Instructional Video

Identical Snowflakes? Scientist Ruins Winter For Everyone

Curated and Reviewed by Lesson Planet

Can snowflakes be identical? Under perfect conditions, these perfect, unique crystals can have a twin. Explore snowflakes in the great indoors of a laboratory experiment to see how carefully regulated conditions have busted the myth of special snowflake shapes.

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CCSS: Adaptable
Additional Tags
Instructional Ideas
  • Use the resource as an example of the relationship between pressure and temperature
  • Get the class thinking by showing only the first part of the video, then have them explain what conditions the physicist must control to create identical snowflakes
Classroom Considerations
  • For younger learners, a quick discussion of the properties of water will help them understand how flakes form
  • This video is hosted on YouTube
Pros
  • Time lapse sequences allow students to watch as a snowflake grows and changes
  • Animations help illustrate the movement of water molecules at high altitudes as they react to changes in pressure, temperature, and concentration
Cons
  • None
Common Core