Differentiate between temperature and thermal energy. Your class will build a thermometer using simple materials and develop their own scale for measuring temperature. Discuss with your class and consider why engineers need to understand...

Stir chocolate drink mix into hot and cold water to see if there is a difference in how quickly it dissolves. Number three in a six-lesson unit on dissolving, this installment investigates the effect of temperature. If you consult the...

Fourth graders participate in a teacher-led discussion about temperature--hot and cold. Each group of students is assigned specific materials for their lab experiment. They record temperatures measured in their journals and then plot...

Engage young scientists in the upper-elementary and middle school grades with this collection of simple experiments. Whether you're teaching about heat transfer, density, or potential energy this resource has a lab for you.

Now that learners have been exposed to chemical changes, they learn that some take in heat and therefore, decrease in temperature. The same reaction that they have been investigating between baking soda and vinegar is revisited,...

Young scholars examine the effect of temperature on how often crickets chirp. In groups, they complete the experiment and answer lab discussion questions. They create a graph of temperatures and the amount of chirps and discuss the results.

Students study solar energy and how to measure it.  In this energy sources lesson students complete a lab, obtain data and use that to convert surface temperature to energy. 

Young scholars investigate the effects of temperature and concentration on the rate of reactions. For this "clock reaction" kinetics lesson plan, students change the concentration of one reactant and keep the second constant. An...

This very thorough lesson plan has students collect all ingredients necessary and work in pairs to make ice cream using plastic bags. They take temperature readings and record them on the chart as well as record findings on the...

Students are challenged to come up with a good estimate of the amount of air in foamed polystyrene products. They use this gas evolution experiment and as such have students measure the gas generated when foamed polystyrene is degassed...

Learners conduct an experiment to determine what type of clothing would be most suitable for outdoor activities. They determine the temperature changes of the skin under various wet clothing materials and graph the temperature changes. ...

Students use the scientific method to investigate the role of temperature in microbial growth. For this food preservation lesson, students set up an experiment with fruit in room temperature and in a refrigerator. They record the...

Students test for the presence of enzymes in fruit and the specificity of those enzymes, as well as to identify and show the susceptibility of enzymes to certain environmental factors (temperature and pH) originating in the enzyme's...

Clouds are nature's insulator! A lab investigation asks learners to use an infrared thermometer to measure differences in infrared temperatures. They find that pointing the thermometer at a cloud has a much different result than pointing...

For this physical science exploration, small groups place a piece of antacid tablet into a film canister and step back to time how long it takes for the top to pop. They repeat the activity, altering either the amount or temperature of...

Students investigate the heart beat of zebra fish in timed intervals. They record the heart beats and average three counts to display in their data tables. They repeat these steps increasing the adrenaline solution.

Sprouting scientists explore the concept of density by making mass and volume measurements for five different liquids. From these measurements, they calculate densities. They apply their learning to explain Galileo's thermometer works...

Sixth graders study heat, temperature, and heat transfer. Using probeware, the teacher demonstrates boiling points. Students participate in experiments and record the beginning and ending temperatures and mass of objects. After...

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! Even high schoolers enjoy making ice cream. This laboratory exercise has them record the temperature changes throughout the process of liquid becoming solid, graph the results, and...

Young scholars observe how different water densities control the depth at which different water masses occur. They explain one fact that they comprehend about salt water. Students comprehend that temperature and salinity affect the...

Students obseve and compare molecular movement within water at various temperatures and of varying salinity. They discuss the movement of water on a larger scale which can affect the movement and concentrations of microbial populations...

Students measure respiratory rates on live toads, and the effect water temperature has on their findings.  In this scientific method lesson, students record their findings and present them in a graph, comparing the results.

Students explore Boyle's Law. In this Boyle's Law lesson, students complete problems involving Boyle's Law. They examine the effects of Boyle's Law upon the human body. Students use the Internet to complete a lab activity.

Students create flubber glaciers. For this glacier dynamics lesson, students experiment factors that may affect glacier speed. Factors include slope, ice temperature, and basal conditions. Students develop hypothesis, conduct experiment,...