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The Greenhouse Effect
Why does it get so hot inside of our cars in the summertime? The greenhouse effect! Lab groups experiment to see what happens to an ice cube enclosed in a jar and placed in sunlight as compared to an ice cube outside of the jar. They...
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Create a Pathway
Fifth graders build and experiment with electric circuits using easily available materials. They hypothesize what may happen if a part is changed.
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Batteries and Bulbs
Students examine the uses of batteries and bulbs and explain the differences between series and parallel circuits. In this circuits lesson students complete a lab activity.
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Applied Science- Technology Lab (Circuit Boards)
Students examine electricity. In this electrical conduction lesson, students create a quiz board (circuit board). They work in small groups to construct the circuit board and come up with questions/answers for the quiz portion. This...
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Making a Battery and Energy Transformation
Seventh graders determine what makes a battery work. In this battery lesson, 7th graders brainstorm ideas about how they think batteries provide energy. They perform an experiment in which they work as a team to assemble a battery. They...
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Minerals and You
Students study how mineral are used in everything around us-- from cereal to satellites. After informing the students about minerals they will discuss the ones that are in the area of the students.
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Scouting for Circuits
Fifth graders investigate electricity and how it used in a circuit to be useful energy. They also use this investigation in order to understand how energy can change forms and still be considered useful if put into the right form.
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What is Lightning?
Students experiment with electricity to understand lightning. In this lightning instructional activity, students show how static electricity causes lightning. Students discuss questions about their experiment and gather important facts....
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Lightning in a Jar
Students create lightning with two common objects and observe the colorful "discharge" of electrons on a smaller scale. By exploring the phenomena of static electricity, students relate their knowledge to the real-life weather phenomena...
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Energy Transformations
Students investigate energy and energy transformations. They compare the various forms of energy, create the circuit and sketch the connections. In addition, they label the circuit to identify areas where energy transformation is present.
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Where the Buffalo Roam
Students lear about energy, energy efficiency and consumption. They measure energy use, graph the date, write a letter then design and present a PowerPoint on the topic.
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Energizing Resources
Seventh graders describe electrical energy and how it is produced. In this natural resource lesson, 7th graders explain the various ways of obtaining and using natural resources for energy and the environmental consequences. They will...
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Parts of a Solar Panel-Part I
Students examine electrical contacts, solar cells, and rechargeable batteries and compare and contrast the characteristics of a solar cell to a rechargeable battery in a hands-on activity. Students complete a worksheet as they...
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Science Lesson: Home-made Generator
High schoolers are able to design and conduct an experiment related to electrical generation. They are able to list the factors that affect the amount of current that can be generated by a simple generator, such as the number of turns...
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What's Wrong With Nuclear Power, Anyway?
Students see that the production and use of nuclear energy has been both praised and condemned as a source of electrical power for our daily living. They examine the reasons for the conflict of opinions in our society.
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Lemon Batteries Revised
Fifth graders investigate how chemical energy in food and batteries is potential or stored energy. They discuss how batteries function, and create a class list of different forms of energy. Students then create a lemon battery that...
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Burns
First graders classify and sort items into categories of things that can cause burns and not cause burns. In this burns lesson plan, the teacher facilitates a discussion of things that can burn students and not burn them. They then...
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Post-Civil War American History
Fifth graders examine significant events in Post-Civil War America. In this Post-Civil War lesson, 5th graders investigate the important events after the war in 19th century America. They read primary source documents about six topics...
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What Is Energy? Short Demos
Students engage in three short, hands-on, in-class demos which expand students' understand of energy. First, using peanuts and heat, students see how the human body burns food to make energy. Then, they create paper snake mobiles to...
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Watt's Up
Students analyze energy efficiency in lighting by visiting eight different classroom stations, determine cost vs. light output, graph their results, and answer questions on worksheet.
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Two Kinds of Circuits
Fourth graders examine parallel and series ciruits. They experiment what happens if a bulb is removed from both a parallel and series circuit. They understand the differences between parallel and series ciruits,
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Solar Energy Experiment
Learners observe solar energy at work. In this science instructional activity, students watch two bottles, painted black and white, sit in the heat with balloons on the mouth of the bottles. They observe and discuss why the balloon of...
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The Physics of Toys
Students explore physics by experimenting with classic toys. In this physical science lesson, students utilize gliders, energy balls, bouncing balls, marbles and other toys to explore how they work. Students explore each toy at a work...
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Energy Efficiency Ambassadors
Students consider how to cut their energy use. In this physical science lesson, students investigate the connections between energy use and climate changes. Students compute the actual electrical energy consumption of 2 bulbs and...