Curated OER
I Wood if I Could
Tenth graders investigate the process of how specific products are made from trees. For this chemistry lesson, groups of students must choose among ice cream, bubble gum, paper, toothpaste and lipstick. They research, design and produce...
Curated OER
Gathering Data About Respiration
Students engage in an experiment that tests how much air we breathe in and out during the respiration process. In this respiration lesson, students blow a typical breath's amount of air into a balloon. They use a ruler to measure the...
Curated OER
Fractals, An Inquiry: Day 3
Students develop questions for their inquiries and plan their experiments. They are supported by a modeled case study of Max the Dog's Inquiry Planning Process, as well as supported by a planning template, The Inquiry Organizer.
Curated OER
Mobius Strips
High schoolers discuss the scientific method and construct their own Mobius Strips. They examine their Mobius Strip, and write observations and a hypothesis on how many strips of paper they have when they cut the strip in half length-wise.
Curated OER
Variables and Controls in an Investigation
Seventh graders identify variables and controls in a paper airplane investigation. In this scientific method instructional activity, 7th graders conduct an experiment to determine the variables that affect the flight of paper airplanes....
Curated OER
Farming Fantastic Friends
Seventh graders demonstrate scientific inquiry to design and perform an experiment involving Grow Creatures. They participate in a class discussion, and in small groups design an experiment that determines how to change the materials to...
NASA
Let's Investigate Mars
Take your science class on a hypothetical field trip to Mars with an engaging astronomy lesson. After first learning about NASA's Mars rover missions, young scientists plan their own scientific investigations of Earth's nearest neighbor.
Curated OER
The Lepidoptera Project
Students are introduced to Scientific Inquiry and discover how to design an experiment that answers critical questions using butterflies as the topic. They design experiments that compare the number of species of butterflies in a vacant,...
Curated OER
Simple Circuit: Electric Currents and Circuits
Through inquiry and exploration, 4th graders will learn and understand the functions of open and closed circuits. They will break into 2 groups, define vocabulary, hypothesize how to light a bulb, then test their hypothesis 4 different...
Towson University
Berries...With a Side of DNA? (High School)
Is DNA still present after picking fruit or cooking vegetables? Biology scholars extract and collect DNA strands in an impactful lab. Working groups prepare their samples and compare their results to negative and positive standard...
Curated OER
Fractals, An Inquiry: Day 5
Pupils explore the process and criteria for generating an effective report of their inquiries into fractals.They are provided with multiple report options for expressing their knowledge of the inquiry process.
Curated OER
Household Things that Fly and Why!!!
Students examine the four forces of flight. In this flight lesson, students test to see which types of items will fly. Students make predictions on whether the item will fly or not. Students gain knowledge about lift, gravity, thrust and...
Curated OER
Catapults
Students test catapults. In this physics lesson plan, student conduct scientific investigations that require them to test catapults. Students practice their problem solving skills as they employ the use of the scientific method.
Curated OER
Rusting and the Scientific Method
Young scholars observe the oil can scene with the tin man from a clip from "The Wizard of Oz" and answer the question, "What can we learn about rust from this scene?". They take 2 tubes and 2 nails, adding 1 salt packet to 2 ml of...
American Physiological Society
An Inquiry into Alcoholic Fermentation
Introduce life science high schoolers to their new "best buds" yeast! Using a wide variety of materials, lab groups design an experiment that illustrates how yeast acquires the resources it needs to undergo cellular respiration. The...
Perkins School for the Blind
Building an Organic Molecule
Glucose is a simple sugar and a molecule that can be illustrated through modeling. Scientific investigators with visual impairments use hands-on models to reconstruct the process of bonding molecules. The tools used in this activity are...
University of Minnesota
Beautiful Brain: Step Inside the Brain
Before digital microscopes, scientists hired artists to draw the things visible in the microscope. Through training in neuroscience and art, Cajal revolutionized the way we view the beautiful brain. The third lesson plan in a series of...
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
How Dry am I? Exploring Biomimicry and Nanotechnology
Help your classes feel like they can walk on water! An engaging inquiry-based instructional activity has young scholars experiment with different surface coatings. They make observations about their properties and how they relate to the...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Investigation: Automotive Emissions and the Greenhouse Effect
It is recommended that you conduct this fabulous experiment as a whole-class demonstration. Collect air samples from the environment, human exhalation, and car exhaust, then compare them for carbon dioxide content using bromthymol blue...
Curated OER
The Case of the Contaminated Maize
Environmental health students read about an outbreak of aflatoxin poisoning with the intent to examine the stages of an epidemiologic investigation. As they read the case study, they identify where the outbreak occurred, form a...
Curated OER
Apply Technological Design and Scientific Habits of Mind
Students are introduced to the principles involved with technological design. In groups, they use the Internet to research an important historical innovation and how it changed the world. They discover the barriers that were involved in...
Foundation for Water & Energy Education
How is Flowing Water an Energy Source? Activity A
Here is a fun little exploration of the potential energy potential of falling water. Learners drop water from various heights using a straw, and they analyze the diameter of the splash. Pair this with two more activities of the same...
Curated OER
Critter? Growth
Students identify and use the elements of the scientific inquiry to solve problems. They explain concepts about the structure and properties of matter. Pupils write an explanation of polymers and how the characteristic of polymers...
Curated OER
Me and My Shadow
Young scholars apply the process of scientific inquiries or technological design to explore the explanations of the daily patterns of the Earth's rotation. They record different shadow lengths showing the apparent movement of the sun...