+
Activity
Texas State Energy Conservation Office

Investigation: Conservation of Energy

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
By rolling marbles down a six-foot length of track, physical scientists determine how much energy is lost to heat. It is recommended that you opt for the foam pipe insulation track because more friction slows the marble, allowing...
+
Activity
Texas State Energy Conservation Office

Investigation: Kinetic and Potential Energy

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
A well-developed lab sheet guides physical science learners through an investigation of kinetic and potential energy. In small groups, collaborators discover whether or not the ramp height or mass of an object has an effect on the...
+
Activity
Teach Engineering

Energy Forms and States Demonstrations

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Does a tennis ball have energy? What about a bowling ball? Demonstrate concepts of different forms of energy forms and states with a variety of objects. Using the equations for potential and kinetic energy, learners determine the amount...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Science 4 Inquiry

Introducing the Types of Energy

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Young scientists explore many different types of energy including light, heat, nuclear, sound, potential, and more. They match the types of energy and identify when energy transfers from one type to another.
+
Lesson Plan
Disney

Renewable Energy

For Teachers 4th - 10th Standards
Bring some energy to your physical science curriculum with this engaging Bill Nye the Science Guy activity. Based on his Renewable Energy video, students explore the concepts of potential and kinetic energy and learn how they are applied...
+
Lesson Plan
Teach Engineering

Energy Forms, States and Conversions

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Even magicians can't make energy disappear. In a discussion-based instructional activity, young scientists learn about energy forms and conversions. They see how energy is neither created nor destroyed; it just changes forms. This is the...
+
Lesson Plan
National Wildlife Federation

An Energy Mix: Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
What did the windmill say about renewable energy? I'm a BIG fan! Lesson three in the series of 12 has classes discuss potential and kinetic energy and then, in pairs, they complete a web quest over the different types of energy...
+
Activity
University of Saskatchewan

Using Conservation of Energy to Determine Average Impact Force

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Explore the center of gravity with your science class as they create a deadfall trap with common materials. They research the concepts of energy conservation and gravitational force before dividing into small groups to create a model of...
+
Lesson Plan
NOAA

Oceans of Energy

For Teachers 7th - 8th Standards
Are the earth's oceans really just giant batteries, waiting for their energy to be harnessed? Middle school mechanical engineers will be shocked by the amazing amount of energy that forms around them after diving into part four of a...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Bonneville

Introduction to Energy

For Teachers 7th - 8th Standards
Transform the classroom with energy. Pupils learn about different types of energy and practice identifying the types in the first lesson of six in a solar versus wind energy unit. The class sees examples of how one type of energy can be...
+
Lesson Plan
NEED Project

Calibrating Thermometers

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
Engage young scientists in the upper-elementary and middle school grades with this collection of simple experiments. Whether you're teaching about heat transfer, density, or potential energy this resource has a lab for you.
+
Lesson Plan
Cornell University

Energy Changes in Chemical Reactions

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
The heat of solution measures how much thermal energy a dissolving substance consumes or gives off. The experiment demonstrates both endothermic and exothermic reactions. Scholars dissolve several substances, measure the temperature...
+
Lesson Plan
Clarkson University

Forms, States, and Conversions

For Teachers 5th - 8th Standards
Searching for a way to integrate multiple concepts of energy conversion while captivating a middle school audience? This lesson presents topics related to potential and kinetic energy and offers the ability to allow pupil interaction. 
+
Activity
Teach Engineering

Amusement Park Ride: The Ups and Downs in Design

For Teachers 7th - 8th Standards
Groups design the ultimate roller coaster by considering potential and kinetic energy. They test their designs using marbles and then go on to rate each group's design based on aesthetics, loop diameter, and cost.
+
Activity
PBS

Paddle Power

For Teachers 4th - 8th Standards
Potentially get all the way across the water. The fourth of five design challenges asks pupils to develop a plan for a paddle-powered boat that will store its energy. Given a limited number of supplies, the class members design, build,...
+
Lesson Plan
1
1
Science 4 Inquiry

States and Phases of Matter

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Plasma is the most common phase of matter in our universe. Scholars explore the change of energy as molecules change phases of matter. They rotate through stations, graphing the changes in energy level.
+
Activity
MENSA Education & Research Foundation

Roller Coaster Mania!

For Teachers 3rd - 10th Standards
Raise the energy level of your physical science class with this exciting hands-on activity. Applying their knowledge of kinetic and potential energy and Newton's laws of motion, young engineers use foam tubing and marbles to create...
+
Activity
DiscoverE

Build a Bobsled Racer

For Teachers 3rd - 8th Standards
Host a design challenge of Olympic proportion! Junior engineers build their own bobsleds using simple materials. The activity focuses on kinetic and potential energy and how the center of mass affects motion on a downhill track....
+
Activity
It's About Time

Defy Gravity

For Teachers 7th - 12th Standards
Test the limits of gravity while encouraging full class participation with this thrilling lesson. Pupils investigate the meaning of work and how it is equivalent to energy. They explore the joule and apply it as a unit of work. They...
+
Lesson Plan
STEM for Teachers

Temperature and Bounce

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
Take part in a fun experiment and hold an impromptu bouncing contest with your class. Young scientists heat and cool balls before bouncing them to determine whether temperature changes affect how they bounce. The set of STEM lesson plans...
+
Activity
Colorado State University

Why Can Warm Air "Hold" More Moisture than Cold Air?—Vapor Pressure Exercise

For Teachers 6th - 12th Standards
Does it feel a little humid in here? Learners assume the role of water vapor in the atmosphere as they explore the differences between warm and cold air. They roll dice to determine their level of energy, which determines if they stay...
+
Lesson Plan
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Working with Wind Energy

For Teachers 3rd - 9th Standards
Teams design and build a windmill, under budget, that can lift an object. The groups evaluate and reflect on their own design, then on those produced by other teams. The goal is to determine which design is the most...
+
Lesson Plan
2
2
American Chemical Society

Heat, Temperature, and Conduction

For Teachers 6th - 8th Standards
How does heat move from one item to another, even when the items are in different states of matter? Pupils experiment with adding washers to hot water and adding hot washers to room temperature water to observe the heat transfer. 
+
Lesson Plan
Cornell University

Catapults

For Students 4th - 8th Standards
Ready, aim, fire! Launch to a new level of understanding as scholars build and test their own catapults. Learners explore lever design and how adjusting the fulcrum changes the outcome. 

Other popular searches