PBS
Ocean Circulation in the North Atlantic
Swirling and churning, the waters of the North Atlantic play a vital role in Earth's climate! Discover the many factors that produce circulation using a multimedia lesson from PBS's Weather and Climate series for high schoolers. Scholars...
Science 4 Inquiry
Investigating How Heat Flows
It is impossible to cool down a glass of water by adding ice. Young scientists explore heat transfer through videos, experiments, and interactive games. They quickly catch on that the water melts the ice and things aren't always as they...
Cornell University
Energy Changes in Chemical Reactions
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...
Science Matters
Thermal Energy Flow in Materials
The sun sends the earth 35,000 times the amount of energy required by all of us on the entire planet, every day. The fourth instructional activity in the 10-part series looks at how light energy from the sun transfers into thermal...
Science Matters
Forms of Energy
The amount of energy Americans use doubles every 20 years. The first lesson in a 10-part series teaches scholars about different forms of energy. They rotate through five stations with hands-on activities or experiments at each in order...
PHET
Energy Skate Park: Basics
Keep calm and half pipe. An exciting simulation teaches pupils about energy transfer from potential to kinetic and thermal as a skater moves through a half pipe or other track. After a brief introduction, scholars can build their own...
PHET
Energy Forms and Changes
Is the ice cooling down the water or is the water melting the ice? Here is a simulation that explores thermal energy transfer with iron, brick, and water. It demonstrates the flow of energy and what happens when each material is either...
Rochester Institute of Technology
Heat Transfer
Use an exciting role play activity to teach young chemists about the importance of heat transfer in maintaining homeostasis. They assume the role of a dog sled owner who has been abandoned and must fend for themselves with only a few...
Government of South Australia
Don't Waste Your Energy
Don't lift another finger, this physical and environmental science unit has everything you need to begin teaching your class about energy. Starting with a look at the greenhouse effect, these lessons and activities take young scientists...
American Chemical Society
Changing the Density of a Liquid - Heating and Cooling
During a unit on density, pupils ponder whether or not temperature affects this property. By carefully inserting blue cold water and yellow hot water into a room-temperature sample, they will see the answer. Make sure to have done the...
American Chemical Society
Matter on the Move
Start this mini unit on matter out by demonstrating how food coloring behaves when placed in cold and in hot water. Then have the class experiment with warm water and soap film. Pupils will learn that an increase in thermal energy also...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Nuts! Calculating Thermal Efficiency
Oh nuts! Do macadamias or almonds produce more thermal energy? Energy enthusiasts find out with this experiment. The objective is to demonstrate to your class how the chemical energy contained in foods can be converted into useable...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Heat
Raise the temperature in your class with this hot film! Cartoon teens discuss thermal energy, the conservation and transfer of energy, three methods of heat transfer, conductors, and insulators. The publisher effectively packed every...
Scholastic
Study Jams! Energy & Matter
After Sam knocks a glass off the lunchroom table, he uses it as a springboard for explaining kinetic and potential energy. He mentions that sound is a type of kinetic energy and introduces the different forms of energy: thermal,...
Curated OER
Heat, Temperature, and Transfer
Physical science scholars discover an array of heat sources. They experiment to connect radiation to heat. They begin to understand thermal equilibrium. Then, they test to see if mass affects the rate of temperature change. Choose a few,...
Curated OER
Heat and the Second Law of Thermodynamics
More than a week's worth of investigation is provided in this source. Physical science stars experiment to describe specific heat, conduction, convection, and radiation. They also discover the relationship between mechanical and thermal...
Curated OER
Gas Pressure, Volume, and Temperature
Physical science learners conduct a simple experiment using the heat of their hands to affect the fluid pressure. They place a balloon atop a freezing cold bottle and observe what occurs as it warms up. Both activities demonstrate how...
Curated OER
Make Your Own Temperature Scale
Differentiate between temperature and thermal energy. Your class will build a thermometer using simple materials and develop their own scale for measuring temperature. Discuss with your class and consider why engineers need to understand...
US Department of Energy
Thermal Expansion of Water: Rise of Sea Level
New ReviewUsing bunsen burners, Erlenmeyer flasks, thermometers, hollow glass tubes, stoppers, and rulers, learners experiment with and measure how water expands when heated. The activity connects the expansion of water when heated to global...
Beyond Benign
What's In a Window?
Take a peek inside a window to heat efficiency. Scholars watch a demonstration to investigate how heat dissipates from several different cups of hot water. Scholars then relate the exchange to how heat escapes from the windows of a...
NASA
Earth’s Energy Budget - Seasonal Cycles
Earth's energy budget should be in the red. Young researchers review satellite data in a presentation to study Earth's solar radiation. They make both qualitative and quantitative observations about variations in available seasonal...
NASA
Hurricanes as Heat Engines
Hurricanes are a destructive yet fascinating phenomenon. Individuals examine evidence that hurricanes use thermal energy from the ocean as they approach land. Learners use images, charts, and graphs to collect data and then draw...
Bonneville
Let's Build Our Wind and Solar Energy Toy
Who says toys can't be educational? The fourth of five parts in the Solar Updraft Towers unit has scholars create toys that run on solar and wind energy. The devices need to be solar updraft towers that can be placed on a warm surface...
Bonneville
Compost Bioreactor Design
Organic waste is a hot topic. The second of three installments in the Bioreactor Water Heating unit challenges pupils to create bioreactors that collect energy released from compost. After watching videos on the properties of water and...