Teach Engineering
What is a Nanometer?
Teams learn about the size of a nanometer by measuring objects and converting those measurements. A learning exercise then tests the groups' abilities to use nanometers by having them determine the size of objects that are too small to...
Curated OER
Measure Mania
Groups of young scholars rotate through five classroom stations to estimate, measure, and record volume, length, weight, mass, and area using both customary and metric measure. They evaluate their data to determine how close their...
Curated OER
Fun With Rainfall Measurements
Demonstrate how rain is measured. Pupils will use a rain gauge to measure the amount of rainfall during one week. Then record the data and discuss the results.
Illustrative Mathematics
How Thick Is a Soda Can II?
Science, technology, and math come together in this one combination exercise. Analyzing the common soda can from both a purely mathematical perspective and a scientific angle allows for a surprisingly sophisticated comparison of...
Curated OER
A Weigh we Go!
Here are some cross-curricular activities whil should help your kids understnad weight measurements and grammar. In this grammar and math instructional activity, students read the book Skittles Riddles and practice counting and balancing...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Measuring Biodiversity in Gorongosa
Take your biology class' understanding of biodiversity to a whole new level! Ecology scholars use data to calculate three different diversity indices based on the organisms in the Gorongosa National Park. The four-part activity uses an...
Chicago Children's Museum
Simple Machines: Force and Motion
Get things moving with this elementary science unit on simple machines. Through a series of nine lessons including teacher demonstrations, hands-on activities, and science experiments, young scientists learn about forces, motion,...
Curated OER
Volcanoes: Fourth Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
Young geologists begin exploring volcanoes of different structures and states: active, extinct, or dormant. During the lab, they make three models and compare different types of volcanoes, including composite, cinder cone, and...
Curated OER
Plate Tectonics: Fourth Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
The pre-lab portion of the lesson introduces emerging geologists to the various layers that make up Earth. After completing a sheet on the identification of the layers, class members simulate plate boundaries and their...
NASA
Atoms, Elements, and Isotopes
Rings and golden nuggets contain the element gold, but how small can you break it down before it is no longer considered gold? A helpful presentation explains the basics about atoms, elements, and isotopes through a presentation.
Virginia Department of Education
Work and Power
Assist your class with correctly calculating the values for force, work, and power as they determine the amount various activities require. They gather data and participate in a group discussion to compare results upon conclusion of the...
Curated OER
Weather with Lewis and Clark: Then and Now
Fourth graders discuss how to accurately measure weather, gather materials in order to make instruments, and build weather instruments in which they measure and record different aspects of weather for a five-day period.
Curated OER
Orienteering - Lesson 1 - Maps & Map Scales
Lesson 1 of 10 lessons in this orienteering unit is about maps and map scales. After all, orienteering is all about maps, compasses, and finding ones' way around. It is imperative to be able to read maps and understand the relevance of...
Edgate
Great Grids
Learners use grid boxes as a measurement tool and discover how grids are used for mapmaking and scaling down an area. They begin by attempting to draw a model shape drawn by the teacher by using the gridding process. At the conclusion of...
Curated OER
Standard Units of Measure
Learners explore linear measurement. They choose appropriate measuring tools, measure three classroom items, and record their results. A class discussion ensues in which everyone decides the best way to present their data.
NASA
Earth, Earth’s Moon, Mars Balloons
Very specific diameters are given for blowing up three different balloons to represent, in scale, the moon, Earth, and Mars. In groups of three, amateur astronomers explore scale measurements and distance in space.
Curated OER
Measuring Objects in the Classroom
Third graders use ruler and tapes to measure classroom objects. After discussing measurement tools, have students complete sentences stating what they would use to measure various objects. Later in the computer lab, they type their...
Science Matters
Wattsville and Mercalli Booklet
There has been an earthquake! Can you listen to the description of damage given by callers in order to determine the epicenter? The 11th of 20 lessons has pupils read a script of one emergency caller. The class records the information on...
Curated OER
Are You My Little Peanut?
Fourth graders explore the mass and length of peanuts by pretending to parent a peanut. In this mode, median and range lesson plan students graph their measurements and then use them to find the mode, median and range. Students discuss...
Baylor College
Heart and Lungs
With a partner, youngsters measure their pulse and breathing rates, both at rest and after running in place for a minute. While this activity is not novel, the lesson plan includes a large-scale classroom graphing activity and other...
Curated OER
House Project
Make young mathematicians' dreams a reality with this fun drawing project. Given the task of designing their dream home, students create drawings and physical models that demonstrate their understanding of proportion and scale.
Curated OER
Measuring Up
Young scholars examine and discuss a variety of ways to measure length, capacity, and weight. They estimate and measure a pencil's length using Unifix cubes, estimate and fill a measuring cup with Unifix cubes, and weigh a calculator in...
Teach Engineering
An Inflated Impression of Mars
Help your class understand the magnitude of the distance between Earth and Mars with an activity that asks small groups to use balloons to create scale models of the Earth, Moon, and Mars. Class members figure out the distances...
Curated OER
Advanced Measuring - The "Prequel"
Drill your cooking class with the use of equivalent measurements using a variety of methods. Included are two different equivalent games, worksheets, a PowerPoint, and a recipe to scale. Use them all, or browse the associated resources...