Interactive
Biology in Motion

Evolution Lab

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Evolution occurs though change over time, but can it go any faster? Scholars speed up the process of evolution and observe a simulation of 20 blue organisms fighting for survival. A graph displays the changes in phenotype over time. By...
Activity
University of Waikato

Farming and Environmental Issues

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Forming ethical arguments is sometimes a complicated task. Guide classes through a process for forming and presenting ethical opinions. Learners consider the views of all stakeholders on the impact of farming on the environment and the...
Activity
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

How Did Dinosaurs Regulate Their Body Temperature?

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Are dinosaurs more like birds or reptiles? Learners put the question to the test by analyzing body temperature data from a 2014 study. With their analysis, they develop a theory about the body temperature regulation of dinosaurs.
PPT
Curated OER

Criss-Cross Rule for Binary Compounds

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Chemistry aces apply the criss-cross method for finding the formulae of binary compounds. Using aluminum chloride and magnesium oxide as examples, they are guided step-by-step through the process. This is a concise demonstration of this...
Interactive
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

The Eukaryotic Cell Cycle and Cancer

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
How does cancer begin, and why can it get so out of control? Curious young cytologists use an interactive resource to study the cell cycle. After reviewing the background information, individuals go step-by-step through the process of...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Math in Science-Radioactive Decay and Half-Life

For Students 9th - 11th
In this radioactive decay and half-life worksheet, students use given half-lifes to calculate the amount of time it will take for certain amounts of elements to decay. They also find the age of samples and determine how many grams of...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Computer Basics For Kids Worksheet

For Students 3rd Standards
The computer can be a wonderful tool with so many applications. Third graders read a four paragraph procedural text to learn about: central processing unit, memory, input, output. They answer four fill in the blank and multiple choice...
Lesson Plan
California Academy of Science

Human Evolution

For Teachers 9th - 12th
As the great and hilarious Tim Minchin once said, "Science is simply the word we use to describe a method of organizing our curiosity." Science is more than just a guess; it is based on questions, observations, and evidence. High...
Lesson Plan
NASA

Two Versions of Gravity: Newton and Einstein

For Teachers 11th - 12th Standards
We have all heard the debate about teaching both theories, but an innovative lesson takes the discussion to a new level. Scholars research and debate Newton's Law of Gravitation versus Einstein's General Theory of...
Lesson Plan
NOAA

Lost City Chemistry Detectives

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
In 1977, scientists discovered hot springs in the middle of deep, cold ocean waters near the Galapagos Islands. Scholars research the chemical reactions that explain what scientists found at the Lost City. A discussion connects many...
Lesson Plan
NASA

Things Are Not Always What They Seem

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Science is magic that works. Magical color-changing beads and a coffee can that follows voice commands are just two examples of magic tricks that rely on science. After completing a hands-on activity and an experiment investigating the...
Unit Plan
Intel

Plugging into the Sun

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
What's cooking? A sizzling STEM unit challenges scholars to build a solar cooker that can successfully cook an egg. The unit opens with a study of Earth's rotation, the sun's energy, and shadows. Pupils use a compass and thermometer to...
Activity
Curated OER

The BEAM Project: Building Efficient Architectural Models

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Technology or engineering teams are given a task to design, construct, and test the efficiency of a structure that will foster an even temperature throughout an entire sunny day. Intended as a long-term project, pupils research, plan,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Chesapeake Bay in Captain John Smith's Time

For Teachers 4th - 5th Standards
When Captain John Smith visited the Chesapeake Bay in the summer of 1608, what types of animals and habitats did he encounter? Your young historians will analyze primary source documents to answer this question, as well as compare...
Lesson Plan
NASA

The Importance of Food

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Pupils make observations while eating food. They act out the process of food breaking down in the body and the roles of various chemical components, such as sugar and protein. It concludes with an activity illustrating the process and a...
Lesson Plan
Howard Hughes Medical Institute

How Novel Icefish Genes Can Improve Human Health

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Designed to accompany the 13-minute video The Making of the Fittest: The Birth and Death of Genes, this handout serves as both a viewing guide during the video and an analysis of how the adaptations of the icefish might help treat...
Lesson Plan
SRI International

Nanofiltration

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
How can everyone in the world have access to clean drinking water? Throughout the lesson, learners read about and listen to how water is filtered, what the filtration process removes, and  the best ways to filter. They explore the...
Lesson Plan
2
2
American Chemical Society

Changing State: Melting

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Dry ice is extremely cold — it is -109.3°F or -78.5°C. Scholars observe and explain the molecular motion associated with melting. Then they design their own experiments to speed up the melting process. Finally, a teacher presents a...
Unit Plan
Intel

Composting: Why Bother?

For Teachers 8th - 10th Standards
The first STEM lesson in a group of 10 explores composting. After discussing how to make a better tomorrow, classes are challenged to track garbage in their communities, visit a local waste management facility, and conduct a survey...
Unit Plan
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Curated OER

Artificial Selection

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
The second lesson in the series begins with a starter activity discussing wild versus domesticated animals. Then, scholars play a card game, with optional variations, to emphasize artificial selection. Next, they attend a field trip to a...
Lesson Plan
National Wildlife Federation

Why All The Wiggling on the Way Up?

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Some of the CO2 emitted by burning fossil fuels is removed from the atmosphere by natural sinks, such as the ocean. The fifth engaging lesson in the series of 21 examines the CO2 data from three very different locations. It then makes a...
Lesson Plan
California Academy of Science

Coral and Chemistry

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Using cabbage juice as a pH indicator, future scientists explore the effect of increasing carbon dioxide on the pH of the ocean and relate it to the health of coral reefs. Ideal for an earth or environmental sciences course, this lesson...
Lesson Plan
Consortium for Ocean Science Exploration and Engagement (COSEE)

Arctic Smorgasbord

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Though the walrus spends roughly one third of its time on land, it eats organisms that live on the bottom of the ocean. The first in a series of five, the lesson uses a variety of plant and animal cards to have scholars build an arctic...
Lesson Plan
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Science 4 Inquiry

States and Phases of Matter

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Plasma is the most common phase of matter in our universe. Scholars explore the change of energy as molecules change phases of matter. They rotate through stations, graphing the changes in energy level.