Massachusetts Institute of Technology
List of Chemicals in Space
What is space made of? It turns out that there are many compounds found in space! The 10th lesson of a science series provides a list of the compounds found in space and asks young scholars to research the characteristics of these...
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Chemicals, Chemicals, Everywhere
Students divide substances into categories: made of chemicals/not made of chemicals, synthetic/naturally occurring, and toxic/nontoxic. They observe a mystery chemical and determine what precautions they need to take when handling an...
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Chemical Formulas
Learners examine the structure of molecules, their formula, and percentage composition of each element in the compound. They construct an organic compound with different functional groups using a modeling kit, and draw a 3-D structure...
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A Whiff of Danger
Public health trainees read and write a summary of the article, "A Whiff of Danger". The article is not available through the link, but can be found on the National Center for Biotechnology Information website. After summarizing,...
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Balancing Chemical Equations
Ninth graders explain how atoms and molecules form different substances during chemical reactions and how these processes require losing, gaining or sharing electrons. They correctly write chemical formulas and show how a balanced...
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How Do I Get a Pure Sample of the Molecules I Make?
Students initially engage in online research and consult print materials to identify a compound to produce. Once a selection has been made, individually, students conduct lab experiments to isolate substances. The end product is a...
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Elements And Atoms
Students investigate the concept of elements and atoms. They conduct research using a variety of resources and use the information in order to create a class presentation. The lesson includes specific dialogue and steps for the teacher...
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How do plant & animal cells make and use energy?
Students show the relationship between the need for plants to undergo photosynthesis in order to generate oxygen. They see the flaws associated with this thinking because of the lack of CO2 and H2O and lack of sufficient gravity in order...
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The Chemistry of Killer Coal
Young scholars research chemical components of coal, as well as environmental health impacts of mining and burning coal. They discuss conservation of mass as it relates to combustion of organic compounds.
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DNA Extraction
Students extract and observe a visible amount of DNA from Escherichia. coli cells. They discuss the properties of DNA. Confirmation of the presence of DNA by a reaction with an indicator is confirmed within this lesson. Many hands-on...