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Traveling Through the Solar System
Learners use calculator and non-calculator methods for analyzing data. They apply data collection and analysis in a study of mass and weight. Students enhance and apply the concept of line of best fit. They master graphing in a plane,...
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Residential Power System
Perform data analysis on energy consumption to apply algebraic expressions to the real world. Learners will write and solve equations that answer various questions from residential power use. They will collect data at home and calculate...
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Spacing Out the Solar System
Sixth graders practice applying their problem-solving skills as they measure circular objects and make connections to planets. They identify and describe measurable attributes of objects and units of measurement and solve problems...
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Changing Faces: A Study of Solar and Planetary Rotation Rates
Middle schoolers determine rotation rates of a variety of solar system objects using images and the Internet.
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Relative Ratios
Students discover that proportions are made up of equal ratios each containing the same building blocks. They, using the Internet, apply their knowledge of direct relationships and proportions to problems in planetary science.
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ENERGY, Design Competition: Energy Systems of the Future!
Students examine energy, where it comes from and the different fuels that are used. In this energy lesson students design an energy infrastructure using a renewable energy source.
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Our Solar System to Scale
Students calculate the diameter of planets and their relative distances. In this space science lesson, students discover how small or big the planets are in comparison to each other. Students use cross multiplying fractions to find the...
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Clip the Face
Young scholars discover the moon's phases and the rarity of eclipses. In this lunar lesson, students view a video titled Spin Around the Solar System: A Moon Dance, which demonstrates the key differences between a lunar and solar...
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Time That Period
Physical science starters play with a pendulum in order to experience periodicity. Detailed procedures and a worksheet are included for day one. For day two, learners will use a graphing calculator to help them plot orbit data from a...
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Outer Space and Cyber Space
Fourth graders learn about the Solar System while they use mean, median and mode to explore the characteristics of the planets. Students web publish expository writing.
Mascil Project
Closed Greenhouses
Controlling the efficiency of a greenhouse is a mathematical task. A collaborative project challenges learners to create an efficiency plan for a closed greenhouse. Using algebraic equations, they consider a set of constraints, design...
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Meet the Neighbors: Planets Around Nearby Stars
Young scholars 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...
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Sunlight Necklaces
Third graders review the placement and role of the sun in the solar system. Using beads, they create a necklace which they can use to identify the amount of sunlight is being illuminated. In groups, they record observations on the...
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Rescue Mission Game
Students conduct probability experiments. For this rescue mission lesson, sudents play a game and collect statistical data. They organize and interpret the data and determine the probability of success. Students plot points on a...
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Planets an Introduction
Fourth graders investigate one planet, enter information into a database, and print the database sorting for each of the attributes.
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Earth's Orbit Lesson
Tenth graders devise a computational model to explore how the orbit of the Earth might change if its velocity were different. Using accurately recorded data, 10th graders defend a scientific argument.
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When a Ruler is Too Short
Students measure distances using parallax. In this math lesson, students explain how this method helped astronomers with their studies of the solar system. They determine the length of their arm using parallax and compare it with other...
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Applied Science - Science and Math Post-Lab
Students use scientific tools. In this Applied Science lesson, students investigate the use of scientific tools to enhance observation and discovery. Students indicate how each tool assists scientific work.
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Space: The Final Frontier
Sixth graders construct a graph to demonstration information that they've learned about the solary system. They also write or illustrate a sonar or lunar eclipse.
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The Voyage Scale
Students identify how models are powerful tools of exploration and that the sizes of the planets and distances between the planets in the Solar System span a large range. They make a sign for each planet they have created in the lesson...
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Scientific Notation
Students explore the concept of expressing numbers in scientific notation. In this scientific notation lesson, students understand the importance of using scientific notation by finding real world examples where scientific notation is...
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Cooking with the Sun!
Students access prior knowledge of solar energy and understand that solar energy produces heat. In this solar cooker lesson, students complete grade appropriate experiments using the heat of the sun. Students complete a worksheet on...
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Spaced Out
Students explore the transit of Venus and the information that this minieclipse provides about the distance between the Earth and the sun. They create their own astronomical units.
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Ellipses and Kepler's First Law
The class examines graphs in the form r = F(¿¿) in polar coordinates (r, ¿¿), in particular with the circle, ellipse and other conic sections. They determine the nature of an ellipse by studying the role of the semimajor axis and...