National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network
Learning About Surface Area and Volume
Plan a dinner party. Using a book by Marilyn Burns as a context, pupils learn about the relationships between area and perimeter and surface area and volume. The hands-on activities have learners rearrange tables and cut up meatballs to...
Virginia Department of Education
Surface Area and Volume
Partners use materials to wrap three-dimensional objects to determine the formula for surface area. The groups use an orange to calculate the amount of peel it takes to completely cover the fruit. Using manipulatives, individuals then...
Differentiation Central
Perimeter and Area
Leave no student behind with this differentiated geometry unit on perimeter and area. Over the course of five lessons, young mathematicians explore these foundational concepts through a series of self-selected hands-on activities and...
Lincoln Public Schools
Cell Exploration Activities
Engage young biologists in exploring the mysteries of life with this collection of hands-on activities. Enlisting the help of numerous digital resources, learners get an up-close look at the structure of plant and animal cells as they...
NOAA
The Biggest Plates on Earth
The deepest part of the ocean is the Marianas trench where two tectonic plates meet. Scholars explore plate tectonics and their boundary types by completing hands-on activities throughout the lesson. Specific areas, such as the Galapagos...
El Museo del Barrio
Dia de los Muertos Educator Resource Guide
What are the origins of el Dia de los Muertos, and how is this tradition observed in contemporary celebrations? With a variety of lesson plans and suggested hands-on activities, here is an excellent resource to reference as you prepare...
National Security Agency
Awesome Area - Geometry and Measurement
Break out those math manipulatives, it's time to teach about area! Capturing the engagement of young mathematicians, this three-lesson series supports children with learning how to measure the area of squares, rectangles, and other...
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Sugar Crystal Challenge
Blow your learners' minds with a sweet lesson on nanotechnology that uses sugar to demonstrate the difference nanoscale surface area makes in dissolving and crystal formation. Plenty of supportive background information is read to...
Curated OER
Estimating the Mean State Area
Seventh grade statisticians randomly select five states and then determine the mean area. The class then works together to create a dot plot of their results.
Curated OER
Finding the Area of Shapes
In this area of shapes unit, upper graders participate in hands-on problem solving activities to find the formulas for the area of a parallelogram, a triangle, and a trapezoid. They manipulate the geoboard to explore relationships among...
Curated OER
TE Activity: Bubbling Plants
Students study a way to quantify the process of photosynthesis during a given time using the Elodea plant. They design a hypothesis that they test in the hands on activity. They compare the amounts of photosynthesis that occur during low...
Curated OER
Earthquakes: Second Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
What causes earthquakes? Second graders learn about stresses from plate movement with a set of hands-on activities. After tracing fault lines on a map with yarn, class members create a paper plate model of Earth to show its layers and...
Curated OER
Earthquakes: First Grade Lesson Plans and Activities
First graders explore how earthquakes release energy in a set of hands-on activities. During the pre-lab, they discover how energy from an earthquake releases waves through the earth using a water-filled cup and pebbles. Youngsters...
Curated OER
An Uncomfortable Situation
If shapes have the same area, do they always have the same perimeter? Learners explore the relationship between the area of square units and their perimeters in a hands-on activity. Observations are recorded, and they begin to recognize...
Concord Consortium
Strings and Areas
You'd be surprised what you can do with a string! The constraint is the length of string, and the task is to maximize area. Given a series of composite shapes, learners must create a formula for the maximum area for a specified...
Teach Engineering
Active and Passive Transport: Red Rover Send Particles Over
I can move about freely, but you cannot. The class models the movement through cell membranes by way of passive and active transport. Members of the class play the roles of various proteins, atoms, compounds, and cell actions and mimic...
Teach Engineering
Things That Matter to Flocculants
How does the dirt get out of your drinking water? A hands-on activity introduces the use of flocculants to help clear solid particles out of water. The plan walks learners through the process of setting up an experiment that controls the...
Teach Engineering
Edible Algae Models
Sometimes it's okay to eat your science experiment. A hands-on activity has pupils create models for algae to learn about its cellular structure. The best part of the experiment? The resulting juice-filled gels are edible—yum!
It's About Time
Concentrating on Collisions
How important is momentum? Pupils investigate and apply the definition of momentum as they conduct analyses during a series of one-dimensional collisions. They infer the relative masses of two objects by carefully staging and predicting...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Niche Partitioning Activity
Dinnertime on the African savanna is a highly choreographed event! Introduce young ecologists to the concept of niche partitioning through a hands-on activity. Pupils research animal behaviors and use data to develop an understanding of...
Virginia Department of Education
Exploring 3-D Geometry
Take young mathematicians on an exploration of the world of 3-D geometry with this seven-lesson unit. After first defining the terms perimeter, area, and volume and how they apply to the real world, students continue on to learn the...
Staten Island Zoo
The African Savanna
Are you thinking about taking your class to the local zoo? Kids of all ages love visiting exotic animals in order to learn about biodiversity, habitat, and animal adaptations. Here is a 44-page activity guide that provides educators with...
Teach Engineering
Boxed In and Wrapped Up
If cubes have the smallest surface area, why aren't there more cube-shaped packages? Scholars take a box in the shape of a rectangular prism, cut it up, and make new boxes in the shape of cubes with the same volume. They then brainstorm...
Curated OER
Pythagorean Theorem by Graphic Manipulation
There are many different ways to show a proof of the Pythagorean Theorem. Here is a nice hands-on paper cutting activity that shows a graphic representation. You can even challenge your young Pythagoreans to come up with their own...