Science Matters
Oh Heron
Two teams—the environmentalists and herons—play four rounds of the game, Oh Heron. Using hand symbols to represent food, shelter, and water, players locate their match to produce more herons while those unmatched decompose.
Science Matters
Basic Needs
Scholars take part in a grand conversation about the basic needs of living things. Working collaboratively, pupils brainstorm and identify similarities to come to the conclusion that the environment meets the needs of all living things.
Science Matters
Formative Assessment #1
Discover how much your young scientists know about biotic and abiotic factors with a two-question formative assessment that requires them to observe, list, and describe.
Science Matters
Plot Study
Small groups investigate plots of land to discover how abiotic and biotic factors interact. After recording their findings, scholars share observations with peers and self-reflect on the learning process.
Science Matters
Ecosystem Pre-Assessment
Test scholars' knowledge of ecosystems with a 20-question pre-assessment. Assessment challenges learners to answer multiple choice questions, read diagrams, and complete charts.
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Ice Cream Special
We all scream for ice cream! Individuals create home-made ice cream in the classroom. This is a delicious way to show a real-world application of the freezing point depression to your class.
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Slime!!
Who's going to get slimed? Your entire class! Scholars create slime using Borax, water, and white glue. Some food coloring can give the slime a bit of color.
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Textbook Support Challenge
Textbooks are heavier than a sheet of paper, so how can paper hold up a textbook? Young engineers create a structure out of paper that can support a textbook. To add another wrinkle, they must stay within budget and time constraints.
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Paper Tower
Read all about it! Challenge your class to build taller and stronger. Newspapers provide the means to build towers in a simple activity. Scholars try to build as tall a tower as possible with just two sheets of newspaper.
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Tunnel Meetup
Meet me in the tunnels. Scholars choose a tunnel entrance and mark it on their side of the cardboard. They describe the location to their partners and see if they can guess each other's locations. Punching a hole through the cardboard...
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A Clever Way to Water
Your plants will survive without you. Scholars create a device that can water plants using a coiled string. Along the way, they learn about adhesion and cohesion of water. The challenge is to keep the plants alive for at least a week.
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Clean It Up
Water, water, everywhere, but not a drop to drink—until we clean it, of course! Scholars design a filtration device that removes pollutants from water. The goal is to have the water come out as clean as possible from the device. How...
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Oranges and Batteries
Orange you glad you can make circuits using fruit? Young electricians learn about electric circuits and electricity. As part of the lesson, they build a circuit with an orange and then with a banana.
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An Egg-Citing Ride
Wheeeee! Young thrill seekers build a bungee jump—not for themselves, though, but for an egg. The egg must fall from a height of five feet and rebound within two inches of the ground or floor.
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Paper Recycling
Paper is made from paper, right? Future scientists take bits of paper and produce sheets of recycled paper. The only drawback? It has to dry overnight.
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Rocket-Powered Ski Lift
If a ski lift had rockets, imagine how fast it would be! Scholars let their imaginations take flight as they build models for such a ski lift. Rather than using a rocket, though, they'll use a much safer balloon as the power source.
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Dome Home
Homes come in many different shapes and sizes. Building a model of a geodesic dome is the ultimate goal for the activity. Cutting and folding is the way to go here.
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Electromagnetic Fishing Pole
Let's go fishing ... for paper clips! Individuals create a device that attracts paper clips. This device relies on an electromagnetism, where a flow of electricity in a loop of wire wrapped around a nail causes magnetism.
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Human Suspension Bridge
When is it okay to be suspended in school? When you're part of a human suspension bridge! Learners first model tension and compression in pairs. Once complete, they get together as a class to model a suspension bridge.
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Human Arch
Sometimes, we all need somebody to lean on. Scholars create a human arch by leaning against each other. They consider different approaches to making the arch sturdier and stronger.
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Seismic Shake-Up!
Shake your earthquake-resistant building prototype! Groups create structures using coffee stirrers and clay that can withstand seismic waves. They then test their structures against their own earthquakes.
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Build an Earthquake-Resistant Structure
Future engineers design and build structures out of toothpicks and marshmallows. They then make sure the structures can withstand an earthquake simulator!
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Creepy Putty
Mold your learners into materials engineers. Using glue, Borax, and water, scholars create a viscoelastic material. But your class might know it by another name—Silly Putty.
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Design a Flotation Device
Save the soup! Scholars devise a flotation device using straws, balloons, foam, corks, and other objects. A can of soup must stay afloat for at least a minute with this device—your dinner might depend on it!