This is one in several lessons that explore the relationship between temperature and phase changes of water. After some discussion, elementary physical scientists place wet paper toweling on a hot and a room-temperature water bag...

When you have a cold drink and you notice the water forming on the outside, it is literally pulling the water from the surrounding air to form the condensation. After watching a demonstration of condensation forming on a glass,...

Here's a wonderful lesson on how substances change states. Groups of learners are given trays with a chocolate bar, a piece of paper, an ice cube, and a balloon. During the activity, the groups closely observe the changes that each...

Is there more to evaporation than just less liquid? Show young scientists the energy transformation that occurs during a phase change through a series of simple experiments. Lab partners place drops of water, ethanol, and ethoxyethane on...

Which is worse — drought or flooding? Neither is helpful to the environment, and both are increasing due to climate change. The 16th lesson in a series of 21 covers the average precipitation trends for two different climates within the...

Some say a picture is worth a thousand words—even from a hundred miles away! Learners review satellite data to analyze ocean variables such as temperature, salinity, evaporation, and precipitation. They look for patterns in the data and...

Transform your classroom into a fully functioning weather station with this series of hands-on investigations. Covering the topics of temperature, precipitation, wind patterns, and cloud formation, these activities engage young...

Here is part one of a two-part instructional activity in which scholars investigate the changing states of water—liquid, solid, and gas. With grand conversation and up to three demonstrations, learners make predictions about what they...

Desert regions are hotter for multiple reasons; the lack of vegetation causes the sun's heat to go straight into the surface and the lack of moisture means none of the heat is being transferred into evaporation. This concept, and other...

This is actually a 10-day mini unit on thermal energy for your high school chemists. Every avenue is taken to get learners absorbed in heat: a pretest, a PowerPoint presentation, Internet exploration, demonstrations, lab activities, and...

Monarch butterfly populations have decreased by 90 percent over the past 20 years due to misuse and ineffectiveness of some pesticides. Given the challenge to increase pesticide safety and effectiveness, the class, through discussion,...

It's time to break the ice! If you are doing all of the lessons in the unit, children have already seen that increasing heat increases the rate of evaporation, but is the opposite true? Does decreasing temperature cause more condensation...

Through a PowerPoint presentation and the embedded animation and video, earth science enthusiasts find out about the moisture in the soil beneath our feet. In the animation, follow a water molecule on its path through the water cycle. As...

Here is part two of a two-part lesson in which scholars investigate the changing states of water—liquid, solid, and gas—and how energy from heat changes its molecules. With grand conversation, two demonstrations, and one hands-on...

Equip young campers with important survival knowledge with a set of engaging lessons. Teammates work together to complete three outdoor activities, which include building a shelter, starting a campfire, and finding directions in the...

After reading an informational text detailing the ins and outs of snowflakes, scholars draw their own special design then work cooperatively to role play a snowman building scenario. 

This demonstration of solar ponds can be used in an earth, environmental, or physical science setting. Lab groups set up a solar pond and model how it is able, due to a salt concentration gradient, to maintain heat for future use. 

Learners characterize a physical change as something that changes to a different size, but retains its basic substance. They measure volumes using milliliters, and perform an experiment that proves that gases expand when hot and contract...

Environmentalists test stream water for temperature, pH, and turbidity. Each group shares their information and then the class makes an overall evaluation of the water quality. A slide show sets the backdrop for the teaching portion and...

Dressing for success is not always about looking sharp. Sometimes it is about staying warm and dry. Present your class with an activity that challenges groups of pupils to design a layered material for blizzard conditions. The teams test...