Colorado State University
Can it Really Rain Fish and Frogs?
You've heard of it raining cats and dogs ... but what about fish and frogs? It turns out, one scenario is much more likely than the other! Intrepid weather investigators examine the curious behavior of waterspouts using a leaf blower,...
Curated OER
A Funny Taste
Students participate in a demonstration that illustrates the relative amounts of salt in various bodies of water including the Dead Sea, Sallt Lake, Ocean water and distilled water. They taste and compare various mixtures.
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The Water Cycle
Students study the water cycle. In this water cycle instructional activity, students examine how the water cycle works, what its functions are, and how to diagram it.
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The Living Earth-Glaciers
Students investigate glaciers. In this earth science lesson, students use sandy ice cubes to observe how glaciers change the land. Students list forces that cause changes in the Earth's surface.
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Structures and Behaviors of Planarians
Students investigate planaria of the phylum platyhelminthes. They use DigiScope technology to observe and describe the structure and movements of planarians.
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Measuring Water Quality
Students are introduced to the various methods of measuring water quality. In groups, they test various water samples using the different methods, writing them down for pH, oxygen, salinity, and nitrate levels. They use their data to...
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Teacher's Guide For: Water Temperature and Salinity Experiment
Students experiment with water density, temperature and salinity. In this water lesson, students observe how the coldest water sinks to the bottom of a test tube, and how saltwater sinks in comparison to freshwater.
NOAA
Climate, Weather…What’s the Difference?: Make an Electronic Temperature Sensor
What's the best way to record temperature over a long period of time? Scholars learn about collection of weather and temperature data by building thermistors in the fourth installment of the 10-part Discover Your Changing World series....
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Exercise and Water
Second graders discover the needs of their body by trying different types of aerobic exercise. In this physical education lesson, 2nd graders analyze The Busy Body Book by glancing at the pictures inside and predicting what the...
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Life Cycle of a Butterfly
In this activity on the life cycle of the butterfly, students look at 4 pictures representing the life cycle stages, and choose words from a word box that match each picture. Students then number the pictures in the correct order of life...
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Let's Think About Water
Students explore the different forms that water can take and conduct simple experiments to demonstrate some of its properties in each state. They watch a short video that illustrates some of these concepts.
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Displaying Sea Ice
Students display their knowledge of sea ice. In this earth science lesson, students create displays reflecting their understanding of sea ice.Students research the development of sea ice on a variety of bodies of...
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"Tri-County" Project--Water Cycle
Students analyze the parts of the water cycle through research and experimentation. Particular attention is paid to the processes of evaporation and condensation.
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Water and Plants...How Dry I Am
First graders observe two similar plants as one gets water and the other does not. They make predictions and chart the growth of each. They draw pictures of the plants after one week.
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Midnight Dumpers
Students explain how pollution affects ground water. They participate in a simulation to discover the location of an illegal dump. Students explore the monetary benefits, risk and environmental concerns are factors in business decisions.
Space Awareness
Meet Our Neighbors: Sun
The sun isn't just a ball of yellow! Young scientists learn about the features of the sun using a hands-on modeling activity. They build models of the sun using common household items to represent sunspots, solar prominence, and the...
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Saving the Bay
Students investigate water pollution prevention. In this ecology wastewater lesson, students activate prior knowledge about sewage, then view a video explaining the waste water sewage system used in the San Francisco Bay area. Students...
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Weather Olympics
Students consider the effects of topography on climate patterns. For this earth science lesson, students research weather patterns and make inferences of how the land forms may create different climates. Students compare Celsius...
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Stream Chemistry Monitoring
Pupils become familiar with real-world gathering of chemical data. The experience how the science is done: the nature of analysis, data collection, interpretation, and presentation. They study a nearby body of water for their experiment.
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Factors Affecting Ocean Currents
Young scholars design and conduct an experiment to determine the effect of salinity and temperature changes in the movement of ocean currents. In this earth science lesson, students record observations and collect data. They share their...
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Mini-Ponds
In this mini pond worksheet, students create a mini-pond ecosystem with soil, water, and plant life. Students let their ecosystem sit for a day and they observe a sample the next day. Students identify all the pond water microorganisms...
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Tsunami
Students explore tsunami through various hands-on activities. For this earth science lesson, students explain how they are formed. They create tsunami and earthquake models in the lab to observe how they are generated.
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Biomes: Islands and Evolution
Middle schoolers discover how islands form, how plant and animal species get there and what the term means. In this biomes activity students prepare a presentation that describes the life forms and geography of an island.