Curated OER
Double Toss
Young scholars experiment with potential and kinetic energy. They design a device that will toss a ball at least 30 centimeters, catch it and to the ball up again.
Curated OER
Fatal Accident
Eleventh graders explore, examine and study the impact of personal decisions on the safety and health of self and others. They assess how to evaluate individual coping skills to manage life-changing events. Each student defines and...
Curated OER
Designing a Solar Concentrator
Learners design and build a solar concentrator. In this physics lesson, students evaluate their design and convince everyone why theirs is the best. They create a presentation and share it with the class.
Curated OER
Habits of Mind
Students study tree leaves to complete the activity, In this tree leaf experiment lesson plan, students observe, measure, and sort tree leaves individually, in groups, and in relationship to the entire tree.
Curated OER
Water and Ice
Students will work in small groups, observing an ice cube and recording a description, the feel of the ice, and how it looks when put in another container. Students observe changes in the ice over 15 minute intervals, then freeze the...
DiscoverE
Friction in Action
There's no need to have friction among instructors regarding the resource. Pupils investigate how marbles and coins slide along different surfaces which gives them information to estimate coefficients of friction.
Curated OER
Exploring Buoyancy
Young scholars use materials found at a resource table to design simple devices that will house instruments to take water samples from a tub of water. They design 3 instruments, each varying in density so that one will float, one will...
Curated OER
Paper Suspension Bridges: You Want Me To Go Up There?
A few class periods will be required to complete this physics investigation with your high schoolers. There is an unavailable video written into the lesson plan, but there is plenty of material here to bridge the gap. Two terrific...
PHET
Mapping the Field of Multiple Dipole Magnets
So you built a magnetometer, now what? High school scientists use their magnetometer made in a previous lesson to map the union of magnetic fields of dipole magnets. They experiment with different alignments and draw conclusions about...
Rochester Institute of Technology
Skateboard Performance Testing
Perform an activity on performance testing with a lesson focused on the purpose of wheel bearings on skateboards. Learners conduct performance testing on a skateboard to collect and interpret data.
University of Colorado
Great Red Spot Pinwheel
The great red spot on Jupiter is 12,400 miles long and 7,500 miles wide. In this sixth part of a 22-part series, individuals model the rotation of the Great Red Spot on Jupiter. To round out the activity, they discuss their findings as a...
Curated OER
Fitness Notes - Weight Training
In this resource, the fitness notes cover the five principles of fitness, the principles of training/exercise, and cardio-respiratory fitness. The weight training notes cover the principles of weight training, proper techniques, and the...
Curated OER
Magnetism
All phenomena concerning magnets, their field lines and impact on objects are covered. The trivia surrounding field lines and the earth, electric charges, repulsion and attraction is plentiful. The slide show continues after twenty...
Curated OER
Typical Conceptual Questions for Physics I - Heat
This worksheet would make a nifty quiz on the laws of thermodynamics. Nine multiple choice questions assess high schoolers' understanding of energy transfer, specific heat capacity, phase change, fusion, and vaporization. It is short but...
Cornell University
Catapult
Studying levers couldn't be more exciting! Learners build their own catapults and test the results as they make adjustments to the fulcrum. They compete against other groups to create the most accurate apparatus.
NASA
Measuring Dark Energy
You're only 10 minutes late? Do you know how much the universe has expanded in those 10 minutes? Scholars graph supernovae based on their redshift and see if the results verify Hubble's Law. If it does confirm it, the universe is...
Curated OER
How Do Airplanes Get Off the Ground
Students construct various types of paper airplanes, exploring action and reaction forces by conducting a paper airplane rodeo. Students then discuss how Newton's Third Law of Motion affected their planes.
Curated OER
Impulse and Momentum
Students are introduced to the concepts of impulse and momentum and problem solving strategies for these types of problems. In groups, they discover the law of conservation of momentum and share their answers with the class.
Curated OER
Toys and Forces
Third graders discuss the collection of toys and demonstrate to the class how a given toy moves. They discuss the part of this toy that could be broken or missing to cause the toy not to work. Which parts could be broken and the toy...
Curated OER
Swinging on a String
Students explore how pendulums work and why they are useful in everyday applications. In a hands-on activity, they experiment with string length, pendulum weight and angle of release.
Curated OER
LEGO Construction Basics-Axles and Wheels
Learners examine axles and wheels using LEGO materials. They investigate the uses of axles, gears, and wheels.
Curated OER
Toying Around with Newton's Laws
Eighth graders identify balanced and unbalanced forces that affect the movement of objects and Newton's three Laws of Motion. Students also design a contraption utilizing Newton's Laws of Motion that will launch a marshmallow five meters.
Curated OER
Swinging
Middle schoolers examine and modify a swinging apparatus. They describe the motion of an object by its position, direction of motion, and speed. Students measure motion using a graph.