Colorado State University
If You Can't Predict the Weather, How Can You Predict the Climate?
Why is the weather man wrong so often? Young climatologists discover how chaos rules both weather and climate through a math-based activity. Using an iterative equation, the class examines how small day-to-day weather events total up to...
American Psychological Association
A Tasty Sample(r): Teaching about Sampling Using M&M’s
Here's a sweet activity! As part of a study of psychological research methods and statistic gathering, individuals develop a hypothesis about the number of each color of M&Ms in a fun-size package. They then count the number of each...
DiscoverE
Build a Watershed
What's the best way to learn how watersheds work? Build one! Combining engineering, the water cycle, and ecology concerns, the activity is the perfect fit for an interdisciplinary unit. Teams construct a model watershed with simple...
UAF Geophysical Institute
Observing the Weather
How can you predict the weather without any technology? Young scientists learn to forecast the weather using traditional Native American techniques. Based on their observations of the weather, as well as talking to their classmates, they...
Integrated Physics and Chemistry
Law of Conservation of Matter
Does mass change during a chemical reaction? Demonstrate the Law of Conservation of Matter while encouraging class members to be creative with a two-part lesson. First, learners use Alka-Seltzer® tablets and water to demonstrate the...
Prestwick House
The Grapes of Wrath
At over 450 pages, John Steinbeck's Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Grapes of Wrath can be a challenging choice for full-class, book circle, or independent reading. The activities in a 10-page sample The Grapes of Wrath...
UAF Geophysical Institute
Carbon Footprint
Your young environmentalists can calculate their carbon footprint and discuss ways to reduce it with a worksheet about climate change. After reading a handout about what impact one's carbon footprint can have on the environment, kids...
Curated OER
Poetry Project
Choosing a poet or a theme, eighth graders conduct research in the world of poetry. They conduct Internet research and select five poems that fit their poet or theme, and create a seven slide PowerPoint presentation on their selected...
Curated OER
Timeline of Extreme Weather Events
Students research and chart extreme weather events on a timeline. In this extreme weather lesson, students interview older people who have experienced extreme weather events. Students complete a worksheet based on the information of the...
Quizlet
Quizlet: 5th Grade: Observation vs. Inference Proficient: Match
In this interactive game, students match the terms observation, inference, and prediction with their definitions and examples.
Quizlet
Quizlet: 5th Grade: Observation vs. Inference: Proficient: Flashcards
This set of interactive flashcards focuses on observation and inference. It provides a list of terms with definitions and some examples.
Texas Instruments
Texas Instruments: Inference for Correlation and Regression
In this activity, students test if a significant relationship exists between a bivariate data set, and then calculate the confidence and predictive intervals. They also improve the interval-prediction capabilities by automating the process.
Read Works
Read Works: The Scientific Method
[Free Registration/Login Required] This nonfiction passage lists steps in the scientific method. This passage reinforces essential reading comprehension skills. Opportunities for vocabulary acquisition are also included. Several...