US Department of Energy
Solar Cooking
Who needs a barbecue grill to cook hot dogs when you have the amazing power of the sun at your disposal? Engage young scientists in learning about solar energy with this fun activity that turns a used Pringles can into a solar...
Curated OER
Exploring the Water Cycle
The water cycle is one of earth's most easily observable processes, but demonstrating each step within classroom walls can be a challenge. Through a series of videos and quick demonstrations, cover each aspect of the hydrologic cycle in...
Curated OER
As the Sun Burns
Students investigate the sun's energy. They explore various websites, demonstrate proper solar protection, conduct experiments using special UV beads, and complete worksheets.
Curated OER
Sun Prints
Students discuss energy and where they can find it. They will then discuss the sun and how it functions as an energy source. Next, students get a piece of black paper and some coins. They go outside and make a design with the coins on...
Curated OER
Sensing Energy: Designing to Stay Cool
Students examine the energy the sun produces on a daily basis. In groups, they discover the properties of visible and invisible light. They also adjust the exposure time to change the properties of various objects. To end the lesson,...
Curated OER
Temperature and the Tomato
You will need a photovoltaic system and monitor at your school in order to obtain all of the data required to thoroughly implement this lesson. Your class monitors daily temperature and insolation amounts over a two week span of time....
Curated OER
Solar Kit Lesson #15 - Solar-Powered Electrolysis of Water and the Hydrogen Economy
An outstanding lesson awaits your physics fledglings! After reading about how hydrogen can act as an energy carrier, they examine the electrolysis of water using solar power. They test the gases produced for flammability and will...
Biology Junction
Energy Flow in an Ecosystem
Every living thing requires a food source, thus the interconnections in ecosystems become complex. Scholars learn about these interconnections in a presentation on energy flow. It starts with the sun and moves through many different...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Understanding the Greenhouse Effect
Dive into the power of the sun with a two-part activity. Budding scientists model the greenhouse effect in a hands-on activity, and then participate in a skit that explores the earth's energy balances and what really occurs in the...
Curated OER
Sun and Shadows
Why do shadows look different in the summer than in the winter? What causes day and night? How can a sundial be used to tell time? Answer these questions and more through two engaging lessons about light and shadows. Fourth and fifth...
Curated OER
Connect the Spheres: Earth Systems Interactions
Is everything really connected? Take your class on a walk outside, where they will make observations and write them down on a worksheet. Once they are back in the classroom, learners will work to determine if and how things like birds,...
Curated OER
Energy from the Sun
In this energy worksheet, students complete a chart on the three types of heat transfer and their causes. Then they explain why all of the radiation directed at Earth does not reach the surface. Students also explain the factors in the...
Curated OER
The Sun Helps Things Grow
In this sunlight worksheet, 2nd graders focus on things that need energy from the sun in order to grow. Students color the 5 pictures that require the sun for survival.
Curated OER
Solar Car Series: Angle/Energy Amount
Does the angle of a solar panel change the output? Emerging engineers find out! Demonstrate for your class how they can angle a straw to match the angle of light rays coming from a source. Then turn them loose to experiment with the...
NASA
Here Comes the Light!
Look beyond the light! An engaging activity introduces young scholars to the application of a spectroscope. The lesson is the fifth in a series of six and focuses on the analysis of the elements of the sun.
International Technology Education Association
Singin' the Black and Blues
How does the color of the sky change from blue to reds and oranges to black? An illuminating lesson explains how light travels through different mediums using the sun's light as an example. By examining diagrams and illustrations, pupils...
US Geological Survey
The Water Cycle for Schools: Intermediate Ages
Water can travel from the highest mountain tops to the largest oceans. Using an interactive, young scientists trace the movement using an interactive online resource. They follow the water cycle by reading pop-up explanations on a...
Curated OER
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...
Curated OER
Flow of Energy Through An Ecosystem
In this flow of energy in an ecosystem, students complete a graphic organizer and show the flow of energy from the sun to producers, primary consumers, secondary consumers, tertiary consumers and then decomposers. Students define each of...
Teach Engineering
Solar Angles and Tracking Systems
The sun will continue to rise in the east and set in the west, no matter what. The first lesson in a series of eight introduces the class to solar angles. It makes connections between a person's latitude and the angle of position of the...
NOAA
Animals of the Fire Ice
When the sun's rays can't reach the producers in a food web, where does all the energy come from? Extreme environments call for extreme food sources. Young scientists investigate creatures that appear to get their energy from methane...
Curated OER
The Sun Helps Things Grow
In this sunlight instructional activity, 2nd graders focus on things that need energy from the sun in order to grow. Students color the 5 pictures that require the sun for survival.
Smarter Balanced
Renewable Energy
Renewable and non-renewable energy sources are the focus of a series of activities that prepare learners for a performance task assessment on energy. Groups identify the various sources of energy and classify these sources as either...
Curated OER
How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun
Students explore U.S. history by reading a Native American tale in class. In this cultural storytelling lesson, students read the story How Grandmother Spider Stole the Sun and discuss the characters and themes of the Native American...