Warm up to the idea of solar energy. A lesson includes three activities that challenge scholars to apply knowledge in new ways. First, they learn to run an alarm clock without a battery by using solar energy. Next, they complete an...

Examine how heat can be transferred between systems by reconstructing a diagram on energy flow and solving problems on heat flow and work done.

Seventh graders determine what makes a battery work. In this battery lesson, 7th graders brainstorm ideas about how they think batteries provide energy. They perform an experiment in which they work as a team to assemble a battery. They...

Model the transfer of energy during a typical 24-hour period. Young scholars use a game-like approach to learning the patterns of heat transfer through the day and night. Groups of four exchange different tokens as the energy...

Fifth graders observe different types of conductors. They answer orally about the conduction of heat energy with 100% accuracy. Students investigate some materials that conduct heat much better than others, and poor conductors can...

Questions that can be used in a lesson on Earth's radiation balance are suggested in this resource. It is not a lesson plan, per se, but it is a list of questions for stations within a "Gallery Walk" lesson. The link to how Gallery Walks...

Tenth graders examine how energy is lost through different trophic levels.  In this trophism lesson students construct a food web and view a video. 

In this second lesson of the series, pupils learn to observe similarities and differences in photos of the sun and record them in a Venn diagram. Then, small groups practice the same skill on unique images before presenting their...

Students explore solar power. In this solar power lesson, students build simple solar cookers after they study convection, conduction, and radiation. Students transfer their knowledge of how the solar cooker works to climate changes on...

Students complete a science experiment to study insulation, heat transfer, and permafrost. In this permafrost study lesson, students design and test a soda insulator. Students graph their class data and discuss the results. Students...

Third graders read, write, and listen to information about the sun and its effects on the Earth.as it relates to its axis, orbit, rotate, and revolution.  In this solar system lesson, 3rd graders examine how the sun...

Young scholars take a trip on a science trail to explore how corn and soybeans can be made into fuel. They make a list of byproducts that come from soybeans. Afterward, they participate in the activities related to the creation of...

Students collect and analyze data to study wavelengths of visible light. They cover Styrofoam cups with three different colors of sun filtering products and shine a lamp directly on the cups. They determine the most effective filtering...

Young scholars investigate simple series circuits and their properties. In small groups they draw a circuit diagram on their Series Circuit Building worksheet, follow step-by-step directions to construct a simple series circuit, and...

Students use NASA satellite data to see cloud cover over Africa.  In this seasons lesson students access data and import it into Excel. 

Students explain the four stroke process in internal combustion engines. In this physics lesson, students role play this process and present their reenactment in class. They draw and label the diagram of an internal combustion engine.

Teach the basics of mass spectrometry with a hands-on lesson. The fourth in a series of six lessons explores how mass spectrometry measures the ionic composition of an element. Learners then compare and contrast relative abundance and...

Condensing water warms the air around it. Young scholars consider this concept as they experiment with air temperature around evaporating and condensing water vapor. They simulate the formation of clouds to experience the associated...

Pupils draw series and parallel electrical circuits. In this electromagnet lesson, students describe how current changes depend on circuit components. Pupils use an OHT of a series and parallel circuit to predict the path of...

Students conduct Internet research to track the path of Hurricane Rita. They record the sea surface temperature of the Gulf of Mexico during and after the hurricane and draw conclusions about how hurricanes extract heat energy from the...

Students construct their own diagrams outlining the pathway of carbon and oxygen in the atmosphere. Students explain their diagrams outlining the pathway and teacher checks for accuracy and completion.

Students gather historical snow cover and temperature data from the MY NASA DATA Web site. They compare this data to data gathered using ground measurements from the ALISON Web site for Shageluk Lake. They graph both sets of data and...

Students discover that charge movement through a circuit depends on the resistance and arrangement of the circuit components. In a hands-on activity, students build and investigate the characteristics of series circuits. In another...

Young scholars examine Death Valley including the amount of precipitation and winds that it gets.  In this climate based lesson students explain the reasons for the amount of precipitation and windward patterns in Death Valley.