Ice is nice, and its condition on the planet has a significant effect. Junior geoscientists experiment with ice melting in both water and on land to discover how each affect the rising sea level. This detailed lesson outline even...

Looking for a terrific chemistry activity for your 5th graders? This one could be for you! After a teacher-led demonstration, learners are broken up into groups and perform an experiment using cabbage juice, water, window cleaner, and...

Sugar crystal growth is observed as an example of physical change and cabbage juice pH indicator is used to demonstrate chemical change. The crystal growth is tracked over five days. The cabbage juice experiment is involved and can also...

After reviewing the causes and effects of climate change, students become observers for "Plant Watch," a program to monitor the effects of climate change on plants. Students record blooming and leafing dates for selected local species...

As an anticipatory set, young environmental technicians watch a video about how ocean temperatures seem to be changing along with the global climate. They perform a laboratory demonstration with the purpose of observing what happens to...

If you have taught the first lesson in this mini unit, learners already know that cabbage juice and vinegar cause chemical changes in some materials. Now, they get a chance to use them to compare the liquids' reactions to five known and...

Discover an important property of linear functions. Learners use the slope formula to calculate the rates of change of linear functions. They find that linear functions have constant rates of change and use this property to determine if...

How are animals in separate but nearby habitats related? Ecology scholars compare the animal inhabitants of the Gorongosa National Park in part seven of an eight-part series. Learners study photos from two different habitats, then...

A micro-unit on the phase changes of water includes three laboratory activities. Junior scientists compare the densities of ice and water, and then they do the same for cold and warm water. They examine freezing and boiling temperatures....

Begin a unit on weather and climate change by assessing prior knowledge of the topic. Learners respond to a survey with questions that ask what they think causes climate change, the effects of climate change, and if it is important...

The dynamics of a city can have a drastic effect on the weather. A hands-on lesson asks learners to build a model to illustrate how city pollution provides a nucleus for condensation. The greater the pollution, the greater chance for...

The greenhouse effect and its relationship to global warming is the focus of an activity that asks class member to consider the effects of climate change on weather. Pupils work with their families to determine their carbon...

The fascinating video "Changing Planet: Fresh Water in the Arctic," introduces your oceanographers to the world's gyres. They learn that melting sea ice is making the gyres larger, and that the changes could, in turn, contribute even...

Learners consider the rate of filling a cone in the 23rd installment of this lesson series. They analyze the volume of the cone at various heights and discover the rate of filling is not constant. The lesson ends with a...

Young scholars investigate the climate changes occurring locally, regionally and globally over the last one hundred years. They brainstorm and predict whether the current year's weather was warmer or colder than last year then check the...

Investigate a heated topic in environmental science. Scholars team up to play the parts of gas molecules in the atmosphere. As the teacher moves about, acting as the electromagnetic wave, learners react as their molecules would to the...

Fourth graders identify a physical change as one that results in a change in size, shape, or state of matter. After an initial teacher-led discussion and demonstration, groups of students get together to perform an experiment which...

From start to finish, this is a truly excellent lesson plan addressing the epidemic of diet-related disease in the United States. Learners begin with a reading excerpt of detailed information on trends in the American diet and the...

From gas to liquid condensation to solid frost, water undergoes phase changes before young scholars' eyes! Using ice, salt, water, and a metal can, they set up an investigation that can be used in a physical science setting, or as part...

Consider the preponderance of evidence when making a verdict. The third of five lessons in Unit 1: The Big Climate Change Experiment focuses on the evidence for climate change. Learners study graphs, diagrams, and pictures regarding...

Scholars are sure to get a charge out of an electric lesson! They examine the potential energy of charged particles while they make changes to the electrical field. The simulation allows them to change the position of particles and the...

Students investigate chemical and physical changes in reactions. In this chemical and physical change lesson plan, students mix 6 different white substances with water, vinegar and iodine. They make hypotheses about each substance and...

Students investigate chemical and physical changes. In this physical and chemical change lesson plan, students perform 3 experiments in the lab to observe changes in matter. They determine that no new substances are formed in physical...

Continuing with the concept of volume and its effect on density, learners now work with a piece of clay to see if they can get it to float in water. This is a memorable end to a seven-part investigation of density. Make sure to check out...