NASA
Rain Gauge Activity
Complete teacher narrative and presentation slides for teaching about Earth's water make up the bulk of this lesson. Embedded within the slide show, you will find videos about the water cycle, keeping track of the limited supply of fresh...
American Chemical Society
Comparing the Density of an Object to the Density of Water
Investigators construct a makeshift balance and compare equal volumes of wax and water. They do the same for clay and water. Then they discover whether the wax and clay will float or sink in water. Ultimately this is a comparison of...
Curated OER
Where Are the Dinosaurs?
Students recognize that they haven't seen a dinosaur because they no longer exist. In this dinosaur lesson, students view videos and understand what the dinosaur habitat was like. Students role play dinosaurs. Students explore dinosaur...
NBC
Nutrition, Hydration, and Health
NFL football in science class? Yes, please! In an engaging and motivating three-day lesson, kids take a look at their own nutritional habits and needs compared to those of an NFL player, then experiment with the effects of hydration on...
Center Science Education
Weather in the News
Tornadoes, blizzards, and hurricanes, oh my! In this lesson, meteorology majors compare stories of historical storms written by two or more different sources. As a result, they understand how the media portrays such catastrophes and...
Curated OER
Heart as a Pump
Students explore the working of the heart by making comparisons with the actions of a pump. They find examples of pumps and valves in facets, aerosol sprays, automobile fuel pumps, and many household items in daily use.
Curated OER
Carbon Dioxide Heats It Up
Students design an investigation to test whether vegetation in an area helps regulate the ambient air temperature. They make comparisons between the investigation and global changes in climate. In groups, they present their findings to...
Curated OER
Household Conservation/Efficiency
Hook your class up to an online home energy usage calculator so that they can estimate the amount used per month by their families. Then give them Watt meters with which they will measure the power consumption of several small...
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
Jupiter’s Relative Size
How do you properly illustrate the extreme size difference between two planets—Earth and Jupiter? With the help of jellybeans, of course! Create a scale model of Jupiter's mass compared to Earth using a fishbowl, 1,400 beans, and a dixie...
Curated OER
A Comparison of Polymeric Liquids with Newtonian Liquids
Students concretely illustrate and define a macromolecule, observe the unique behavior of polymers and relate to their knowledge of molecules, and use the scientific process to determine the difference between Newtonian and non-Newtonian...
Curated OER
Beach Life: Clam Dissection
Learners investigate clams. In this clam life lesson, students conduct an experiment where they dissect clams. Learners compare anatomies of humans and clams.
Curated OER
Guess Who? Coral
Fourth graders identify and group coral formations. In this coral identification instructional activity, 4th graders examine coral pictures, discuss vocabulary, and provide similarities and differences in the growth formations.
Curated OER
Applied Science - Science and Math Post Lab
Learners utilize a balance scale. In this applied science lesson, students compare the weights of two objects using an elementary balance scale. Learners balance the scale with weights to find how heavy an object is.
Curated OER
Comparing Apples and Onions
Fifth graders observe and compare apples. In this apples instructional activity, 5th graders work in groups to record the physical characteristics of a variety of apples. Students predict each apples weight and then weigh them to see if...
Curated OER
Weather Math Student Worksheet
In this math instructional activity, students record the high and low daily temperatures for their home city or another location. Students average the temperatures and make comparisons. As a bonus activity, students answer 3 questions...
Curated OER
Water Anaysis
Young scholars conduct three tests of water quality that can be utilized with TerrAqua columns and outdoors: pH, dissolved oxygen, and temperature. They make comparisons between different types of water and draw conclusions about how...
Curated OER
Comparing Climates - Three Ring Venn Diagram
In this Venn diagram worksheet, students read about the use of the graphic organizer to make comparisons. They compare three different climate types in the three rings of the diagram.
Curated OER
# 14 Experimenting with Copper (II) Solutions
Students determine that the relative concentration of copper ions in water can be determined by a color comparison. They make a copper (II) sulfate solution of a given concentration. Students dilute their initial solutions until their...
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Size and Scale – Learning about Measurement
Can you visualize one billionth of a meter? It's not easy to understand the scale of a nanometer. Learners use a hands-on lesson to develop an understanding of the size of a nanometer in comparison to common objects. They walk away with...
Curated OER
Mapping the Bone Field: An Area and Scale Exercise
Here is an excellent cross-curricular lesson. Learners relate multiplication to area by making a grid on graph paper, and then creating the same grid in real space outside in the school yard.
Curated OER
Density
Learners predict when an object will float or sink based on comparison of density of the object to the density of the substance in which it is placed. The access a website and sketch the object in the first column of their table and then...
Lesson Plans
Analogy of the Cell Project
Intended to supplement your existing cell function and organelle lessons, pairs work together to develop a real-world analogy for cell structures. In addition to writing paragraphs about the comparison, each group will make a short...
Teach Engineering
Creepy Silly Putty
It might be silly to determine the creep rate of putty but groups will enjoy making different formulations of silly putty and playing with them to understand how the different mixtures behave. The second part of the activity has groups...
Cornell University
Chemical Reactions
Investigate the Law of Conservation of Mass through a lab exploration. Individuals combine materials to initiate chemical reactions. They monitor for signs of reactions and measure the masses before and after the reactions for comparison.