Cells: The Units of Life

Teacher's notes, a materials list, detailed procedure, tips, and extension ideas are all included to make teaching this lesson on photovoltaic cells a sunny spot in your day! After some brief background reading, physical science...

Rise and shine! Class members collaborate to construct a photovoltaic solar cell with two semiconductor layers, as guided by this fabulous lab sheet. They test its output with an ammeter or galvanometer. 

Students are able to answer basic questions about the process of turning light energy into electrical energy. They are introduced to the basic physics and chemistry behind the operation of a solar cell. Students explore how a single...

How effective are cells at repairing UV damage? An inquiry-based lesson has learners experiment with organism by exposing them to various levels of UV light and then examining their DNA after a period of time. Pupils test different...

Searching for simple ways to teach mitosis to high schoolers? Using colored chalk and onion root tips, pupils visually demonstrate what they view when looking through the lens of a microscope. There are also various ways to expand the...

Look beyond the light! An engaging activity introduces young scholars to the application of a spectroscope. The lesson is the fifth in a series of six and focuses on the analysis of the elements of the sun.

We know the speed of light, but can we measure the speed of dark? During the lesson, scholars perform gedanken, or thought experiments related to the speed of sound and the speed of light. 

How does a lens work? A thorough video lesson addresses this question by looking at the lenses of human eyes, telescopes, and microscopes. Light waves play an important role function of each of these objects. This is the 41st lesson in...

Get up close and personal with human cells with this lab instructional activity. Learners use a microscope to examine their own cheek cells, drawing diagrams of the cells and identifying the parts when they have focused in on a visible...

As humans, we perceive immoral behaviors as more revealing of a person's true character than good behaviors...but why? Peter Mende-Siedlecki conveys recent research in social psychology that suggests we are quick to form lasting...