Lesson Plan
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Jell-O Optics

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students observe an activity with Jell-O to learn about optics.  In this investigative lesson students fill out a handout on the activity that helps them to investigate the index of refraction and the speed of light. 
Lesson Plan
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Microscopes and Crystals

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students observe crystals under the microscope. In this science lesson, students compare how the crystal look like using their eyes, hand lens and microscope. They identify the type of crystal based on the amount of light they allow to...
Lesson Plan
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Gonna Take a Sedimentary Journey

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Learners collect water samples from a local source, test it, filter it and identify the materials suspended in it. Students disucss the possible sources of sediment in their watershed.
Lesson Plan
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Trash...it really piles up!

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students investigate a contemporary "midden" by analyzing trash collected from various sources and determining life-style choices people make. They see that reducing the amount of waste we generate is helpful to the the environment.
Lesson Plan
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Sound and Hearing - Internet Research

For Teachers K - 1st
Students use a website to help them recognize that sound is generated in a variety of ways and from different sources. They determine that sounds vary in tone and loudness, and learn there are different ways to describe sound.
Lesson Plan
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Circuits and Conductors

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Learners participate in an online lesson to explain the conductivity of different materials and the effect of changing the power source.
Lesson Plan
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Monitor Marine Migrants

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Students, in groups, track the seasonal journey of a species, such as a shorebird, sea turtle, or marine mammal, using various sources of migration data
Lesson Plan
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Energy Transfer

For Teachers 2nd - 5th
Students investigate the properties of heated air. They make predictions about what they think makes the wind blow on a worksheet, and conduct two experiments to demonstrate the properties of heated air. Students heat a bottle until a...
Lesson Plan
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Air Pollution: A Local and Global Problem

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Learners work together to solve the problem of air pollution. Using the Internet, they research the pollution problem in one city. Using the data, they develop their own solution and pitch it to the class. They must identify the...
Lesson Plan
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Observing Bursts from an X-ray Burster

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students study the use of X-ray data to make size and energy estimates of the source and the processes occurring there. They use XTE observations of the object GRO 1744-28 to determine whether bursts occur periodically and the duration...
Lesson Plan
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Colored H2 Balloon Explosions

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students perform an experiment in which they put different types of salts in a balloon, fill it with hydrogen gas, and ignite it. The electrons in the salt molecules are excited by the heat and release energy in the form of light. ...
Lesson Plan
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Making a Battery

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders make a battery. In this physical science lesson, 5th graders word in pairs make the battery. Students follow 4 steps to create the battery.
Lesson Plan
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Density of Glass Fragments

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students explore how the density of an object is determined and determine what a "physical property" is. They demonstrate how science can be applied to police work.
Unit Plan
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Our Universe: Always Moving, Always Changing

For Teachers 3rd
Students explore the main concepts of astronomy through the eleven lessons of this unit. The past, present, and future methods of studying the science are examined in this unit.
Worksheet
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Meteorology Word Search Puzzle

For Teachers 6th - 8th
In this science worksheet, students look for the words that are related to the theme of the worksheet. They also work on the skills of spelling and word recognition.
Lesson Plan
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Is Your Blue Really Blue? [Metamerism]

For Teachers 6th - 9th
Students examine color perception and how it relates to metamerism.  In this color lesson students complete a lab activity that shows them the three basic components of color perception. 
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Chemiluminescence

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore chemiluminescence through various experiments. In this chemistry instructional activity, students explain the chemical reaction that drives the process. They give real life applications of chemiluminescence.
Lesson Plan
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Chemical Sleuthing

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers engage in a lesson which includes flame tests and the construction of a simple diffraction spectrograph with which to measure sodium ion emissions. They use the Bragg equation to compute the wavelength of the line spectra...
Lesson Plan
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Potato Power

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students light a LED clock or light bulb using potatoes. They examine how a battery works in a simple circuit. They determine how chemical energy changes to electrical energy while experimenting with potato powered circuits.
Lesson Plan
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Gazing At Cosmic Pinballs

For Teachers K - 1st
Students explore the world of stars. They see that the color of a star tells how hot or cold it is, that stars come in different sizes. and that stars are moving through space. They draw lines connecting start to star.
Lesson Plan
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Completing the Circuit

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students use a battery, wires, small light bulb and a light bulb holder to learn the difference between an open circuit and a closed circuit, and understand that electric current only occurs in a closed circuit. They describe the...
Lesson Plan
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Meet the Neighbors: Planets Around Nearby Stars

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Students explain why a transiting planet causes a periodic dimming in the light from its parent star. They determine the radius of a planet, and its orbital distance, by analyzing data and manipulating equations. Students compare the...
Lesson Plan
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Post-Civil War American History

For Teachers 5th
Fifth graders examine significant events in Post-Civil War America. In this Post-Civil War lesson, 5th graders investigate the important events after the war in 19th century America. They read primary source documents about six topics...
Lesson Plan
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The Sun Does What?

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students examine why the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. In this sun lesson, students explore the sunset and shadows. Students prove that the sun's position changes during the day. Students investigate what causes a shadow....