Curated OER
Aquatic Habitat Water Quality Experiment
Fifth graders discuss the importance of water quality for humans and fish and make predictions about what happens to water that is polluted. In small groups, they conduct experiments to compare and contrast water that is unpolluted and...
Curated OER
Fracture Fundamentals: A Cheesy Analog
Young scholars make small cuts (fracture nuclei) in processed cheese food and then apply stresses perpendicular or parallel to the cuts to see how fractures grow. They make predictions before each experiment and explain their results to...
Curated OER
Astronomy and the Cold War: How the United States Used the Moon to Target the Soviet Union
Pupils examine how astronomical observations were used to help target sites in the Soviet Union during Cold War and why such targeting was needed. Students then make predictions and observations of same astronomical events for their...
Curated OER
Ecosystem I
Students classify and label biotic and a-biotic factors in ecosystems. They define population and make predictions about population size in a given area. They describe the a-biotic factors' importance and impact on the other elements...
Curated OER
What Foods Melt?
In this science learning exercise, students experiment to determine which foods melt using hot water in metal pans. They write predictions about which foods will melt and which will melt the fastest. They perform the experiment and note...
Curated OER
Hatching Brine Shrimp
Students experiment with temperature and salinity to detect favorable environments for hatching brine shrimp eggs. They make some predictions about which environments will yield the most hatched brine shrimp and record the number of...
Curated OER
Kinetic Vs. Potential Energy
Eighth graders listen to a teacher lecture and observe a demonstration of both potential energy and stored energy. After discussing the characteristics and examples of different types of energy, 8th graders make predictions and then...
Curated OER
Natural Catastrophic Phenomena
Sixth graders examine the ways natural phenomena are monitored to avoid disasters. They find out about instruments used in measuring disasters and prediction of future events from data.
Curated OER
The Ghost Particle
Students collect evidence to make inferences about a object hidden inside a sealed box. They think critically and logically to raise questions. Students identify questions that can be answered through investigation. They formulate and...
Curated OER
Salinity
Learners define and discuss salinity, conduct classroom experiment to determine salinity of water sample by using hydrometer, record predictions, and demonstrate understanding of how salinity influences object's ability to float in water.
Curated OER
Reading Predictions
Second graders read and predict content and purpose for table of contents, index, headings, captions, illustrations, and major words from their science or social studies textbooks. They use books' elements to summarize what they can find...
Curated OER
A Good Scientist Can . . .
In this scientist worksheet, students use a decoding system to determine the characteristics of a good scientist. Students decode 16 terms.
Curated OER
Checking Weather Forecasts
Students record a four or five day weather forecast. They check the actual weather and compare it with the forecast.
Curated OER
Making Good Decisions
Students practice the skill of reasoned decision making. In this making decisions lesson, students read from the website 'Little Planet Times' and use the 'Making Good Decisions' E-Sheet to help with the article. Students divide into...
Curated OER
Succession in a Jar
In this succession worksheet, learners build an ecosystem using a jar, water, bird seed, soil and a water plant. They predict what their ecosystem will look like in 3 weeks and draw a diagram. Students record their data over the course...
Curated OER
Keeping Warm
Learners experiment with thermal insulators. For this heat transfer lesson, students predict and then measure heat loss from a cup of water using different materials as insulators. Learners complete a line graph to display their results.
Curated OER
Matter: Solids Liquids and Gases
Students participate in a science experiment to understand that matter takes up space. In this matter lesson, students experiment with solids, liquids and gases to recognize that matter is everywhere. Students make observations and...
Curated OER
Designing a Germination Experiment - Part 1
Learners experiment with seeds and germination. In this natural science lesson, students discuss the stages of germination. Learners engage in a 4 part hands on science activity to view the process of germination.
Michigan Sea Grant
Survival Game
Musical chairs may be a classic game, but Ruffe Musical Chairs is a unique lesson on invasive species! Using the time-honored game, pupils role play the behaviors of the invasive fish called Eurasian ruffe. Learning about this aggressive...
Curated OER
Heat and Matter
Students explore liquids and solids by conducting in class experiments. In this matter lesson, students define the properties of matter and how heat can change those properties. Students experiment with heating objects such as butter and...
Teach Engineering
Making Moon Craters
Create an egg-citing study of energy. Pupils investigate the effect of height and mass on the overall amount of energy of a falling object. The fourth segment in a six-part series on energy uses a weighted egg falling from different...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Human Skin Color: Evidence for Selection
Skin color is controlled by at least six genes. Young scientists learn about skin colors through a documentary. They discuss the topics of pigment, natural selection, and vitamin D absorption. They apply their knowledge to higher order...
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
Growing Up With A Mission
New Horizons began its journey to Pluto in 2006. Ten years later, it continues its mission. In that time, scholars have surely grown, but how much more will they grow by the time New Horizons reaches its destination? Find out with an...
Institute for Teaching through Technology and Innovative Practices
The Right Number of Elephants
How can you tell if a number of items is reasonable? Combine math and language arts with a fun lesson based on Jeff Shepard's The Right Number of Elephants. After reading the book, kids discuss amounts of other items and create...