Lesson Plan
Curated OER

To Renew, or Not to Renew

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explore the various types of renewable energy. After reading articles, they discover the advantages and disadvantages of renewable energy. They also explore the challenges to switch over to using more and more renewable energy...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Excavating the Past

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Learners discover how palaeontologists conduct a dig for fossils and how they interpret the age of the fossils. In small groups, they prepare a "dig site" consisting of bones, rocks and soil layered in a cardboard box. They switch boxes...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Polishing the Petoskey

For Teachers 3rd - 4th
Students select a stone and polish it. Throughout the process they demonstrate an understanding of rocks and fossil formation.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Air Pollution Over Where?

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students predict the movement of an air borne pollutant using their understanding of air currents. They determine which governments and/or communities should be contacted to be forewarned. They also explore the properties of their...
Worksheet
Curated OER

Chemical Calculations and Chemical Formulas

For Students 11th - 12th
In this stoichiometry worksheet, students calculate molar masses, empirical and molecular formulas to solve 105 problems and short answer questions.
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Reactor Incident

For Teachers 9th - 11th
Young scholars are introduced to Chernobyl incident and the resulting environmental health impacts they watch a PowerPoint presentation, read articles and discuss what they have gained from these sources.
Handout
Science Struck

Science Struck: Isotopes of Carbon

For Students 9th - 10th
Describes the characteristics of carbon and what an isotope is. Presents a chart of carbon isotopes listing nuclide symbol, atomic weight, half-life, and nuclear spin, as well as a second chart listing radioactive carbon isotopes....
Unknown Type
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Understanding the Properties of Radioactive Tracers

For Students 9th - 10th
Read the passage and study the graphic to complete the five-question quiz about the properties of radioactive tracers.
Unit Plan
BBC

Bbc: Gcse Bitesize: Radioactive Emissions

For Students 9th - 10th
This lesson focuses on radioactive emissions including radioactive decay, half-life, using half-life, how to calculate net decline, a table showing how the count rate of an isotope might change over time, and a link to a test.
Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Radioactive Dating: Looking at Half Lives Using M&ms

For Teachers 6th - 8th
In this activity, students gain a better understanding of radioactive dating and half-lives by using M&Ms to demonstrate the idea of radioactive decay. They will be able to see how scientists can determine the age of rocks by looking...
Handout
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Berkeley Lab: Radioactive Dating

For Students 9th - 10th
This site provides an overview of radioactive dating, a process used to determine the age of rocks and other materials.
Activity
Texas Instruments

Texas Instruments: Numb3 Rs: A Matter of Half Life and Death

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Based off of the hit television show NUMB3RS, this lesson introduces students to the topic of exponential decay and half-life. The lesson is built around Cesium-137, a radioactive isotope, and it's declining radioactivity over the course...
Handout
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Mit: Inventor of the Week: Willard Libby Carbon Dating

For Students 6th - 8th
Use this site to learn about radiocarbon dating and the scientist who discovered it, Willard Libby (1908-1980 CE).
Activity
PBS

Pbs Teachers:nordic Sagas: Radioactive Reindeer

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Demonstrate how soil absorbs radioactivity by simulating the absorption of the radioactive isotope from the Chernobyl disaster into the lichen of Scandinavia. Use a chart to figure out the half-life of the isotope.
Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Radioactive Decay Calculator

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students will use this online Radioactive Decay Calculator to compute radioactive decay, timed decay, and timed solid disposal for a databank containing 116 isotopes. This calculator also features University of British Columbia disposal...
Handout
Encyclopedia of Earth

Encyclopedia of Earth: Uranium

For Students 9th - 10th
Information about the radioactive element, Uranium, atomic number 92. Describes its history, physical and atomic properties, how abundant it is on the Earth, and permissible exposure limits. Also discusses sources, uses, isotopes,...
Website
US Geological Survey

The Numeric Time Scale

For Students 9th - 10th
This is a good source for getting an in-depth description of using radioactive decay to measure the ages of rocks. In addition to describing the process of radiometric dating, this resource also includes a geologic time scale and four...
Unit Plan
Georgia Department of Education

Ga Virtual Learning: Historical Geology

For Students 9th - 10th
In this interactive tutorial you will explore how geologists use clues in rocks to determine the order in which rocks formed. Learn how principles of radioactivity are used to assign actual ages to rocks. Students will explore fossils...
Activity
Texas Instruments

Texas Instruments: Half Life Lab

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This activity explains how students use a CBL2 and TI-83 or TI-84 calculator to collect and calculate the half-life of a barium isotope. Students can use an isogenerator to milk out a meta stable isotope of Barium with a short half-life....
Unit Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers: Coming Into America: Dating Artifacts 9 12 [Pdf]

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Investigate new discussions on the presence of humans in North America, and emulate the work of archeologists in dating artifacts at a dig site. Use clay to model how the radioactive isotope of carbon (C14) is used in dating organic...