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Searching for life
Young scholars explore the possibility of life on Mars and what that might look like. In this planetary lesson students complete several activities on looking for life on Mars.
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There's Air in There!
Students attempt to blow a wad of paper into a soda bottle. In this physics lesson, students discover that air pressure inside of a soda bottle prevents new air from going in.
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Floods: Rising Waters and You
Students will examine how floods work and why they can cause so much damage and destruction. They use a stream table to observe the processes that lead to flooding and the effects of floods on human-made structures. Includes a guide to...
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Communicating Color
Students identify basic colors by their proper names. They explain the process of creating the color wheel and explore the origins and catagories of complex colors.
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Create a Butterfly Mobile
Learners construct a butterfly mobile. In this visual arts lesson, students use rice paper, watercolors, a coat hanger, and wax paper to create a unique butterfly mobile. Learners use photographs of butterflies to construct a realistic...
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Matter in Motion
Second graders examine matter, what it is and what the different states are. In this matter activity students view The Magic School Bus Meets Molly Cule and answer questions.
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Earth's Energy Cycle: Albedo
Learners complete all of the steps in the scientific inquiry process to study Earth's energy cycle; most specifically temperature and the effects of albedo (energy reflected back from Earth's surface) on temperature.
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How Far... How Powerfu
Students work with a real optical spectrum of a gamma ray burst afterglow taken at the Keck Observatory. They measure the shifts of spectral lines, deduce the velocity of the astronomical object, and then use Hubble's Law to get its...
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Car Engines
Students create piston systems and explore the conversion of linear to rotary motion that propels a car. In this motion lesson, students build and test a model piston/crankshift system and discover why there is a maximum limit to how...
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Atmospheric Processes - Conduction
Students explain the process of conduction using a molecular explanation, and explain how different materials conduct at different rates.
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Seasonal cycles
Students understand that the rotation of the Earth is responsible for the seasons. In this seasonal cycles lesson, students learn how the rotation of the Earth affects the seasons. Students answer questions about the rotation, the...
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Coasts
Learners explain the different types of marine coasts and where they are located in the United States and its territories. They explain and identify some of the life forms that inhabit different marine coastal regions.
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Trash Disposal Choices
Students determine the differences between reusable, compostable and recyclable trash.
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Log Book Guidelines
Students are given the guidelines for their log books. The log book first starts with what is the purpose of a log book. Then students have the instructions on how to organize a log book. From there student are given step by step...
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Groovy DNA Beads
Learners create models of DNA and RNA using string and beads. They use beads representing the four nitrogenous bases of DNA to create a portion of a strand of DNA, and it's corresponding RNA. Then, learners examine how many of their...
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Making Recycled Paper
Students explore the advantages of recycling paper. In this environmental lesson, students produce recycled paper by ripping up paper and putting it into a blender with water to create a mixture. Students use their recycled paper to...
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Magnetic Fields and Bermuda Triangles
Students map magnetic fields of a magnet using a compass and predict where fields cancel each other to create 'Bermuda Triangles'. In this magnetism lesson, students use a compass to map the magnetic field of a magnet. They explain how...
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Terrific Tastebuds
Students investigate the four taste regions of the tongue. In this biology lesson, students view a diagram of a tongue and identify the four regions. Students perform a taste test with lemons, sugar, and crackers.
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Animals Up!
Young scholars design and build a pedestal or platform that holds a toy animal. In this building activity, students use knowledge from a prior activity as they build a platform or pedestal for a toy animal using on index cards. They...
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Cake Batter Lava
Students examine how lava flows change the landscape. In this lava lesson students complete a lab activity where they create a lava flow using cake batter.
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MASS
Students distinguish between weight and mass. They examine how in oscillations of a mass against an elastic spring--in the absence of gravity, or in horizontal motion--the length of the oscillation period is proportional to the square...
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Airplanes and Airports: How To Take Off Without Ever Leaving the Ground
Students plan an airport visit. In this Airplanes and Airports instructional activity, students observe the people, activity, and machinery at airports. Then students compare the characteristics of their observations at the airport....
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Collect Data Using a Transect Line
Learners learn about transect lines through a study of marine debris. In this marine debris instructional activity, students calculate the items on a transect line and graph them. Learners complete a category worksheet.
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The Differences Between Turtles and Tortoises
First graders differentiate between turtles and tortoises. In this turtles and tortoises lesson plan students are visited by a turtle and a tortoise. Students write a letter with an illustration after the animals visit the class.