Curated OER
Ice Melting
Students design investigations to test various materials to prevent heat gain in frozen water. The task assess students' knowledge of scientific inquiry including the following skills: observation, data collection, measurement,...
Curated OER
Investigating the Biosphere With Planetary Models
Students create a biosphere using the computer program SImEarth. They work in small groups to create "Daisyworld" in which they model aspects of the Gaia hypothesis. They form a question to answer and choose variables to investigate in...
Curated OER
Predicting: Making a Hypothesis
Middle schoolers analyze information from various sources to create a hypothesis about the origin of a family artifact. Students create a hypothesis about the origin of the item and write a paragraph explaining why they believe the...
Curated OER
The Battle of Stones River: The Soldiers' Story
Learners organize items in a "doohickey kit" distributed by the teachers, creating categories using classification schemes. In this classification lesson plan, students compare systems within groups and write questions that could be...
Curated OER
Testing a New Drug 1
Students act as chief research scientists with the responsibility of testing a new drug. Students design a controlled experiment to test a hypothetical experimental drug. Students write a clear, concise, and detailed plan to present to a...
Curated OER
Watershed Awareness
Pupils investigate the relationship between upstream influences in their watershed and the watershed's estuary. They apply the scientific process to test a hypothesis while examining the impact of upland activities on estuaries.
Curated OER
Bird Populations
students study bird migratory patterns and the methods that researchers use to study them. Students are introduced to the concepts of the study of bird movements.The skill of scientific questioning is used to find results.
Curated OER
Biodegradable Plastics
Students prepare a type of biodegradable plastic. They design method(s) to compare its properties with some common plastics that are readily available in the market. They later advance to identifying variables in an experiment and fair...
Curated OER
Seeds and Similarities
Students use the scientific inquiry method to identify the changes in a plant's life cycle. In groups, they plant different types of plants and use a chart to compare and contrast their growth rates. They share their conclusions with...
Curated OER
What was Newton's Idea of Science?
Students form logical foundations for analysis of observations. They improve analytic reading abilities through practice. Students investigate the foundations of scientific thought processes and how to apply them.
Curated OER
Groundwater Realities
Students review the components of the scientific inquiry method. In groups, they use the internet to research the sustainability of water resources in their community. They examine an environmental impact study, answer questions and...
Curated OER
Investigating the Biosphere with Planetary Models
Students model the biosphere and manipulate variables affecting change and plan their experiments with the help of others. They describe their question, hypothesis, and methods of investigation.
Curated OER
Save Your Change
Students solve problems involving exponential, logarithmic, and scientific notations. Using calculators, students explore investment problems. They use a formula and logarithms to determine the years to earn a particular income, figure...
Curated OER
Testing the Hypothesis
Students create and conduct various experiments to determine the origin of a family artifact, and then determine whether their results were successful. Students summarize their results and evaluate whether their hypotheses were correct.
Curated OER
Lab Experiments in Nutrition
Looking for authentic hands-on nutritional experiments? High schoolers will perform experiments to test for the presence of vitamin C in several solutions as well as the effect of caffeine on Daphnia. They will also consider the...
Curated OER
Investigating the Effect of Minerals on Plant Growth
How do different minerals affect the growth of plants? Budding botanists find out in a multi-week experiment that has them using solutions with specific mineral deficiencies. While there is a lot of preparation for the investigation,...
Cherry Creek Schools
Physical Science Final Exam Review Packet
If you need a way to assess the concepts in your physical science class, use an extended set of worksheets as a midterm or final exam. It includes questions about density, physical and chemical matter, speed and velocity, weight and...
Curated OER
Walking Magic
Students conduct experiment with water striders by placing the insect in two different solutions and discuss their observations. They discover that weight and surface area are important factors in their experiment.
Kenan Fellows
Determining Stream Health by the Diversity and Types of Benthic Organisms
How diverse are the benthic organisms found in local streams? Using the information learned in previous lessons on identification of macroinvertebrates and on calculating stream index values, groups determine the health of local...
Curated OER
Energy Saving activities Lighting
Eighth graders study how light emits energy. In this energy savings lesson, 8th graders conduct two experiments to find ways to save energy. In one experiment students measure the light in each classroom and make recommendations for...
Curated OER
Who Done It?
Pick and choose which activities to include in this crime scene investigation. Junior detectives can examine fingerprints, DNA, blood samples, or bone structure. The plan suggests you have teams solve a mystery, but it does not...
Curated OER
With Liberty & Top Soil for All
Students compare the basic needs of plants to the basic needs of democracy. In this democracy comparison lesson plan, students complete a worksheet on what happens to a plant that's not nourished. Students draw a correlation to the...
Curated OER
"Graphing Your Motion"
Students study the concepts of motion, velocity, and acceleration through graphing their own movement using LoggerPro. They explain the difference between speed and velocity using the weather vane example. They discover the difference...
Curated OER
Protect the Skin You're in
Students explore the importance of sun safety in relationship to skin cancer prevention. They test the effectiveness of various sunscreens and administer and analyze a simple survey to their peers. In addition, they implement a public...