Second in a three-part instructional activity on rivers, this instructional activity focuses on the flooding that occurs in riparian locations. First, learners take a look at facts about the Amazon River. They read online materials and...

Students examine the physical properties of waves to explore the word crest and trough. They use toys to study waves in air, water and light.

Pupils see how NASA scientists are studying the circadian timing system to improve astronaut's physical and mental tasks while working in space. They demonstrate how fractions, decimals, and percents are related.

Read through the extensive background information and then lead your geology or physical oceanography class through an investigation of actual temperature anomaly data from the Juan de Fuca ridge. They translate the data onto a plot,...

Students examine the concepts of sorting and classifying animal. They use familiar animals to determine the connections between physical characteristics and categorization.

Give small groups of physical scientists tokens that represent electrons in a photovoltaic cell. They play a dice game in which they move the tokens around, representing the flow of electrons through the p-n junction of a semiconductor...

Small groups in your physics class collaborate on researching and forming an opinion on whether or not to continue operating the Indian Point nuclear power plant in New York. Once the information is gathered and an argument developed,...

The centerpiece of this lesson plan is a predator-prey simulation in which colored paperclips represent different species of animals camouflaged against a colored background. Relevant follow-up questions are provided. The activity is...

Oceanography experts use candy to construct a model of a bio-physical mooring that would test a variety of factors. Each piece of equipment to be included on the mooring is described within the write-up. As pupils gather the candies for...

Double, double toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble! Find out what drives a turbine to generate electricity and whether or not it has an impact on the environment. A discussion and lecture is divided by a hands-on activity in...

Students explore the physical properties of sand, soil, and rocks and sort, classify, compare, and contrast the materials found in the soil. The differences between the living and non-living parts of the soil is discussed.

Students carefully observe prairie plants and record their observations in a science journal. They examine the root systems of grasses and flowers and surmise how these plants can grow together on the prairie.

In groups of six, middle school space scientists create an imaginative travel brochure for attracting visitors to the planet Mars. Information must include surface features and atmospheric conditions. Although time-consuming, this is a...

Although not particularly educational, here is a creative group activity in which high school biologists will use their imaginations to create a new life form combining characteristics from existing life forms. Each group must come up...

Elementary school physical scientists explore kinetic mechanical energy by dropping a golf ball on different surfaces. They discuss how human made materials might react to light differently from nature made materials. This lesson plan...

This interesting document suggests nine different activities for shedding light on photovoltaic cells. A bit of background information is furnished for you, as well as many, many resource links. Listed for each activity are a learning...

Sixth graders are introduced to artifacts and explore an online archaeological site to  connect clues about how people once lived. In this deductive reasoning instructional activity, 6th graders participate in the stratigraphy game...

Students are introduced to the pedometer, and use this tool to associate physical activity (physical energy) with calories burned (chemical energy). They comprehend the making and burning of energy.

Using the sun's light as a source of energy is not a new concept. Give your environmental studies, engineering, or physical science class this list of how humans have used solar energy throughout history. Assign groups a certain time...

Explore physical science by participating in a visual spectrum experiments. Budding scientists identify the colors in the color spectrum and view the colors in class by utilizing cellophane, flash lights, and other arts and crafts...

Here is a lesson in collaboration cleverly disguised as an engineering design activity. There is no background material for you to teach here,  just instructions about materials and rules for participating groups. Use this as...

Ninth graders calculate the average speed of their balsa wood airplane. In this physics lesson, 9th graders build their own airplane and make necessary modifications to to make it fly straight. They interpret distance and time graph...

Students examine physical change with different temperature and solvents. For this elements and compounds lesson, students conduct experiments to discover what happens to the mass of a substance when is undergoes a physical change.

Middle schoolers identify the different parts of a wave. In this physics lesson, students explain how animals communicate using sound waves. They discuss the effect of Navy's sonar on dolphins and whales.