry skills and other techniques to measure the tree and determine...
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Relative Humidity of Your School
Students predict the location where the relative humidity the highest and lowest in and around their school. They use a sling psychrometer to measure the relative humidity of the various locations.
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Construction of an Ammeter and a Voltmeter from a Galvanometer
Students explore series and parallel circuits. In this physics instructional activity, students construct a simple circuit and measure its maximum current. They construct their own voltmeter and ammeter that operates at a specified range.
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Inventions 2: The Impact
Students see what inventors have to think about when making an invention, particularly the kinds of effects they can have on people.
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Weather Whys- Cloud Watching Journal
Pupils examine how natural processes change the earth by identifying their local water cycle. Individual students complete a cloud journal over a specific period of time. They observe clouds daily and take photographs of the clouds...
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What Floats Your Boat?
Students discover the Archimedes principle through a buoyancy experiment. They measure the water displacement of a lump a clay which is denser than water then reshape the clay into a bowl which floats but displaces more water.
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Examine the Data
Seventh graders examine a teacher-created database and identify specific variables and develop hypothesis statements as to their possible effect. They create a summary statement either proving or disproving their hypothesis.
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Graphing Pendulum Results
Sixth graders set up a pendulum experiment deciding which variable to manipulate (length of string or weight on the string). They create a hypothesis, collect necessary equipment, and write out each step of their experiment. They then...