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Activity
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Noodling Around: Powers of Ten

For Teachers K - 12th Standards
How many noodles long is your classroom? Find out when engineers of all ages explore measurement through the use of pool noodles. With the noodles pre-cut to certain metric lengths, the activities could be used to introduce the metric...
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Lesson Plan
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National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Big vs. Little - Macro to Micro Lesson 5

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
It is a long way from nano to macro. Learners examined the scale of measurement from macro to nano in the first four lessons of the five-part series. With the final installment, they review what they learned by classifying objects in one...
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Lesson Plan
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National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Big vs. Little - Macro to Micro Lesson 4

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Make a big deal out of things the class can't see. Young scientists get an introduction to nanoscience in the fourth installment of a five-part series on scale. The instructional activity discusses current innovations in nanotechnology...
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Lesson Plan
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National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Big vs. Little - Macro to Micro Lesson 3

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
A nanometer is the approximate distance your fingernail grows in one second. Hard to visualize, isn't it? The third of a five-part instructional activity on scale seeks to help learners understand the size of the nanoscale of...
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Lesson Plan
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National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Big vs. Little - Macro to Micro Lesson 2

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
The big world is full of tiny surprises. Classes discover all things big and small while completing the second lesson of a five-part series comparing macro- and micro-objects. Learners collect items from around the room including things...
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Lesson Plan
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National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Big vs. Little - Macro to Micro Lesson 1

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
Small and large are relative terms; what's the best way to quantify them? Young scientists take on that challenge as they complete an interactive activity to explore size. They build structures during their exploration and begin using...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Sometimes We Need Large Numbers to Describe Small Things

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
String the class along to help them understand large numbers. A multi-disciplinary lesson uses literature, science, and math to look at very large numbers. Pupils conceptualize how much a million is using literature before performing a...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Learning About Surface Area and Volume

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Plan a dinner party. Using a book by Marilyn Burns as a context, pupils learn about the relationships between area and perimeter and surface area and volume. The hands-on activities have learners rearrange tables and cut up meatballs to...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Can Small Pollutants Harm Aquatic Organisms?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Nanoparticles have toxic effects on plant and animal life—even though you can't see them. The second instructional activity of a two-part series has young scientists conduct an experiment that exposes plant and animals to nanoparticle...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Gelatin Microfluidics

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Micro what? Analyze microfluidics as an application in the medical community. A lab investigation highlights the importance of channel design in biotechnology. Learners modify channels and observe the behavior of the flow of the fluids.
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Coffee Break with Nanoscience: Film Formation and “Coffee Rings”

For Teachers 6th - Higher Ed
Prepare scholars for micro and nanoscale investigations. A lab activity allows individuals to practice their experimental techniques while becoming to accustomed to the smaller scale of the materials. They also make decisions about the...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

The Blood Glucose Monitor

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Become a doctor for a day! Learners analyze synthetic urine and blood samples to diagnose diabetes. They use lab procedures to identify abnormal glucose levels, and, as a follow-up activity, they build a model to illustrate the...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Synthesis of Nickel Nanowires

For Teachers 9th - 12th
It's all about the scale—they're not just wires, they're nanowires! The second lesson of the series builds on the oxidation-reduction experiment in the first lesson. Scholars synthesize a sample of nanowires using electrolysis. As they...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Save the Dinosaurs with Copper and Zinc!

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Create a coat of armor for dinosaur volunteers. Young scientists explore the oxidation-reduction reaction facilitated by electric current. The result of the reaction is a dinosaur coated in copper and zinc, which leads to an...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Understanding Wave Motion - Slinky vs. Snaky: Which Spring is Dominant?

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Ride the wave to an understanding of refraction! The first in a series of two inquiry-based lessons challenges learners to create transverse waves with two different types of springs. As their wave hits an object, they observe the change...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Lab On A Slab

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Capillary action is the frugal chemist's dream ... the less liquid used, the more tests they can run! Learners experiment with the best design to maximize the benefits of capillary action. Using a liquid sample, they design a capillary...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

The Effects of Colloidal Silver on Microbial Growth: Investigating Snake Oil Science

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Can your classes solve the problem of the smelly sweat sock? Young scientists complete a lab investigation that begins by using electrochemistry to generate colloidal silver. They use their solutions to test the rate of microbial growth...
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Activity
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

The Micro and Macro World Around Us

For Teachers K - 12th
Don't let your eyes play tricks on you ... use scale to keep your eyes in check! Young scholars observe images without scale and try to identify the structure. Then, they look at the same image with a scale bar and assess whether their...
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Activity
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

What’s In Your Neighborhood?

For Teachers K - 12th
Chart your way to an understanding of nanoscale. Using a Google map, learners estimate a radius around their location of 1,000 and 1,000,000 meters. Predicting what 1,000,000,000 meters would look like takes them off the charts!...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

How Can Nanoparticles Move from Land to Ocean?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Investigate the migration of the nanoparticle from land to water! A lab investigation asks budding scientists to simulate runoff. Testing water samples before and after the simulation leads individuals to make conclusions about pollution...
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Activity
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Shrink Me!

For Teachers K - 12th
The incredibly shrinking meter—decimeters to centimeters, to millimeters, and now to nanometers! Learners may have a difficult time visualizing particles on a nanoscale. Help them see a little clearer using a well-designed lesson that...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Silver Nanoparticle Synthesis and Spectroscopy

For Teachers 10th - Higher Ed
Certain materials do not always maintain the same physical properties when they exist in the nanoscale. Help your classes to explore this idea through an experimental instructional activity. Scholars use spectroscopy with samples of...
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Lesson Plan
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Mixtures and Nanotechnology

For Teachers 7th - 12th
What does size have to do with it? Learners analyze different mixtures, both homogeneous and heterogeneous, to discover the properties related to the size of their particles. The activity connects these properties to those of...
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Activity
National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network

Size and Scale – Learning about Measurement

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
Can you visualize one billionth of a meter? It's not easy to understand the scale of a nanometer. Learners use a hands-on lesson to develop an understanding of the size of a nanometer in comparison to common objects. They walk away with...