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...

Heat things up in your physical science class with this interactive lesson series on thermodynamics. Through a series of class demonstrations and experiments, young scientists learn how heat is transferred through conduction,...

Clever! Use a clip from the 1997 film, Volcano, to get your chemistry class knee-deep in heat concepts related to lava. In the movie scene, lava flow is stopped in the nick of time. Your class must use calculations to determine if this...

It's sure getting hot out there! Scholars analyze satellite data on land use and surface temperatures, and then learn how to ground truth satellite data through an activity. They apply technology to identify urban heat islands and...

Technology or engineering teams are given a task to design, construct, and test the efficiency of a structure that will foster an even temperature throughout an entire sunny day. Intended as a long-term project, pupils research, plan,...

Young scholars work in teams to create electrical resistance when studying heat and thermal energy.

Students explore liquids and solids by conducting in class experiments. In this matter instructional activity, students define the properties of matter and how heat can change those properties. Students experiment with heating objects...

With Earth Day quickly approaching, as well as many science fairs, why not challenge your class to investigate geothermal energy or other renewable energy resources? There are five driving questions explored in depth here, as well as...

Study heat transfer with activities that focus on how heat energy works. Using a solar cooker, ice cubes, and heat transfer bracelets, kids experiment and record what they find by keeping ice cubes cold and vegetables hot.

Young scholars observe a demonstration on the role of thermal conductivity in heat transfer.  In this thermal conductivity lesson, students design and conduct an experiment to compare the thermal conductivity of four substances....

Students complete activities to study the properties of solids and liquids. In this states of matter lesson, students investigate the melting and freezing of a range of materials in a virtual experiment. Students melt the substances and...

Fifth graders predict what happens when cold and hot water are mixed together. In this physics lesson, 5th graders discuss how heat transfer takes place. They record temperature readings and compare it with their prediction.

Learners map and research imaginary islands located in different parts of the world. They describe the weather and climate of their island and show how local currents, water temperatures and waves may influence the weather patterns.

Students examine the environmental impact of global warming. In this environmental science instructional activity, students design and conduct an experiment about the effect of temperature on paramecia. They write a lab report about...

Is light related to insulation? An informative hands-on STEM activity demonstrates how light affects temperature. First, the class investigates how light passes through different mediums and how that relates to temperature. Then,...

Learners design and build their own solar cooker. In this math lesson, students determine the relationship between the angles of the sun, reflection and cooking time of the solar cooker. They test their project, collect data and...

Students explain the impact of glacial melting to global climate change. In this environmental science lesson, students design an experiment to investigate the effect of salinity change to melting glaciers. They share their results to...

Eighth graders identify the different stages in the life cycle of a star. In this astronomy lesson, 8th graders read H-R diagrams and analyze data. The describe how the Sun's evolution will affect Earth in the future.

Third graders study the features of different moons orbiting the planets. In this astronomy lesson, 3rd graders explore the different phases of the moon using an interactive online website. They compare and contrast the features of the...

Learners investigate the properties of insulation as it relates to whales and sea ice. They research whales and examine atmospheric changes that occur with sea ice variability.

Young scholars make ice cream as a result of viewing changes of states of matter. In this matter lesson plan, students learn how heating and cooling can effect a state of matter to change.

Learners study wind and its effect on weather.  For this investigative lesson students write a report on wind and weather and create a movement sequence. 

Sixth graders complete an El Nino scavenger hunt. In this earth science lesson, 6th graders describe the conditions that create El Nino and compare it to normal condition. They discuss how this phenomenon affects marine ecosystem.

Controlling the efficiency of a greenhouse is a mathematical task. A collaborative project challenges learners to create an efficiency plan for a closed greenhouse. Using algebraic equations, they consider a set of constraints, design...